Niece just finished her freshman year at University of Chicago. She hates it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to the U of Chicago for Law School in the late 90's. I found it to be a serious place, and I had very smart classmates and professors. I found the people very likeable. I liked the campus, but OK, it was not ideal to live on the South Side of Chicago, as it is a bleak place. It was not a particularly fun stage of life, but I am glad that I went there because it gave me a lot of opportunities career-wise.

Is your niece normally a relatively positive/neutral person, or does she tend to be a complainer / kind of paint with a broad brush? If the former, then perhaps she should transfer if it was really that bad. (Granted, I kind of doubt it's that bad as she's describing?) If she tends to be a slightly negative person anyway, then perhaps she will not particularly enjoy any college.

A lot has changed in 30 years, grandma!

My brother did not like U of Chicago for the same reasons 3 years ago. His O-Chem professor spoke very little English. The TA for the class also spoke broken English. He basically taught himself most of the material and used the resources friends at other universities provided him from their courses. He ended up transferring to Duke after his 2nd year and was much happier.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our private college counselor says fun goes to die and U of Chicago. He says it is a miserable environment for most students.

If this and previous posts portraying UChicago as a miserable place full of unhappy students are even remotely true, then why does the school have an extremely high freshmen retention rate? College kids transfer all the time no one's forcing these kids to stay at a place they intensely dislike. Even if they're hung up on rankings, they could always transfer to a more or less equally prestigious university.

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities/freshmen-least-most-likely-return

This is easily explained. (i) Very few kids at top colleges transfer in general. (ii) Chicago is on the tricky quarter system, which makes transferring all of your credits extremely difficult and the school year calendar makes the process and timeline more challenging. (iii) UChicago classes are hard, which means your college GPA is likely going to be lower if not much lower than someone who went to a degree mill and coasted to a 4.0 their freshman year. (iv) It is technically ranked in the top 15, right, and it's not exactly easy to transfer to another top 15 college. The top 15, outside of maybe Chicago and Cornell, admit very few transfers. Some don't even really take transfers.

So even though the freshmen retention rate is a widely acknowledged and often cited indicator of student satisfaction across universities, it can't be used as a valid indicator for the University of Chicago? Sure, Jan.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to the U of Chicago for Law School in the late 90's. I found it to be a serious place, and I had very smart classmates and professors. I found the people very likeable. I liked the campus, but OK, it was not ideal to live on the South Side of Chicago, as it is a bleak place. It was not a particularly fun stage of life, but I am glad that I went there because it gave me a lot of opportunities career-wise.

Is your niece normally a relatively positive/neutral person, or does she tend to be a complainer / kind of paint with a broad brush? If the former, then perhaps she should transfer if it was really that bad. (Granted, I kind of doubt it's that bad as she's describing?) If she tends to be a slightly negative person anyway, then perhaps she will not particularly enjoy any college.

A lot has changed in 30 years, grandma!

My brother did not like U of Chicago for the same reasons 3 years ago. His O-Chem professor spoke very little English. The TA for the class also spoke broken English. He basically taught himself most of the material and used the resources friends at other universities provided him from their courses. He ended up transferring to Duke after his 2nd year and was much happier.

I think UChicago has been working hard to improve its undergrad experience since historically it's been more of a great destination for grad school. Duke is basically the opposite, it's been a top destination for undergrad and has been improving its grad schools as of late. UChicago seems more miserable though, I'll give you that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our private college counselor says fun goes to die and U of Chicago. He says it is a miserable environment for most students.

If this and previous posts portraying UChicago as a miserable place full of unhappy students are even remotely true, then why does the school have an extremely high freshmen retention rate? College kids transfer all the time no one's forcing these kids to stay at a place they intensely dislike. Even if they're hung up on rankings, they could always transfer to a more or less equally prestigious university.

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities/freshmen-least-most-likely-return

This is easily explained. (i) Very few kids at top colleges transfer in general. (ii) Chicago is on the tricky quarter system, which makes transferring all of your credits extremely difficult and the school year calendar makes the process and timeline more challenging. (iii) UChicago classes are hard, which means your college GPA is likely going to be lower if not much lower than someone who went to a degree mill and coasted to a 4.0 their freshman year. (iv) It is technically ranked in the top 15, right, and it's not exactly easy to transfer to another top 15 college. The top 15, outside of maybe Chicago and Cornell, admit very few transfers. Some don't even really take transfers.

