Chicago's Uncommon Application

Go to the new blog!

2008-07-11T15:50:00.001-05:00

This blog is now defunct; further entries will be made on the new blog:

https://blogs.uchicago.edu/collegeadmissions/

New developments with the waiting list

2008-06-06T13:25:00.003-05:00

In the next few days everyone who initially responded to their waiting list letter with a "yes" should be getting another letter giving an update on the waiting list. A handful of students are being asked to remain on a summer waiting list in the event that we lose more enrolled students to other programs. The majority of students are being told that they don't need to wait any more—we will not have room for them. In other words, we're shrinking the waiting list to reflect our shrinking chances of being able to let in any more students.

Right now we are still overenrolled by more students than we expect to lose over the summer. Other schools said that they would take a lot of students from their waiting lists. We waited to see whether a lot of these students would be ours. Some were, but not too many.

This is the first time we've been able to update you since May 10. We've gotten a lot of calls and emails from students wanting to know their "statuses." Your new status is on its way. If you're unhappy with being released from the waiting list, all we can say is that we are sorry, but we will not add any more students to the summer waiting list. For those of you on the summer waiting list, unfortunately we cannot give you any information about your chances of being admitted later, or when that would be.

More on how much we don't know

2008-05-10T08:35:00.003-05:00

I've disabled comments, which I said I'd do a while ago (April 15), so that people don't work themselves into a frenzy on this blog. You're welcome to work yourself into a frenzy elsewhere.

Yes, we've accepted a very small handful of people from the waiting list. Yes, we may be accepting a few more. We don't know how many more. We don't know when--maybe as late as June or July. We've heard that a number of other schools are going to their waiting list in a big way, and are anticipating that they might be taking a lot of our committed students. We will communicate with everyone on the waiting list in the next few weeks about their status, which may either be "keep waiting, we may need you over the summer," or "stop waiting, we don't think we need you." There won't be a mass "stop waiting, you're in" at this point.

So, I'd advise you to enjoy the beautiful weather and leave the phone alone.

Well, here is one thing you can do. There is no way we are taking anyone from the waiting list who has applied for financial aid and does not have a complete financial aid application on file. So call the financial aid office at 773-702-8655 if you don't already know that you're complete and ask what more they need.

If you did apply for financial aid, we will still grant it in the same manner as if you'd been admitted earlier. We will give you a few days to get your aid offer, review it, and get back to us about whether it's feasible.

Hi, waitlist. Keep waiting.

2008-04-18T11:44:00.003-05:00

Hi everyone.

There is nothing new to report about the waiting list. We won't know if we can take anyone off it until the second or third week of May, so just sit tight. Rest assured that, even if your admissions counselor isn't responding to everything you send, we are getting and collecting the emails and letters you're sending in.

Everything ugly about our campus

2008-03-27T08:53:00.003-05:00

I think this is a good time to post this, which I've wanted to post for a year. It's basically a survey of every ugly and poorly done part of the campus landscaping, and you can download it here: http://facilities.uchicago.edu/campusconstruction/plans/campus-beautification.pdf

After all the glossy admissions stuff you've been getting, the redesigned website, and the fact that our campus actually is really beautiful (most of the time) when you walk around it, I think it's funny to dwell for 66 pages on the parts that desperately need improvement. I also like how precise the criticisms in this brochure are -- "incorrect and unattractive pruning"... "Functional but unattractive handicap ramp." "Unattractive" is a word they use a lot. Though I have to disagree with "Unattractive and inappropriate tire swing." When is a tire swing ever inappropriate? I think every chemistry building could use a tire swing out front. Also, I learned what a bollard is.

Now I'm going to complain about the weather. We are about to have around a thousand high school juniors and their parents on campus tomorrow. It is spring break--the campus is empty. It is cold, a high of 30 degrees today. It will snow today. It is cloudy. There is a sense of gloom hanging over our heads as we wait for the snow and wait to see if it will stay for our program. We'll be lucky if anyone applies next year. We'll be lucky if we can convince them that eventually the seasons will change. We'll be lucky if any admitted student enrolls if they see this post! Well, maybe I'm secretly hoping they don't so we can take more students from the waiting list...

Instructions for wait listers

2008-03-21T10:07:00.004-05:00

Here's the email I've been using to reply to all my wait list candidates who've contacted me, and I think it pretty much covers all the questions you might have now:

Thank you for your continued interest in the University of Chicago, even after this somewhat disappointing news. Emailing me to show interest is the right thing to do – hundreds of students accept a position on the waiting list, but fewer of them actually contact their admissions counselor. Keeping in touch is the best thing you can do to ensure that, if we use our waiting list (which we are planning on doing), your name pops into our minds.

I want to make sure that you officially accepted your position on the waiting list by replying online or by sending back the paper reply form we mailed you last Wednesday.

I also want to make sure that you reply to another school with an enrollment deposit. We will not know how many spaces we have until after May 1, and will only start accepting students from the waiting list in mid-May.

Accepting your position on the waiting list does not mean that you are bound to attend if we later admit you. We’ll feel out your thoughts on being admitted by calling you if we want to offer you a spot. If you say you are still interested, we’ll send you an admit packet. If you say you’ve changed your mind (and you could!) then we won’t.

If you want to send extra credentials, you can, but it’s not necessary. We will not re-review applications or have another reading cycle when we make our wait list decisions—it’s all about showing interest. Visiting is not necessary to show interest (especially not all the way from the West Coast), and can sometimes be awkward and emotionally draining for you and your parents; at least that’s been my experience in the past. However, if you want to visit just for fun, or were going to be in town anyway, you’re welcome to have a tour and information session.

