University of Chicago ED rejection?

[Anonymous]

I agree that it is a shame about Chicago. Back in my day in the midwest, Northwestern was so much more popular than Chicago - football, big 10, etc. But for kids who were looking to learn, intellectual, and yes, quirky all favored Chicago over Northwestern's pre-professional vibe.

My sense is that all the top schools are made up of soul-sucking strivers as you call it, not just Chicago. lol. Hopeful that all our kids will find their kind wherever they end up!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is so crazy. I grew up in Chicago so I know the UChicago of 20+ years ago. Quirky intellectual kids. I passed it up for both undergrad and law school so I could leave the Midwest. But I wonder what it would’ve been like to go there.

I showed my junior DC the essay prompts the other day … she loved the prompts and wanted to start writing them. The only hesitation I have is the quarter system.

Except Chicago is really not like that anymore. The prompts may be, but that’s just another hoop that the soul-sucking strivers know how to go through to get into a top-ranked school. Write weird essays? Check. Pretend you like the Core? Check.

30% of kids major in Econ. (Yes, I know it has always been a great place for Econ, but that proportion has probably tripled in the last generation.) The kids are goal-oriented and it is not the life of the mind place it once was. This is true, more or less, for all top schools. But it is a shame about Chicago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
HYPMS over UChicago - I get that. But is Brown over UChicago obvious?

Yes, no question. Two very different schools, though. Hard to imagine that being the option for someone, not to mention the fact that Chicago only accepts people through binding early applications.

I can’t imagine someone making this choice if you’re interested in Physics, Math, Econ, or the social sciences, or classics. I get it for engineering and prelaw.

Hmm? So, you are basically saying: No, it's not obvious. For most majors, take UChicago?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
HYPMS over UChicago - I get that. But is Brown over UChicago obvious?

Yes, no question. Two very different schools, though. Hard to imagine that being the option for someone, not to mention the fact that Chicago only accepts people through binding early applications.

I can’t imagine someone making this choice if you’re interested in Physics, Math, Econ, or the social sciences, or classics. I get it for engineering and prelaw.

Hmm? So, you are basically saying: No, it's not obvious. For most majors, take UChicago?
Pretty much. Id only take Chicago over brown for PLME.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I agree that it is a shame about Chicago. Back in my day in the midwest, Northwestern was so much more popular than Chicago - football, big 10, etc. But for kids who were looking to learn, intellectual, and yes, quirky all favored Chicago over Northwestern's pre-professional vibe.

My sense is that all the top schools are made up of soul-sucking strivers as you call it, not just Chicago. lol. Hopeful that all our kids will find their kind wherever they end up!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is so crazy. I grew up in Chicago so I know the UChicago of 20+ years ago. Quirky intellectual kids. I passed it up for both undergrad and law school so I could leave the Midwest. But I wonder what it would’ve been like to go there.

I showed my junior DC the essay prompts the other day … she loved the prompts and wanted to start writing them. The only hesitation I have is the quarter system.

Except Chicago is really not like that anymore. The prompts may be, but that’s just another hoop that the soul-sucking strivers know how to go through to get into a top-ranked school. Write weird essays? Check. Pretend you like the Core? Check.

30% of kids major in Econ. (Yes, I know it has always been a great place for Econ, but that proportion has probably tripled in the last generation.) The kids are goal-oriented and it is not the life of the mind place it once was. This is true, more or less, for all top schools. But it is a shame about Chicago.

It’s a lot to ask families to pay 400k just to participate in an amusing intellectual circle jerk. It’s just not realistic anymore unfortunately.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yet U Chicago is still test optional and requires massive amounts of self promotion and advertising. Not a day went by that our mailbox didn’t have a mailing from U Chicago and my kid didn’t even apply.

They also need ED2 for yield. None of the Ivies use ED2. Hopkins is similar and it’s because they lose them to the Ivies.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that it is a shame about Chicago. Back in my day in the midwest, Northwestern was so much more popular than Chicago - football, big 10, etc. But for kids who were looking to learn, intellectual, and yes, quirky all favored Chicago over Northwestern's pre-professional vibe.

My sense is that all the top schools are made up of soul-sucking strivers as you call it, not just Chicago. lol. Hopeful that all our kids will find their kind wherever they end up!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is so crazy. I grew up in Chicago so I know the UChicago of 20+ years ago. Quirky intellectual kids. I passed it up for both undergrad and law school so I could leave the Midwest. But I wonder what it would’ve been like to go there.

I showed my junior DC the essay prompts the other day … she loved the prompts and wanted to start writing them. The only hesitation I have is the quarter system.

Except Chicago is really not like that anymore. The prompts may be, but that’s just another hoop that the soul-sucking strivers know how to go through to get into a top-ranked school. Write weird essays? Check. Pretend you like the Core? Check.

