<p>i want a college where I can chill and party, as well as experience great academics.</p>
<p>is my decision bad or good? do uchicago ppl have ANY fun?</p>
<p>do they party at all?</p>
<p>No. </p>
<p>Not at all.</p>
<p>i'd assume that like at most schools, there are people at UChicago who go out there and try to have fun, and other people that prefer to stay in. then there are those who balance both.</p>
<p>We don't have fun here.</p>
<p>Maybe we don't party as much as you'd like to party in college? </p>
<p>The University of Chicago is a college-- and in a few years you'll understand what I mean when I write that-- but it's a far, far, far cry from a party school.</p>
<p>(But sometimes I question even that assertion when some of my hallmates talk about getting "crunk" by 9:00 on a Wednesday night).</p>
<p>There are certainly opportunities to party here if you want to. I've only been here for a few weeks, but its been my impression that while the party scene doesn't dominate, there are many, many people who enjoy drinking and partying on the weekends as a release from schoolwork. I've been to a few frat parties since i've been here, and "bar night" this past Wednesday, and its more than some people have done and less than some.</p>
<p>when i think of a typical uc student, I think of a stressed-out nerd who doesn't have a social life, is constantly stressed by mountains of work, never parties, doesn't get out much, doesn't go to athletic events, etc.</p>
<p>i want a school where I can be a nerd but still have fun and be chill, ya know?
does uc not fit that criteria?</p>
<p>That's really not U of C. Yes, we're all stressed during midterms and finals but anywhere you go you'll find that to be true. The work is not unmanageable and while it's not looked down upon to stay in and do work on a Friday night that is certainly not what most of us are doing. There are plenty of opportunities to socialize. I'm not big into the party scene mainly because I always have practice in the mornings but I love hanging out with my friends in low key settings or going downtown with them. Plenty of other people are involved in the party scene and they love it. There are also numerous weekend house activities. The various houses get groups together to go to concerts, musicals, pretty much anything. The city is right there and most of the students take advantage of all the activities Chicago has to offer on the weekends. </p>
<p>As far as athletics, we are a D3 school. People go to football and basketball games and get excited but it's certainly not the same atmosphere as a D1 football game. It can still be a good time though. This past weekend was the homecoming game which featured a barbecue and free t-shirts. It was fairly crowded. </p>
<p>Obviously you have to be a serious student to get in and survive here but that doesn't mean that serious students don't blow off steam and have a good time. We just tend to prioritize (not that other schools don't). You probably won't see us at frat parties the weekend before our midterm week, for example.</p>
<p>This question comes up over and over again on this board. If you search through other threads for more information, it has to be about the most common one. While there are party outlets as noted, this [modified] quote pretty much captures the average student in my opinion </p>
<p>"I think of a stressed-out nerd [intellectual most people dont do Dungeons and Dragons or hang out on programming forums] who doesn't have a social life [by college but not adult standards], is constantly stressed by mountains of work [which they elect to take on, and normally would never give up], never parties [think dinner and a movie is really kicking back], doesn't get out much [required to go multiple days without serious non-academic interaction for 2-3 out of the 11 weeks each quarter], doesn't go to athletic events [occasionally goes to the gym], etc."</p>
<p>In a way, the U of C has created a perfect storm by mixing a minority of type A career gunners via its recent admissions choices with its traditional core constituency of bookish types. Sure, there are undergraduates who screw around playing Wii until 5 AM or attend Tuesday afternoon office hours on a regular basis with Dr. Jack Daniels, but relative to other elite schools they are marginal. Also, you have to consider a lot of the slackers here are really just freewheeling intellectuals (which you tend not to find at most other Ivies and instead at places like Reed and St. Johns). The kind of folks who blow off class and assignments to read what they want, watch documentaries, listen to obscure music, attend random events and lectures, and so on. </p>
<p>Consequently, it is my observation that if you are not gung ho about the UChicago academic environment going in, you are very unlikely to enjoy getting to the end. That is if you make it. About one in seven students tend to call its quits before getting their degree, and that is unreasonably high if you ask me. Further, they tend to go out with a bad taste in their mouth, rather than because the school is forcing them on account of horrendously poor grades. </p>
<p>So all in all, you would better off trading some of the top tier academic element (which few external people care about) for a UG body that fits you better. There are plenty of schools with very serious white collar credibility that can offer you this. Georgetown, Virginia, Dartmouth, Duke, Brown are just a few.</p>