You could fall in love with another school before May – because of that, it is important to be in touch now, but it’s really important be in touch in early May. That’s when the waiting list is in the forefront of our minds.

Another thing to make sure to do is, if you’ve applied for financial aid, to check if your financial aid application is complete with us—this will expedite your acceptance from the waiting list if it comes to that. You can call the aid office at 773-702-8655.

We’re not in a position to discuss the reasons for our admission decisions. Decisions are made by a group of people, over the course of a few months, keeping in mind our need to admit a certain number of students. There is nothing an admissions counselor could say that would help you make your application stronger, or that would tell you what you did “wrong” that led to this decision. You didn’t do anything wrong (besides being 17 when there are more college-going students than ever in our nation’s history). What we did wrong was building a college that could only house an incoming class of 1,200.

Good luck in the coming months. I hope things turn out well for you.

So, there it is. I myself have never been on a waiting list. I've only been accepted or denied! But I can assure you that we're all hoping we can accept lots of you.

Also, some people have said that they can't find the link online to respond to the wait list. Here is what it looks like:

There you have it - it's the first link after viewing your notification.

Here come decisions

2008-03-19T19:05:00.001-05:00

I bet you weren't expecting this now! We are so early. Actually, we’re not early; we're hitting our target date, a rare enough occurrence around here. We are so good.

Here is how this will work. Your admissions decision is available on the online application. When you log in, you will see a message in a yellow box. When you click on it, you will see your official admissions decision. We also put all of the admissions decisions in the mail, so you can watch for an envelope.

Scholarship letters are not available online; you will have to wait for the mail for that. We mailed all scholarship notifications today as well. Please remember that only scholarship winners are informed, and that there is no waiting list for merit scholarships and no appeals will be heard. Financial aid will come in the mail later, but not until your financial aid credentials are all here. International students who received aid will get their aid information with their offers of admission.

We sent you emails in waves today. The first wave went to the East Coast, the last to the West Coast. The email is just to notify you that the decision is up.

Now I usually say a few words about being admitted and not being admitted and choosing the right school. Sometimes it’s a little sappy. Well, this year it’s going to be really sappy, because I just heard from all my schools, and now you, the biggest applicant group ever, are hearing from your schools, and it’s my last year in the admissions office. Working for students like you has been a privilege. Whenever I or my colleagues interact with current students, we realize that this school is an amazing place, and we’re so glad that such a place exists for people like them.

However, times have changed a bit--it is much harder to get in now. This year we saw more highly qualified and cooler applicants than ever. However, this year we can’t admit everyone we want, everyone who’s qualified, or even everyone who we just think is cool. We have to put a lot of them on the waiting list, and even deny some because there is just not enough room.

You know that we saw a 45 percent increase in early action applications. With the 10 percent increase in regular notification applications, the boost in applications leveled out to a 20 percent increase overall--12,300 applicants. We also admitted fewer students – around 3,400 instead of our usual 3,600. We put more students on the waiting list and hope to use it more than we did last year, the number to be determined by the kind of response we get by May 1.

Students should never take admissions decisions personally. Your personal worth is not what we evaluated during the admissions process. We evaluated your accomplishments and writing, but we also evaluated the number of beds we have. I think that the deny letter I got from one of my schools on Monday (two denies in one day!) was one of the nicest I’ve read—it said that they were overwhelmed with the unprecedented number and quality of their applicants and had a lot of tough decisions to make. The same is true of us, and of any school that practices selective admissions. Even if they send that same letter every year, it made me happy to be reminded. We’re always overwhelmed by the quality of the applicants and happy that people are so interested in the school we work for. That 12,300 people would write an uncommon essay for us is a great honor.

On the other hand, sometimes you also get admitted. I was admitted to a few places, and got more money than I thought I deserved at a few as well. Schools that didn’t admit me (or you) don’t deserve more than a glance and an eye roll—it’s the ones who did admit us that count. Right now I’m visiting schools and trying to make my decision. I won’t just base it on money, though—I’ll be thinking about the rigor of the programs, how I feel on the campus and in the environment, whether the values of the school and faculty fit with mine, the type of support I’ll receive from faculty and staff, and all that stuff. And I’ll be sleeping on a few floors in the meantime.

Now, logistical stuff.

There is no need to call the office for your decision. We do not give decisions over the phone, by email, or any other way except for the letter in your online application, or in the mail. If for some reason you are unable to retrieve your decision online and do not receive it in the mail for a few weeks, we will resend it in the mail.

Wait listed applicants can reply to their wait list letter online this year. This is how you hold your spot on the waiting list – if you don’t reply, we’ll just assume you aren’t interested. Another great way to show interest is to contact your admissions counselor, as the letter says. Also make sure that you reply to another school’s offer of admission by May 1, with a deposit. If you are eventually admitted to the University of Chicago and you want to attend, you will have to forfeit that deposit, since it is most likely that we will only be using the waiting list after May 1.

This blog will keep running for a little while, so you can continue to talk to each other and we can post news for the wait listed applicants. However, people generally lose interest around April 15.

There is no appeals process for scholarships or decisions. There is no waiting list for merit scholarships – we’ve given out all that we will give out.

Theory vs. practice in the sciences

2008-03-19T16:47:00.003-05:00

This is a response to someone who asked in the comments if we eschew hands-on learning in favor of theory. Here's what Assistant Director of Admissions Emeritus Austin Bean, who knows a lot about math and reasoning, had to say.