30% of kids major in Econ. (Yes, I know it has always been a great place for Econ, but that proportion has probably tripled in the last generation.) The kids are goal-oriented and it is not the life of the mind place it once was. This is true, more or less, for all top schools. But it is a shame about Chicago.

It’s a lot to ask families to pay 400k just to participate in an amusing intellectual circle jerk. It’s just not realistic anymore unfortunately.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yet U Chicago is still test optional and requires massive amounts of self promotion and advertising. Not a day went by that our mailbox didn’t have a mailing from U Chicago and my kid didn’t even apply.

They also need ED2 for yield. None of the Ivies use ED2. Hopkins is similar and it’s because they lose them to the Ivies.

Whether a school does SCEA/ED/ED2 does tell you where they land with yield.

+1

[Anonymous]

NP. Genuinely confused why UChicago is the subject of so much controversy on DCUM. DC didn’t apply for college, but attended one of UChicago’s fully funded (not pay-to-play) high school enrichment programs which had an 11% acceptance rate. Multiple ED0 applicants (and admits) from DC’s cohort because UChicago truly was their first choice college. At least one dorm mate received a full ride to boot.

[Anonymous]

I'm sure it is a great school, but I just can't think of UChicago in the same category as other T20 because of the shady games they play with ED0, ED1, ED2 and ED3 (aka waitlist - z list) and manipulation of yield with zero transparency. Neither of my kids who ended up at HYPSM would even consider applying to UChicago primarily because of this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm sure it is a great school, but I just can't think of UChicago in the same category as other T20 because of the shady games they play with ED0, ED1, ED2 and ED3 (aka waitlist - z list) and manipulation of yield with zero transparency. Neither of my kids who ended up at HYPSM would even consider applying to UChicago primarily because of this.

+1

They are a good school. If they want to be a great school, then they need to be more transparent and also get rid of forcing everyone to do some form of ED.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm sure it is a great school, but I just can't think of UChicago in the same category as other T20 because of the shady games they play with ED0, ED1, ED2 and ED3 (aka waitlist - z list) and manipulation of yield with zero transparency. Neither of my kids who ended up at HYPSM would even consider applying to UChicago primarily because of this.

+1

They are a good school. If they want to be a great school, then they need to be more transparent and also get rid of forcing everyone to do some form of ED.

Why though? There’s nothing not transparent about their admissions policy- so much so that random moms from dc talk all day about it. Students deserve to go to college with peers that want to be there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm sure it is a great school, but I just can't think of UChicago in the same category as other T20 because of the shady games they play with ED0, ED1, ED2 and ED3 (aka waitlist - z list) and manipulation of yield with zero transparency. Neither of my kids who ended up at HYPSM would even consider applying to UChicago primarily because of this.

Yea, I am sure the lack of transparency was a real deal breaker for your teenage kids…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm sure it is a great school, but I just can't think of UChicago in the same category as other T20 because of the shady games they play with ED0, ED1, ED2 and ED3 (aka waitlist - z list) and manipulation of yield with zero transparency. Neither of my kids who ended up at HYPSM would even consider applying to UChicago primarily because of this.

11:25 poster. My DC is also headed to HYPSM, but that doesn’t change his respect for UChicago or the other 19 T20 schools to which he declined to apply. One could argue SCEA and REA are “shady,” as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm sure it is a great school, but I just can't think of UChicago in the same category as other T20 because of the shady games they play with ED0, ED1, ED2 and ED3 (aka waitlist - z list) and manipulation of yield with zero transparency. Neither of my kids who ended up at HYPSM would even consider applying to UChicago primarily because of this.

Yea, I am sure the lack of transparency was a real deal breaker for your teenage kids…

I took it more as, and perhaps I’m wrong, kids didn’t want to bother applying as no point if you only do regular. That’s how mine felt, liked it a lot, but liked others more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP. Genuinely confused why UChicago is the subject of so much controversy on DCUM. DC didn’t apply for college, but attended one of UChicago’s fully funded (not pay-to-play) high school enrichment programs which had an 11% acceptance rate. Multiple ED0 applicants (and admits) from DC’s cohort because UChicago truly was their first choice college. At least one dorm mate received a full ride to boot.

I'll say this til the cows come home - many mistakenly regard UChicago as a backup... dare I even say... a safety... for their kids who they think have a decent shot at HYPSM+Ivy.
So when their kids ED or EDII and get rejected, then SUUUUUURRREEEELLLLY that rejection was because of misleading/shady/deceptive practices by the school. It stings harder than a rejection from HYPSM. How dare you UChicago reject my kid when you are a mere tier or two or three below what my kid really deserves?!



TL;DR- It's when you think you're punching down and then get denied. It's entitlement.