Any student attending Pomona can take up to 50% of their classes at the other four colleges in the Claremont Colleges. This policy is similar across the Claremont Colleges system; this concept is meant to give students the resources of a larger university while maintaining the positive qualities of a small liberal arts college. The academic calendars and registration procedures across the colleges are synchronized and consolidated, and there are no additional fees for taking courses at another college. In total, Pomona students have access to over 2,700 courses each year, including graduate level courses at the Claremont Graduate University and Keck Science Institute. In addition, students from any department can create independent study courses evaluated through the guidance of individual faculty mentors, with a limit of one course per semester in the first and second year, and two per semester in the third year and after.