University of Chicago anonymous.

Litlhurry · October 9, 2009, 10:49am

I have a problem. I’m addicted to the University of Chicago. Call it infatuation, desperation, obsession etc. I’m having a single-sided love affair.

I’m starting to worry. Self-doubt is creeping in. I hate to say the extreme…but I feel like my faith in “The System” rests on the balance. I’m in love with UofC. I told my mother that if I got in…I’d go. No matter what. I told her I’d take 220k in personal loans in a heartbeat, and that I’d walk there if I had to. I suppose I’m just being overdramatic…but I really am that passionate about the school. I don’t know everything about it, so I don’t think I’m at the point of being a stalker, but it could get worse.

If…I think if I don’t get into UofC, I will be genuinely crushed. It’s not the only school that I’m applying to that I like (LOVE, rather) but even if I go to my second choice…I’ll always be left contemplating the “What if?” I convinced my mother to fly us out to tour the campus and get an interview…Trust me, that wasn’t easy. She’s not very good with travel. I have to say that the four days I spent in Chicago were some of the best days of my life. I didn’t want to leave…but I crossed my fingers that someday soon I would be back.

I’m frustrated. I hear my friends talking about top schools and how they are competing to get in for the sake of having the more prestigious school. I’m applying to other top schools…Including Brown and Princeton…but I would, in a heartbeat, pick UofC over them. Yes, I said it. There are so many people who don’t care where they go, as long as they are “Top” schools. They apply to all of the ivies etc. I feel like they’re taking away the opportunity to be accepted from those who really do care…those who are dying to get into their dream school.

I don’t know how I’ll react if I get rejected to UofC. It’ll be the first school I hear from, since I’m applying EA…but I know that I’ll be really heartbroken. I’ve never wanted anything so much in my life.

Anyone else feeling the same way…? I’ve met a lot of great people here who I can identify with…so I felt like I needed to just vent a little. Sorry, but I was wondering if anyone had any advice or what not to let me down slowly…Because at this point, all of my eggs are in one basket.

UofC…I love you ;(

Cacciato · October 9, 2009, 11:34am

“I’ve never wanted anything so much in my life”

Omg I thought I was the only one lol. Yeah I’d be crushed too if I get rejected. Its my dream school and if things work out I’d attend in a heartbeat. I hope i don’t sound selfish, but this is the one fat letter that I’d really want to get.

But in case I do get rejected, there is a double decker cartoon of rocky road sitting in the freezer for me :P

signitblank · October 9, 2009, 11:36am

hyping up uchicago in your mind will only f you over if it doesn’t come through.

imagine your safeties as your dream colleges. I did - and I almost regret not going to them.

just don’t get so excited over it. uchicago is great, but in the end, it’s just another university out of thousands.

taypi31 · October 9, 2009, 12:02pm

Guys… you’re definitely not the only ones on college confidential stalking the UofC. Trust me, I’m a frequenter of this page. I have it bookmarked as “MY FAVORITE ALL TIME SITE”. No joke, it’s a bit ridiculous.

I too have given the U of C the coveted dream school spot. However, I feel as though it’s an unrequited love. It is somewhat of a reach for me, academically and financially, so I suppose a miracle is needed. I’m hoping for one, anyway.

I’m stressing out about my essay because whenever I start writing it, it never comes out right and just sounds horrible. Never quite good enough to click the save button, anyway. Maybe if I just downplay the whole thing it will work out better in the end? Who am I kidding, I can’t downplay UChicago essays!

memake · October 9, 2009, 12:18pm

Chicago is great, but…so are you. The things about you that make U of C so appealing to you will not change. There are lots of other institutions where a person who would thrive at U of C would also thrive. The overall experience you have at a school is a result of many small decisions – what courses to take, how to conduct your social life, how much you do off-campus, etc. The personality you bring to these decisions (are you a risk taker? are you organized? are you a procrastinator? are you a team player? are you happy exploring on your own? are you lazy? are you energetic? and many more… ) – these factors overlaid on your decisions overlaid on the context in which you make them (that would be the school you end up at) produce the overall ‘experience’ you will have at college.

