<p>So I was just wondering how your essays were that gained you acceptance to UChicago. You don't have to PM them to me (although, if you want to, I'd love to get ideas.) Did they follow the normal essay guidelines (intro, body, conclusion)? Or were they completely wacky and out there?</p>
<p>Any ideas would be greatly appreciated; UChicago is by-far my first choice =D</p>
<p>bumpity bump..</p>
<p>Here are a bunch from a few years back: <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-chicago/164537-post-your-essay.html%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-chicago/164537-post-your-essay.html</a></p>
<p>Your essay should follow its own logic. My essay was pretty "common" as it was true-to-life and didn't involve any flying toasters. It did, however, communicate what I wanted it to communicate and it incorporated one of the oddest prompts from my year into this otherwise very square essay. The uncommon prompt inspired my essay :-)</p>
<p>I don't think there are any rules to the uncommon essay rather than have fun. If you don't enjoy writing your essay, other people probably won't enjoy reading it, and if you don't think you could ever enjoy writing on crazy things, then you probably wouldn't like Chicago that much anyways!</p>
<p>Poseur: Thanks so much! That post has TONS of essays =]</p>
<p>unalove: Thanks!! Ahaha and yeah, I do really like writing about wacky, unique topics. Its just that UChicago is my DREAM school, and I didn't want to take a risk with my essay or application and jeopardize my acceptance. But after what you and some other people have said here on CC, I'm starting to learn that UChicago likes students to think outside the box! Jeez, UChicago seems more and more perfect to me everyday.</p>
<p>Also, unalove, I see you're at U of C. Can you tell me how your experiences have been there? How do you like it? How's the student body? The faculty?</p>
<p>I don't know if it's that Chicago puts such a premium on wacky thinking, but rather clear and honest thinking. Yes, you can go "outside the box," but you don't have to.</p>
<p>By virtue of my posting frequency, I think it's pretty clear that I love my school. It's been a great place for me to be me and not have to worry about being too enthusiastic in class, too "show-offy" with knowledge, too this way or that way. </p>
<p>In high school, I had a lot of anxiety over trying to "fit in" (even though I was an abject failure at it, I never stopped trying) and also about appearing "too smart." I picked up that being excited about learning and showing that excitement was tres uncool, so I spent a lot of time trying to suppress myself.</p>
<p>Chicago just sort of broke those boundaries off. Now, I feel like I can talk about school whenever I want, I can also talk about Project Runway whenever I want, and I feel like I'm in a place where I'm comfortable with who I am and people are receptive to who I am. I've also met a lot of people who are smarter than me, faster than me, etc. and I love the thrill of being challenged to do more.</p>
<p>So I guess that gets around to answering your questions about students here. In the most general terms, I would describe the students here as smart, excited to learn, and independent. Other than that, Chicago kids come in all different stripes, so there is no "typical" Chicago student.</p>
<p>Faculty here is excellent-- both research-wise and teaching-wise. The school puts a lot of emphasis on research, but it doesn't draw away from teaching time and attention, because classes are kept small and profs and their TA's are required to have office hours. My worst teachers here have been merely okay and my best have been a blessing to me.</p>
<p>Wow. Unalove, you have just sold UChicago perfectly. I love everything about that school; the small classes, the out-of-this-world essay topics, the dorms, the environment and the intellectuality. I read somewhere that its not rare to find students sitting in the dorm halls sipping coffee and having conversations about books or topics they reviewed in class hours ago. That's exactly what I want out of the college experience.</p>
<p>I'm sorry if this question sounds really stupid, but I'm about to go crazy. I know I can find statistics of the classes on the internet, but I'd like to ask a real student. Of all the people you know, did they all have super-high GPA's and extremely high ACT/SAT scores? Because my grades are mediocre, but I really am smart, and I know I'll rock everyone's socks off in college! My ACT score is pretty high, I'm a great writer (so I know I'll do great on the essay), my teacher recs. should be great, I have tons of community service hours and am very passionate about my EC's. Also, I plan on forwarding my QuestBridge application to UChicago, which will have many more essays that I have written and will serve as a supplement to better convey my self and personality. (Sorry about just blabbing on and on =/ )</p>
<p>jay123: You are asking exactly what I would like to know! Thank you. I feel that everything is pretty impressing with the exception of grades...</p>
<p>^jay123, There's a University of Chicago forum under "Colleges and Universities." You'll find a lot of good stuff there.</p>
<p>EASD, lol. I see I'm not the only one with these types of questions! and, I'm basically in the same boat as you. I feel that I'm strong in most areas except my grades. I've never failed or anything like that, but I guess they would be considered "lacking".... But you know what? It never hurts to try. We're going to be the future's best doctors, lawyers, etc.!! =] </p>
<p>Are you class of 09? if you are, I look forward to meeting you at UChicago! lol</p>
<p>Take a look at statistics for past incoming classes to get an idea of the kind of person admitted to Chicago:</p>
<p>University</a> of Chicago College Admissions | Incoming Class Profile</p>
<p>I would rather not give my life story here, but suffice it to say that given these statistics of admitted students, my own numbers from high school fit in pretty well.</p>
<p>jay123:</p>
<p>I am the class of 2010! Good luck! That's the spirit.</p>
<p>My prompt: one of the basic rules of physics is that velocity equals distance divided by time. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?</p>
<p>Ouch. Thats a tough prompt. I'd probably say that I enjoy eating ice cream cones that take a while to eat ie have a low velocity. Because of the intracicies of Rocky Road and Moose tracks, they are my two favorite ice creams, but because of the amount my local ice cream vendor gives me (the distance) I would have to go with Moose tracks.</p>