<p>My university aspirations were obliterated this after as UChicago outright rejected (not even deferred) me. I wasn't expecting this at all.... I was just curious - what is so bad about my application that they actually rejected me?</p>
<p>Nationality: Canadian</p>
<p>SAT I: M750 R760 Total1510 (composite); W650; retaking it in Jan</p>
<p>SAT II: took USH + Math II in Dec</p>
<p>GPA: abysmal (well, 3.83 for Gr 11, and the average from Gr9-11 is 3.4-3.5)</p>
<p>AP: (self-studied) USH 5, Calculus AB 4, Macroeconomics 4, Microeconomics 4; taking AP Chem this year</p>
<p>EC: president/leader of a bunch of clubs; personally hosted (thru my debate club) a debate in the local elections; 320+ hr volunteer work</p>
<p>University Courses: taking a few university/college courses this year:</p>
<p>1st year Philosophy (university)
2nd year International Political Economy (community college)
2nd year Globalization/Economics (university)</p>
<p>Recommendations: all great, incl one from uni professor</p>
<p>Essay: they were good (at least I thought they were)</p>
<p>What did you write your essays on? Perhaps they turned the AdCom off?</p>
<p>My initial hypotheses are 1) you were president of too many clubs, and so came off as undedicated 2) perhaps you came off as a student who cares only about Chicago's econ, instead of the entire academic experience (i.e., the Core) 3) your GPA was too low.</p>
<p>1) I think I stressed my commitment to the debate club in particular, but who knows...</p>
<p>2) Here's an exerpt from my Why Chicago essay</p>
<p>
[quote]
The university’s support of a challenging liberal arts education is of great important to me, and characterizations like “where fun goes to die” only bolster my resolve to attend your institution. Although I have yet to decide upon a major, I am going into university with a view to pursue a degree in economics and have read about the superb economics program offered by the U of C. On the completion of AP courses in this area, I realized that my love for economics has only been augmented by my studies. Since the University of Chicago has produced more Noble Prize Laureates in Economics than other academic organization, it is now my sincerest hope that I can continue my studies in the field with professors of such world renown.
The U of C’s Core Curriculum epitomizes its penchant for academic rigorousness and diversity. In particular, I love the opportunities afforded under your program to explore different subject areas, allowing me to try a myriad of fields of study before I fully devote myself to one in particular. In addition, other aspects of campus life that combine studies and social participation are attractive to me. For instance, by inviting visiting speakers of note to discuss topics of grave importance, the Chicago Society prompts and encourages responsive debates among all members of the student body. It is this sort of activity which I feel would complete my academic experience in an institution of higher education.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>3) That was my hypothesis too, but is it so low that they won't even give me a second chance?</p>
<p>@Amadeuic: No, I didn't apply for financial aid of any sort</p>
<p>Essays:</p>
<p>Main - zoom in, zoom out (talked about economic progress in China)</p>
<p>Optional - wrote on how dihydrogen monoxide (h2o) is my chemical of choice for world domination (I found it rather humerous)</p>
<p>Common App - #5: a range of academic experience adds much to the college community. Describe a personal experience.... (talked about my Philosophy class)</p>
<p>Sorry you didn't get better news. Good fall semester grades would help going forward. One other thing you may want to do is take more care with your essays and have someone proofread them beforehand.</p>
<p>In the very first line important should be importance, which gets you off to a bad start with your reader. It would in any event have been simpler to say "is very important to me". In the third line pursue should be pursuing. The whole passage comes across as unnatural and stilted and suggests you were trying overly hard to impress by using formal language and big words. </p>
<p>By contrast, read some of Ted O'Neill's pieces. He uses simple, clear language and there isn't a word out of place.</p>
<p>Apologies for the tough love and good luck with the rest of your apps!</p>
<p>Firstly, I wasn't even deferred (just denied). And secondly, that was a <em>excerpt</em> from my essay, not the essay itself. What I fail to understand is why they won't even give another chance at Chicago. I am really part of the hopeless few that is discarded on the first round of admissions?</p>
