I found this on a different site about a student’s perspective on Columbia. Not sure how representative it is, but something to consider
I also found this interesting thread on the Duke forum. So its not just a UChicago tradition to complain about the school 
This puts me in mind of a piece I read perhaps twenty years ago in an issue of the Maroon I picked up during an alumni weekend. The piece was by a student complaining bitterly about all the social deficiencies of the school, its intense workload, the general state of demoralization of the students, etc. Aha, I said to myself, that’s the good old U. of C. for you. Some things never change. Not so. It was a piece written by a Notre Dame student about his school, reprinted by the Maroon in a spirit of “these complaints about schools happen everywhere, even an ostensibly peppy place like Notre Dame.” Perhaps, as some have said above, it’s a little harder to take being miserable and overworked if you thought it would be otherwise - that the school you had selected was going to be a glamorous, fun-loving piece of cake.
yes, but from the first paragraph:
Emphasis mine. Every school has people who will complain. Not every school has a culture of complaining.
This conversation happens every time prospies come (as they are today) in every single house:
A person: “I’m going to tell them how horrible this place is and how miserable everyone is!”
Their RA: “…is that true?”
A person: “Well, not really”
Their RA: “Then why would you tell them that?”
A person: “Cause it’s funny”
@ThankYouforHelp I disagree that you sense any sort of “overcrowding” at Columbia. The quadrangle is in a compact area but there are buildings and dorms located elsewhere. And the entire area is frankly a lot safer than Hyde Park but that’s a different topic altogether. It’s also worth mentioning that Columbia is several times larger than Chicago. That may be a positive or negative depending on what you are seeking in a university.
As for class size, the introductory econ courses at Chicago are very large and the teaching uneven. As is the teaching in the Core science classes. The same is true at Columbia but Chicago isn’t a small LAC and doesn’t pretend to be.
Prestige is in the eye of the beholder, so I won’t get into that. Or the “Chicago vs Ivy League” debate that so energizes people on this board. It all comes down to a matter of personal preference.
I’m a bit biased as a Duke alum, but I’ll give my opinions anyway:
Go to Chicago if you want to freeze your butt off in the winter, and study tirelessly just to get by. No easy A’s. School spirit is very tame. In Hyde park, weekends are just like weekdays except there are no classes. Study morning, noon and night. Tough grade deflation. My wife went to U of C and won’t let our kids apply there for college. She resented the brutally difficult grading system and the lack of social cohesiveness. Even to this day, she rarely keeps in touch with her U of C friends. Poorly attended alumni association events. Really wide diversity of classes and interesting majors. Lots of intellectual people everywhere, and you will certainly be challenged. Some of the smartest people in the world, and you’ll get a chance to work, live and work with them.
Go to Columbia if you want to get a great education while being a citizen of Gotham. Relatively compact campus in the middle of the Big Apple. Almost non-existent sports culture, and most social activities are based upon whats happening in NYC. School spirit, like UC, is fairly tame after graduation. You already know about the core.
Go to Duke if you want to work hard and play hard. Winters are mild and pleasant. No hard cap on the number of A’s in each class. Amazing school spirit, vibrant greek and SLG life. Downtown Durham is kind of blah, but getting better each year. You’ll have a lot more free time at Duke, and delve into something interesting. Duke is a relatively young school, but quickly rising. Doesn’t have a ‘core’ like UC or Columbia, but have a set of requirements that all students must take. Great alumni network, and a beautiful gothic campus.
^^ Things have changed a bit since your wife’s days, and I would add that her experience was not universal. Yes, it is cold in winter, there were no easy A’s, and school spirit is/was lame. But I didn’t study constantly, got lots of A’s and made great friends, including my lifelong BFF, that I do stay in touch with to this day. Very appreciative of my college days, I am.
Having said that, I did not encourage my children to apply. DS would not have liked the Core (although now I wish he had looked more into the school), and DD decided to apply on her own. She is now there and loves it. I think she studies quite a bit but doesn’t seem overwhelmed or stressed about it. Also judging from the uber bills on my credit card and photos she sends me, spends not an inconsiderate amount of time in social activities on/off campus and gets A’s just fine.
Having been on campus more in the last 12 months than the previous 30 years, I am quite impressed and pleased with the changes that have taken place in the physical plant, the social life and the support of the students. I think this school has changed more in those years than probably almost any other college/university in this country. Gladly paying those bills.
Committed! UChicago’21
Thanks everyone for so much insight! You’ve all really helped so much!
Congrats ! Bottom line is that a Uchicago is on a very clear upswing in every salient aspects : rankings that matter, dorms, undergrad focus, amazing pre career counselling. Columbia is stagnating and even falling in graduate schools especially business and law which has a negative trickle down effect.
A second to well -earned congratulations for discernment. You have now graduated from your user name!
One other significant difference between Chicago and Columbia that I think ultimately makes a lot of difference: Columbia is in New York City, and its most important alumni are unimaginably wealthy and tend to live minutes from campus. Therefore, (a) everyone believes they are at the center of the entire world, (b) nothing happens on campus that does not have global importance, and © if there’s something even remotely objectionable to a wealthy alumnus happening, he feels the fate of the world turns on his getting it fixed RIGHT NOW. That’s not a good environment for academic freedom or free academic debate. There’s a real tendency for people to play to the cameras (which are also only minutes from campus) and to shout past one another. In attitude, as well as in reality, Chicago is much more of an Ivory Tower. People actually listen to each other when they are debating, and they can take time to refine what they think without worrying about whether they are betraying the talking points of whatever groups they may be associated with.
@JHS hate to totally disagree with you re Columbia in most respects. The alums were not able to prevent Iranian president Ahmadinejad from speaking. It is very left leaning much to the chagrin of many key donors.
I do agree that it caters to the cameras. The NY city self image is inevitable and they do get great international exposure and opportunities due to the UN.
I didn’t say they would always be successful in stopping things. But they are phenomenally successful in turning lots of stuff into a circus. And it’s not just the alumni – the faculty and students play along, too. I find it very unpleasant, and completely different from the atmosphere at Chicago.
Agreed generally on atmosphere. Very internally competitive- both students and faculty.
Congratulations. 