So even though the freshmen retention rate is a widely acknowledged and often cited indicator of student satisfaction across universities, it can't be used as a valid indicator for the University of Chicago? Sure, Jan.

Widely acknowledged by whom? I’ve literally never heard a parent or student cite first year retention in real life. It’s internet forum nonsense. How many freshman transfers out total in the top 15 each year? Hundreds total?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She earned very high marks and she does not wish to return. And not just for known reasons like violent crime, weather, and its isolated location in the Midwest, and more specifically, on the deep south side of Chicago. We had a long lunch and here are her words in quotes: Her classmates are "repulsively obnoxious" and "insufferable," her professors were "checked out" or "barely spoke English," the university seems "unprofessional" and in "disarray," and most of the staff she encountered were "useless" and "incompetent." "It looks like a serious university but it does not operate like a serious university."

It was not her first choice but she was so excited when we met for lunch late last summer. It is sad to see her so unhappy after a year.

can't tell if this is a troll but definitely MAGA. I'd recommend Liberty University for your niece. Seems more her kind of people

Absolute nonsense. A US student has the right to a teacher who can communicate in English. Mere technical competence, even giftedness, means nothing if the students cannot understand the teacher. It is not a question of xenophobia.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She earned very high marks and she does not wish to return. And not just for known reasons like violent crime, weather, and its isolated location in the Midwest, and more specifically, on the deep south side of Chicago. We had a long lunch and here are her words in quotes: Her classmates are "repulsively obnoxious" and "insufferable," her professors were "checked out" or "barely spoke English," the university seems "unprofessional" and in "disarray," and most of the staff she encountered were "useless" and "incompetent." "It looks like a serious university but it does not operate like a serious university."

It was not her first choice but she was so excited when we met for lunch late last summer. It is sad to see her so unhappy after a year.

can't tell if this is a troll but definitely MAGA. I'd recommend Liberty University for your niece. Seems more her kind of people

Absolute nonsense. A US student has the right to a teacher who can communicate in English. Mere technical competence, even giftedness, means nothing if the students cannot understand the teacher. It is not a question of xenophobia.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our private college counselor says fun goes to die and U of Chicago. He says it is a miserable environment for most students.

If this and previous posts portraying UChicago as a miserable place full of unhappy students are even remotely true, then why does the school have an extremely high freshmen retention rate? College kids transfer all the time no one's forcing these kids to stay at a place they intensely dislike. Even if they're hung up on rankings, they could always transfer to a more or less equally prestigious university.

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities/freshmen-least-most-likely-return

This is easily explained. (i) Very few kids at top colleges transfer in general. (ii) Chicago is on the tricky quarter system, which makes transferring all of your credits extremely difficult and the school year calendar makes the process and timeline more challenging. (iii) UChicago classes are hard, which means your college GPA is likely going to be lower if not much lower than someone who went to a degree mill and coasted to a 4.0 their freshman year. (iv) It is technically ranked in the top 15, right, and it's not exactly easy to transfer to another top 15 college. The top 15, outside of maybe Chicago and Cornell, admit very few transfers. Some don't even really take transfers.

So even though the freshmen retention rate is a widely acknowledged and often cited indicator of student satisfaction across universities, it can't be used as a valid indicator for the University of Chicago? Sure, Jan.

Widely acknowledged by whom? I’ve literally never heard a parent or student cite first year retention in real life. It’s internet forum nonsense. How many freshman transfers out total in the top 15 each year? Hundreds total?

Well, an empirical study using both a hierarchical multiple regression analysis and a logistic regression analysis revealed the following about undergrad retention rates:

Our major conclusion from these two types of analyses is that satisfaction indicators from the Student Satisfaction Inventory—whether items, gap scores, scales, or global indices of satisfaction— are significant predictors of students’ desire to enroll again, as well as of their actual enrollment the following year—even after taking into consideration students’ demographic characteristics and important features of the institution.

http://learn.ruffalonl.com/rs/395-EOG-977/images/LinkingStudentSatis0809.pdf

But who needs scientific analysis to reach a conclusion when you can instead rely on what you've heard/not heard from other people?

[Anonymous]

Hasn't U of Chicago been known for decades as the school where fun goes to die? It's pretty infamous for this quote. Your niece didn't do her research, or she didn't believe the research?

