<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: N/A
[</em>]SAT II: N/A
[<em>]ACT: 34
[</em>]GPA: 4.0 UW
[<em>]Rank: 1/92
[</em>]Other Tests: 3 on AP US History but didnāt send it in.
[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays: I honestly only thought they were okay. I didnāt show them to anybody elseā¦we were on winter break and parents arenāt very good at objective evaluation. I did the Borges prompt, wrote nothing about myselfā¦it was about a ādreamā I had where I met with all kinds of different people from Aristotle to TJ Jagodowski (Sonic guy). At the end I wrote two sentences about āwho wrote it.ā My āWhy Chicago?ā essay was better, but I think it was too cliche sounding. And I liked my favorite things essay, it was all about my favorite comedian, Mitch Hedberg, with numerous quotes.
[</em>]Teacher Recs: One was very good, the other was kind of generic but still good.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: Highest rankings I think and highest recommendation, with a pretty solid letter.
[</em>]Supplementary Material: I have no talentsā¦lol. I sent in two supplementary recsā¦one from a class sponsor, which was pretty good, and one from my FFA advisor. It was a really good letter, but heās just an old cowboy so it had a few typosā¦haha.
[<em>]Hook: None
[/ul]Personal[ul]
[</em>]Location: New Mexico
[<em>]High School Type: Small, rural, public high school
[</em>]Ethnicity: White
[<em>]Gender: Female
[</em>]Applied for Financial Aid: Yes
[/ul]Other[ul]
[li]Extracurriculars: Nothing spectacular. Student council, NHS, FFA, Science Olympiad, Bio Club, Quiz Bowl, Science Bowl</p>[/li]
<p>[li]Awards: A bunch of local/district FFA awards, National Land Judging Champions 06 (FFA), some district Science Olympiad awards, some awards from state universities, and Presidential Scholar Candidate.</p>[/li]
<p>[*]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: Yes, I feel like bragging!! lol. But really, Iām completely shocked. And completely ecstatic. I actually cried when I read itā¦wow. Wonder what I would have done if Iād been rejectedā¦haha. Iām so excited and thankful! [/ul]</p>
Stats:
[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 2150 (Math was my downfall, writing my strong point)
[</em>]SAT II: Literature 730 Biology M 750
[<em>]GPA: 3.9
[</em>]Rank: 1/800 ish (YES very big)
[/ul] Subjective
[ul]
[<em>]Essays: Fantastic. I wrote very passionately about my interests.
[</em>]Teacher Recs: One was AMAZING, two pages, no spacing. He let me read it; he spoke about my abilities in class and how I handled presenting a paper to a UN related association, fielding questions from the judges etc. The second one wasnāt as fantastic but was pretty good.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: Never read it.
[</em>]Supplementary Material: Research essay I did over the summer for a competition.
[li]Hook: Grew up in four different countries? I didnāt emphasise this very strongly though. [/ul]</p>[/li]
<p>Personal
[ul]
[<em>]Location:
[</em>]High School Type: Very huge school
[<em>]Ethnicity: Homosapien
[</em>]Gender: Female!
[li]Applied for Financial Aid: No, I owe my parents a lot, theyāve been saving up since before I was born.[/ul]</p>[/li]
<p>Other
[ul]
[<em>]Extracurriculars: Active volunteer at Old Folkās Home (not school initiated), in various societies at school were I help organize and coordinate stuff
[</em>]Awards: Quite a few writing competitions, some Olympiads, that sort of thing.
[li]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: I was hugging my favorite toy when I loaded the page and when I looked up there it was! I squealed really loud, never expected it and just a few weeks ago was crying and worrying about getting in ANYWHERE, let alone UChicago. To those who didnāt make it: I know how it feels. Chin up, get some ice cream and sleep, continue to duke it out in this crazy waiting game.[/li][/ul]</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 2330 (750M, 780CR, 800W)<br>
[</em>]SAT II: 770 Biology E, 800 MathIIC, 760 Chemistry, 750 US History
[<em>]ACT: None
[</em>]GPA: 3.85 UW, 4.2-ish W
[<em>]Rank: Top 10%
[</em>]Other Tests: (AMC, AP, IB) 5 Biology AP, 5 Calculus BC, 5 US History</p>
<p>[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays: Well, I spent a really long time tweaking them, and I went through countless revisions to get the cadence I was looking for, so I think they were pretty good.
[</em>]Teacher Recs: British Literature and AP Biology teacher. I know my Brit Lit teacherās rec was absolutely glowing, and Iām sure my AP Bio teacherās was good as well.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: He really seemed to like me, so I think his rec was pretty good.