Are the sciences here (or anywhere) theoretical to the exclusion of being practical? Well no, and really that’s not possible… Theory informs practice and practice informs theory in every science (but see one possible exception below). No scientists actually, in real life, just theorize in splendid isolation from any thought of experimental results (though they might not carry out experiments themselves), whether prior to their own theorizing or that they imagine might follow from their theorizing. At the boundaries of science, where much theorizing takes place, scientists stand on the firm foundation of well-established results which have come before them. What makes a result well-established? Empirical validation of course! (Speaking generally.)
The processes of theorizing and experimenting are roughly contemporaneous, though it can sometimes take theory time to catch up with experimental results, or experiments time to catch up with the latest theory. The mathematical sciences might be a glaring exception to this practice for the most part. (I say ‘for the most part’ because there’s a book which I have seen in my local bookstore called “Experimental Number Theory.”) Anyway, in your average everyday physical or biological science, as practiced by scientists, people are theorizing and experimenting, or if they do not actually do both at the same time, they are at least aware of experimental work and thinking about how it led to the current state of theory, or aware of theoretical work and how it led to their present experiments. Even the most theoretical regions of physics encourage some experimental work. That’s why physicists are really excited about the opening of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). In short, while it would be incorrect to say that there is no distinction at all between experimenting and theorizing, no science can exist which has only one and not the other. So, naturally it would be foolish of us to teach our science classes differently. In general chemistry, in physics, in biology, etc., all classes have lectures on theory (informed and validated, obviously, by experimental results), and have labs (informed by theory!). You just couldn’t do one without the other.
Incidentally, for an example of "science" which DID proceed without any experimental work, you have only to look to the middle ages, when science was taught directly from Aristotle, without any reference to reality. Libby knows more about this than I do. Actually, Libby might not know much about it, but I’ve heard some funny stories. Not from anyone who was there, obviously, but from people who have read about what was going on then. In short, it doesn’t really work. You might come up with all sorts of reasonable-sounding but actually bat-shit crazy stuff. For example: the earth is flat, the sun revolves around the earth, species are immutable across time and space, the earth is 6500 years old, etc. Science is theory and experiment. You can’t have one without the other. The end!

poorly disguised distractions!

2008-03-17T17:13:00.002-05:00

Hey, all you already-admitted/eagerly-awaiting-decisions children. You get TWO posts today...what more could possibly ask for?!

I know, I know...but I don't know when they're being sent out. And even if I did, I couldn't tell you. Sorry!

But I do have some things to share with you that could brighten your day/evening/twilight/early afternoon/morning, depending on which timezone you hail from.

The first thing I'd like to tell you about [and I am very very excited about this, hence its high priority] is my Spring Quarter schedule. I know it's sorta like teasing you, but I thought it would be a really good way to give you guys insight on what classes the University has to offer. Because yes, you will eventually have to travel outside the Core.

Some of the classes that I landed myself with are just that--well outside the Core and they sound fabulous. The other two are Core requirements, but they're still pretty fantastic.

My earliest class will be at a luxurious and beautifully sun-dappled 10:30 AM, meeting Monday, Wednesday, & Friday, and it sees me at the Biological Sciences Learning Center [BSLC] for the probably grim topic of Biological Poisons & Toxins. This is a biology "topics" course, which is 1/2 of the Core requirement [the other course required is called "Biological Issues and Paradigms" and it is offered in 5 variations...we can talk about this later, yeah?]. A cool aside--get a 4 or 5 on the AP Biology exam [6 or 7 for IB] and you can bypass "Biological Issues and Paradigms" and head straight for a topics course. It frees up a quarter for a really fun elective like...

...Virginia Woolf! That's right, an entire quarter devoted to the woman, the wonder, the legend herself. I've actually never read any of her work, but I've always wanted to. Plus, the professor is supposed to be amazing. Her name is Lisa Ruddick, for future reference. Jon Ryan Quinn, one of the admissions counselors here in the 'Wald, actually recommended this to me. Can't wait! Oh yeah, and this class meets at 3:00 PM on just Monday & Wednesday, which is nice because [duhh!] it leaves my Friday with just 2 classes, that bio course and...

...Russian 103! Maybe a lot of you aren't as excited about this as I am, but that's cool. There are a lot of languages here, so just choose whichever one suits you. Why I'm extra-excited for this course is really simple. I switched sections [nothing against you, Eric!] into a class taught by a native speaker! She's supposed to be awesome, and again, I can't wait. Also, I'll have my favorite [also nothing against you, Katie!] drill instructor again [her name is Demelza, and she's soooo cool]!!! This meets at 11:30 on Monday, Wednesday, & Friday, with drill sessions on Tuesday & Thursday at whatever times work best. That's right...Russian meets in one way or another five times a week. But that's like...five times the fun. Fo' realz.

Last, but definitely not least, is a Human Rights course called War & Displacement in 20th Century Europe. I don't really know what to say about this, other than it should be pretty mind-blowing. This is the one class that I'll probably feel really out of my league in, but what's life without a risk? This class meets on Tuesday & Thursday at 1:30 PM.

So that's my schedule! Sorry I didn't get into the meat-and-potatoes of each course...but you have the College Course Catalog at your disposal.

My other two distractions require no introductions...instead, I'm gonna let you discover how awesome they are:

1. Stuff White People Like
2. Garfield Minus Garfield

So there you have it!

By now you should be so occupied that you'll stop wondering when those damn decisions will be coming out...right, Nick? And any other person who's contacted me?

You're all awesome, and I hope I can see you all on the Quads come Autumn Quarter!

And with that, it's time for a no-doubt-delicious Bartlett dinner. Mmmmmm.

