<p>that awesome that you like chicago! it really is a great place…
I think everyone calls it downtown regardless of direction</p>
<p>makeyourselfxo - Thanks for the positive post on UC! Regarding Hyde Park and its relative location in Chicago, when I was a student there Hyde Park was generically referred to as in the “South Side” of Chicago. “Downtown” included the old “Loop” with the elevated trains; office buildings and government offices; whereas, points immediately north of the Chicago River (such as North Michigan Avenue starting with the Wrigley Building and Chicago Tribune Tower) were referred to broadly as the “Near North Side” including such areas as the “Magnificent Mile” or “Miracle Mile” for North Michigan Avenue from the Chicago River north to Lake Shore Drive; the “Gold Coast” for the Lake Shore Drive residential high rises north of the Chicago River, etc.; and, of course, Rush Street with all its “entertainment”. “Uptown” was actually a large neighborhood (located north of Lincoln Park; west of Lake Shore Drive; and south of Rogers Park) that was both multi-ethnic and economically diverse. More than you’d like to know…</p>
<p>UChicago is definetely an academic place. grad and undergrads there have won i think more noble prizes than any other school… not sure on that stat, but definetely a lot. its not a preppy, party school like duck, and not cutt throught on sat scores and such like yale, but arguably gives a better education than either.</p>
<p>I’m glad that many on this forum hold the University in high regard. And for the record, its students are not ugly. I’ve spent hours observing the campus, and “ugly” does not accurately describe the people. In fact, UChicago kids are better looking than Northwestern kids. I’m just trying to defend UChicago here…</p>
<p>We recently visited and were quite impressed with both the admissions staff and the City. Seemed like a great place for the right kind of student…serious ones who like academic pursuits.</p>
<p>Absolutely no school spirit and weak alumni network. But great academics.</p>
<p>really ?</p>
<p>Did you go there par72 because I didn’t find that at all! The alumni network, especially in the business and law world, is very strong. And everyone I know is proud of their Chicago degree.</p>
<p>par72 thinks the sun rises and sets on Holy Cross College, right par? (Par did not attend Chicago.)
Anyway, school spirirt is tied in with Sports, so obviously Chicago is not going to have any of the rah-rah. Doesn’t mean that students and alumni don’t love it.</p>
<p>Just the intellectual vibe I get from their website makes me love the school. I don’t know how anyone could not have school spirit at a place where their is so much history. It seems that there is school spirit tied in with sports and school spirit tied in with a collaborated love of learning. I’d rather be part of the latter.</p>
<p>Is it bad that school pride doesn’t mean that much to me? Well, not in the typical “GO [MASCOT]!” or competing with other schools. But pride in the sense of loving where you’re at? I think Chicago students fit into the latter from what I know…</p>
<p>My son who is a rising senior spent four weeks on the Chicago campus this summer. Overall, his impression was positive, and Chicago is still one of the top three schools on his list. </p>
<p>He stayed in Max Palevsky…not the most beautiful building in the world but centrally located and comfortable. At least it was better than last summer when he sweated it out in an ancient, unairconditioned dorm on the Brown campus. (And I say this as a Brown alum!) He loved the stone buildings, the Gothic architecture and gargoyles that peered down on him when he hurried to class. </p>
<p>As far as the program goes…it was a four week seminar in biological research that earned 6.6 credits. It was definitely not the typical low key class that many colleges run for high schoolers in the summer. The hours were long, and there was no grade inflation: eight hours or more per day in the lab. Sometimes towards the end he’d call me about 10 pm to say he had just gotten back to his dorm. The first week, things were so intense that once or twice he even mentioned the possibility of packing up and heading home. </p>
<p>He stuck it out and very shortly he was singing a different tune. He had proven to himself that he could do it, and that has made a big difference in how he views the entire process of applying to colleges. He suddenly realizes there is intellectual life byond SAT tests, interviews, and essays, if he can only figure out how to navigate through the maze. </p>