[</em>]Supplementary Material: None
[li]Hook: I donāt think I have one. </p>[/li]
<p>[/ul]Personal[ul]
[<em>]Location: California
[</em>]High School Type: Competitive public. I know weāre among the top five publics in California or something like that.
[<em>]Ethnicity: Asian
[</em>]Gender: Male
[li]Applied for Financial Aid: Yes</p>[/li]
<p>[/ul]Other[ul]
[<em>]Extracurriculars: One summer of research, Biology Club - four years, Co-president; Policy Debate - three years; Hospital Volunteer - four years, Shift Captain; Writing - four years
[</em>]Awards: National Merit Finalist, AP Scholar, Scholastic Writing Awards National Gold Award (9th, 10th, and 11th grades), Scholastic Writing Awards Regional Gold Key Award (9th, 10th, and 11th grades), Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition (for writing, 10th grade) </p>
<p>[*]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?:[/ul] Well, Iām happy with how things turned out. Chicago is a nice place. Iām waiting on a few other universities, but Chicago is definitely going to stay in my mind.</p>
Other Tests: Iāve taken 6 AP tests (Bio, Euro, US History, Lang and Comp, Environmental Science, and Latin) and gotten 5 on all of them so far plus Iām taking 4 more APs this year.
</code></pre>
<p>Subjective</p>
<pre><code>* Essays: Looking back, my Why Chicago could have been much better. I didnāt even mention how much I love the core! I talked mostly about the feel of the school instead. For the things I like essay, I wrote about Catullus (Iām thinking about being a Classics major). For the big essay, I did the table one and I thought it was pretty creative. I designed a rotating table that I actually want to make if I ever get the money.
Teacher Recs: Never read them, so I donāt know, but the three teachers that wrote them really love me, so I suspect they are quite good.
Counselor Rec: Again, never read it. I donāt know my counselor that well because I never really needed to use her, even for the college process (my brother did this last year, so I was pretty well versed in all things college), so Iām sure it was vague, but Iām sure she didnāt say anything bad.
Supplementary Material: (research abstracts, music recordings, art slides): None
Hook: (recruited athlete, cured cancer- only major ones that actually would have made a difference, please) [ /list][ b]Personal[ /b][ list]: Iām a pilot in training and I moved to the Dominican Republic last year and have been doing online high school. Donāt know if thatās a āhookā really, but itās something different.
Location: New Jersey/Dominican Republic
High School Type: Private school from 1-11 grade, then private online high school through Stanford
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: Female
Applied for Financial Aid: (just yes or no): Yes
</code></pre>
Awards: Latin Award at my school, National Merit Semi-Finalist
Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?:
</code></pre>
<p>I donāt know what Iām going to do nowā¦I donāt have an uncle Warren Buffet, and I didnāt build churches in Africa in my spare time, so I guess I never really had a shot. Maybe Iāll take a year off and go cure cancer then try againā¦</p>
<p>YES!! lol. Iāve always wanted to put that on my college applications and whatnot. Because I believe race shouldnāt matter. Iāve always wanted to check the āOtherā box and write, āHomosapienā or āHuman Beingā. Sometimes I doā¦but I always chicken out at the last minute and change it. :)</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT:760/800/690: 2250
[</em>]SAT II: Literature 780, Math-II 780
[<em>]ACT:33
[</em>]GPA: UW: 3.5ish, W:4.432 (upward trend)
[<em>]Rank:26/318
[</em>]Other Tests: (AMC, AP, IB)
[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays: Pretty good, I think. Why Chicago: Discussion-based classes and a student body thatās passionate about learning. My favorites: All of my favorites, which are generally quirky and off-beat. Extended Essay: The story: Very surreal and written under the effects of a *lot</em> of sleep deprivation. Thank God for Baker Island time.
[<em>]Teacher Recs: One glowing from my Jr. year chem teacher (He wrote it over the summer without me even having to ask) and one positive but critical from my Jr. year English teacher (She mentioned some negatives that Iād hoped she wouldnāt, but also gave me some of the highest praise I could have hoped for from her).
[</em>]Counselor Rec: We had a substitute counselor while our regular one spent first semester on maternity leave. He was GREAT- thought highly of me, very enthusiastic.
[<em>]Supplementary Material (research abstracts, music recordings, art slides): I attended a meeting at school with an admissions representative. We really hit it off (I showed interest, prior knowledge about the school, asked good questionsā¦). A few weeks ago I sent him a letter that discussed A) that I made NMS, B) that I found his name mentioned in a book I was reading for a project, and C) a link to a video on YouTube of myself solving a Rubikās cube in about 50 seconds, segueing with a mention of something I found on an old scav-hunt list. I figured that if anybody would be impressed, it would be Chicago. Quadruple whammy: Academic qualification, nerdity, personal flattery, and showing interest in the school.
