<p>Everybody says U Chicago does not pay that much attention to SAT. However, I am not sure whether this is one of the myths floating around like an urban legend. Of course, NO self respecting admission officer will ever say officially that they consider SAT to be a sacrosanct component - that’s not PC, right? </p>
<p>My son was accepted at the EA round. To be perfectly honest, I don’t see how he could have gotten into it without his perfect SAT score (2400). Even his GPA is not drop-dead-perfect. He went to an extremely selective public magnet school (rated within top 5 in the nation among the public schools), and he did well enough, given he never really studied for exams (I never saw him studying), but not 4.0. He spent first two years of HS becoming one of the best and youngest elites in the on-line game world, and the last two years studying econ/finances on his own without any meaningfully “demonstrable” awards and official recognition to boast about. No volunteer activities to speak of to show what a goody goody two shoe he is (other than some Obama campaign work). Never held a job either. I thought it was a minor miracle that he was accepted, having read so often how important the ECs were at the top colleges. Another student from his school with SAT 2350 without any meaningful ECs to speak of also was accepted during the RD round. </p>
<p>That said, he did write an essay about how he is a product of his making without any external pressure and how he discovered his passion for international finance through extensive international travels and aimless intellectual meandering. Maybe it’s the essay that did it for him. But then again, it did not work with HYP. So, if anything, the magic of SAT 2400 worked better for Chicago. Oh, by the way, I thought his “Why Chicago” essay was pretty lame - he applied to Chicago because of the econ reputation, and did not, at that time, know anything about this mantra of “life of a mind” that sets Chicago apart from the other elite schools.</p>
<p>Well, I know nothing can be generalized based on this case, but I am seriously wondering whether the mantra of “SAT is not that important for Chicago” is really all that it is cracked out to be.</p>
<p>That said, I think Chicago is a perfect fit for him, and he stumbled upon the best possible school for him by accident!</p>
<p>Just my two cents as data points to consider.</p>