<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: N/A
[</em>]SAT II: N/A
[<em>]ACT: 34
[</em>]GPA: 4.0 UW
[<em>]Rank: 1/92
[</em>]Other Tests: 3 on AP US History but didn't send it in.
[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays: I honestly only thought they were okay. I didn't show them to anybody else...we were on winter break and parents aren't very good at objective evaluation. I did the Borges prompt, wrote nothing about myself...it was about a "dream" I had where I met with all kinds of different people from Aristotle to TJ Jagodowski (Sonic guy). At the end I wrote two sentences about "who wrote it." My "Why Chicago?" essay was better, but I think it was too cliche sounding. And I liked my favorite things essay, it was all about my favorite comedian, Mitch Hedberg, with numerous quotes.
[</em>]Teacher Recs: One was very good, the other was kind of generic but still good.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: Highest rankings I think and highest recommendation, with a pretty solid letter.
[</em>]Supplementary Material: I have no talents...lol. I sent in two supplementary recs...one from a class sponsor, which was pretty good, and one from my FFA advisor. It was a really good letter, but he's just an old cowboy so it had a few typos...haha.
[<em>]Hook: None
[/ul]Personal[ul]
[</em>]Location: New Mexico
[<em>]High School Type: Small, rural, public high school
[</em>]Ethnicity: White
[<em>]Gender: Female
[</em>]Applied for Financial Aid: Yes
[/ul]Other[ul]
[li]Extracurriculars: Nothing spectacular. Student council, NHS, FFA, Science Olympiad, Bio Club, Quiz Bowl, Science Bowl</p>[/li]
<p>[li]Awards: A bunch of local/district FFA awards, National Land Judging Champions 06 (FFA), some district Science Olympiad awards, some awards from state universities, and Presidential Scholar Candidate.</p>[/li]
<p>[*]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: Yes, I feel like bragging!! lol. But really, I'm completely shocked. And completely ecstatic. I actually cried when I read it...wow. Wonder what I would have done if I'd been rejected...haha. I'm so excited and thankful! [/ul]</p>
Stats:
[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 2150 (Math was my downfall, writing my strong point)
[</em>]SAT II: Literature 730 Biology M 750 :)
[<em>]GPA: 3.9
[</em>]Rank: 1/800 ish (YES very big)
[/ul] Subjective
[ul]
[<em>]Essays: Fantastic. I wrote very passionately about my interests.
[</em>]Teacher Recs: One was AMAZING, two pages, no spacing. He let me read it; he spoke about my abilities in class and how I handled presenting a paper to a UN related association, fielding questions from the judges etc. The second one wasn't as fantastic but was pretty good.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: Never read it.
[</em>]Supplementary Material: Research essay I did over the summer for a competition.
[li]Hook: Grew up in four different countries? I didn't emphasise this very strongly though. [/ul]</p>[/li]
<p>Personal
[ul]
[<em>]Location: :)
[</em>]High School Type: Very huge school
[<em>]Ethnicity: Homosapien
[</em>]Gender: Female!
[li]Applied for Financial Aid: No, I owe my parents a lot, they've been saving up since before I was born.[/ul]</p>[/li]
<p>Other
[ul]
[<em>]Extracurriculars: Active volunteer at Old Folk's Home (not school initiated), in various societies at school were I help organize and coordinate stuff
[</em>]Awards: Quite a few writing competitions, some Olympiads, that sort of thing.
[li]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: I was hugging my favorite toy when I loaded the page and when I looked up there it was! I squealed really loud, never expected it and just a few weeks ago was crying and worrying about getting in ANYWHERE, let alone UChicago. To those who didn't make it: I know how it feels. Chin up, get some ice cream and sleep, continue to duke it out in this crazy waiting game.[/li][/ul]</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 2330 (750M, 780CR, 800W)<br>
[</em>]SAT II: 770 Biology E, 800 MathIIC, 760 Chemistry, 750 US History
[<em>]ACT: None
[</em>]GPA: 3.85 UW, 4.2-ish W
[<em>]Rank: Top 10%
[</em>]Other Tests: (AMC, AP, IB) 5 Biology AP, 5 Calculus BC, 5 US History</p>
<p>[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays: Well, I spent a really long time tweaking them, and I went through countless revisions to get the cadence I was looking for, so I think they were pretty good.
[</em>]Teacher Recs: British Literature and AP Biology teacher. I know my Brit Lit teacher's rec was absolutely glowing, and I'm sure my AP Bio teacher's was good as well.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: He really seemed to like me, so I think his rec was pretty good.
