The University of Chicago

The education and professors the University of Chicago offers is truly amazing. In the year that I've attended the university, I've felt that I have grown more intellectually that in all my high-school years. Rather than pushing a memorization type of education, professors actually push you to think critically and find answers. Educationally, I HIGHLY recommend this university. However, I must also note the negative aspects. Although the University of Chicago preaches inclusion and diversity, they don't seem to do nearly enough. Overall, UofC feels like a privileged bubble. More than that, instead of trying to incorporate and help the South Side community, UofC continuously gentrifies and uses the excuse of 'student safety' to expand their control on the South. The university does very little to incorporate its students with the city creating the overall atmosphere of an extended High-School.

UChicago certainly lives up to the rumors of its academic rigor but it pays off because each of my classes has been full of highly engaged students excited to study and discuss the material! Unfortunately for students not very very well versed in time-management, the academic work really can take over your life and fulfill the “where fun goes to die” catch-phrase for this school so it requires some serious practice to balance fun and work. In terms of on-campus living, their “Hogwarts” style housing makes for an amazing built-in community even as a freshman. I love living in the dorms and plan to stay through graduation! I’d recommend this college only to students who genuinely enjoy dedicating over 50% of their time to their academics.

The headline says it -- UChicago slingshotted me onto a wholly different and higher plane of thought. I thought I was smart when I arrived (then I found I wasn't exceptional!), but smart isn't everything. UChicago taught me to think. Years later, I decided to move to Hyde Park to take advantage of what the university has to offer. No regrets.

In my personal experience, faculty has been incredibly attentive of student needs, albeit some of my friends do periodically complain about an outlier prof. who grades strangely (which is nothing out of the ordinary at any university). With respect to need-based financial aid, it is no joke. The vast majority of my tuition is covered by a particularly generous set of grants. The dining hall food is god tier by comparison to what my highschool had (for someone coming from an average US public school) but I can see how some more privileged folks might not like it. Once you get used to it, it becomes pretty hit or miss. Really depends on the day. (There's plenty of restaurants in Hyde Park to make up for it if you have the cash) Safety does take a bit of an L ngl. Welcome to Chicago. Just be street smart; don't walk around asking to be robbed. Stay on Campus if you can and try to use the university's free Lyfts after 5 p.m if u need to get somewhere. Security has been ramped up recently as well so you should be fine. Mental health wise, it is not depressing at all. Just find good people to hang out with and try not to stay in your room all day. Parties are def. a thing. Zummfest, par exemple. Some dorms are much better than other ones, culture-wise, though. I reccomend Renne-Granville-Grossman a.k.a South. There's plenty of things to do socially on Campus and in the city. Albeit, I don't find the city of Chicago itself that interesting. Campus is more than enough, though. It's easy to get around. There's university busses and divy bikes and UPass for taking the CTA. Overall, the student body (pre-meds typically excluded) is incredibly chill and consists of level-headed, intelligent people. Most of the faculty is analogous. Some people and classes are hardcore. Sometimes it's about the rigor and the grussle, one might say. Come here and u will def. meet some preeminent goats of their respective fields. It's good stuff. Both fun and stimulating.

You may feel cold during the winters, and discouraged while writing a 15-page essay, but I will vouch strongly for their excellent career support. For example, they are very generous with unpaid internship grants. Everyone who applies for funding for an unpaid internship can secure it. They also have a huge database each year of paid internships you can apply for because UChicago has so many partnerships with companies and organizations. If you want to find a paid internship over the summer that aligns with your interests, you'll be able to find one through UChicago, whether it be at a small nonprofit, a national corporation, etc. If you want the purely academic, Ph.D.-bound, theoretical workings of the mind, you've got it. If you want career growth and guidance, regardless of which discipline, you've got that too. I can tell that they wholeheartedly want each of their students to gain that competitive edge in whatever field they pursue. Professors are similarly warm, open to your questions/ideas, and genuinely invested in seeing you improve. For people complaining about the social scene: it's really what you make of it. You can be a party animal, you can close yourself in your room all day, and you can strike a balance. You can study hard, or you don't have to. You can choose who you want to be, and UChicago doesn't force anyone into the mold of any stereotype. There are so many opportunities for all sorts of people to socialize, and have fun, all while getting good grades. Manage your time! With some of the world's brightest minds sitting in a room with you, you'll feel challenged but will grow as a result. We've got one of the largest numbers of Nobel Prize winners internationally, top-tier law, med, MBA programs (along with many other disciplines), and are an all-around elite academic powerhouse. Barely can even one elite university claim the same tier of academic rigor and inquiry that we have. None of that phony grade inflation. Can you take the heat?