[</em>]Hook: Interested in an undersubscribed major, which was only mentioned in passing in my Favorites essay.[/ul] Personal[ul]
[<em>]Location: Northern Illinois, not Chicagoland
[</em>]High School Type: Private Catholic
[<em>]Ethnicity: White, but I didnāt put it on my application
[</em>]Gender: Female
[<em>]Applied for Financial Aid: no[/ul] Other[ul]
[</em>]Extracurriculars: Figure skating, NHS, leadership position on a website for nerds, scholastic bowl
[<em>]Awards:National Merit Finalist, National Spanish Exam gold medalist, National Spelling Bee
[</em>]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: WHOO! I had a friend whoās currently attending UChicago read my essays and tell me what he thought I could do to help Chicago see my personality. My first few drafts of my Favorites essay were really stiff, and he recommended that I chill and be conversational with it. Many thanks to him.[/ul]</p>
Stats:[ul]
What most people have
[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays:
Why Chicago - Something about Cheesecake Factory Test and how Cheescake Factory (at least the one in Tulsa) and UChicago arenāt so different after all.
Favorite Essay: Roger Federer as an artist on the court (whatever whatever) - this couldāve been much betterā¦ was quite bland)
Long Essay: Used my Common App for #5 - about violin
[</em>]Teacher Recs: Overall Good.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: Probably a level below teacher recs (she doesnāt know me as well)
[</em>]Supplementary Material: CD of Violin
[<em>]Hook: None reallyā¦
[/ul] Personal[ul]
[</em>]Location: Oklahoma
[<em>]High School Type: Large Public
[</em>]Ethnicity: Chinese
[<em>]Gender: Male
[</em>]Applied for Financial Aid: Yes![/ul] Other[ul]
[<em>]Extracurriculars: Violin, AMC/AIME/USAMO, Academic Team, Tennis Team, National Honor Society, Latin Club
[</em>]Awards: National HS Honors Orchestra, All-American at this ānationalā academic bowl tournament (only like 30 states attend), 4 Perfect Papers on Natl. Latin Exam
[*]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?:[/ul]</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 1540/2130
[</em>]SAT II: 710Chem 730MathsII
[<em>]ACT:
[</em>]GPA: 4.3/3.9
[<em>]Rank: no idea (i switched from junior to senior class and they only rank biannualy)
[</em>]Other Tests: (AMC, AP, IB) AP Euro 3 . 7 ap tests in may.
[/ul][ b]Subjective**[ul]
[<em>]Essays: I wrote about QI and my general love of quiz shows, trance music and science fiction. Long essay topic 4 i wrote a flatlandish essay about a hydrogen molecule who journeyed across the periodic table to find someone to bond with eternally and ended up with a Uus-117 synthesized at fermilab.
[</em>]Teacher Recs: no idea
[<em>]Counselor Rec: no idea
[</em>]Supplementary Material: rec from the coach of a FLL team i mentored.
[<em>]Hook: thats Captain hook to youā¦ [/ul]Personal[ul]
[</em>]Location: F L 0 - r1D@
[<em>]High School Type: Ghetto
[</em>]Ethnicity: Caucazn
[<em>]Gender: Mail.
[</em>]Applied for Financial Aid: (just yes
[<em>]Extracurriculars: FLL mentor and tournament judging/volunteering, Boy scouting, All county Academic team, Physics club that i founded, NHS, another service club. Farting aroundā¦
[</em>]Awards: lacking in this dept.
[li]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?:[/ul][/li]The admissions office is going to KNOW that i am interested, i might be sending them some interesting supplements. Long LIVE U of Chicago even if i dont eventually get in!!!</p>
<p>Iām not sure what tags to use in order to change the aesthetics, so my apologies for the plainness. Anywayā¦</p>
<p>Accepted!</p>
<p>Stats:
Ā· SAT: 800/800/750 Reading/writing/math, 2350
Ā· SAT II: Math2: 740 / Chem: 740/ Bio-E:770
Ā· ACT: didnāt submit
Ā· GPA: UW 3.96 or something, W 4.27
Ā· Rank: 3 out of 190 (tiny rural school)
Ā· Other Tests: no AP classes offered, took the AP Chem test on a whim and got a 3. Meh.</p>
<p>Subjective
Ā· Essays: I liked my long essay a lot. I wrote about what a picture wants from the first-person perspective of a rather nihilistic Mona Lisa. If that sounds weird, well, it was.
