<p>The Uncommon Application may no longer be available, but it certainly looks like the Common Application Supplement will include the heart and soul of the Uncommon Application. This is taken directly from the new Admissions website:</p>
<p>"The Chicago supplement includes additional questions not included on the Common Application, along with our essay questions. One short essay on why you want to attend the University of Chicago is required, one on your favorite art and media is optional, and the extended essay from our student-generated essay questions is required."</p>
<p>Having had 2 children write the Uncommon Application over the past 5 years, and having had one child use the Common Application only to apply to his university, I'd say the devil is in the details. Yes, students will be filling out the biographical, academic and extracurricular information in a more uniform manner, but the guts of the application, the Chicago essays, remain the same. The only concession I can find is that they have made the art,music,literature short essay optional in light of the fact that students have to write the Common App extracurricular short essay and longer personal statement. If a student was only going to apply to Chicago and no where else, then this is certainly a change, and a burden, but for most students who will apply to many schools, they most likely will have to write the Common Application anyway. No harm, no foul.</p>
<p>I wonder if admissions will read the 2 common app essays? If so then they've potentially got 5 essays/app! For students there's no more tweaking the Chicago essay into the common or the reverse? I know that wasn't super common but it did happen.</p>
<p>If I were of the wagering kind, my guess would be that the Common App essays would be treated as supplemental and perhaps used if the decision is very close.</p>
<p>Unalove,
S1 actually <em>did</em> cut down the essay for another app and it did NOT sing in its shorter form (croaked is more like it). The vignettes did not hold together and paint the picture he was trying to create. He wound up using something else entirely.</p>
<p>If S2 applies to Chicago (which may be a distinct possibility!), there is no way his essay will be 1300 words long. It will be short, cynical, political and funny.</p>
<p>I dont really know why I am soo confused but exactly how many essays do we have to write this year?</p>
<p>I know there is the one short answer and one extended response essay on one of the five topics on the Common Application,
a "Why Chicago?" essay,
an optional "Art/Media essay" which btw I dont know what we can write about
and the five optional questions everyone is discussing. How many of these five options do we have to do?</p>
<p>Please clarify as to all the essays that need to be done?</p>
<p>Correct. Essays required are: Common App - 150 word statement about an extracurricular or activity important to you; Personal Statement of at least 250 words on 1 of 5 topics. Chicago Supplement - Extended essay (1) using one of the 5 provided prompts; Why Chicago; Art/Media Essay (OPTIONAL).</p>
<p>To summarize...4 required essays, 1 optional essay. As for the optional essay, I'd say write about something that means something to you, whether it's a book, some music, a piece of art or some combination of the above. For example my S (Class of 2007) wrote about a particular book and a favorite radio station. My D (Class of 2011) wrote about the "Lives" essay in the weekly New York Times magazine. As with all essays, and Chicago's in particular, make sure that whatever you write tells the adcoms something about you...it doesn't need to be explicit, but it should reflect who you are, what you love and how you think.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot for your help!! I really appreciate it. One more question.
Do you think that if I pick both option 5 for the Common Application essay and for the Chicago options (both of which is a topic of your choice) it will seem as though I am avoiding answering the required topics? I just have a lot of unique prompts that don't fit any of the options.</p>
<p>Also, is the extended essay on the common application considered your personal statement. I thought that a separate personal statement was required to be attached to all application packages. So is this really the personal statement or just another prompt to which a real personal statement must be added?</p>
<p>CountingDown, that's what S2 (the one who got away as I described him to Ted O'Neill) wrote about for his Common App essay. Actually, it was about the one book he couldn't find under his bed, that turned out to be on his brother's bookshelf at U of C!!</p>
<p>The Common App personal statement IS the Common App extended Essay. They are one and the same. And no, I do not believe there is any reason why you shouldn't choose both of the "Topic of Your Choice" options if you have multiple ideas in mind for essays other than those called for by the specific prompts given on both the Common App and the Chicago Supplement.</p>
<p>One morning last August I was grouchy and made S clean out everything that was under his bed. The stack of books was humongous -- it epitomized of all his varied interests. We ever took pictures of the pile, we found it so funny. </p>
<p>In October he decided it would make a good essay.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Do you think that if I pick both option 5 for the Common Application essay and for the Chicago options (both of which is a topic of your choice) it will seem as though I am avoiding answering the required topics? I just have a lot of unique prompts that don't fit any of the options.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Better pay attention to the Essay 5 directions:</p>
<p>Essay Option 5
Take as a model Options 1 through 4 as you pose and respond to a prompt of your own. Please do not submit an essay written for the Common Application. Your prompt should be original and thoughtful. Draw on your best qualities as a writer, thinker, visionary, social critic, sage, sensible woman or man, citizen of the world, or future citizen of the University of Chicago; take a little risk and have fun.</p>
<p>I really like UChicago's essays topics, they're great. I can work with #2 well, just analyze a problem in society like high divorce rate o something and link it to major and minor problems.</p>
<p>btw, i was looking at an old UC essay thread, and many incorporated an anecdote from their personal lives for questions like this year's number 1. Is this necessary? I thought adcoms could already get a sense of who you are from the structure, tone etc of your essay.</p>