<p>I graduated from the U of C in 2008 with a B.A. in political science. After a year off, I'll be attending Northwestern University Law School in the fall. I'm putting off the spring cleaning of my apartment, so I'll answer questions about the U of C, Hyde Park, or general Chicago related questions (I'm a life-long Chicagoan)....</p>
<p>I will be a first year in the coming fall and am very excited. I have no idea where I’ll want to go but I know some schools don’t like to accept their own undergrads into their graduate schools, does UChicago follow this same philosophy?
Thank you.</p>
<p>How did you clear the 2 years of WE requirment for NU? I thought they were getting mighty strict on the that.</p>
<p>To ACR1491: That’s kind of a tough question to answer. I know a few people who went from undergrad at the U of C to the law school or other graduate programs. I also know just as many that were rejected by them. I think they’re a bit biased against us, but if you have stellar grades and a test score that is above / at their medians, you have as good of a shot as anyone else.</p>
<p>To alum: The work experience requirement isn’t really 2 years, it’s more like 1 year. 95% of the entering class has at least 1 year of work experience, and something like 80% has 2+. So, 15% of the class has only a year of work experience. As for how I got around it - I don’t know. Perhaps they just liked me. :)</p>
<p>hmlee: My D (entering U of C this fall) wants to major in Poli Sci (passion) and Bio Sci (not pre-med). Would it be possible to do this double major? What are the exciting courses to take in the Poli Sci dept? Thanks.</p>
<p>Is it possible to double major like that? Yes. But it’s not really a good idea. I’ve known people who’ve double majored and some have pulled it off really well, but the U of C is a stressful enough experience with a single major. I’d suggest your daughter try to take intro courses in both departments and see if she can pick one or the other that she likes better…</p>
<p>As for poli sci, the exciting courses really depends on who is teaching. At any given quarter there are often a few professors on leave / not teaching, which can affect the course offerings. There are also only a few courses that are continuously offered from year to year. I did have a few professors that I really enjoyed taking classes from, though. I’d suggest trying to take classes from: John Brehm, Charles Lipson, and John Mearsheimer if you can. Brehm and Mearsheimer teach mostly upper level classes, so your D probably won’t be able to get into them until her third or fourth year (due to the preferences of the registration system). Lipson, though, teaches a few introductory level poli sci courses from year to year - usually intro to international relations, and 20th century world politics - which are usually fun and a good way to get your feet wet in the department…</p>
<p>How is the physics dept. at UChicago, in general? Also, is it possible to get an internship at Fermilabs?</p>
<p>Would it be possible to complete a double major in Theatre/Performance Studies + Biology…espeically with the core?</p>
<p>Re Bio/TAPS: Look at the course catalog for the major requirements, and count up. Biology has a lot of requirements, but some of them overlap the Core requirements, so it isn’t quite as bad as it looks. TAPS doesn’t overlap with Biology at all; it has some Core overlap, but I am not sure you can double count. </p>
<p>I think if you do the analysis you will conclude that it can be done, but with difficulty. It would help if you tested out of foreign language and math requirements (and were not pre-med, which would force you to take math anyway). The biggest problem will likely be that both majors usually involve a lot of non-classroom work: Bio majors working in labs doing research; Theater majors doing drama productions and films. Those are both big time-eaters, and because they involve working with others they are not especially flexible.</p>
<p>JHS has it right. The problem of double majors isn’t the logistics of it - there are very few combinations where you honestly couldn’t take enough classes over the course of four years that it would literally be impossible to do it. The problem is that (especially when you’re talking doubling a hard science with something else) unless you have two majors that do overlap by a lot, you’re piling a lot of extra work on top of all the work you’ll have completing the core. It can be done, but it’s not exactly a picnic to do it.</p>
<p>To whoever asked about the physics department: What are you asking, specifically? I was a physics major my 1st year but not after that - I discovered I just didn’t have the aptitude for it…</p>
<p>I’m confused: core classes can overlap with major requirements? I thought that students had to fulfill each one separately…as in core classes couldn’t count toward the major. (Maybe I misunderstood something on the website?)</p>
<p>Generally, core classes cannot be used to fulfill major requirements. However, sometimes the requirements for a major will overlap with the requirements of the core. For example, both Bio and Physics require majors to take introductory chem/physics sequences as well as calculus for the math requirement. Those have to be completed before majors can continue on to the advanced classes, but they also have the benefit of fulfilling the physical science / math requirements of the core.</p>
<p>It is not usually possible (and, really, I can’t think of any example for where this would work) to use Hum, Sosc, or Civ for major requirements…</p>
<p>Ok, that clears things up. Thanks!</p>
<p>re: RelaxedParent</p>
<p>i was a biology and poli sci double major. it’s certainly doable, but difficult since both majors have considerable requirements.</p>