Ā· Teacher Recs: Both quite good. A bit verbose, but I guess thatĀs a good thing.
Ā· Counselor Rec: No idea.
Ā· Supplementary Material: none.
Ā· Hook: Location maybe? I go to a school that closed in the 50s during Brown v. Board of education. Things havenĀt improved much.</p>
<p>Personal
Ā· Location: South.
Ā· High School Type: Small rural public
Ā· Ethnicity: White
Ā· Gender: M
Ā· Applied for Financial Aid: yes</p>
<p>Other
Extracurriculars:
9/10/11/12 School Soccer Varsity
11/12 Recreational League Soccer
9/10/11 Karate (1st Degree Black Belt)
9/10 Latin Club (SecretaryĀ lol)
10/11/12 ACE (Quiz Bowl Competition) 1st Team All-District twice
11 Battle of the Brains (same as ACE, but this time we were on TV!)
9/10/11/12 Piano (6 year national Guild honor roll)
10/11/12 Guitar
10/11/12 Jazz Band 1st Chair Alto Sax
10 Marching Band
10 Concert Band 1st Chair Alto Sax
10/11/12 District Council of Youth Ministries (coordinates youth retreats, mission camps, etc.) (2-time Communications Chair [Vice President], Music Chair)
10/11/12 Worship Team
Boy Scouts (Eagle Scout)
11/12 NHS</p>
<p>Awards: NMS Commended, some random stuff. Nothing major.</p>
<p>Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?:
Itās a relief to get in, but I think the many waitlisted folks on this site can take heart in the fact that my slot will be open in the fall unless I get some serious aid, which is unlikely.</p>
<p>Wow, all of you are simply amazing: those accepted, waitlisted and rejected. I cannot imagine how decisions were made this year. My rejected daughterās stats are most similar to those of you who were accepted, but maybe the admissions folks saw something in her that they knew wasnāt right for UChicago. </p>
<p>To those of you who were accepted: make the most of this wonderful opportunity! I know my daughter would have, had she been one of the lucky ones. It was sad to see her take the course catalog and a copy of her application out from under her pillows, where she had kept them since applying back in November. Sheās still trying to decide what to do with the sweatshirt her dad bought when they visited. </p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 2220 (720V, 700M, 800W)
[</em>]SAT II: 750 Bio E, 780 Math 2, 790 Lit
[<em>]ACT: 33
[</em>]GPA: 3.99/4.0 (we donāt weight)
[<em>]Rank: 2/50ish
[</em>]Other Tests: Nada. Our school shuns AP/IB b/c it restricts the teacherās freedom in the classroom and causes them to teach to a test, rather than for the good of the students.
[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays: Really good. Writing is the one thing Iām consistently good at. I did a parody of the Iliad for the Why Chicago one, and wrote a play about one of my interesting discussion based classes (kinda like Core Classes, only at the high school level) for the long one (Option 5). They were neat!
[</em>]Teacher Recs: I assume they were good. I go to a small school, so my teachers know me really well.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: Good
[</em>]Supplementary Material: None
[<em>]Hook: I started a business that made a decent bit of money that helped me pay for speech and debate trips and the likeā¦ I donāt know if thatās a hookā¦
[/ul]Personal[ul]
[</em>]Location: AZ
[<em>]High School Type: Public (charter)
[</em>]Ethnicity: White
[<em>]Gender: Female
[</em>]Applied for Financial Aid: Yes
[/ul]Other[ul]
[<em>]Extracurriculars: Speech and Debate (Captain), Model UN (President), Science Bowl (Captain), Choir, Peer Tutoring, Precinct Leader for a Political Candidate.
[</em>]Awards: Tons of Speech and Debate Awards (local level), Seal of Outstanding Distinction, NFL All American. National Merit Commended Scholar. Science Bowl: 3rd and 4th at Regionals. NFIB Semi-finalist. McKenna Achievement Award. Flinn Finalist (AZ award). Our choir sang at Carnegie Hall.
[*]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: I am soooooooo incredibly happy. I would advise all would-be Chicago students to make a clear link between themselves and the school. And to all who were rejected/wait-listed, you are going to end up somewhere amazing and do amazing things, even if thatās not at Chicago. [/ul]</p>
<pre><code>* SAT: 2110: 760-CR, 640-M, 710-W (Darn you Geometry)
SAT II: 680-Amer Hist; 710-Lit; 710-Bio E
ACT:
GPA: 3.83 UW/ 4.3 W
Rank: 3/270
Other Tests: Not too many because I have alot of IB classes. But IB Math Studies-5 and self-study AP Euro Hist- 3
</code></pre>
<p>Subjective</p>
<pre><code>* Essays: I wrote my essays the day before they were due, so no one got a chance to look at them. But I wrote my essay about Borges and I really felt it was chicago-isc.