<p>Despite the workload, he had time on the weekends to explore Hyde Park and the rest of Chicago. He had no trouble with the surrounding neighborhood as long as he took the normal precautions that any person would on a city campus. Also spent time talking with the RA’s on his floor, who were involved in a lot of different things during the school year in addition to classes. They were definitely more than faceless drudges. </p>
<p>Will he end up going to Chicago? With the way college admissions goes these days, no one can be sure. Despite the workload and uncertainty, he certainly hasn’t scratched Chicago off his list, even though it’s fairly obvious that the school demands more of its undergrads than many other top tier colleges. (I would say the same of Reed and Swarthmore.) </p>
<p>Tonight his grade came through on Cmore; to his real delight he earned an “A”, and the prof will be giving him a reference. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so pleased about the outcome of a class. I think you do have to be a certain kind of person to feel satisfied at a place like Chicago, and there are times when the load seems pretty darn heavy. But there are also times when you realize that you are being challenged in a way that simply wouldn’t happen on another campus. Whether it’s worth that extra effort varies from student to student. There’s no right or wrong answer here…it depends on who you are.</p>
<p>Chicago remains my #1 choice for college next year:</p>
<p>1) i LOVE Chicago…it’s my favorite city</p>
<p>2) i want to go into physics…and how awesome is it that first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction happened there. they even have a sculpture there honoring it. besides that, they have GREAT resources and are building a brand new building for interdisciplinary research…it’s huge. not to mention their connections with Fermilab…</p>
<p>3) i love their ‘philosophy’; so many schools are just focussed on getting you a job that makes a lot of money, while chicago actually is devoted to an EDUCATION.</p>
<p>So basically, not everyone will love chicago, but i think it’s the place for me. Even Stanford doesn’t really compare, mostly because of location, but it’s great to have such a good school (some say ‘best undergrad education in the country’ in such a great city. and yes, if you want to drink and party all the time, this might not be your thing…but seriously, there are other ways to have fun.</p>
<p>Also, if it says anything about the school, when i visited the first time the information session was perfectly organized and very, very thorough. I was impressed, especially considering that i had visited some ivies before that and they did not run nearly as smoothly.</p>
<p>As far as unsatisfied alumni…i know very few, but my friend’s (who also really wants to go to chicago) mom went there for undergrad, and his grandparents used to teach there. And they were all completely satisfied.</p>
<p>I agree, vinco. Their sessions are very organized. I arrived about 10 minutes late with a friend of mine. We had missed the bus, lol. Anyway everyone was extremley helpful in getting us to where we needed to be quickly so we didn’t miss anything else. And the tour guides/student panel were really honest (sometimes too honest) with any and all questions about the campus and the school’s atmosphere. They did not sugar coat anything. </p>
<p>The only thing I’m worried about for UChicago is financial aid. If I get accepted there, the only way I would not go is if they give me zero aid… =\ That would be one sad day.</p>
<p>I live near Chicago so I know a ton of people who go there. They all say the same thing. </p>
<p>Your going to be absolutely miserable for four years due to the extreme amount of work you will receive, but it’s worth it in the end as I know many people from the U of C who have received great job offers right out of college.</p>
<p>Also, I don’t know why some of you think that Chicago has a bad location. I’ve been all over the country & Chicago is, in my opinion, the 3rd best city in the country and many think that it is the best. Personally the only 2 cities I prefer are Boston & New York.</p>
<p>I thought it was a great location, my only concerns were with crime–the school’s paper portrays it as rampant.</p>
<p>lol fantosme, Chicago is awesome, but I’m guessing you’ve never been to Hyde Park. It’s not exactly the loop part II.</p>
<p>I know Hyde Park isn’t Chicago, but it’s not exactly a long drive.</p>
<p>Rumor is that most of the students don’t venture off of campus much. Any Chicago students/alum want to squash that? Pretty please? I hope it’s not true- Chicago is at their fingertips.</p>