--zach

Baseball team's trip to Japan

2008-03-17T08:39:00.001-05:00

There was a pretty cool article in the Chicago Tribune the other day about our baseball team's spring break trip to Japan. In turns out that they're revisiting a rivalry started back in 1910. I hope they do OK!

day in the life

2008-03-14T11:20:00.004-05:00

hey guys.
pretty soon the days in my life will become much less regimented, and thus, more difficult to write about. our last day of classes was Wednesday, and yesterday all that I "did" was shadowing a tour (I will soon be a tour guide!) and went to the de Wit Lab to participate in a paid research study. I have three more sessions to go and I get paid 250 dollas!! Oh the joys of attending a research university with an attached nationally-recognized hospital.
alright, on with the show.

Actually...Tuesday never ended. I really intended on going to bed by 4...but that just never worked out. I had a presentation to give in Spanish, and I don't settle for mediocrity, so I had the opportunity to take this lovely photo, which pales in comparison to the real thing, of course. (the immensity of the sky, the hundreds of colors, the blueness and coldness of the lake, etc) But how does one see the sunrise like this, you ask? You live in the Shoreland. I have a whole facebook album dedicated to "Sunrises and Sunsets at the Sho". the Shoreland is the best.

So Wednesday started at midnight with me working on my presentation (about Federico Garcia Lorca and his book Poeta en Nueva York, you should check him out if you can read Spanish, he's pretty amazing.) I shuffle back into my room at around 8am to wake up my roommates and print out the handouts. my friend Justin and I haphazardly get ready for what we admit will be the worst day of our lives. We go outside (it is a glorious, splendid day) and wait for the Charter bus, which is an adorable little white steed of love which takes a different direction to campus than the CTA route 171. We get off at 57th street and Stony Island to get some delicious coffee at Istria Cafe and then head on to our classes. My class is Spanish 204 Curso de Redaccion Academica. After you take the 100s and the 200s sequences, there are a whole range of electives for you to take. If you take Spanish/French in high school you will probably place into 202 and then take 203, and then you can take any class in that language, all of which are pretty advanced, some more than others. I requested to place into 203 because 202 was boring, so I'm a little ahead of most of my peers. Next quarter I'm taking Spanish 208 Textos Hispanicos Contemporaneos which I am very excited for! Okay, I'm going to be less wordy from now on. I'm sorry.

my class is 8 girls/women/mujeres, (2 first years, 2 second years, 4 third years) taught by a Colombian grad student in his 4th year, Carlos. Our class is in Harper, which has gorgeous classrooms, I wish I had a picture. We sit around this ancient big hard wooden table and talk about Lorca's issues with New York and listen to a flamenco singer, Paco Ibanez, sing one of his poems. We decide to meet in front of the Reg tonight at 6:30 to go out for a celebratory dinner.

then I meet up with Justin and head to BJ. we leave at around 11:30 and he walks me to the Biological Sciences Learning Center where I will take my dreaded bio midterm (we have three midterms, no final). I haven't studied or made a cheat sheet because all last night I worked on Spanish. I'm screwed. I study for an hour, write some stuff down that I know will be on the test on a piece of paper, and hope for the best. It wasn't so bad. Thank goodness half of the grade of Core Bio is lab, because I am doing awesomely in lab. Speaking of which, after my bio final, I have to go write my final essay, a "Letter to the Editor" about a controversial issue in biology, which is due at 5pm. I go to Crerar, where I never go. I actually never go to any of the libraries to study, but going home was just impractical. First, I head downstairs to find my dad's dissertation. On the way, I get distracted by a shelf of these:
French recipe books????? In micro-form?? Those boxes are four inches wide...sorry for not providing scale in the photo. Crazy Crerar.
anyway, I find the thing, "Kinetic Spectroscopy in Supersonic Free Jets," and read the acknowledgments, because that's the only part I can understand.
Why am I still writing so much? ugh. Sorry. I'll try again to cut down.

So I write the thing, (about the existence of a gene for male homosexuality) turn it in, and go on a quest for a croissant with Justin. We run into a friend John near the Div School Coffee Shop (which was closed), who gives us delicious deep dish pizza from Giordano's instead.
We see our other roommate on the quads, she's heading off to Hutch Commons in the Reynold's Club to eat with her friends from Sosc class, which she does every Monday and Wednesday after that class. We try to convince her to get us food 'cause we are po'...but no dice.
Justin heads off to work at Ratner (he swipes your card as you enter), and I head home to compose myself with a lil nappy nap. After an hour of glorious oblique sunlight on my face in my warm cozy nest, I head to the Reg with my friend from Spanish, Talia.
We meet up there with Carlos, Amanda, and Kelin, walk to his car, and drive to Pilsen. We go to la Cocina Mundial, which is RIGHT near the pink line stop at 18th street...you should go. It's delicious. We are there for three hours, talking in Spanglish about everything.
He drops me and Talia off back at the Shoreland. There, I go to a house meeting and announce to Michelson that we will be hosting PROSPIES!! on Monday April 7th, Thursday the 10th, and Thursday the 17th. I'm Michelson house's PSAC Representative, so I organize the overnight stays of prospies in our house. If you come on the 7th, which you should, you will be hosted by Michelson. Those other two days are the HUGE MASSIVE April program days where EVERY house hosts and the campus is swarming with high schoolers.
After the house meeting there is Study Break, which during reading period and finals week, is a free snack provided by your Resident Heads at 10pm every night. On normal weeks, the RH study break in Thursday (in Michelson), the RAs study break is Sunday, and a student study break is Wednesday after house meetings. Every house is different.
After study break, there is a showing of The Man Who Fell to Earth, with David Bowie and a glorious soundtrack. A good part of the house shows up for that; some of my other friends go to a frat party; Justin and I pass out and sleep for a glorious 10 hours.

alright I really gotta run,
catching a train in half an hour to go down south to go ride with Caroline and Justin! (I'm from around here, I have a horse, and I haven't seen her since January, so I am very excite. This quarter did not allow me time to go riding!)
Good luck you guys, in hearing back.
I hope you all get what you want.
and if you don't, don't fret. College is freaking awesome at other places too.

