<p>Very important. Sometimes the admissions council personally remembers your essays and let’s you know. It happened to me: they even sent me a book regarding some of my interests.</p>
<p>I started thinking about all three essays intently around October of my senior year. I wrote my two “smaller” essays in late November and revised them a little bit in December. After thinking for two months, I finally wrote my “big” Chicago essay some days before the due date–I took an angle I had never even expected in my months of contemplations and failed rough drafts. But it was one of my finest essays, that’s for sure.</p>
<p>UChicago seems to take a far more personal approach to the whole admissions aspect than any other school I’ve seen. When admitting an atypical student, I hear a popular line is, “We’re the University of Chicago: we can do whatever we want.” I’m sure it’s heard often :). The school has tons of personality, and you should definitely take what the adcoms say to heart: it’s a very special school, and they’re looking for very special students. Don’t hold back on those essays: this isn’t a school that’s going to judge!</p>