University of Chicago - real experiences?
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Anonymous
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My son absolutely loves U Chicago. He made lots of friends and he is very active in fraternity.
You can live 4 years in the campus, but 2 years is mandatory. Your 3rd year you can live in the fraternity house. Exam time is very intense. Everyone is at the library. Getting to certain club is extremely competitive. |
Anonymous
OP here with questions: Does the quarter system feel relentless? If "exam time" is every five weeks, that indeed leaves little time for fun. Is the social life based around frats? DS isn't really all that keen on the frat thing. What is your kids major? |
Anonymous
| My kid is a first year and is enjoying it. He is a non-stem major, not in a frat, and likes the house system. His house went to a corn maze/fall festival one weekend and the IHC sponsored a trip to 6 Flags another weekend. He is involved in a religious organization, a gvt. committee, and MUN. Time commitments vary by organization. You can opt to live all 4 years on campus and for now, that’s what he plans on doing. I wouldn’t be swayed one way or another by what you read on this forum. If your student has toured the school, he should go with his gut. |
Anonymous
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I can only comment on the school as someone whose spouse is a professor there. I have attended campus events and go to HP regularly, but we live in a different southside neighborhood (no doubt one with a higher crime rate but that’s neither here nor there).
Of relevance to an undergrad: HP is very much a company town. Most people have *some* connection to the university, and literally everyone we know who works at U of C lives there. That’s why we decided not to live there. It’s a lovely, leafy neighborhood with all the amenities you’d need — my dentist, eye doctor, movie theater, kid’s dance classes, Trader Joe’s, and bookstore of choice are all there so I’m there a lot. You’ll overhear conversations about the best mandarin enrichment classes for your kids and whether to take spring break in Chile or South Africa. Very much not my speed. But, I fully get the appeal and do not judge — if you want to live in a community with people who really do fit the ‘academic elite’ mold, HP is a great choice. That all is to say that despite the university being a huge anchor, it does not feel like a campus in the way a typical university does and most undergraduate students I’ve met live on campus. It feels like a sleepy neighborhood filled with nerds. |
Anonymous
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The quarter seems move very fast. They get to choose lots of different subjects which is great and you can double major pretty easy.
My son mostly hand out with his fraternity brothers and the girls from sorority. I am not sure what other kids do but I am sure it is so many other ways to have fun and enjoy Chicago. Every few weeks they do downtown to restaurants, comedy clubs… |
Anonymous
| This thread essentially: my wealthy son in a frat and bizecon major loves Uchicago! |
Anonymous
Unsure what in this thread lead to ur snarky conclusion. My kid does not fit into the “wealthy” “frat” or “bizcon”categories, nor does the roommate. I mean, you can make blanket statements but where does that get you? Many different socioeconomic backgrounds and majors. And if students actually like the school…how horrible! Right? I’m sure there will still be snarky comments either way, whether kids like the school or not. |
Anonymous
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My DD is a senior now. She was from a rigorous HS school in Los Angeles.
Her feelings are mixed. The shock of the weather did not affect her as much as I thought it would; she got into it for the most part. The quarter system is fast, annoyingly so. And it's definitely a hard school and because it's big, there's not a lot of handholding. A number of times I told her she could apply out, but she is proud that she is getting her degree from UChicago. I think if your kid wants it, OP, let them do it. They will rise to the occasion, and impress themselves with themselves (which builds self-esteem) |
Anonymous
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My son worked every day during summer including weekends, and save good amount of money for the school year.
I would not call him a wealthy boy. |
Anonymous
| DS is an Econ major. He, too, has mixed feelings about the school. The work load is oppressive, the grading hard bordering on unfair, and the club culture is overly competitive. He’s had great teachers and made wonderful friends. He will graduate in 2025 but would probably pick a different school if he could go back in time. |
Anonymous
Yikes. This is my exact fear. Do you think it's worse than other T20 schools? (other than Brown - I know Brown is all fun, all the time). |
Anonymous
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The campus visit is important. It has turned out to be the right place for our kid. Lots and lots of classwork but apparently it feels great to be around similar minds.
Came out of a pretty crappy public school where there were only 3-5 classmates with whom they could have any kind of serious conversation. There is a "type" and you really need to spend a full day there beyond the tour to see if this is the right place for you |
Anonymous
what are the dining clubs? Private? |
Anonymous
My husband went to Chicago and we are on campus and stay in Hyde Park several times a year. I think Hyde Park and the immediate area around the campus is fairly safe on well lit streets. There are families that live around the university and there is a Trader Joe’s walking distance from campus. |
Anonymous
I’m not sure what u r referencing. There r no dining clubs. The clubs PP referred to r student organized clubs. Some u apply for or audition for(which also seems to occur in other top schools) and some you just sign up to be a member. |