-eliza.

a day in the life [of zach!]...

2008-03-12T14:35:00.003-05:00

...which may or may not be as fabulous as that exclamation point implies. i leave you to judge.

Mondays & Wednesdays & Fridays go a li'l somethin' like this.

8:00 AM--cell phone alarm goes off. This is when I hobble out of bed and snooze the damn thing.

8:05 AM--it goes off again. Who invented the 5-minute snooze?

8:10 AM--repeat.

8:15 AM--finally haul my butt out of bed and dress myself somewhat sloppily for my horribly scheduled 8:30 AM chemistry lecture in Kent 107.

8:27 AM--actually leave Max West and head down Ellis Ave. towards Kent. little known fact--i move really slow in the mornings. So I'm usually late to chemistry. So it goes.

8:34 AM--when you get bored while walking, you time how long it takes you to get from A to B. Even though I know the walk takes 7 minutes, i still take my sweet time in the mornings. Well, now i'm here...i take my customary seat in the back half of the room, settle in, and listen to Norbert lecture on reaction rates and the like.

9:22 AM--i snapped out of my dozing [it's easier to daydream at college, for some reason] just in time to realize that chem lecture is over. i button up my black wool coat, sling my timbuk2 on my shoulders, and leave Kent. Now i have a choice: straight home, or a detour for breakfast? My stomach steers me towards the latter, which i buy from Einstein in the Reynolds Club. Seriously, the best breakfast is Naked's "Red Machine" smoothie and an everything bagel with garden veggie cream cheese [or "schmear"...i don't judge]. Delightfully delectable.

10: 25 AM--After breakfast, i'm heading towards Cobb for my Russian class, which is one of the highlights of my day. again, i'm late.

11:23 AM--Now i have to quickly cross campus [from Cobb to Pick, if you kids have a map of campus with you] to make it to my calculus class. which is even more unbearable than my early-bird chem lecture. sooo glad that this is MATH 153 so it can be DONE.

12:22 PM--Lunch time! In Bartlett! This is really nice, because i'm usually hungry again. And Bartlett has tasties for my tummy. For some reason i'm really good at budgeting my meal points, so i have a large amount [read: at least 250] of meal points at my disposal. i pick what i want [usually pasta and salad] and go sit at the Wallace house table.

1:30 PM--I stroll into Rosenwald [the Admissions Office, if you wanna be wordy] for my 3-hour shift. This is my time to open mail, drink hot chocolate, chitchat with counselors and elizaaaa...and blog! it's usually a fun time, but it gets boring/tedious reallllly fast. turn on my iPod, tune out my surroundings, and open mail like a banshee. Will do, captain my captain.

4:35 PM--Finally leave Rosenwald and head back towards Max West for homework. On a good day, i'll only have to read for Readings in World Lit. tomorrow. On a bad day, i have chemistry, russian and reading to do. Oh, well. Hi ho, ho hum: homework tedious and homework glum.

5:30 PM until ?? PM/AM--This is generally when i start doing whatever homework i have. No matter how much i have, though, i always get it done before going to bed. Which can lead to some pretty late nights. Once it's done, though, i get to go to bed. The bright side of M/W/F is that i have class the next day at 11 AM, which means awesome sleeptime for me.

Tuesdays & Thursdays switch it up a bit.

9:45 AM--I wake up. i generally like to wake up a li'l early on these days so that i'm awake and alert for the first class of the day, russian drill. this is different than russian discussion [WOAH look at the rhyming there] because we focus more on conversational skills than verbs or whatever. it's funnnn...i love languages so bad.

11:03 AM--No matter how early i wake up, i'm late. But it's cool, the people here are chill. I say my Russian equivalent of "excuse me" and "sorry" upon entering and take my usual seat and gab gab gab in the language that i love.

11:53 AM--Now it's time for my favorite class of these two days: Readings in World Literature. And i only say it because i looooooooooove my prof. She's Polish and beautiful, and her name is Marta Napiorkowska. She knows her stuff...so if you have a chance to be in her class, leap at the opportunity! You won't regret it. Talk to me if you wanna know about the Winter Quarter syllabus.

This is where my Tuesdays & Thursdays differ.

1:30 PM [Tuesday]--I make it ON TIME to chemistry discussion, where we generally goof off and discuss what we're doing with our lab time on Thursday. My TA is hilarious and knows his stuff at the same time, so he makes this class period fly by. LOVE. This class ends at 2:30, and then i go home [note that it's almost impossible for me to eat lunch on these 2 days...I snack a lot in class].

1:30 PM [Thursday]--I make it to chemistry lab, where we're doing a gruesome titration circuit. I mean, seriously. Is there any real reason to be doing upwards of 4 titrations? That takes literally 4 hours, true story. But it's fun and it's interesting, especially when you realize just how accurate your results are. Life's just better when your error is below 10%. Science nerds know what i'm talking about. Lab's supposed to end at 5:20, but sometimes we stay a li'l later in case lab runs a tad too late.

After both of those, it's back to Max West for homework, house activities [which get a bit confusing so i omitted them here...i can go into them later if you want!], and eventually sleeeeeeep.

Then the whole thing repeats.