<p>I think it was the GPA. If you look at the decisions thread, most accepted students had 3.8+. </p>
<p>You certainly shouldn't feel "discarded", though. Your SAT and ECs look fine, and they show that you're obviously a bright person. Maybe you were just unlucky. I'm sure you'll have great RD results, especially if you work hard this semester. =)</p>
<p>@insubvert: how important is one's GPA from earlier grades? Do they calculate an overall GPA for Gr 9-11, or do they look at each grade separately, putting more weight on the senior ones?</p>
<p>i don't think it was your GPA that kept you out, to be honest. i mean sure they'll look at your GPA, but that'll be considered as one of the many elements that gives your AO an idea of who you are as a person. 3.4 with a 3.83 in 11th grade is not a bad GPA at all. in fact, i'm inclined to believe that after you cross maybe 3.5ish for your GPA, admissions officers are more concerned about the strength of your course than the actual number. i mean after all, a kids with 7-8 APs and a 3.5 and no APs and a 4.0, who would you pick? </p>
<p>your GPA, test scores and APs are somewhat within chicago's range. so it's probably the soft factors that kept you out. your ECs are not remarkable (at least by CC's standards) and you can't really tell how your recs turned out. as for essays, it's not your call to make. they are subjective by nature so even if you/people who proofread them loved them, they may not work with your AO. </p>
<p>and most importantly, a chicago rejection is not the end of your life and there are tons of other good programs that will accept you. if you are genuinely smart, you'll end up with a good life. :)</p>
<p>Honestly, I think it was the grades. I got rejected. I have a 3.63, a 2230 and "great" extra-currics. I'm also a National merit semifinalist. I also think that my essays for Chicago were very strong. My ex-boyfriend got in two years ago with not very great extracurriculars and not very fantastic essays but his scores were outstanding. They are also trying to be more selective. I think they plugged you into the formula and you didn't fit. It happens, I guess.</p>
<p>I agree that a 3.4 is quite a good GPA if you've been taking hard courses, but most people who are accepted to Chicago seem to have managed 3.8+ while taking those 7-8 AP courses. So even though OP's done well, others have done better.</p>
<p>ironically, it's really not a matter of hard courses. I've actually done consistently well in hard courses; it's in those easy mandatory courses - info tech, drama, PE, etc - that I do badly. Would you guys happen which university cares least about GPA and more about SAT, reference letter, EC, etc?</p>
<p>I don't know how much this helps, but over the weekend I spent some time looking at a set of Naviance scattergrams for one prestigious private school in this area. It was fascinating. Three patterns stood out. The HYPS-type places only accepted people with high grades and high scores, but they rejected far more of those people than they accepted, and it was clear that within a certain range relative grades and scores didn't make a difference. Other highly selective colleges -- but not quite as highly selective -- mainly well-known LACs, seemed hardly to care about test scores at all, at least for applicants from this school. They would accept almost all the candidates above a certain GPA, and reject almost all of them below that level (except for a few athletes). Then there were colleges -- mostly public ones, or large privates like Boston University -- for which grades seemed relatively unimportant above a fairly low level, but for which test scores were clearly paramount. They accepted almost all applicants from this school with highish test scores, no matter what their grades, and tended to reject applicants with high grades and low test scores. Thus, for instance, someone with a 3.8 GPA and 2000 SATs looked like a great candidate for Vassar and a poor one for Michigan, and someone with a 3.3 GPA and 2300 SATs was a great candidate for Michigan or BU and a poor one for Vassar.</p>
<p>More constructive feedback on your essay: It wasn't "bad". It was a little bland considering that a lot of applicants probably wrote the same thing. I sure did mention Chicago's core curriculum, but the sort of things you mentioned (noble laureates, etc.) is too normal. Everyone knows that Chicago is awesome for econ and has a ton of noble laureates, but is that the sole reason you want to go to U of C? Because if it was, then I understand why Chicago didn't take you.</p>
<p>However, I wouldn't have expected you to get rejected. Sorry about that. Good luck to you with the rest of your apps and the rest of the college process.</p>