[</em>]Supplementary Material: None
[li]Hook: I don't think I have one. </p>[/li]
<p>[/ul]Personal[ul]
[<em>]Location: California
[</em>]High School Type: Competitive public. I know we're among the top five publics in California or something like that.
[<em>]Ethnicity: Asian
[</em>]Gender: Male
[li]Applied for Financial Aid: Yes</p>[/li]
<p>[/ul]Other[ul]
[<em>]Extracurriculars: One summer of research, Biology Club - four years, Co-president; Policy Debate - three years; Hospital Volunteer - four years, Shift Captain; Writing - four years
[</em>]Awards: National Merit Finalist, AP Scholar, Scholastic Writing Awards National Gold Award (9th, 10th, and 11th grades), Scholastic Writing Awards Regional Gold Key Award (9th, 10th, and 11th grades), Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition (for writing, 10th grade) </p>
<p>[*]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?:[/ul] Well, I'm happy with how things turned out. Chicago is a nice place. I'm waiting on a few other universities, but Chicago is definitely going to stay in my mind.</p>
<pre><code>* SAT: 740 V/690M/720W (2150)
* SAT II: 720 Latin / 730 Bio M
* GPA: 4.23 weighted
* Rank: No ranks
* Other Tests: I've taken 6 AP tests (Bio, Euro, US History, Lang and Comp, Environmental Science, and Latin) and gotten 5 on all of them so far plus I'm taking 4 more APs this year.
</code></pre>
<p>Subjective</p>
<pre><code>* Essays: Looking back, my Why Chicago could have been much better. I didn't even mention how much I love the core! I talked mostly about the feel of the school instead. For the things I like essay, I wrote about Catullus (I'm thinking about being a Classics major). For the big essay, I did the table one and I thought it was pretty creative. I designed a rotating table that I actually want to make if I ever get the money.
Teacher Recs: Never read them, so I don't know, but the three teachers that wrote them really love me, so I suspect they are quite good.
Counselor Rec: Again, never read it. I don't know my counselor that well because I never really needed to use her, even for the college process (my brother did this last year, so I was pretty well versed in all things college), so I'm sure it was vague, but I'm sure she didn't say anything bad.
Supplementary Material: (research abstracts, music recordings, art slides): None
Hook: (recruited athlete, cured cancer- only major ones that actually would have made a difference, please) [ /list][ b]Personal[ /b][ list]: I'm a pilot in training and I moved to the Dominican Republic last year and have been doing online high school. Don't know if that's a "hook" really, but it's something different.
Location: New Jersey/Dominican Republic
High School Type: Private school from 1-11 grade, then private online high school through Stanford
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: Female
Applied for Financial Aid: (just yes or no): Yes
</code></pre>
<p>Other</p>
<pre><code>* Extracurriculars: Drama, Tennis, Flying, Academic Team,
* Awards: Latin Award at my school, National Merit Semi-Finalist
* Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?:
</code></pre>
<p>I don't know what I'm going to do now...I don't have an uncle Warren Buffet, and I didn't build churches in Africa in my spare time, so I guess I never really had a shot. Maybe I'll take a year off and go cure cancer then try again...</p>
<p>YES!! lol. :) I've always wanted to put that on my college applications and whatnot. Because I believe race shouldn't matter. I've always wanted to check the "Other" box and write, "Homosapien" or "Human Being". Sometimes I do....but I always chicken out at the last minute and change it. :)</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT:760/800/690: 2250
[</em>]SAT II: Literature 780, Math-II 780
[<em>]ACT:33
[</em>]GPA: UW: 3.5ish, W:4.432 (upward trend)
[<em>]Rank:26/318
[</em>]Other Tests: (AMC, AP, IB)
[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays: Pretty good, I think. Why Chicago: Discussion-based classes and a student body that's passionate about learning. My favorites: All of my favorites, which are generally quirky and off-beat. Extended Essay: The story: Very surreal and written under the effects of a lot</em> of sleep deprivation. Thank God for Baker Island time.
[<em>]Teacher Recs: One glowing from my Jr. year chem teacher (He wrote it over the summer without me even having to ask) and one positive but critical from my Jr. year English teacher (She mentioned some negatives that I'd hoped she wouldn't, but also gave me some of the highest praise I could have hoped for from her).
[</em>]Counselor Rec: We had a substitute counselor while our regular one spent first semester on maternity leave. He was GREAT- thought highly of me, very enthusiastic.