<p>basically, a uchicago education boils down to this: 1/3 of your classes will be core, 1/3 or more will be your major (depending on the specific major requirements), and remaining ~1/3 will be electives. if you decide to do a second major that doesn’t overlap with the first (e.g. not bio and biochem), then your final ~1/3 of electives will be the second major.</p>
<p>uchicago requires 42 classes to graduate (every class counts the same, 1 “unit” or class, except gym which is required but doesnt count). i had to take 48 classes in order to graduate with both bio and poli sci. there are 3 terms (“quarters”) per academic year, which means that i took 4 classes (the maximum without extra approval) each term i was at chicago. with 42 classes, you can take 4 classes half of the time and 3 classes the other half (the difference between 4 and 3 classes is typically significant). add to that the labs that are associated with many bio classes and that doubles the time and work for an individual class (each class is a minimum of 3 hours per week, but lab classes are 3 hours in class, 3 hours in lab, 1 hour of discussion)</p>
<p>hope this helped</p>
<p>There go my electives…I was hoping to learn Korean and pick up some lessons in gouche watercolor painting, but that’ll have to go. Oh, well.</p>
<p>So basically, either you max out on courses per quarter over 4 years, take classes during the summer, or add a few quarters of coursework over a 5th year (AHHHHHHH!!!) or a combination of the last two? It sounds expensive and, no offense, insane.</p>
<p>Why did you (acidsting13) and anyone else you knew who went in a similar direction (especially people in leadership positions in clubs or on athletic squads), do as you did? Was there ever a time where you felt like exploding? Or am I exaggerating the acquired stress levels?</p>
<p>S1’s GF double majored, did the study abroad thing, took a language of interest and other electives and graduated with a GPA north of 3.7 in four years. She was socially active, (now graduated), fun, attractive, and had many friends. So, from what I can tell it is possible to double major and still enjoy oneself. She loved the University and misses it now that she has entered the world of work, even though she landed a highly sought after IB type job.</p>
<p>Thanks for details regarding the double major question. Did you find doing the dbl major gratifying and helping with your future choices (grad school and/or job)? or just self-inflicted torture?! :)</p>
<p>re: “highlander12”</p>
<p>part of the core is a language requirement, so you will certainly be able to learn korean. you can take more than 4 classes a quarter if you’d like, though you need special permission to do so, but if art is the fifth class that shouldnt be a big deal. also, many students stay over the summer and take classes, do research / internships, or some combination. summer in chicago, and especially in hyde park, is fantastic. i stayed every summer, and at least a third of my friends stayed during the summers as well.</p>
<p>if you think you’re going to go to chicago, double major, and go out drinking 4 nights a week, you have a rude awakening coming to you. you will get more work than you can possibly complete, and yes, sometimes you feel like youre going to explode and the world is going to fall apart. but part of the education is figuring out what you need to do, and what you can get away without doing</p>
<p>all uchicago students are a bit “insane,” so no offense taken. it takes a certain type of person to willingly subject themselves to the ridiculous amounts of work, tough grading, horrible weather, etc. in pursuit of the life of the mind.</p>
<p>for the record, i also was pres of a major RSO (registered student organization) for 3 years, was active in a fraternity, and had a very good social life, so its definitely doable</p>
<p>the most important thing i can say to you, or anyone who is lucky enough to have the opportunity to attend the u of c, is that you will be constantly challenged intellectually (in academic, extracurricular, and social settings), and you will emerge from school better because of it. in talking to friends who went to other top schools, and being a grad student at another top school myself, i know you can’t say that about most schools.</p>
<p>which brings me to “RelaxedParent”'s query:</p>
<p>i did a double major because i loved what i was doing. it was certainly torture as well. uchicago students, no matter how socially adept or awkward, all share a perverse sense of “fun”: spending 10 straight days in the library during finals with friends turns out to be enjoyable and memorable.</p>
<p>i didnt set out to do the double major to help with jobs / grad school, but it turns out it has. i’m in grad school in the top ranked program for my field, it helped me land a several consulting jobs (which i did not take in favor of the following…), and it has helped me in the process of starting my own company. </p>
<p>hope this helps</p>
<p>I was wondering-
Do the famous economics professors teach undergraduate classes?
How many classes do they teach?
Do you think that they are good teachers?</p>
<p>HMLEE - I’d like your take on how well Chicago prepared you for law school admission. I know there is a pre-law thread (which I found interesting) but I’m also interested in other perspectives. My son is finishing up his first year at U Chicago and is thinking of majoring in Philosophy and applying to law school. Any reason you selected Northwestern? Planning on staying in the Chicago area? Anything you wished you knew when you started at Chicago that you now know and would like to pass on to pre-law students?</p>