I applied early action to UChicago and was deferred. I don’t want to reapply early decision because I can’t commit financially to any school, but it is my top choice. Is this a good sign that I was deferred and not straight up denied or do they defer most people? Does anyone know about how many people are accepted/denied/deferred in the first round? Also I got a 34 on my ACT and was accepted at Boston College early action - should I just commit to BC instead? Thanks for any feedback!!
From what I’ve seen on here, 2% RD acceptance rate from the deferral pool. BC is a good college. My son was deferred too.
No need to commit this early! Wait and see what happens in March, and then make your decision.
And congratulations, BTW.
Chances of getting into UChicago after being deferred are very slim at best. Don’t yet commit to Boston College. You have time. Right now focus on expanding your list and applying to a few more colleges.
I believe that U of C defers rather than outright rejects in order to encourage more applicants during ED2 and RD…which they will again reject, which drives up their selectivity stats. They have become masters at playing the rankings game.
In other words, being deferred shouldn't be taken as anything but a "soft" rejection.
“I don’t want to reapply early decision because I can’t commit financially to any school”
There’s no financial commitment when applying ED. If the ED FA offer is insufficient to support attendance, you tell the school thanks but no thanks and apply elsewhere.
On Dec 19, I’d think the ED train has left the station.
Deferral leaves the door open, you’ll be freshly reviewed in RD. But it also allows you to open new doors, apply to other colleges.
“There’s no financial commitment when applying ED. If the ED FA offer is insufficient to support attendance, you tell the school thanks but no thanks and apply elsewhere.”
This is not exactly true. You are expected to withdraw your applications elsewhere and commit per the agreement. It really is for those who plan to attend if admitted. There is no “out” clause on the ED agreement. Talk to FA before you sign anything so that you have a good understanding of your potential contribution. Don’t just send in a binding agreement thinking you are free to walk away from it.
Chicago ED1/EA is admit, defer, and deny. Deferred students show that they have potential, but weren’t necessarily presenting themselves as good as they think these students can. Take the time to think if you are willing to try harder to prove your position, or if you already did your best maybe you aren’t necessarily what they are looking for or maybe they aren’t what you are looking for. I know students who were denied admissions with ACT of 30 and up, but that is because they didn’t show how strong they are out of testing and GPA. They are looking for a whole package or someone above average with a really strong strength in a certain area in which they are lacking students. This decision takes a lot of reflection and thinking if you are willing to put yourself out there again in their application system.
@JBStillFlying I’m not sure about that as both of our DD were accepted ED2 last year I clearly remember having her wait for the FA package before accepting the offer of admittance. They do give you time to review the FA package and then decide if its enough. I imagine that there are some who decline the offer of admittance from the ED round. They gave us a couple of weeks to commit, which of course was before and RD admittances came out which is exactly what I would expect to happen.
@CU123 same here. Where did it say you get to decide whether it’s enough? That’s not the agreement we signed.
People are reading a bit too much into that clause of the agreement. While UChicago is undoubtedly generous in meeting need, that definition of “need” is based on their formulas and most likely will not match the FAFSA amount (so I was told by Fin. Aid) nor will it necessarily match a family’s understanding of “need” or their personal threshold. People need to understand this fact. Nowhere in the contract does it say that a difference of opinion gets you out. You are expected to be knowledgable about your financial obligation and sign the agreement in good faith, understanding that you could end up paying a bit more or a bit less than you personally were expecting or hoping.
“There’s no financial commitment when applying ED. If the ED FA offer is insufficient to support attendance, you tell the school thanks but no thanks and apply elsewhere.”
This advice is pretty cavalier. Not only are accepted ED students committed to rescind all other applications, I understand that schools accepting ED applicants may inform peer institutions of the acceptance of that student as such eliminating possible RD acceptances from those schools. Applicants should do serious research including financial aspect before pulling the trigger on ED. Kudos to the OP for not committing to something he might not be able to honor.
All the above is true but this isn’t a contract in the legal sense (its an agreement), there is no liability on the applicants part for declining an ED acceptance.
Here is the sentence from the ED agreement that applies and is highly interpretive.
“Should a student who applies for financial aid not be offered an award that makes attendance possible, the student may decline the offer of admission and be released from the Early Decision commitment.”
If you, in all good faith, apply ED and had expectations (for whatever reason) of more FA then given you should explain it to the FA office and see if they are willing to change it, if not, then you certainly can decline the offer of admission as the agreement states above.
UChicago encourages applicants to not withdraw any applications until the FA package is released and agreed too.
My son was an EA/EDII student last year (2021) and was advised by his admissions counselor as such.
Good luck to anyone switching to EDII. Use the Net Price Calculator - that should be worst case. Don’t hesitate to call FA should you have specific questions regarding business income.
It does look like this pool will be substantially higher than last years based on this thread.
“…weren’t necessarily presenting themselves as good as they think these students can.”
No. Deferral is a chance for adcoms to review you in the context of the fuller RD pool. Lots of reasons for this. It is not necessarily that the application was flawed.
You asked if you should commit to your EA school. Why would you do that now? Let your RD and deferral applications play out. Attend your top 2-3 choice accepted student days, then decide. You have until May 1.
@WilliamNYC, it’s not advice, but an option (yes, you can appeal). @CU123 is correct above; it’s in the agreement. No school will force attendance if ED FA is insufficient; consider the horrible publicity, forcing a student to attend, and then expelling when the bill can’t be paid. It doesn’t happen. Blackballing because of insufficient ED FA is a long-circulated unsubstantiated myth.
University of Chicago and Boston College are two very different schools. I’m curious, what attracts you to BC as UC is clearly your preference? Do you think they are comparable? If so, how? I do feel that if UC doesn’t come through then attending BC would be a more than acceptable alternative. It has been nothing but positive for the last forty years and, I believe, its quality is not adequately reflected by the ‘ranking rags’, as it doesn’t spend much time playing that game. it only works on constant improvement. – “Ever to Excel”, its motto (from Homer’s Iliad), is vigorously pursued. While BC may not have the ‘intellectual vibe’ of UC (few colleges do – even most of the Ivys), it does have very strong academics and you will be pushed by its rigor.
What attracts you to it? What do you think it has that UC may not have – besides big-time sports. I know one thing it has which cannot be overlooked is the Jesuit ethos of turning out “men and women for others”. That is, the encouragement and nurture of service to the world at large, to try to make it a better place not just for oneself but for humanity. If that appeals to you then you can’t go wrong there. That doesn’t mean that none of its graduates find ‘success’ in the very narrow confines of self-interest – plenty do – but that selfless goal is always there. How you react to it is up to you…
Good luck!
" @CU123 is correct above; it’s in the agreement. No school will force attendance if ED FA is insufficient; consider the horrible publicity, forcing a student to attend, and then expelling when the bill can’t be paid. It doesn’t happen. Blackballing because of insufficient ED FA is a long-circulated unsubstantiated myth."
Except that it’s fact. No student is forced to attend but other colleges can be (and have been) notified and that will mess up your RD round. Not worth going down that risky path.
Colleges and uni’s obviously don’t want to look mean (esp. as ED gets problematic publicity at best) but they don’t roll over at someone’s rather liberal interpretation of the ED agreement and what appears (to the applicant) to be “insufficient aid”. UChicago meets demonstrated need; many other schools who offer ED do not. Don’t confuse UChicago’s FA office with other schools. There is no blanket “walk away” in the agreement so you want to be carefully prepared before signing the agreement. Talk to Fin Aid. They are going to be a lot more helpful to your situation than anecdotes and assertions on CC.