[<em>]Supplementary Material (research abstracts, music recordings, art slides): I attended a meeting at school with an admissions representative. We really hit it off (I showed interest, prior knowledge about the school, asked good questions...). A few weeks ago I sent him a letter that discussed A) that I made NMS, B) that I found his name mentioned in a book I was reading for a project, and C) a link to a video on YouTube of myself solving a Rubik's cube in about 50 seconds, segueing with a mention of something I found on an old scav-hunt list. I figured that if anybody would be impressed, it would be Chicago. Quadruple whammy: Academic qualification, nerdity, personal flattery, and showing interest in the school.
[</em>]Hook: Interested in an undersubscribed major, which was only mentioned in passing in my Favorites essay.[/ul]
**Personal[ul]
[<em>]Location: Northern Illinois, not Chicagoland
[</em>]High School Type: Private Catholic
[<em>]Ethnicity: White, but I didn't put it on my application
[</em>]Gender: Female
[<em>]Applied for Financial Aid: no[/ul]
**Other*[ul]
[</em>]Extracurriculars: Figure skating, NHS, leadership position on a website for nerds, scholastic bowl
[<em>]Awards:National Merit Finalist, National Spanish Exam gold medalist, National Spelling Bee
[</em>]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: WHOO! I had a friend who's currently attending UChicago read my essays and tell me what he thought I could do to help Chicago see my personality. My first few drafts of my Favorites essay were really stiff, and he recommended that I chill and be conversational with it. Many thanks to him.[/ul]</p>
Stats:[ul]
What most people have
[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays:
Why Chicago - Something about Cheesecake Factory Test and how Cheescake Factory (at least the one in Tulsa) and UChicago aren't so different after all.
Favorite Essay: Roger Federer as an artist on the court (whatever whatever) - this could've been much better... was quite bland)
Long Essay: Used my Common App for #5 - about violin
[</em>]Teacher Recs: Overall Good.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: Probably a level below teacher recs (she doesn't know me as well)
[</em>]Supplementary Material: CD of Violin
[<em>]Hook: None really...
[/ul] Personal[ul]
[</em>]Location: Oklahoma
[<em>]High School Type: Large Public
[</em>]Ethnicity: Chinese
[<em>]Gender: Male
[</em>]Applied for Financial Aid: Yes![/ul] Other[ul]
[<em>]Extracurriculars: Violin, AMC/AIME/USAMO, Academic Team, Tennis Team, National Honor Society, Latin Club
[</em>]Awards: National HS Honors Orchestra, All-American at this "national" academic bowl tournament (only like 30 states attend), 4 Perfect Papers on Natl. Latin Exam
[*]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?:[/ul]</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 1540/2130
[</em>]SAT II: 710Chem 730MathsII
[<em>]ACT:
[</em>]GPA: 4.3/3.9
[<em>]Rank: no idea (i switched from junior to senior class and they only rank biannualy)
[</em>]Other Tests: (AMC, AP, IB) AP Euro 3 . 7 ap tests in may.
[/ul][ b]Subjective*[ul]
[<em>]Essays: I wrote about QI and my general love of quiz shows, trance music and science fiction. Long essay topic 4 i wrote a flatlandish essay about a hydrogen molecule who journeyed across the periodic table to find someone to bond with eternally and ended up with a Uus-117 synthesized at fermilab.
[</em>]Teacher Recs: no idea
[<em>]Counselor Rec: no idea
[</em>]Supplementary Material: rec from the coach of a FLL team i mentored.
[<em>]Hook: thats Captain hook to you... [/ul]Personal*[ul]
[</em>]Location: F L 0 - r1D@
[<em>]High School Type: Ghetto
[</em>]Ethnicity: Caucazn
[<em>]Gender: Mail.
[</em>]Applied for Financial Aid: (just yes
[<em>]Extracurriculars: FLL mentor and tournament judging/volunteering, Boy scouting, All county Academic team, Physics club that i founded, NHS, another service club. Farting around...
[</em>]Awards: lacking in this dept.
[li]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?:[/ul][/li]The admissions office is going to KNOW that i am interested, i might be sending them some interesting supplements. Long LIVE U of Chicago even if i dont eventually get in!!!</p>
<p>I'm not sure what tags to use in order to change the aesthetics, so my apologies for the plainness. Anyway...</p>
<p>Accepted!</p>
<p>Stats:
· SAT: 800/800/750 Reading/writing/math, 2350
· SAT II: Math2: 740 / Chem: 740/ Bio-E:770
· ACT: didn't submit
· GPA: UW 3.96 or something, W 4.27
· Rank: 3 out of 190 (tiny rural school)
· Other Tests: no AP classes offered, took the AP Chem test on a whim and got a 3. Meh.</p>
<p>Subjective
· Essays: I liked my long essay a lot. I wrote about what a picture wants from the first-person perspective of a rather nihilistic Mona Lisa. If that sounds weird, well, it was. :)
· Teacher Recs: Both quite good. A bit verbose, but I guess thats a good thing.
