<p>Now, I know safety schools are different for everyone (stats, etc.), but I guess I'm talking more about atmosphere. You know, challenging academics, a student body that gets a kick out of spending a night in the library. </p>
<p>What are some less selective/prestigious schools where a University of Chicago hopeful would be happy?</p>
<p>I applied to and received a large scholarship to the University of Pittsburgh Honors College back in the day. The core of their honors program is full of kids who are UofC caliber, many of whom chose big scholarships to Pitt over HPY or Chicago. Obviously it’s not a UofC tier school, but they have great study abroad, and it almost can’t be beat if you’re interested in philosophy (take a look at the UofC Philosophy faculty pages… a huge number have PhDs from Pitt) or neuroscience. Definitely worth looking at.</p>
<p>Grace’s suggestion is a good one, although in all honesty I haven’t heard of anyone turning down Harvard or Princeton to go to the Pitt honors program. (Penn, yes.) Lots of public universities have honors programs. Some are just marketing, but many do a good job of creating an intellectual community. It may not be as universal as it is at Chicago, but a reasonable substitute, and the institutions often offer much better football teams and larger parties for those moments when you choose not to go to the library.</p>
<p>A few somewhat less selective colleges that are often compared to Chicago: </p>
<p>University of Rochester. A recent president really tried to model it on Chicago, and sparked its current renaissance in popularity.</p>
<p>Reed College, in Portland, Oregon. Very intellectual reputation, attracts many of the same students who apply to Chicago. Great physics program for a LAC, too, as well as an urban (but not downtown) location not unlike Chicago.</p>
<p>St. John’s College, in Annapolis MD or Santa Fe NM. If you are attracted to a strong Great Books core curriculum, this college has it (and Chicago doesn’t, actually).</p>
<p>I know JHS knows this: Reed is a safety for no one; fit is required (along with other factors); GPA + test scores + rank together count for only 20% of Reed admission criteria.</p>
<p>Other LAC possibilities, somewhat similar: Carleton, Grinnell, Oberlin, Swarthmore.</p>
<p>No, Reed isn’t a safety, but for a student who really belongs there it is a much safer bet than Chicago. Chicago used to be that way – the kids who really belonged there almost always got in – but that hasn’t been true for a few years. And Reed is either less difficult or much less difficult to get into than Carleton, Oberlin, and Swarthmore (not certain about Grinnell).</p>
<p>The LACs that seem to attract students who also like Chicago the most seem to be Swarthmore, Pomona, Reed, and Carleton, and of that set only Reed is meaningfully less of a crapshoot for admission.</p>
<p>Because so many colleges have so many types of students, I thought for the record, I’d give you a few colleges that give you that collegiate gothic feel.</p>
<p>Sewanee, Trinity College, Rhodes College, University of Toronto, Fordham-Rose Hill, Bryn Mawr (if you’re a girl)</p>
<p>I think that at all of these colleges, you will find pleny of other students with that thirst for learning that you mention. However, you’ll probably find the highest percentage of those students per total student body at Reed College.</p>
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<p>Can I ask where those stats are from?</p>
<p>See [Reed</a> Magazine: Many Apply. Few are Chosen. (5/5)](<a href=“http://web.reed.edu/reed_magazine/spring2008/features/many_apply/5.html]Reed”>Reed Magazine: Many Apply. Few are Chosen. (5/5)), middle of the page.</p>
<p>On the subject of honors programs, does anyone have an opinion on the University of Alabama Honors College? As a National Merit Semifinalist (fingers crossed!), their package offered to Finalists seems pretty lucrative financially.</p>
<p>U Rochester, mentioned above, has Engineering. Any others you can think of that offer Engineering program? Looking for a fit for an intellectural tinkerer.</p>