Gables’ Newest Posse Scholar: Sidney Eramil

Tiffany Beh

Each year there are over 10,000 Posse scholars, senior Sidney Eramil was one of them.

Towards the end of junior year, he learned that both Mr. Cipriani and Ms. Driver had nominated him for the Posse scholarship. This was the very first step in becoming a candidate for the full-tuition scholarship to any school from the Posse list listed on their website. 

Following his nomination, there was a challenging three-step Dynamic Assessment Process interview procedure that lasted four months, from September to December. The first stage involves a group interview where different nominees throughout the nation were interviewed.

From there, a second interview that lasts approximately 20 minutes was conducted on a one-on-one basis with a representative from Posse. Here, the interviewer asked questions to get to know the nominee. For example, Eramil was asked why he had chosen to go to Pomona instead of any of the other schools on the list. Some questions were more personal, as they went in-depth to get to know Eramil and what he is like.

By the time the nominees reached DAP three, the numbers had been narrowed to 20 students. DAP three was the last chance Eramil had to prove himself.

“I was very nervous, and at the same time, I was also relieved because I knew that I had already put in most of the effort. And that this point, the only thing I can do is kind of wait for the results. And I feel like after the final interview process, all of that nervous emotion is really let out. Because, at that point, you know, what can you do? You’re either picked or you’re not,” senior Eramil said.

Following his final interview, Eramil was told Posse would call him soon with more questions. Having just gotten out of the shower, ready to collapse from exhaustion, he heard his phone’s ringtone go off. In that moment, Eramil went through yet another roller coaster of emotions as his last interview had only been two hours prior to the call. 

To his surprise, the first question the interviewer asked him was about his favorite thing to do: baking. After his response, the person on the other side of the phone continued speaking; “I hope you are ready to bake those cookies for Lawrence and the rest of Posse because we would like to congratulate you for being a Posse scholar and soon to be Pomona student.”

Believing that the environment Pomona College had to offer would be easier to adapt to and give him access to one of the best social networks to connect with graduates, Eramil picked Pomona out a list of over 60 schools. Researching, he discovered that Pomona was part of a consortium of four other schools, which broadened the resources available by allowing him to take classes offered by any of the schools.

In addition to the community that Pomona has to offer him, he chose this school as it was more of a Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics oriented, compared to the other universities that partner with the Posse Scholarship Foundation. 

“He completely deserves Posse and I saw him go through the Posse process and during the entirety,  he was super awesome and I could see how hard he worked. He made me read his supplements like 500 times to make sure it emulated who he was. I’m so proud of him and he is an awesome friend. Him being so close to winning Posse just proves how much he deserves it,” senior Brianna Babani said.

In his upcoming four years at Pomona College, Eramil intends to pursue a major in Neuroscience or Computer Science. If all goes well, he plans to attend a graduate medical school, paving the way for a successful future.