UChicago / QuestBridge questions and concerns

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Chicago ✅
1

<p>Hi All,</p>

<p>I'm applying to UChicago, my #1 choice, through QuestBridge's National College Match program (for those who don't know, it's basically binding ED to up to 8 of 33 top-tier schools that gives a free ride if accepted). I'm also considering liberal arts schools or LA-esque schools (Yale, Wesleyan, Oberlin, Reed (non-QB), etc.).</p>

<p>My concerns are as follows:</p>

<p>1) I may not get into UChicago in the "early" round;
2) If I rank more than UChicago (and Yale, whose QB ED is non-binding), I may get into one of my "lesser" choices;
3) If I rank only UChicago and Yale early, and then get into several of my "lesser" schools (and / or even UChic) RD, I may not get a full ride / an almost-full ride with no loans (I need one of these things to happen);
4) I may not get into UChicago at all, and if I make poor rankings / application decisions, I may end up at a school I'm not 100% comfortable with, and I may not get the financial aid I need.</p>

<p>From what I have read, I am well qualified, but I know that admissions are tough and have only been getting tougher. Here are my stats:</p>

<ul>
<li>97.5 / 100 GPA (weighted; no unweighted provided; no rank; class size 123, I estimate I'm 2/123, but again, no rank, percentile, etc. provided)</li>
<li>3 APs in both my Junior and Senior years, where for almost all students, the max is 2 per year (and we can only take APs starting Junior year). Only student to do so in my grade, and I'm the only student taking AP Calc BC in my grade.</li>
<li>2340 (770 M, 770 CR, 800 W) SAT I; 750 Chem, 800 MII, 750 USH SAT IIs (2300 SAT IIs). Average SAT I at my school is about an 1800, I think.</li>
<li>~200 hours of regularly performed community service throughout high school; fairly involved in school community; somewhat of a leader in community (founder and president of a club, have made several grade-wide presentations, working with faculty and other students on several aspects of our school's program, etc.)</li>
<li>~$33,000 annual income; both parents unemployed</li>
<li>first generation student</li>
<li>creative, polished essays and good recommendations from what I can tell (I have waived my rights to read the recs)</li>
</ul>

<p>With this in mind, I have a main question:</p>

<p>How should I rank my schools? That is, should I list only UChic and Yale, effectively taking a gamble? I am not 100% confident about my chances at either, but I feel I have much better chances at Wesleyan and Oberlin, for instance (Oberlin has a ~60% acceptance rate ED). The problem is that I'm somewhat ambivalent about such schools -- not sure I'd be comfortable at any for 4 years, mainly because of the social atmospheres and the slight lack of intellectual energy (relative to UC), though I like many aspects of them.</p>

<p>Another concern: If I rank only UC and Yale and don't get into either ED, then my chances of getting into the other schools RD are lowered, simply because it's RD. </p>

<p>Please advise. I know I am in a somewhat specific situation, but hopefully you will be able to address (some of) my concern(s).</p>

