An-insomniac-junior

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Chicago ✅
1

Hi!

For those who decided to click on this thread, I extend a thanks (and a very quiet yay, considering the light anxiety I’m experiencing).

I’ve found that falling in love with a school that may potentially be out of my reach is not particularly ideal, however, I’ve found myself completely entranced with U Chicago — the classes, their core curriculum, the quirky prompts that require out of the box thinking — everything! I know that I could prosper in an environment like that.

However, towards the beginning of my high school career, particularly freshman and sophomore year, I underwent a few personal traumas including family troubles, losing a few family members within a very concentrated span of time, and losing a friend. This took a toll on my mental health, which thenceforth reflected in my grades.

As a result, my cumulative GPA is a 3.3 unweighted. However, my GPA, following first semester junior year is a 3.8 unweighted, 4.45 weighted. My baseline (I say baseline, as this is a reflection of the SAT/ACT prep courses I’ve taken so far) SAT is at a 1450-1500 range, while my ACT is around a 34-35 range. These are both scores I hope to improve.

My supplemental rec would be from a current acting ambassador and UC alumni whom has worked with me and discussed potential projects for my non-profit.

My ECs include (lacking specificity for the purpose of anonymity):

  • Founding a non-profit
  • Founding multiple clubs and partaking in clubs
  • 4 year varsity sports, Officer and Captain
  • Art, specifically utilizing oil and charcoal mediums
  • Music, specifically guitars, singing, ukelele
  • Partaking in environmental and humanitarian activism, organizing multiple campaign launches, etc

I feel as though this thread has become long enough, so I won’t continue to word vomit (partially as a result of my light night-panic). But, although I find it peculiar confiding to an online resource, what do you believe are my chances of getting in? Is this a lost cause, or something that could potentially work out in my favor?

Thank you for reading, I really do appreciate it.

-A junior, whom is in desperate need for advice

2

I honestly think you have an above average chance of admission. Your nonprofit, club work, captaincy of a varsity sport, and high ACT all attest to your strength as an applicant. Based on your writing I think you’re more than capable of writing a great essay that’ll cover the grade deficiency, so you’re set!
Hope for the best and be prepared for the worst.

3

Thank you for your feedback! I really appreciate it

4

OP - without the detail about your course work, where you stumbled in freshman and sophomore year, and what you are taking now and planning to take as a senior, it’s impossible even to begin to answer your question. If you are able to provide that detail, perhaps someone can give you some insights. Generally speaking, UChicago places a high weight on academic ability but will oftentimes choose someone without perfect marks or scores over someone else with a seemingly flawless application. A lot comes down to subjective factors. Your essays and rec letters will be crucial, and those are not yet in the rear view mirror so do your best with them. Also, it’s definitely a bad idea to fall in love with a reach school. Focus on building a great set of schools that you are excited about, and be determined to love whichever of them loves you back.

5

Hi! Thank you so much for your input. As for my coursework, my classes go as the following:

Ninth Grade:

  1. Honors Biology
  2. Honors English
  3. AP NSL
  4. Weight Training
  5. Principles of Engineering (Honors)
  6. Child Development
  7. Honors Algebra II
  8. Honors Geometry

10th Grade:

  1. Honors Chemistry
  2. Honors Physics
  3. Advanced Child Dev II (Honors)
  4. Honors Precalc
  5. AP US History
  6. Honors English 10
  7. Digital Electronics (Honors)

11th Grade:

  1. AP Environmental Science
  2. AP Lang and Comp
  3. Honors Modern World
  4. Anatomy (Honors)
  5. AP Calculus
  6. Civil Engineering (Honors)
  7. Advanced Child Development III (Honors)

12th Grade:

  1. AP Studio Art
  2. AP Literature
  3. AP Statistics
  4. AP Physics
  5. Honors Health
  6. EDD (I’m not sure if this is weighted as honors or further as it is the last course in the PLTW track.)
  7. Double-Period science internship (either physics or medicine)

Child development’s consistency has awarded me with a 90+ Clock Hour certification, as well as Abuse and Neglect training, which gives me the ability to teach students directly out of high school.

I also forgot to mention that I write a blog that (although is technically supposed to pertain to physics) discusses astrophysics, philosophy, etc. in letter form. I’m not sure how great this EC is, but I thought it would be helpful to mention.

Thank you for your help; hopefully, this information is useful to some extent.

6

The ACT is around average. The GPA is likely too low to be competitive, especially with a school that has a 6% admissions rate. It’s always worth an application, but don’t go at it with any expectations. Keep a good list of match and safety schools.

7

What have you taken for foreign language? U of Chicago recommends 2-3 years of study.

Thing about trying to find schools like U of Chicago but that have higher acceptance rates so you can have a balanced list of schools. There was a thread a while back: http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/2035119-schools-like-uchicago.html

8

Hi! I’ve opted out of taking a foreign language in school as I’ve spent 8 years learning pashto and farsi.

9

P.S Thank you for the list! I appreciate your input.

10

Thanks for the input!

11

OP - Make sure to include your Foreign Lang. skills somewhere in your application. Eight years is great.

Second the recommendation to look into backups. Some of the LAC’s might be a great fit.

Here are some thoughts:

  • Your college prep course load is obviously respectable - now it's just a matter of understanding how the poor grades will impact your admission to a competitive school. For strategy, you may wish to show them that you are on a solid academic path now and that you are doing much better even despite a more challenging course load.
    • The more you can demonstrate that your current schoolwork totally offset specific poor prior performance, the better. So, for instance, if you did poorly in Honors Alg. II, then knocking it out of ball park in AP Calc is what you want to do. If you can take BC next year and do well, even better (assuming you are taking AB now and that your school offers BC). If you can't, then keep the AP Stats as that's a respectable AP (though not considered to be as challenging as BC).
    • AP Physics is fine and a great thing to have on your transcript.
    • The Health is likely required for graduation, correct? (my kids ended up taking Zero or Lunch Hour Health at one point - my son also had to take Independent Study to meet his Gym requrirement due to a full AP/Honors load in 12th). If it's NOT required, then substitute in a harder course.
    • Would highly recommend AP Euro as it's considered to be a pretty tough course. However, that will cut into part of your double-period internship so you'd need to make that all work out (zero hour or lunch hour or maybe make part of it an EC rather than for-school credit? Just some suggestions there).
    • You basically want your core solids - Math, Science, Social Studies, Language Arts - on your schedule every year (though doubling up in order to make room for further tough courses later on is ok if manageable) and you want to be taking the toughest of those solids that you can manage and still do well. As fun and interesting as the "applied" courses are, they are no substitute for a tough college-prep curriculum. However . . .
    • AP studio is a great idea! It's a challenging course (at least my oldest found it to be so amidst all her other AP work). It satisfies a fine arts requirement and shows talent. Make sure to submit some of your artwork as a supplement.

Good luck to you!