<p>I am going to spend today looking through all of the questions here and synthesizing some responses to many that have been asked several times, so look forward to some responses soon!</p>
<p>Feel free to disregard my question. I managed to edit my essays down and they have improved with the brevity. Thanks for taking the time to answer all of our questions.</p>
<p>mom8dad, we do not strictly require a certain number of years of math or science, but do hope that students will continue math and science through their four years of school. However, we’re always happy to see students pursuing advanced coursework in an area of interest; since your son seems as if he is choosing rigorous coursework to fill his time, I would not say this is of concern unless he were to be interested in majoring in a math or science field.</p>
<p>AMC, we do not require AP scores as part of our admissions process. You are welcome, but not required, to self-report your AP test scores on the Common App if you wish to. </p>
<p>Apollo6, my apologies that your son’s visit was not to his liking, and thank you for your feedback. We aim to have these summer sessions be able to reach as wide an audience as possible, but sometimes things get lost in the shuffle, and will consider your experience as we move forward in to next summer’s planning.</p>
<p>asdf25-- that’s a big question! I’d say briefly that, far and above, our students love learning and enjoy the process of doing so; I’d encourage you to post generally in the forum to see longer responses from current students and more opinions on the subject!</p>
<p>vballchick–we do occasionally accept transfer students from community colleges; our transfer process is exceptionally selective and as such we do not maintain a formal partnership with any colleges or universities for transfer, but seek to admit highly qualified transfer students for whom UChicago would be an appropriate choice from many types of environments. </p>
<p>tbbmfqnn-- this is a temporary issue with the Common Application that we are working to resolve; the essays will not be limited to 275 words. Hold on for a few days (it’s still very early in the process!) and the word limit inputs should be corrected for these options.</p>
<p>Hello! Sorry to keep adding to this exhaustive pile of questions, but I have been wondering about the general atmosphere on campus. I am someone who truly loves to learn, and I spend a lot of my free time reading and studying things I find interesting. However, I also am a pretty laid-back person and I don’t like to be overly stressed. I like to have fun, go running, joke around, etc. I have heard a lot of stereotypes about the University of Chicago - people have told me that the atmosphere is very cut-throat and that the Core Curriculum is nearly impossible. I have heard that students work harder at the University of Chicago than almost anywhere else, but that their grades don’t reflect that because it is just so difficult. Of course, I am someone who is willing to work very hard; in fact, I enjoy doing a lot of my homework because I think it is interesting. But I still want to be able to sleep and have some free time to do other things! I realize that this is probably just an extreme stereotype, but could you explain the atmosphere on campus? What real things about the University of Chicago might have contributed to these rumors?</p>
<p>Also, my parents are concerned about me applying because the University is located in Hyde Park (right around some very unsafe Chicago neighborhoods). Could you explain the safety measures taken on campus? How often would a student have to walk around the campus at night? I know that at Columbia they say they offer University housing for all four years. But when I visited Columbia, they said that this really means that you might have to live in a Columbia dorm located up to four blocks away from the actual campus. Are all the dorms at the University of Chicago located on the campus or is there a possibility that students will end up living on university-owned buildings away from campus? </p>
<p>Quick question: If I am a student who lives in the Chicago area and wants to apply EA, can I still sign up for the Alumni interview or must I come on campus? And generally what’s the latest date I can submit EA and still get an alumni interview, because I saw somewhere that spots get filled quickly! Thank you!</p>
<p>I have a few questions regarding Letters of Recommendation.</p>
<p>First, I know that two academic recommendations are required, but does U Chicago specify what subject areas they should be from? Do I need to ask teachers from two different subject areas, and if so, are there any specific subject areas.</p>
<p>Second, I have some coaches from extracurricular activities who will be submitting letters on my behalf. Do these count as academic, or supplemental recs. If they are supplemental, how many of those can I submit?</p>
<p>I have some pretty specific debate accomplishments that are a huge deal in debate (I reached elimination rounds at the Tournament of Champions as a junior) but aren’t well-known. Will the admissions staff Google them to find out what they are, or do I need to explain them? If so, where should I put the explanations on the common app?</p>