Teacher Recs: Very Good. Most potential in career from one teacher.
Counselor Rec: Average. new counselor
Supplementary Material: None
Hook:
</code></pre>
<p>Personal</p>
<pre><code>* Location: California
High School Type: Public with small IB Program
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: M
</code></pre>
<p>Other</p>
<pre><code>* Extracurriculars: Theater, football and basketball, Academic Decathlon.
Awards: Not much, medals in AD state comp, Boyās State, other leadership camps.
Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: Write essays that show a dedication to learning and passion. I have no clue haha. I just wish people at my school had heard of Chicago so they could share my joy!
</code></pre>
<p>p.s I had no interview so donāt stress about not getting one</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 1580/2380
[</em>]SAT II: 800 Math II 770 Chemistry
[<em>]GPA: 4.2 weighted 3.7 unweighted (O.O)
[</em>]Rank: None
[<em>]Other Tests: AP US, Bio, BC Calc, 5 AP Gov, Chem, 4
[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[</em>]Essays: better than I had thought they were apparently
[<em>]Teacher Recs: good i suppose
[</em>]Counselor Rec: ditto
[<em>]Supplementary Material: (research abstracts, music recordings, art slides) a research abstract that didnāt win muchā¦
[</em>]Hook: (recruited athlete, cured cancer- only major ones that actually would have made a difference, please) ummā¦[/ul]Personal[ul]
[<em>]Location: Rich Suburban Town
[</em>]High School Type: Public
[<em>]Ethnicity: Overrepresented Chinese Asian
[</em>]Gender: Male
[<em>]Applied for Financial Aid: Nope.
[/ul]Other[ul]
[</em>]Extracurriculars: Student Gov, Quiz Bowl, Sci Bowl, Newspaper, Research, JV sports, hospital work, some other assorted things-i wasnāt really that high in positions either.
[<em>]Awards: Nothing really that important
[</em>]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: Iām quite happy I got in. But money would probably be an issue for me despite the fact that Iām in a rich town. Hopefully I get a scholarship or something -_- I still have no idea how I got in with my lousy GPAā¦[/ul]</p>
<p>Stats:
SAT: 1510/2120
SAT II: 800 World History. 720 American History. 770 Mathematics lv.2
TOEFL: 117/120
GPA: 3.49
Rank: 34/126
Other Tests: AP Statistics 4, AP World His 5, AP Micro Economics 5</p>
<p>Subjective
Essays: Okay
Teacher Recs: Good
Counselor Rec: Good
Supplementary Material: Music
Hook: None, basically</p>
<p>Personal
Location: International, Thailand
High School Type: International School
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Male
Applied for Financial Aid: Yes
Extracurriculars: Nothing spectacular.
Awards: few, but none to be a admission factor
Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: Waitlisted. Why should i feel bragging?</p>
<p>Yay UChi! Uncommon app was so much funāthe whole interface made me more comfortable with being open and cheerful. I do think itās safe to extrapolate to the school itself.</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 760 V, 780 M, 800 W
[</em>]SAT II: 760 Latin, 790 Chem, 800 Math II
[<em>]ACT: Never took it.
[</em>]GPA: 3.9 UW
[<em>]Rank: 1/406
[</em>]Other Tests: (AMC, AP, IB): 5 on Calc BC, Chem, SpanLang, USH, EngLit, from Junior Year. AMC: embarassing, but Iāve made AIME every year.</p>
<p>[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays: One was about lobsters. The other one was about starting an instrument later than peers and reading GB Shaw on a plane.
[</em>]Teacher Recs: Pretty standard. Both from junior year teachers.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: We talk a lot, and my counselor genuinely cares, so it was fairly strong.
[</em>]Supplementary Material: I sent a picture of my BC Calc project. It has a smile-inducing effect, I think.
[li]Hook: Nope, none to mention.</p>[/li]
<p>[/ul]Personal[ul]
[<em>]Location: Northeast
[</em>]High School Type: Public school that I love
[<em>]Ethnicity: Asian
[</em>]Gender: Female[/ul]</p>
<p>Wow these are some high statsā¦ I was accepted but I only attained 2130 on my SAT1ā¦ not spectacularā¦ with 800 on Math2c and 760 on Physicsā¦ plus i donāt know what my GPA isā¦</p>
<p>However, I did win a couple Math contests, perhaps that made me a hook.</p>
