<p>Grace’s suggestion is a good one, although in all honesty I haven’t heard of anyone turning down Harvard or Princeton to go to the Pitt honors program. (Penn, yes.) Lots of public universities have honors programs. Some are just marketing, but many do a good job of creating an intellectual community. It may not be as universal as it is at Chicago, but a reasonable substitute, and the institutions often offer much better football teams and larger parties for those moments when you choose not to go to the library.</p>
<p>A few somewhat less selective colleges that are often compared to Chicago: </p>
<p>University of Rochester. A recent president really tried to model it on Chicago, and sparked its current renaissance in popularity.</p>
<p>Reed College, in Portland, Oregon. Very intellectual reputation, attracts many of the same students who apply to Chicago. Great physics program for a LAC, too, as well as an urban (but not downtown) location not unlike Chicago.</p>
<p>St. John’s College, in Annapolis MD or Santa Fe NM. If you are attracted to a strong Great Books core curriculum, this college has it (and Chicago doesn’t, actually).</p>