<p>I agree with uchicagoalum insofar as one needs to be excited by academics and wants to attend the U of C on the way in. To that end, most prospectives don't feel neutral about the school. They visit campus and something instinctively clicks or they visit and say "ew, yuck."</p>
<p>Suffice it to say that I'm the only person in my family who's gone here, as the rest of my family is on the "ew, yuck" end of things.</p>
<p>The question comes down to why choose the U of C over other more "balanced" schools, and a lot of it has to do with what you expect from college.</p>
<p>I just want to point out that uchicagoalum's statement to the effect that one in seven students fails to graduate is not really accurate. Based on the latest figures I've seen, the four-year graduation rate is 85%, which is fairly consistent with that of the colleges you would compare it to. (Most of the Ivies, I believe, are in the mid-to-high 80s on that metric.) The five-year graduation rate is 90%, and the six-year rate is 91%+. I do think that's somewhat lower than the Ivies, and meaningfully lower than top LACs (other than Reed, which tends to be much lower than everyone else). But one in eleven is less shocking than one in seven. </p>
<p>And it's worth noting that Chicago's graduation requirements are probably a quantum more difficult to meet than those of many similar colleges -- not that the work is harder, but that the rules around the Core are more byzantine. It would certainly be possible to get the full educational benefits of the university, including an entree to a good job or graduate school, to fail to graduate because of a foot fault, and not to care enough to cure the situation. I hardly think that explains all, or even a majority, of the failures to graduate, but it could easily explain some of the difference between Chicago and similar universities.</p>
<p>As for the fun question, it's been asked and answered so many times, and it's so fundamentally insulting and silly, that I don't know how the students here can keep answering it cheerfully. The University of Chicago: Where Fun Comes To Debate Its Existence.</p>
<p>can a current student go through what an average day is like? or an average day right before midterms?</p>
<p>how many hours of sleep do you normally get? how many cups of coffee do you drink? do you read your textbooks to study? do you study with other people? does anyone have time to balance a job or research during the week? how often are classes? how often do you talk to professors outside of class (current or previous ones)? and I know that people don't normally care about this, but how does your lifestyle fit with your current GPA?</p>
<p>Sure.</p>
<p>how many hours of sleep do you normally get? </p>
<p>7-8</p>
<p>how many cups of coffee do you drink? </p>
<p>1-2</p>
<p>do you read your textbooks to study? </p>
<p>Rarely. I am not a science major. I've had two textbooks here in four quarters, and they are somewhat secondary. Most non-science classes read original sources and mixed commentary - the instructors compile readers from PDFs online.</p>
<p>do you study with other people? </p>
<p>My midterms are mostly papers, but I often peer-edit, and study with people more often than not for exams.</p>
<p>does anyone have time to balance a job or research during the week?</p>
<p>I have a very part-time job - something like four hours a week, plus a few RSOs (clubs). Others have more serious commitments and still have lives.</p>
<p>how often are classes? </p>
<p>Most are 2-3 meetings a week for an hour or an hour and a half at a time. Outside discussions or labs once a week are pretty common too.</p>
<p>how often do you talk to professors outside of class (current or previous ones)? </p>
<p>I talk to them enough in/after class that I don't often need to. Maybe once a quarter on average.</p>
<p>and I know that people don't normally care about this, but how does your lifestyle fit with your current GPA?</p>
<p>I am comfortably on the Dean's List, though from mostly core.</p>
<p>I agree with Chicago alum. Chicago is Chicago. Those saying its a normal experience are doing a disservice to themselves just as voting for Bush did a disservice to the republican party. UofC is a very unique experience that many love (like Unalove) and believe its the best place in the world. I admire that and am glad a place like Chicago exists for these students. But someone who is looking for snowball fights, road trips, and a strong social scene should probably look elsewhere.</p>
<p>Well, not quite, the scav road trips are legendary!</p>
<p>I am totally hooked on the idea of driving to France someday...</p>
<p>Slipper-- Chicago is a wonderful place, but I wouldn't say it's perfect. The institution does have its flaws, as do its students, but I don't often talk about them because people don't ask about them. Chicago is right for a "certain kind of person," but I'm of the belief that that "certain kind of person" is a lot more common than one may think.</p>
<p>Snowball fights? UChicago certainly has them! My guess is that any campus with snow gets its share of middle-of-the-night snowball fights.</p>
<p>Yeah if you look on the blogs from last year, I think even the admission counselors were throwing a few snowballs out on the quad.</p>