<p>I heard UChicago was incredibly competitive, and students are constantly studying. But of course, ivy leagues are the most famous colleges in the world. </p>
<p>So, how does UChicago compare with ivy leagues? Which gives a more complete education? Is UC better than some ivy league schools? Or is there a distinct difference?</p>
<p>Can somebody compare and contrast the different factors that favor and disfavor UC and ivies??</p>
<p>when are people going to realize that there is no distinct difference in virtually all the [top 25] tier 1 schools? sure, they all rank higher in certain programs but overall, they're all exceptional institutions and you'd be getting a great education at any of them. if you're choosing an ivy league school because they're the most famous, you have research to do.</p>
<p>There is a lot of overlap between these schools. Chicago emphasizes intellectual passion, but there are plenty of pre-professional types there, too. Chicago, Ivies, and other top schools all have a diverse population-preps, quirky people, middle class, working class, foreign, minorities, upper class. Each Ivy has a different social atmosphere- you might love one and hate another. There is no one perfect school for a person. Some of it is just chance within the same school- who you room with, what professors you end up with, what friends you meet. You could have a number of destinies at the same school, let alone at different schools.</p>
<p>Chicago most resembles Columbia in location, core curriculum, size and student body.</p>
<p>i forgot to add that although you'd be getting a complete education at both UChicago and an Ivy, the student body does differ greatly. In simple terms, UC is a "nerd" school while the Ivy strives to be elite in many aspects outside academics such as athletics, the arts, etc.</p>
<p>The differences among Ivy schools (a football league) are far greater than the differences between Chicago and some of them. Cornell is far more like the University of Wisconsin than it is like Dartmouth; Dartmouth is far more like Williams than it is like Columbia.</p>
<p>Having been a graduate student and TA at Chicago, the major difference is that, for an undergraduate student body of that size, they have far less in the way of on-campus music, art, theater, and athletics, both intercollegiate and intramural (and on the whole, less drinking) than most of the Ivies, and the students who go there like it that way. (It doesn't mean they don't have some, 'cause they do, just less of it.)</p>
<p>This is just my opinion:
I would say that U of C is better than Brown, Dartmouth, Cornell, and UPenn; and about equal to Columbia.
U of C seems to be way more academically oriented than most of the Ivies (It used to be in the Big Ten though).
Also, the Ivies are the most famous in the US. U of C is more prestigious internationally than Brown and Dartmouth (which are virtually unknown outside the US) and about equal to Cornell and Columbia. The Times Higher Education Supplement (which is British) has an international ranking on its website <a href="http://www.thes.co.uk/%5B/url%5D">http://www.thes.co.uk/</a>. You might have to sign up for a 14-day trial though. It seems to be based mainly on prestige. I'll type the rankings of U of C and the Ivies for 2005.</p>
<p>1- Harvard
7- Yale
8- Princeton
14- Cornell
17- Chicago
20- Columbia
32- UPenn
71- Brown
117- Dartmouth</p>
<p>The main difference is that Chicago is an NCAA Div III athletic program while the Ivy League is an NCAA Div I conference.</p>
<p>Or were you talking about academics?</p>
<p>the ivy league originally started as an atheltic conference, and it still is. Now, it seems like much more of a prestige factor. Ivy league seems to always equate to elite. In fact, all of the ivy league schools are elite, but there's many other 'elite' schools out there that aren't in the ivy league ... those including UChicago, Stanford, Duke, UCBerkely, MIT, Caltech, etc. </p>
<p>Alot of the differences between the schools has to do with your personal preferences. It isn't fair to judge all ivy league schools as all the same, when in fact there's vast differences between each one of them. The only thing that remains the same across the ivy league is the continuously high rankings the schools achieve, and their lack of academic or athletic scholarships.</p>
<p>chicago is amazing...i got in as a freshman, and i am putting in a transfer from cornell although everyone i have talked to has said DO NOT GO THERE, everyone, including members of the faculty here. No one will dispute that its amazing, but quality of life there might not be that good.</p>
<p>and you're going to take the SAT again? Chicago requires the new SAT, am I right?</p>
<p>Uchicago has a powerhouse economics program. When I visited- I loved the gargoyles although it was somewhat chilly although I got a distinct nerdy feel to the place. I could be wrong but I would rate their economics at the same level and maybe even better than Harvard.</p>
<p>Their uncommon essays are fun. You should try it!</p>
<p>Hmm... I thought UChicago affiliates basically had a monopoly on the Nobel Prize for economics, and Harvard people don't. Am I right?</p>
<p>But then it comes down to facilities, focus on undergrads, general atmosphere so it really does depend on the person. Yeah- Chicago has 78 nobel prize winners associated with it- second only to Cambridge. </p>
<p>THey are also many professors especially in economics and physics with nobel prizes which kinda makes it special!</p>
<p>Who cares about Nobel Prize winners, especially when many of those awards were given to people who were only affiliated with the university?</p>
<p>If it's so nerdy... why doesn't UChicago have an engineering program? :rolleyes:</p>
<p>just imagine if they did. The average number of pocket protectors per student would skyrocket past any other school in the US.</p>
<p>um...ur school and every school cares about nobel prize winners.</p>
<p>i dont really care. I'd rather have somebody who is famous for their ability to teach rather than their ability to do research.</p>
<p>"But of course, ivy leagues are the most famous colleges in the world."</p>
<p>I doubt this. One could probably make an argument about the ivy league being the most famous in the US (though with controversy), but not the world. Brown and Dartmouth are not as known abroad as they are in the United States. </p>
<p>This being said, the University of Chicago is just as good as any Ivy League School academically. It offers superior academics, and is well known internationally.</p>