Any idea how that works if a student has submitted the FAFSA/CSS Profile and requires sufficient need-based financial aid in order to commit? How can one write a LOCI and confirm that they will enroll if they need to know the financial aid package first?
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To clarify further, if they were to reach out and say “if you can commit, we will accept you”, in the absence of other decisions, what does the “commitment” entail?
That is an excellent point in how it would differ from a true ED3 situation. The commitment would be the deposit not a written ED agreement.
VS - most waitlisted aren’t going to be pulled, so it’s best not to have unrealistic expectations. However, it’s fine to have some expectations - and that’s called Hope. Write your LOCI if you are serious about attending. Because I’ve been following the numbers over the past several years, I felt obligated to share what I’m seeing and what I believe to be the case. That doesn’t mean I’m correct.
Speaking of hope - I really hope this year they don’t drag the W/L out like they did last year. No news was good news to far too many for far too long, when they could have been moving on and preparing for the next stage of their lives. Sorry, but it was painful to read through and undoubtedly very painful for those going through it.
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Who else got that “take a gap year and join the Class of 2026” option on the waitlist form?
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For the Class of '23 it didn’t seem that they accepted many off the wait-list; yield was over 80% and the admit rate was just over 6%. The night of the RD decisions, a poster chimed in to say that they were waitlisted but offered a spot with merit if they’d accept right then. So yes, I believe we can all agree that they manage the yield. But the specific tactics vary from year to year and may include pulling a bunch off the waitlist in some years and not others; allowing them to respond on 5/1 in some years and encouraging an immediate reply in others. And so forth. It’s simply difficult to predict what will happen in any given year.
Yep. The question is whether they will do so THIS year when they have already admitted the 300. Or whether any pulls will be for Z list.
I believe it is a standard gap year opt-in question that gets asked for all the waitlisted candidates of UChicago.
Thanks! I was wondering about that.
That may well be true. UChicago had freshmen on campus with at least some in person classes which their competitors did not. For this reason accepted students who want to go there may be less likely to take a gap year since know that it is very likely that they will have an in person experience their freshman year
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My son is a freshman there and loving it. He has been having an active but safe social life too. His only in person class is calculus. He was worried it would be where “fun goes to die” but found it the opposite. He’s an athletic social kid, and opposite of the old stereotype.
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Yes, they were probably expecting more gappers than what actually happened last year.
Do you know why UChicago didn’t allow transfer students to take a gap year last summer?
About waitlists: son got off waitlist last year before 4/1 and he was given time till 5/1 to decide.
After the RD results last year, think he submitted his LOCI after a week or so - and received an email/phone-call from AO shortly afterwards. He got off waitlist with a small merit award (a pleasant surprise).
He is having great time on-campus at UChicago this year. IMO the image ‘where fun goes to die’ is either incorrect or things changed recently. When son decided to go there - we the parents were worried as he loves outdoors/sports and we were not sure if he gets anytime outside studies; he is just loving it there with good/healthy social life and plenty activities while doing well in classes. Just thought of adding for any RD/waitlisted students/parents: dont let that old image scare you too much. Wish you all the best.
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This needs to be voiced more often. Everyone I have talked with is incredibly happy at UChicago. The school and alumni need to work to change this wrong image of the UChicago of today. I’m sure there are many qualified students who would be incredibly successful and happy at UChicago, but they don’t even consider the school, based on these very outdated and wrong stereotypes.
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My brother is at UChicago and LOVES it. He is absolutely killing it there, has amazing friends, loves the school. He would never dream of transferring out.
Where do we submit the letter of continued interest, and where are the guidelines for it
There are no guidelines. I’d send it to my regional admissions officer and to the general admissions office email address.
No. Sorry
My kids are also having a great time there. @Engineer9 and @hs2020dad - what do you suggest that the school and alumni do specifically? My own perspective as a parent and alum is that if anything they tend to oversell the place in terms of being “for everybody.” It’s not, and I’ve noticed that most who pass up the opportunity to apply are doing so for very good reasons rather than outdated and wrong stereotypes. All are excellent students so it’s never a question of ability. Rather, it’s a question of whether they see the school as a good match. Right now, UChicago is rejecting and wait-listing too many candidates that I personally felt were very well qualified. The few who take a pass (in my experience) - even those who are “great fits” IMO - have well-articulated reasons. So I truly wonder just how genuine these negative perceptions are. Perhaps this is a regional thing and YMMV depending on locale.
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I can only speak from our experience. My child fits everything about UChicago’s core beliefs. He is very hard working and passionate about his goals and education. He is also an athlete and likes to be around positive, outgoing people. When he started looking at schools, he immediately crossed UChicago off his list because of what he read on the internet about it being a depressing place, which is a thing of the past. Even though the academic experience was a great fit for him, the old rumors worried him. Luckily he ended up talking to multiple students and recent graduates that enlightened him of their positive experience, both academically and socially. He is extremely happy with his decision to attend UChicago and is confident he made the right choice. I’m Not sure what the school and alumni can do to change some of these old and recently incorrect stereotypes.