So, that's my week. Keep the questions coming [save me from opening mail]!

zach

A levels

2008-03-12T08:58:00.001-05:00

International students who have their A levels can fax the results to us at 773-702-4704. There's no need to send a copy by mail or to have the copy certified.

some answers to selected questions, part I

2008-03-10T15:17:00.005-05:00

Hey. We're back.
You guys are freaking crazy. Thank you for all your questions; we're gonna try to answer the most common and most interesting.

We're not going to address questions regarding decisions-- that is not our area of expertise. What is, however, is waiting for decisions. I advise that you do so without worrying about when. It will get there. You will make a decision. You will go to college. Chill.

What classes did zach take that led to his finals & paper?
Well...it's not like my classes are anything out of the ordinary. With that in mind, expect that sort of thing towards the end of any quarter. The classes I took specifically were Honors Gen. Chem, 1st-year Russian, Calculus 153 [look this up for a description, if you're really that interested], and Readings in World Literature.

back to eliza: Though you didn't ask, I'm taking Language and the Human as my hum core class. I wouldn't recommend it. I'm also in Spanish 204, Curso de Redaccion Academica. also the Foundations of Modern Physics for my phy-sci core, and Core Bio.

I want to know what you're planning on doing in Spain, Eliza, and I want to know how the quarter system works - it's still slightly confusing to me.
I'm going to Spain with my sister on 5 years of frequent flyer (flier?) miles, woo! We're going to Madrid, Cordoba, Sevilla, y Cadiz, each for about 2 days. I've never done anything like this before-- I'm pumped.

The quarter system is not confusing. Let me lay it on the line: 10 weeks of class. 1 week of finals. Repeat.
Repeat.
The exact dates of this year were: 9/15-9/23: First Year Orientation Week. 9/24-12/7: Autumn Quarter. 12/8-1/7: Winter Interim. 1/8-3/21: Winter Quarter. 3/22-3/30: Spring Interim. 4/1-6/14: Spring Quarter. 6/15-9/29: Summer Interim. (You guys get here the 20th for OWeek)

Regarding the capitalization: I do it because I think Eliza is ugly and imposing. eliza is not. Simple as that. I do not have an inferiority complex, I do not think I am cooler-than-thou-lowly-capitalizers. I just like it better that way. zach doesn't have a policy-- he just doesn't care.

Food
[zach] H'okay, so. Food. It's sorta an important thing, metabolism and all that jazz. I hail from Max P and therefore eat at Bartlett, which is widely regarded as the best dining hall. I feel like "best" implies that its crazy delicious versus barfy...don't take this like that. Keep in mind that Bartlett still serves "college" fare, just like Pierce and BJ do. You're just paying more for it, har har. Oh, yeah. And it gets crazy monotonous, crazy fast.
As far as starving goes, it's practically impossible. There's [hopefully] gonna be something slightly tastebud-tempting on the menu, so jump at the opportunity. I don't really know what else to say about this...food's food, mayne. And college food at that.
eliza: I live in the Shoreland. floors 2-8 eat at BJ, 9-12 at Pierce. I go to BJ by default, 'cause my house table is there, but I frequent Pierce and occasionally Bartlett. BJ and Pierce are all-you-can-eat; Bartlett is a la carte (ie you pay for each item with prepaid dining points). I prefer BJ and Pierce because I don't like waiting in lines which are unavoidable at Barlett, and I don't like being served; I like making my own food and my own portions. I think the food is equally as "good" at all the dining halls. There are nuanced differences between BJ and Pierce which you just have to feel out. I'm moving out of housing next year, and a large part of the reason for me doing that is so I can go GROCERY SHOPPING again, and eat REAL food. mmm.

Will you guys host us? How long can we stay? Will we get to visit classes?
Zach and I will not host you unless that's the way the cookie crumbles. You can come and spend the night here every Thursday and Friday all year round, and any day in the spring (don't quote me on this). Yes you get to visit classes, do a tour, info session, hang out with KOOL KOLLEGE KIDS like us, etc. call 773 702 8650 to arrange a visit.

I want to know which Houses you guys are reppin'
[zach] As I said before, I'm from Max P. BUT what some may not know is that there are three [3!!] Max P buildings [you could just as easily call them wings, or something like that]: east, central, & west. Color-coordinated to your eyes' disgust as purple [imagine this with orange brick...narsty], yellow [two "warm" colors mixed? not fierce.], and pink [the least disgusting, but still garish], respectively.
I live in Max West, aka Barbie [think pink], in Wallace house. It's the smallest of the Maxi houses, and I love it: 3 lounges, a language commons, 2 kitchens...yadda yadda yeahh I love it. Will probably stay there for next year. It's nice.

eliza: I rep Michelson house, the sixth floor of the Glorious Shoreland Hotel.

As much as I LOVE learning... sigh... I fear that I will be in a constant state of stress. And that I will feel like the least intelligent person there.
[zach] I can really relate to whoever wrote this, because I totally felt the same way. Here I was, a scrawny, bespectacled boy with braces [at 18...yes, I know] who was leaving the rural Rockton, IL [I think it has a wikipedia page, but do I feel like giving it that honor? NO.] for the big city, where if I lived in a movie my morality would be threatened and I'd emerge the victor.
But in the end it was just a lot of asserting [to myself, really] that I was ready for college and [actually] learning something. Don't feel inferior; feel proud. If you make it here, you make it here for a reason. Don't fret...that's just too much stress where/when stress isn't needed at all.

How does one become a contributor to the blog?
We asked Libby. She asked Ted. He said yes. Thus, we contribute. QED.