<p>Second, I miss 30-40 school days a year for debate. Will you consider this if I put it in the “other info” section of the common app while reviewing my app?</p>
<p>cheerios, I can give a few answers to your questions but also encourage you to speak with some of our current students at <a href=“mailto:psac@uchicago.edu”>psac@uchicago.edu</a> to get a student’s perspective on your interests as well! </p>
<p>I would say, as both an admissions counselor and an alumna, that the University <em>is</em> a place where you will work hard-- academics come first here and are rigorous, but that doesn’t mean you won’t have time for friends, activities, etc. As a student I was involved in a number of out of school activities-- working in research, heading up two large student organizations, being an RA-- that did place demands on my time but were perfectly possible to balance with school and still do very well. And sleep I do dispute the idea of UChicago as a “cutthroat” environment, though-- while academics are rigorous, I think students on campus have a strong sense of “we’re all in it together” and you will very often collaborate with classmates on projects, study together with others, etc. </p>
<p>As for campus safety, Hyde Park is consistently ranked in the top 5 safest neighborhoods in Chicago. The University of Chicago Police Department works with the CPD to patrol the area and provides safety resources to students such as a wide-ranging blue-light emergency phone system, security resource officers at night in areas frequented by students, and a free evening shuttle service. Students are guaranteed housing for four years; some of our housing options are off campus proper, but are in residential portions of Hyde Park that are very safe. Even though I am no longer a student, I still choose to live in Hyde Park (and have for the past several years) because I feel it is a wonderful community.</p>
<p>Smarty99, you may choose either option; we still offer alumni interviews to students in the Chicago area. We’ll communicate with you once your application has been submitted as to the sign up and timing process for alumni interviews; we are still able to offer alumni interviews to students who apply on our EA deadline, so I would not be overly worried about submitting early just to get an interview option.</p>
<p>debater1996, your two recommendations may come from teachers in any academic subject area who have had you in their classroom; we do not require them to be from teachers in different subjects or fields, but it can be helpful to show breadth by asking for recommendations from teachers in differing areas. Coaches, whether from a sports team or an academic club, would be appropriate supplemental recommenders. </p>
<p>jrs777, you are welcome to submit brief descriptions of the relevance of your achievements if you feel the need, but rest assured that our admissions officers are well versed in many areas and will do their due diligence to understand achievements that appear on an application but that may not be in our wheelhouse. I would encourage you to work with your guidance counselor to discuss appropriate ways to note that your absences were due to debate participation; it may be best to have your counselor note such in their recommendation letter.</p>
<p>Is it alright to paste an activities resume with extra details into the addition information section now that the CommonApp does not allow for a resume to be uploaded?</p>
<p>814560, we usually find that the Common Application activities section provides sufficient space for students to adequately note their activities. You are welcome to do this if you wish to, but it is not necessary.</p>
<p>Hello. I want to know if it’s still legal for me to apply as freshman after 1 year studying at another university? Since I’m international student, I want to re-take freshman year so that I can get used to the studying environment here, and i think a full 4-year-course will save me from the educational gap between my current university and uchi. Thanks.</p>
<p>Hello lihndan, if you have studied full time at another university, you will need to apply as a transfer student. It would not be possible for you to apply as a first-year applicant.</p>
<p>I get it,tks so much. Since I really don’t want there is a gap in my school-transferring, I won’t attend university this year. Instead I will spend my gap year on some ecs and my application.</p>
<p>UChicago, could you give me a merit-based scholarship ? The UChicago web doesn’t have enough information for non-Illinois applicants. My interest is how many and how much is available.</p>
<p>Would it be possible to drop the application fee for uofc?
Would it be possible to refund the fee to those who are not admitted?
It would be good consolation to those brilliant students whom we had to say sorry to.
Refunding the application fee would be one of the best things to do to encourage them.</p>
I do dispute the idea of UChicago as a “cutthroat” environment, though-- while academics are rigorous, I think students on campus have a strong sense of “we’re all in it together” and you will very often collaborate with classmates on projects, study together with others, etc. </p>