<p>Do you need to attend the University of Chicago in order to be successful? Of course not! It’s not even worth talking about that. No one’s success depends on attending a particular institution, be it Chicago, Harvard, or West Point. A particular institution may make your path easier (or harder), but it doesn’t control where you are going or whether you get there.</p>
<p>On the other hand, it’s really, really hard to succeed doing something you don’t like and don’t want to do. That has nothing to do with Chicago vs. anywhere else. If the problem is your father wants you to study engineering and you don’t like that, your father is asking for a train wreck. If he wants to waste tuition money or scholarship opportunities, that’s the perfect way to do it.</p>