FWIW, and because I think this is still relevant to OP, I agree that some of this is because of the perceived quality of a UChicago CS student, but also because UChicago delivers an undergraduate education in computer science that prepares students for entry-level CS jobs and graduate school opportunities just as well as Stanford, Berkeley, etc. - as do Yale and Harvard, for that matter. The differences between the UChicago/Yale CS departments and the Stanford/Berkeley CS departments are real, but they apply almost entirely to the depth of their graduate research programs, the impact of their research on the field, and some specific depth in niches. I want OP to know that the CS Undergraduate education he might get at UChicago would be just as valuable as the one he might get at a higher-rated CS department.
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