What would you say was the most memorable experience at UChicago so far?
There are a lot of ways to answer this, really. I'll choose being what I consider corny. Part of my job at the admissions office is doing deliveries across campus. Part of the fun is leaving the monotony of mail-opening, and the other part is just taking a completely different route to wherever that envelope in my hand has to go and seeing/discovering something about campus that I haven't seen before. I feel very [I hate this metaphor...] Harry Potter-esque in my American Hogwarts of a school, but there you go.

eliza: creating a friendship the likes of which took me four years in high school, and only four months here.

I'd like to hear about Study Abroad (how easy is it do it / do you get full funding?) and undergraduate research opportunities (specifically in Political Science or International Relations).
Study Abroad is something everyone should do. Everyone. You pay regular UChicago tuition (financial aid works out the same). LOADS of people go abroad. UChicago has its own programs in several cities, but you are welcome to take programs sponsored by consortiums of which UChicago is a member. Additionally, ANY PROGRAM YOU FIND ANYWHERE (this is to you Korea-inquisitor), you can apply to get a Foreign Language Acquisition Grant (FLAG) for $2,500 to go towards the costs. You must also arrange with the head of whatever division it falls under to assure that you will get UC credits. You may not. This is more nuance than necessary to answer this question; I'm sorry. For details: http://study-abroad.uchicago.edu/ is pretty comprehensive.
I have not heard of many undergrads doing research in those fields...the sciences are more popular. Though the most important thing I've learned here is something my hum prof told me: if anything looks like a rule or a barrier at UChicago, you can tap it on the shoulder, say "excuse me," and it will usually move out of your way. You can do what you want here.

What I'd like to know is, is there some sort of therapy for poor high school seniors who are under overwhelming and intense anxiety about college selection? If so, is it free? it should be.
Yes: http://counseling.uchicago.edu/

Do the two of you get to read people's applications?
Nope!

But I was wondering how active the gay community is at UChicago or how gay friendly Chicago itself is.
[zach] Being gay, I'm pretty qualified to answer this. Uhhhh...campus is accepting. Very. There's more I can say about this, but all of that deviates from the general direction your question is pointing. So my answer is this: no gay bashing here.
eliza: there's Queers and Associates (Q&A), which is kinda cool. Here are the official resources: http://lgbtq.uchicago.edu/
But other than the official, University-sponsored RSO-type things: the queer women's community here is pretty tight. in the colloquial sense and in the close-knit sense. there are a lot of different levels of involvement, which is nice.
In general, it is not a terribly active community. We're workin' on it though. Q&A is planning this massive Pride week in the spring with a bazillion events and stuff to increase visibility.

does the university of chicago have a cultural night?
LOADS OF THEM. winter quarter there's a cultural show every weekend. every ethnic student organization has one and they are pretty awesome.

sorry guys. it's 4:37. Time to go. We'll continue more later.
There will be a separate post for Big Questions like how is the social life, was it different than you expected, how is it different from high school, and campus/city safety.

"Day in the Life"s will be posted too.

*phew*

-eliza and zach out.

P.S. You can friend Zachary James DeVoe on facebook if you like; he will welcome your questions and enthusiasm.

P.P.S. If you have any more questions, please comment on the original post so they're all in one spot when we go back to answer more. thanks!

new faces!

2008-03-05T15:37:00.002-06:00

Hey guys,

We're zach and eliza. I'm eliza, writing. We're first years. We work here at the Office of Admissions mostly opening mail, and sometimes completing other odd tasks. We were granted blog privileges a while ago but have been too skittish to post on here yet, which is odd and dumb on our parts; we revered this blog when we were EA applicants last November while eagerly awaiting decisions.

So I'm writing to ask you guys not the catch-all "Do you have any questions for us?!!?!!" because I know when I hear that, all nascent questions immediately get terrified out of existence. So instead I pose this: what do you want to read about? What do you want to see pictures of? What still confuses you/intrigues you about living in the intermediary bubble between the sheltered (high school) life and real life? Do you want to know about our daily lives or is that boring? We're all ears. Or eyes, really.

What zach and I have been talking a lot about today is SPRING QUARTER and its imminence. Winter quarter is almost over...it's ninth week, and tenth week we only have three days of class, and then reading period (when we're supposed to be studying for finals, which are week 11). And if you're lucky like me, you only have one final during finals week (note that zach has 3 finals and 1 paper...he's the unlucky sort), so basically...the best week ever. And then Spring Break! I'm going to Spain; zach is goin' home to Rockton, IL. Free at last! And then we come back, rejuvenated and salacious for our delicious courses awaiting us: succulently ripe and ready to be digested.

So yeah. Tell us what you want. What you really really want.

-eliza and zach.

New photos on the photo pool

2008-03-04T11:34:00.000-06:00

I want to draw your attention to the flickr photo pool - I've added pictures from first-year Grace Chapin and pictures of the opening gala for our new diversity center at 5710 South University. It was a really fun event, with lots of cake and foods of all kinds. The stuff in the glasses we're toasting with is sparkling apple juice, folks.

Grace's photos include pictures of dorms, classes, dining halls, and some outings into the city - things you've been requesting. Hope you enjoy!

If you have photos to add, make sure to request to join the UChicago photo group so we can see them.

Why I am exactly like you

2008-03-02T15:41:00.002-06:00

I am applying to grad school this year.

Waiting for decisions is slowly killing me.

My roommates are already talking about what they are going to do with my room when I leave and who among their friends is going to replace me (at least your parents aren't going to replace you with another kid).

I filled out the FAFSA. It actually wasn't that hard, but at least I didn't have to do the CSS PROFILE.

