<p>I agree with both JHS and Cue7 in their advice to consider an offer of admission to HYP very carefully, and also with Cue’s appraisal that Chicago is more similar to Yale than to either Harvard or Princeton. (I happen to know those three Ivies fairly well, especially HY). </p>
<p>I visited Chicago for the first time last April, and I was struck by the similarity in population and general atmosphere between Yale and the U of C. Frankly, I had expected to find a bunch of stressed-out nerds at Chicago, and instead the experience transported me back to my college years in New Haven. I saw a lot of very bright, engaged kids who looked simultaneously more relaxed and alive than at many of the other schools that my son and I had visited.</p>
<p>I will say this, though: if my son ends up at Chicago, I will have a higher degree of confidence that he will emerge from those four years with a first-rate education than I would anywhere else. (He was admitted early to the U of C, and he plans to apply to three other schools, including Yale, RD). The Common Core guarantees that students will not become merely expert technicians in one field but will be adept at deploying with fluidity the different modes of thinking that characterize various disciplines. To my mind, this equips them much better to make the interdisciplinary connections wherein much of creativity and innovation lie. </p>
<p>The trade-off for the more flexible curricula of HYP (and certainly of Brown) is that it’s possible for a student to wiggle through four undergraduate years without stretching him/herself very much. It doesn’t happen too frequently, given the breadth of interests of the typical Ivy League student, but it does happen, and I did see it at Yale. In fact, Rick Levin (Yale’s President) was interviewed a few months ago by PBS’s Charlie Rose; in response to a question about what might constitute the ideal curriculum, Pres. Levin said that, although it’s not popular with students, he would like to see more of a core curriculum in place.</p>
<p>But I agree with JHS’s assessment that HYP’s “access to the corridors of power” is nothing to sneeze at. I am convinced that, whether deserved or not, people look at you differently when they learn that you’ve attended HYP. It opens doors. On the other hand, having interviewed many people for jobs, I can tell you that a college degree from the University of Chicago is perceived as proof of both your intellectual chops AND your capacity to work hard. </p>
<p>All good things.</p>