[Anonymous]

Why are you so weirdly invested in your niece's college choice?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hasn't U of Chicago been known for decades as the school where fun goes to die? It's pretty infamous for this quote. Your niece didn't do her research, or she didn't believe the research?

Page 1, infra.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our private college counselor says fun goes to die and U of Chicago. He says it is a miserable environment for most students.

If this and previous posts portraying UChicago as a miserable place full of unhappy students are even remotely true, then why does the school have an extremely high freshmen retention rate? College kids transfer all the time no one's forcing these kids to stay at a place they intensely dislike. Even if they're hung up on rankings, they could always transfer to a more or less equally prestigious university.

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities/freshmen-least-most-likely-return

This is easily explained. (i) Very few kids at top colleges transfer in general. (ii) Chicago is on the tricky quarter system, which makes transferring all of your credits extremely difficult and the school year calendar makes the process and timeline more challenging. (iii) UChicago classes are hard, which means your college GPA is likely going to be lower if not much lower than someone who went to a degree mill and coasted to a 4.0 their freshman year. (iv) It is technically ranked in the top 15, right, and it's not exactly easy to transfer to another top 15 college. The top 15, outside of maybe Chicago and Cornell, admit very few transfers. Some don't even really take transfers.

So even though the freshmen retention rate is a widely acknowledged and often cited indicator of student satisfaction across universities, it can't be used as a valid indicator for the University of Chicago? Sure, Jan.

Widely acknowledged by whom? I’ve literally never heard a parent or student cite first year retention in real life. It’s internet forum nonsense. How many freshman transfers out total in the top 15 each year? Hundreds total?

Well, an empirical study using both a hierarchical multiple regression analysis and a logistic regression analysis revealed the following about undergrad retention rates:

Our major conclusion from these two types of analyses is that satisfaction indicators from the Student Satisfaction Inventory—whether items, gap scores, scales, or global indices of satisfaction— are significant predictors of students’ desire to enroll again, as well as of their actual enrollment the following year—even after taking into consideration students’ demographic characteristics and important features of the institution.

http://learn.ruffalonl.com/rs/395-EOG-977/images/LinkingStudentSatis0809.pdf

But who needs scientific analysis to reach a conclusion when you can instead rely on what you've heard/not heard from other people?

You sound strange. Typical UChicago alum or nutty UChicago parent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She earned very high marks and she does not wish to return. And not just for known reasons like violent crime, weather, and its isolated location in the Midwest, and more specifically, on the deep south side of Chicago. We had a long lunch and here are her words in quotes: Her classmates are "repulsively obnoxious" and "insufferable," her professors were "checked out" or "barely spoke English," the university seems "unprofessional" and in "disarray," and most of the staff she encountered were "useless" and "incompetent." "It looks like a serious university but it does not operate like a serious university."

It was not her first choice but she was so excited when we met for lunch late last summer. It is sad to see her so unhappy after a year.

You realize it is hard to take you seriously when you lead with “the violent crime” and the “isolated location”.

First, the area around the school has crime, but the school itself is fine.

2nd… a city of 5 million people is hardly an isolated location.

Why even mention those two points…doesn’t sound like they had anything to do with your niece liking or not liking the school.

Tell that to the students murdered in the last two years and all of the students mugged on and just off campus throughout every school year.

[Anonymous]

Wow. Sounds like it isn’t U of C. Sounds like she might be having social or mental health issues. Those complaints do not sound thoughtful, they sound like someone who is in pain and who is lashing out emotionally. Poor kid.

[Anonymous]

OP:

Dude, you are a helicopter auntie if ever there was one!!

What do you want in posting this?

Looking for validation that U of C is the place where fun goes to die? Jeez, not gonna give you that here. I have several friends send their BRILLIANT, kind and fun kids there and their kids have ALL LOVED it. Maybe, just maybe your niece doesn’t have the chops to handle it but jeez give us a break.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sometimes this happens when you choose a college based solely on it being your highest US News ranked option.

She is really well traveled with best friends and an older brother at Ivies, UVA, Vanderbilt, Boston College, and Duke. Her senior year of high school and over the last year she has spent weekends or longer at like a dozen universities. She has a good handle on what she believes is lacking at Chicago.

Any one of the schools you mentioned would have a friendlier, warmer vibe than the U of Chicago.