@bboy219 @fightingillini97 @Dotsfrug @meriks @Anonymoose3 @scimathguy -
Chanced all of you back. I forgot to mention a few things in my first post.
-Model United Nations: 2-time delegate (two different conferences), 2-time researcher at a conference organized by my school.
-Youth jury member at a major human rights film festival.
-Legacy at UChicago (mother and uncle attended).
Also, let me clarify a few things.
@fightingillini97 -If I had to pick one area that I’d really call my passion, it’s politics/government. Here’s why.
-Debating, MUN, and student council all fit with that.
-So does the research I mentioned above (it’s on a human-rights topic, for a body charged with enforcing a specific international convention).
-My country of residence recently passed an immigration law that I (and now 60-70% of the populace) strongly disagree with, and I expect to volunteer for a possible campaign to repeal the law.
-A large part of the reason that the University of Chicago is my top choice is their Institute of Politics, run by David Axelrod, which I may mention in the “Why UChicago?” essay supplement.
So that’s my passion.
With regards to financial aid, I don’t need aid. My parents’ employer will cover 20% of tuition, and I’ve got some money saved for college (though it’s barely a dent in $55-60,000 a year). My parents will chip in some, though with my brothers also heading to college in a few years their ability to help out will be limited. If I don’t get any aid (or not very much), then I’ll take out loans and work my rear off. Financial aid would be nice to have, because I’d prefer 50K in loans to 100K+ in loans when I graduate, but the cost of university won’t stop me from attending.
I may also be a national merit scholarship semifinalist or finalist. I scored a 225 in last October’s PSAT, and the cutoff for international students was 224 last year, so if the curve goes up 2 points I’ll be on the outside looking in. If I eventually get some sort of scholarship, that would help a bit, though the odds are against it.
How would the above affect my chances?