· Counselor Rec: No idea.
· Supplementary Material: none.
· Hook: Location maybe? I go to a school that closed in the 50s during Brown v. Board of education. Things havent improved much.</p>
<p>Personal
· Location: South.
· High School Type: Small rural public
· Ethnicity: White
· Gender: M
· Applied for Financial Aid: yes</p>
<p>Other
Extracurriculars:
9/10/11/12 School Soccer Varsity
11/12 Recreational League Soccer
9/10/11 Karate (1st Degree Black Belt)
9/10 Latin Club (Secretary lol)
10/11/12 ACE (Quiz Bowl Competition) 1st Team All-District twice
11 Battle of the Brains (same as ACE, but this time we were on TV!)
9/10/11/12 Piano (6 year national Guild honor roll)
10/11/12 Guitar
10/11/12 Jazz Band 1st Chair Alto Sax
10 Marching Band
10 Concert Band 1st Chair Alto Sax
10/11/12 District Council of Youth Ministries (coordinates youth retreats, mission camps, etc.) (2-time Communications Chair [Vice President], Music Chair)
10/11/12 Worship Team
Boy Scouts (Eagle Scout)
11/12 NHS</p>
<p>Awards: NMS Commended, some random stuff. Nothing major.</p>
<p>Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?:
It's a relief to get in, but I think the many waitlisted folks on this site can take heart in the fact that my slot will be open in the fall unless I get some serious aid, which is unlikely.</p>
<p>Wow, all of you are simply amazing: those accepted, waitlisted and rejected. I cannot imagine how decisions were made this year. My rejected daughter's stats are most similar to those of you who were accepted, but maybe the admissions folks saw something in her that they knew wasn't right for UChicago. </p>
<p>To those of you who were accepted: make the most of this wonderful opportunity! I know my daughter would have, had she been one of the lucky ones. It was sad to see her take the course catalog and a copy of her application out from under her pillows, where she had kept them since applying back in November. She's still trying to decide what to do with the sweatshirt her dad bought when they visited. </p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 2220 (720V, 700M, 800W)
[</em>]SAT II: 750 Bio E, 780 Math 2, 790 Lit
[<em>]ACT: 33
[</em>]GPA: 3.99/4.0 (we don't weight)
[<em>]Rank: 2/50ish
[</em>]Other Tests: Nada. Our school shuns AP/IB b/c it restricts the teacher's freedom in the classroom and causes them to teach to a test, rather than for the good of the students.
[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays: Really good. Writing is the one thing I'm consistently good at. I did a parody of the Iliad for the Why Chicago one, and wrote a play about one of my interesting discussion based classes (kinda like Core Classes, only at the high school level) for the long one (Option 5). They were neat!
[</em>]Teacher Recs: I assume they were good. I go to a small school, so my teachers know me really well.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: Good
[</em>]Supplementary Material: None
[<em>]Hook: I started a business that made a decent bit of money that helped me pay for speech and debate trips and the like... I don't know if that's a hook...
[/ul]Personal[ul]
[</em>]Location: AZ
[<em>]High School Type: Public (charter)
[</em>]Ethnicity: White
[<em>]Gender: Female
[</em>]Applied for Financial Aid: Yes
[/ul]Other[ul]
[<em>]Extracurriculars: Speech and Debate (Captain), Model UN (President), Science Bowl (Captain), Choir, Peer Tutoring, Precinct Leader for a Political Candidate.
[</em>]Awards: Tons of Speech and Debate Awards (local level), Seal of Outstanding Distinction, NFL All American. National Merit Commended Scholar. Science Bowl: 3rd and 4th at Regionals. NFIB Semi-finalist. McKenna Achievement Award. Flinn Finalist (AZ award). Our choir sang at Carnegie Hall.
[*]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: I am soooooooo incredibly happy. I would advise all would-be Chicago students to make a clear link between themselves and the school. And to all who were rejected/wait-listed, you are going to end up somewhere amazing and do amazing things, even if that's not at Chicago. [/ul]</p>
<pre><code>* SAT: 2110: 760-CR, 640-M, 710-W (Darn you Geometry)
* SAT II: 680-Amer Hist; 710-Lit; 710-Bio E
* ACT:
* GPA: 3.83 UW/ 4.3 W
* Rank: 3/270
* Other Tests: Not too many because I have alot of IB classes. But IB Math Studies-5 and self-study AP Euro Hist- 3
</code></pre>
<p>Subjective</p>
<pre><code>* Essays: I wrote my essays the day before they were due, so no one got a chance to look at them. But I wrote my essay about Borges and I really felt it was chicago-isc.
