<p>U. Chicago is at the top of my list for the colleges that I want to apply to. However, I'm trying to create a balanced list of pros and cons about the school so that I can make a more solid decision. Problem: My Pros list is about five times longer than my Cons list. </p>
<p>So, can anyone think of any cons that might help me out?</p>
<p>Here's what I got for my cons list:
--No neuroscience program (one of the majors that I'm considering)
--Maroon colors (haha...I'm kinda sick of that color because my school colors have been maroon and gold for most of my life)</p>
<p>Extremely rigorious courseload pro/con
An odd student population- which is a pro/con depending how you look at it
kind of pricey
no pre med program in general
GPA will be lower- harder for med school
In/near a somewhat shadey neighborhood</p>
<p>There is often debate about whether or not Chicago is a 'fun' school.
Unique student body (can be good and bad).
Not a party school.
Not everybody loves the core.
Classes are known to be more challenging than other institutions.
Some students may feel as if the Hyde Park is ghetto.
The common man usually doesn't know how great UChicago really is (you may come across a lot of people who think its a public school)
Frat's aren't that big.
They have yet to accept me.</p>
<p>That's all for now. Not everything in the list may be thought of as a con but I'm just putting it out there for you to judge for your own preferences.</p>
<p>Some cons:
-Safety (though not that bad)
-mediocre dorms
-mediocre food
-weather
-weak or non-existent alumni network
-not very happy / friendly student body
-study abroad programs are not very popular / well developed
-grade deflation
-no name recognition (comparative to the quality of education) outside of academic circles</p>
<p>Its funny because on a few of levels I disagree with DTan,</p>
<p>Mediocre dorms-
Most of their dorms seemed nice compared to most other dorms that I've visited.</p>
<p>Mediocre food-
Barlett isn't that bad</p>
<p>Not very happy/ friendly student body-
Whoa, that is not the impression that I got at all. The majority of them seemed incredibly satisfied with their social and academic lives.</p>
<p>But then again, I guess that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.</p>
<p>My mother passed a prospective student who was on her cell phone with her parents, saying something like, "Yeah, it's actually very nice here - and not a ghetto. In fact, it is the most beautiful neighborhood I have seen."</p>
<p>Come here and see for yourself before you judge, everyone.</p>
<p>The places that are REALLY the ghetto - North of 51st/47th, West of Cottage Grove, South of 60th/63rd - are places you have no reason to go. Those places are the ghetto, and should be avoided. The campus of the University of Chicago and the neighborhood of Hyde Park are not ghetto. I am transferring from the Illinois Institute of Technology - in a neighborhood called Bronzeville. We have a 3 block wide by 4 block long campus. Stuart Building, the nothernmost building, is 3050 S. State St. The nearest building of the Dearborn Homes, an extremely crime-infested housing project complex that was in the news for its heroin deaths recently, is 3020 S. State St. We have projects to the north and south, and a very scary neighborhood to the east. Bridgeport, to the west, is the "white ghetto" - where the Italians forced all the blacks out in the 1920s. Both Mayors are from there. Bridgeport is the "safe" neighborhood - and it's still a ghetto - muggings, carjackings, and break ins at student apartments are common. You want to see what going to college in the ghetto is? Come to IIT.</p>
<p>One person on this thread, and many people in other threads, have at least implied that Hyde Park is a ghetto or that it is "dangerous" to live there. This is so totally out of the bounds of reality that the best response is to explain where and what the some of the real ghettos are in Chicago. Made sense to me.</p>
<p>Safety-wise Uchicago is as good or better than many urban campuses (UPenn, Columbia, JHU, USC, etc.) with the rest of Chicago as a city being a lot more interesting / cleaner / safer than other cities.</p>
<p>As long you you don't go 2-3 blocks south of campus (and you don't need to), you will be fine.</p>
<p>Biggest con = frigid weather, espcially off the lake. Come down South where it's nice and mild. ;) </p>
<p>Study abroad would also be a con, IMO. I wasn't very impressed by Chicago's offerings when I was considering the school. Hit-or-miss financial aid can also be a huge con.</p>
<p>BIGGEST CON OF UCHICAGO (in my humble opinion)</p>
<ul>
<li>Grade deflation, therefore making it harder for undergrads to get accepted into high ranked law schools and medical schools. It simply is not fair, but that's the way it is.</li>
</ul>
<p>OTHER CONS
-street reputation
-winter in Chicago (pro if you like the bitter cold)</p>