@UChicago I didn’t send this question to the e-mail: I have submitted both my application and my supplement, but on the UChicago portal, there isn’t a space under ‘Forms’ for me to indicate interest in an off-campus alum interview. What should I do?
@hitgirl if you could email this issue to us at collegeadmissions@uchicago.edu or call us at 773-702-8650, we can fix this! It sounds like it may be a problem with your individual account which we can easily solve.
@UChicago I submitted my application on Dec 28, but have not received an e-mail asking me to set up my UChicago account. I would like to request an off-campus interview, but we need the account to do so and the deadline is in two days (Jan 9) according to the website. What would you suggest I do?
@sr97329 please email our office at collegeadmissions@uchicago.edu with your name, high school attended or birthdate, and this issue and we can resolve this problem for you.
All-- if you seem to be experiencing issues with your individual account (cannot find a form for financial aid or interviews, have not received access to your account, etc) email or phone (773-702-8650) are going to be much faster than asking here, as we’ll need your name and other identifying information (which you should not provide on CC!) to address the issue.
Hi @UChicago ! I have a few questions: When will you send out off-campus alumni interview notifications, particularly for international students like me? Are you going to read the application before deciding who to interview or that is randomly selected? How will the interview affect my application? Are the interviewers just going to give the officers like a paper with “good” or “bad” on it or are they going to write something?
Thanks a lot 
Hey @UChicago ! I am originally an Early Action applicant who was deferred. My school’s mid term examinations took place in september so my school had already sent the mid year report with the documents that it sent for the early admission cycle. So do i have to send the report again ?
Also, do deferred applicants have to change their admission plan through their Uchicago account or their application will automatically be considered for regular decision ?
@dokisame we will be rolling out notifications of alumni interviews beginning soon and through February. We prioritize students for interviews purely on the basis of when an interview was requested and how many alumni interviewers we have in their area. In some areas it is possible for us to interview all the students who request; in other areas, only a small number or none. Not receiving an interview is not a reflection on your application quality or status at all, we simply aren’t able to accommodate every request especially internationally. The interviewers write a report noting the conversation which is included in your application; we review it alongside the rest of your materials when making our decision.
@ShreyM you do not need to re-send your midyear report if it has already been submitted. Deferred applicants’ applications are automatically considered in our regular decision round-- you do not need to change your decision plan for this to be possible.
@UChicago If an admitted student stated that he/she wass planning to take a specific online class during second semester of senior year on the Common App, but the he/she ends up not taking that class, will that individual’s admittance be jeopardized?
@UChicago can you tell me about some of your most “special” applicants/applications (in both good and bad ways, like people who you feel like you already know what to do after having read their applications, or even just some parts)? I’m a bit curious about how you choose who’s in and who’s out, but you know, whenever I ask, I always get the same thing over and over So I’d want something more personal
Thanks
Is an interview necessary in the application process? Like, do applicants who interview (without bombing it) have a competitive edge over applicants who don’t interview? Basically, I’m wondering if an interview bolsters an application by expressing interest or if it is negligible.
Hi,
I just had questions about two things- one, does uchicago have an applicant portal where i could check that all my application materials have been received? secondly do you have an idea of the sort of date we should expect to hear back about admissions decisions?
Thanks 
@UChicago should I be worried if I haven’t received any information for an online account to track my application? I have heard others received an email shortly after applying that contained a pin code for this account. The only email I received after applying was Financial Aid information.
@UChicago
I am an international student who applied EA and got deferred. I have also applied for need-based financial aid. I was wondering if there is a possibility to indicate that my family is willing to expend more money for tuition than initially noted on the fin. aid application form (which I’ve already submitted), and would this increase the chance of acceptance? After reviewing the finances, my parents have decided that they are able to contribute more.
Another question I have is: Would the admissions office accept an additional essay or would this be looked down upon? It is a personal essay that reflects my unique background not shown in my common app essay.
Thank you very much for your time in answering all our questions!
On the Student Financial Aid Worksheet, there’s a section in the Parent’s Information part where it asks for other family members who are dependents, and, if they will be in college for 2015-2016, the parent’s contribution. Is this the expected contribution of the 2015-2016 year, or the contribution already made in the previous year?
Hey Grace, it says that 98% of the freshman class is in the top 10% of their high school. In my high school, out grades are inflated like crazy and people will normally take easier courses to get valedictorian status and we have 30 valedictorians each year. A 3.9 will not even make top 10%. Will my 3.9 GPA and 55/535 class rank will be looked as “worse” than a 3.9 for someone else who is 1st in their class (same exact course load and same exact AP test scores)? Basically, how does Uchicago look at class rank?
@NateChortek We do like students to be able to offer some explanation if their schedules change drastically, but small changes are fairly common and don’t jeopardize an application.
@dokisame The very best applications are those that are thoughtful and genuine, where it’s clear that the student has taken the time to write essays that were interesting to them to write. Less successful applications are those that where it’s difficult to get a sense of the student’s interests and personality. Unfortunately, for reasons of confidentiality, we’re not able to share specifics from particular applications.
@cooooolkid Interviews are a totally optional part of the application process. You can sign up for an interview on campus with a current fourth year or request an interview with an alum near you. In almost every case, an interview simply confirms what we’re seeing in the rest of the application. We understand that many students can’t make it to campus to interview and we aren’t always able to fulfill all the alumni interview requests we receive, so we don’t look at the interview as an expectation. If you’d enjoy having a casual conversation about UChicago with someone who goes here or went here, go ahead and request an interview!
@ibbi1824 Yes! Each applicant receives a UChicago Account where they can manage aspects of their application. If you’re having trouble accessing your UChicago Account, please email collegeadmissions@uchicago.edu. We will release Regular Decision admissions decisions sometime in mid-march.
@KMizzle Shoot an email to collegeadmissions@uchicago.edu!
@alchemist7010 It’s important that the financial information you submit accurately reflects your family’s ability to contribute to the cost of your education. If there have been significant changes to that situation, please do let us know. Otherwise, though we are need-aware for international applicants, finances are not the guiding factor in deciding who is admitted. Feel free to upload an essay you’d like to add to your application to your UChicago Account.
@tempestreign It’s asking for the expected contribution for 2015-16.
@teddykris10 It would be impossible to try to compare students from around the world based only on their class rank; many schools do not report rank, and rank is calculated in a number of different ways at different schools. As you’ve picked up, course selection and the grades received in those courses are much more useful in getting a sense of how students challenge themselves academically and how they’ve responded to that challenge.
sorry, posted wrong place.
HI Grace @uchicago – A question that I realize you’ll have to answer generically but would still appreciate insights:
I was deferred to regular decision. I would like to have an alumni interview but its not possible in our area (overbooked, I guess). I am thinking of traveling to Chicago in late January/early february, visiting my aunt, and booking an on-campus interview while there. But would that time-frame be cutting it too close? (that is, the likelihood would be high that my application had already been re-seen and then decided on…one way or another…)
@UChicago I was actually able to figure it out and access the account by hitting “I forgot my password” and using my Common App email, but thanks anyway!
@UChicago Thank you for answering both my question, and everyone else’s. You do a great job on the forum!