<p>Thank you for reading,
suluclacdna</p>

2

<p>I don’t know exactly what you should do, but I do think you should take a few deep breaths and calm down a little.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Yale and Chicago are amazing colleges. I don’t blame you at all for wanting to go to one of them. But they aren’t THAT unique, and pretty much any of your “lesser” choices (if your lesser choices are like the ones you listed) will also be amazing. It is a little silly to think that you wouldn’t be comfortable at Wesleyan or Oberlin. The former, especially, has a LOT of intellectual energy. I understand completely why you might prefer Yale or Chicago if given a choice. But, trust me, if the worst that can happen to you is you wind up at Wesleyan with a full ride . . . things will be great for you. Not 50% great; 100% great.</p></li>
<li><p>In terms of selectivity/chances there are a number of schools (including, frankly, Chicago) between Yale and Oberlin, and the same goes for intellectual rigor. If you can rank 8 schools with QB, surely you can find a couple others that you would be excited to attend with a full ride, and that you don’t feel quite as ambivalent about. Carleton? Haverford? Brown? Northwestern? USC? Caltech? UVa?</p></li>
<li><p>QB gives you a great chance to apply early to multiple schools, but you are right that you will risk getting matched with any school you rank. If I were you, I would feel confident that you will be accepted at several of these colleges – if not necessarily Yale and Chicago – in the regular decision round, and that given your family income you will be offered enough aid to make college do-able. So you don’t HAVE to go all in on the early round. You are not going to miss the boat entirely if you don’t get matched.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>I know it’s nerve-wracking, and you want everything resolved right now, if possible, but your long-term interests may require staying calm and waiting a while. I think for the early round you should rank 4-5 colleges you know in your heart you would be thrilled to attend with a full ride (i.e., not just Yale and Chicago), without worrying whether one of them is a “safety”. It sounds like you shouldn’t rank Oberlin or Wesleyan, but maybe you should think about Swarthmore or Pomona, for instance, which are much closer to Yale and Chicago in general vibe. Or Dartmouth or Rice, for heaven’s sake. And be ready to apply slightly more widely for RD if you don’t match.</p>

3

<p>Thanks for replying, JHS.</p>

<p>It’s hard for me to see myself fitting in at Wesleyan or Oberlin. I’m not the party type, so while I appreciate the intellectual vibe, I’d rather not be around, frankly, a bunch of people passing around drugs. Though your reasoning is good, I feel that if I try to follow it, I’m only convincing myself to go, and that really goes against my gut. Apparently, most transfer applicants regret their decisions because they tried to convince themselves that their schools were right for them. I don’t want to go through that.</p>

<p>Also, there isn’t much time for me to do the research I need to to figure out whether other schools would merit a spot on my “early” list… Really, I would need to tour to determine this, and I don’t think I can squeeze any others in between now and my list finalization date (November 5th).</p>

4

<p>So, fine. It sounds like you have made a decision only to rank Yale and Chicago, and that’s OK.</p>

<p>But don’t overvalue the differences between colleges based on stereotypes. You are just as likely to find yourself with a bunch of people passing around drugs at Yale as at Wesleyan or Oberlin, and only slightly less likely at Chicago. And there are plenty of people at Wesleyan and Oberlin who don’t do drugs. </p>

<p>And, most importantly of all, when you get to a college like any of these colleges, you will find that occasional drug use or drinking does not have the same meaning it has in many high schools. Smart people do it; serious people do it. The world isn’t divided into partiers and serious students, and even if you never touch a drop of alcohol or use any drugs, you will probably count among your close friends at least a few people who do. That will be true wherever you go. And wherever you go, at least among these schools, there will be other people who share your values, plenty of them, regardless of what the cliches say, and also plenty of people who share some of your values but not all of them.</p>

<p>I think there are lots of reasons why people may be unhappy at a particular college. In addition to the one you are worried about, there are having unrealistic expectations about a college, and also getting distracted by superficial things and not being open to figuring out how to make the college perfect for you.</p>

5

<p>Hi JHS,</p>

<p>Thanks again for replying. What you’ve said, especially in your last paragraph, makes a lot of sense to me. I’ve been told that parties exist everywhere, so it seems like avoiding them completely simply isn’t an option. And I’ve also considered the idea that “the anxiety is worse than the thing itself.” Like you said, I’ve been focusing a lot on a few perceived and pre-supposed negatives of these schools – but I can also recall many things I love about them (and even, on the other hand, a few things I’m a bit “iffy” about regarding UChicago!).</p>

<p>When I think back to when I visited Wesleyan and Oberlin, I remember very fondly liking certain parts of each, and feeling very comfortable as a result. There were some things that made me a bit uncomfortable – like the extreme openness of some of the students – but perhaps learning to deal with and accept those more wholly will be an important skill.</p>

<p>I’ll keep meditating on this. Please continue to comment!</p>

6

<p>I would appreciate some more feedback, as the applications are due November 1st.</p>