You don’t have infinite choice about the school at which you will play out this drama - all you can do is apply to a list of schools and then choose among the ones that admit you (ignoring all financial matters for the moment). But all does not depend on the school! And that’s a good thing.

Don’t let the innate drama of applying cloud you to a larger perspective - who you are matters more than where exactly you go. You’ll be fine at Chicago, and also at any of a number of other great schools.

JHS · October 9, 2009, 1:08pm

Please listen to memake, and think about what she is saying. Don’t crush too hard on the University of Chicago, or any institution. They don’t actually ever love you back. (For that matter, most of the 18-year-old people you can crush on have a similar problem, but that’s beside the point for now.)

All of your feelings are completely one-sided. The University doesn’t have feelings, and in the end doesn’t care much about yours. There is too much randomness and room for error in college admissions for you to invest a lot of your own ego in getting into any one particular college. It may work out (I hope it does!), it may not. But if things work out, believe me, you will develop a long list of the University of Chicago’s flaws. And if they don’t, you will get a great education and great opportunities at some other college. One with better taste in applicants, apparently.

Instead of focusing on how great Chicago is, focus on the particular elements you like, and on what it says about you that you like those things. Then, when you look at other colleges, figure out what you would do there to find the things you like, and how those colleges might be taking a different approach to satisfying the needs that you thought Chicago would meet. It may be that a college that seems really dissimilar superficially turns out to be very similar at a deeper level, because it has chosen a slightly different path to reach the same goal.

Same with you. Focus on your ultimate goal – no, not which college you want to attend, but what kind of education you want to get from whatever college you wind up picking. Then, when you have actual choices, pick the best path to your goal from the options you KNOW you have available to you.

unalove · October 10, 2009, 12:15pm

All bring up good points. What I did in this situation was I learned everything there was to know about my in-state safety (a wonderful school that might appeal to prospective Chicago applicants-- SUNY Binghamton). I learned all the names of the dorms, the professors in a few departments… basically, I created a mental picture of myself there, and it helped that I knew a few alumni.

So whenever I got to thinking about my future, I thought about myself at Binghamton. This helped me out a lot.

hyeonjlee · October 12, 2009, 1:08am

I agree with everything that is already mentioned above. I will add a few more points.

if your ardent “love” for Chicago is somewhat making it difficult for you, psychologically, to explore other viable options in earnest, you need to redirect your energy very fast, like, right now.

Though your love for Chicago may be pure, there are other carpet beggars and opportunists who are going after the Top 10 prestige with vengeance, and as such, schools like U Chicago can be hit or miss even for 4.0/2400 students unless you are solidly “hooked”.

Furthermore, please understand that when I say “viable options”, I mean both admission wise and financially. U Chicago has a reputation for somewhat erratic financial aids. Even if you are admitted, if you cannot enroll due to the financial reason, it’s a moot point and it can be doubly devastating. During the last admission cycle, there were posts on this forum from parents/students who were crushed because they (their kids) could not enroll even though they (their kids) were accepted because of the financial issues. So unless you are coming from a household where the finance is a non issue, you need to think about this part of the equation very carefully.

By the way, please don’t consider taking out a HUGE student loan in your name. You could stend next 10-20 years paying off the loan. You become a slave to your loan: your loan owns you. Especially in this economy, there are many stories of young adults whose personal life was seriously damaged under the weight of the unmanageable student loans.

So, if you had not done so, please do some research and create a list of “viable” schools: the kind of schools that are very likely to accept you, and if the finance is an issue, the kind of schools that will give you generous aid (preferably merit). The financial aid part means, you may have to go down to the ultra safety schools if getting a very meaningful merit award is necessary due to your financial situation.

I know this is not what you wanted to hear, but you may thank the adults on this forum next spring.

By all means, apply to Chicago, but be smart: JHS said the right thing: the school does not love you back! It simply makes a decision on who to admit based on THEIR needs, NOT yours.

University of Chicago anonymous.

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