* Teacher Recs: Very Good. Most potential in career from one teacher.
* Counselor Rec: Average. new counselor
* Supplementary Material: None
* Hook:
</code></pre>
<p>Personal</p>
<pre><code>* Location: California
* High School Type: Public with small IB Program
* Ethnicity: Caucasian
* Gender: M
</code></pre>
<p>Other</p>
<pre><code>* Extracurriculars: Theater, football and basketball, Academic Decathlon.
* Awards: Not much, medals in AD state comp, Boy's State, other leadership camps.
* Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: Write essays that show a dedication to learning and passion. I have no clue haha. I just wish people at my school had heard of Chicago so they could share my joy!
</code></pre>
<p>p.s I had no interview so don't stress about not getting one</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 1580/2380
[</em>]SAT II: 800 Math II 770 Chemistry
[<em>]GPA: 4.2 weighted 3.7 unweighted (O.O)
[</em>]Rank: None
[<em>]Other Tests: AP US, Bio, BC Calc, 5 AP Gov, Chem, 4
[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[</em>]Essays: better than I had thought they were apparently
[<em>]Teacher Recs: good i suppose
[</em>]Counselor Rec: ditto
[<em>]Supplementary Material: (research abstracts, music recordings, art slides) a research abstract that didn't win much...
[</em>]Hook: (recruited athlete, cured cancer- only major ones that actually would have made a difference, please) umm...[/ul]Personal[ul]
[<em>]Location: Rich Suburban Town
[</em>]High School Type: Public
[<em>]Ethnicity: Overrepresented Chinese Asian
[</em>]Gender: Male
[<em>]Applied for Financial Aid: Nope.
[/ul]Other[ul]
[</em>]Extracurriculars: Student Gov, Quiz Bowl, Sci Bowl, Newspaper, Research, JV sports, hospital work, some other assorted things-i wasn't really that high in positions either.
[<em>]Awards: Nothing really that important
[</em>]Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: I'm quite happy I got in. But money would probably be an issue for me despite the fact that I'm in a rich town. Hopefully I get a scholarship or something -_- I still have no idea how I got in with my lousy GPA...[/ul]</p>
<p>Stats:
SAT: 1510/2120
SAT II: 800 World History. 720 American History. 770 Mathematics lv.2
TOEFL: 117/120
GPA: 3.49
Rank: 34/126
Other Tests: AP Statistics 4, AP World His 5, AP Micro Economics 5</p>
<p>Subjective
Essays: Okay
Teacher Recs: Good
Counselor Rec: Good
Supplementary Material: Music
Hook: None, basically</p>
<p>Personal
Location: International, Thailand
High School Type: International School
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Male
Applied for Financial Aid: Yes
Extracurriculars: Nothing spectacular.
Awards: few, but none to be a admission factor
Advice? Commiserations? Feel like bragging?: Waitlisted. Why should i feel bragging?</p>
<p>Yay UChi! Uncommon app was so much fun--the whole interface made me more comfortable with being open and cheerful. I do think it's safe to extrapolate to the school itself.</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>]SAT: 760 V, 780 M, 800 W
[</em>]SAT II: 760 Latin, 790 Chem, 800 Math II
[<em>]ACT: Never took it.
[</em>]GPA: 3.9 UW
[<em>]Rank: 1/406
[</em>]Other Tests: (AMC, AP, IB): 5 on Calc BC, Chem, SpanLang, USH, EngLit, from Junior Year. AMC: embarassing, but I've made AIME every year.</p>
<p>[/ul]Subjective[ul]
[<em>]Essays: One was about lobsters. The other one was about starting an instrument later than peers and reading GB Shaw on a plane.
[</em>]Teacher Recs: Pretty standard. Both from junior year teachers.
[<em>]Counselor Rec: We talk a lot, and my counselor genuinely cares, so it was fairly strong.
[</em>]Supplementary Material: I sent a picture of my BC Calc project. It has a smile-inducing effect, I think.
[li]Hook: Nope, none to mention.</p>[/li]
<p>[/ul]Personal[ul]
[<em>]Location: Northeast
[</em>]High School Type: Public school that I love
[<em>]Ethnicity: Asian
[</em>]Gender: Female[/ul]</p>
<p>Wow these are some high stats.. I was accepted but I only attained 2130 on my SAT1.. not spectacular.. with 800 on Math2c and 760 on Physics.. plus i don't know what my GPA is..</p>
<p>However, I did win a couple Math contests, perhaps that made me a hook.</p>