davnasca

Is Chicago your first choice? If not what is. Also, did you apply you Chicago because Harvard and Princeton dropped their early programs or not.

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Chicago has been at the top of my list since 10th grade. I visited it and fell even more in love. I've been uber ecstatic (read: unmotivated) since my acceptance and have been randomly smiling whenever I think about the University of Chicago.

That being said... I need to get a decent FA package before I commit.

But, here is the kicker, I was accepted to Round two of the application for Deep Springs College. For those of you that don't know Deep Springs is a 2yr, all male LAC where the 26 students work on a ranch in the desert of CA/NV while simultaneously receiving a Core on 'roids type education (no I'm not crazy...). It has been the dark horse on my college list for awhile, but I never expected to get through to round two. If after my visit, I like the atmosphere and experience, and I get accepted I will probably go there for two years and then would love to finish up at Chicago. I love Chicago soooo much though- it would kinda stink not going there for a full four years- but Deep Springs is so much more than just an education that I don't think I could pass on the opportunity.

It sure is awesome knowing that I definitely have Chicago to look forward to!

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So whats your deal? Are you gung-ho on Chicago, or is it just your appetizer for your Harvard acceptance!

Building Wings

It is also my first choice.

SomethingSilly

davnasca: congrats on making it to round 2 at Deep Springs! (it would've been on my list, too, but I'm a girl. so. yeah.) I think either Chicago for 4 years or starting at Deep Springs are both excellent choices.

Chicago has been my first choice since, like, forever, although there was a brief period of infatuation with Cornell during freshman year (not sure why, exactly).

made4uchicago

definitely my first choice and has been since before my sophomore year when i took a summer course there. i actually resent all these people who don't truly love uchicago but are just applying because princeton and harvard don't have early programs anymore, but at the same time i can understand their sentiment of wanting the comfort of knowing they can go to a great school. still sucks that i was deferred probably because of the influx of applicants, but that may have happened regardless of the other applicants. who knows.

chicagoboy12

lets not forget those potential harvard or princeton applicants might be applying to YALE's single choice early action, more likely than they would be to chicago's.

made4uchicago

it's true that many other top notch universities such as yale, columbia, and u penn among others got an influx of applicants as well. we are not ignoring that fact, but that still doesn't change the fact that chicago also got more applicants.

also, since u(c) is an EA school not ED, it is more desirable for someone who is more interested in princeton and harvard than uc to apply to uc than to say yale's SCEA because at least they can apply to safety schools or other schools in general. after all, if youre just applying to another school early b/c your first choice of princeton or harvard doesn't have an early program, you might as well apply to as many other schools as possible to hedge your bets.

i'm sure people on the yale thread are complaining as well, but seeing as this is the uc thread, i think we have a right to complain as well.

ArielTriton

it is my first choice.

Bowler Hat

Far and away my first choice.

fight_the_future

It wasn't my first choice, but the more I look into it, I'm learning to love Chicago

MSHP

Yesh. I stopped working on my other college apps when I found out.

LesOs

MIT was my first choice for awhile (UChicago was a close second). After I submitted my EA applications, though the two suddenly did a flip, and now UChicago is my first choice.
My parents don't want me to send in my deposit, though. They're making me apply to Brown and Dartmouth... But, knowing that I'll probably be at UChicago in a year allowed me to have some fun with my applications, and take way more risks than I normally would. I illustrated my Brown essay. Hehe.
It's kind of strange that I'm applying to both Brown and UChicago, though, seeing as they are basically polar opposites of each other.

unalove

Not strange-- the two schools both cater to an intellectual and "different" or "uncommon" crowd that strays a bit from the norm. My dad likes to say (and I think this is true) that both schools have a "Kool-Aid" mentality, both schools have definite stances on what they are "about" and what a liberal arts education is.

I ruled out Brown in my own college search because I thought it was too close to home and I also didn't think I would take advantage of the open curriculum. Had I gone there, I probably would have really liked it.

mv8

its a tie between Yale and U of C but i think im leaning more towards U of C just for the environment, plus i read somewhere that grad schools often prefer U of C students

rd31

well the WSJ Feeder school rankings ranks Yale #2 for graduate school placement (followed by Harvard).

newenglandparent

The WSJ may rank Yale as #2 for graduate school placement, but I live next to Yale and know the secretary of their graduate schools and she told me that they prefer U of Chicago graduates for their graduate schools over almost any other university or college( and this was told to me with great enthusiasm and excitement when I told her that my child attended the U of Chicago). On the other hand, I love New Haven and Yale as well as Chicago. The schools are somewhat different and their locations are quite different as well. If you are lucky enough to get into both, check them both out, stay overnight, talk to students and make your own mind up. By the way, only Chicago and Stanford had three students who got Rhodes scholarships this year (Yes one is now at Yale law school, but she attended Chicago undergraduate).