I applied to a lot of ridiculous scholarships. One of the scholarship questions I had to answer was "Do you believe in a Supreme Being, our constitutional government, and the separation of church and state? If yes, please explain." Shouldn't it be, if no, please explain?

Bye bye, credentials

2008-02-29T12:28:00.003-06:00

Credentials are now gone for good. As we prepare to work with the last incomplete applications, we've taken them down. Credentials, we loved and knew ye well.

If you have any more questions about your application credentials, you can call the office or email me at questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu. I know a lot of people were planning to resend supplemental materials that we did not get the first go around. If you haven't done it already, at this point it's a little too late to add anything except the really important stuff, like loss of limbs, or that your cat was born with two heads.

If you recently found out that you were a National Merit Finalist, you can go ahead and email me. But you must rank us as your first choice with the College Board in order to get any money from us. We give $1000 to students without need, and $2000 to students with need. It's a one-time award.

Also, your interviews will not show up in credentials checking. We figure that that's one thing you know we have, since you were there and everything.

Start panicking!

2008-02-22T09:15:00.003-06:00

We sent two emails last night designed to instill fear in your hearts and make you act!

Midyear Email

This is pretty self-explanatory. If you got this email, this means that we have not received your midyear report, on paper or online. Even if you believe you have a midyear report on its way to the office, you should log into the online application and fill out the online midyear report, so that we can have your grades faster. Everyone needs to do this!

Here is the text of the email.

Credentials Email

This one is a little more complicated. Log into your credentials to see what's missing, because if you got this email, something is missing that is preventing us reading your application. Find out what it is, and send it. Here is how to send things:

Documents that can be emailed or faxed (due February 25)
Essays
Secondary School Report (Form 2)
SAT or ACT test scores as reported to your high school
Teacher recommendations (Forms 3A or 3B)
Domestic Fax: 773-702-8599
International Fax: 773-702-4704
Email: recommendations@phoenix.uchicago.edu

Documents that must be mailed (due in the office February 27)
High school transcripts
Application fees
Mailing address:
The University of Chicago
Office of College Admissions
1101 E 58th Street, Suite 105
Chicago, IL 60637
Documents that must be submitted online (due February 25)
Midyear report

Here is the email.

If you did not get the credentials email, but still see missing credentials

Students who are only missing one teacher recommendation did not receive the credentials email. This is because we can read your application and render a decision with only one recommendation. If you still want to send in your missing recommendation, you can, using the methods above. I myself was admitted with only one teacher recommendation, back in the days before credentials checking. It can happen to you!

If you see that supplemental materials are missing, you are welcome to send them in as well.

Why are we being so cruel?!

We are now confident that we have processed most of the credentials in the office. The deadlines have been set where they are to encourage you to act. We anticipate that most students will get on this right away to the extent that they are able. If your school is on break this week or next week, or your credential is late, do not worry too much. Just send in your things as soon as possible.

However, some students will lallygag on purpose, email me asking if they really need to do what we asked, or ask why their credential is missing. Act! The Tao is over! The simple fact is that we are missing things that we need to read your application.

New university website!

2008-02-19T11:26:00.003-06:00

The University of Chicago website has a new look! Web developers all over the university have been working for about a year to turn this thing out. For a university this complicated and decentralized, or for any website launch, that's a pretty quick turnaround! We're very proud of what we've accomplished.

Yours truly worked on the admissions page with Dena, who also develops our admitted student website and takes care of the main college admissions site with me. Erik, who manages the online application and makes it so darn pretty and functional, was the main designer. You'll notice that he took a lot of colors and layout tips from our own view book, the Life of the Mind. We've never been so proud of our hometown talent and our little publication that could.

Since applicants are one of our most valued constituent groups on the web (and usually the most web savvy!), we definitely want your feedback on the beta site.

The Tao approach to credentials and the midyear

2008-02-12T11:43:00.000-06:00

The admissions office heartily recommends the Tao approach to all things admissions.

As such, we believe in the practice of "wu wei," or non-doing. Think of the paradox "wei wu wei," or "action without action."

This universal mystery is easily seen in the practice of credentials processing. For example, a student who is not familiar with the Tao notices his or her credential is missing, and emails the office (despite a note on the credentials checking site that says not to), and resends his or her missing document. In the meantime, the missing document shows up on its own accord. Then the admissions office gets another envelope, must open that, and process that as well. Now there are two credentials.

Meanwhile, a second student, who happens to be a student of the Tao, sees that his or her credential is missing and does nothing. The credential shows up on its own a few days later. The student is pleased.

Here is a second example: the midyear report.

Midyear reports, like anything wishing to reach enlightenment, should be kept in a state of p'u, simplicity, or "uncarved block," for as long as possible. The uncarved midyear is free from the complexities and travails of mortal life. It is in a state of passive receptivity.

Let's say that a student unversed in the ways of the Tao submits his or her midyear report without his or her grades, because he or she wants to make the deadline. The midyear is no longer in a state of p'u, and when the student's grades actually come, and he or she wants to submit them, there is no way to do so.

The student familiar with the Tao waits until his or her grades actually come in.

If you need your midyear unlocked, please email questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu and I will be happy to unlock it.

But what if I don't know my grades?

2008-02-04T11:50:00.000-06:00

There is a lot of snow on the ground, which is still, after almost a decade, confusing for this Florida boy.

We've gotten a number of emails and phone calls over the past couple of days about the midyear report, which is supposed to be submitted today. As Libby has written in previous posts, if your grades ARE NOT available at this time, you can submit the report online when they become available later this month. The site will remain open until March 1. You do NOT need to have your school send us a report card or updated transcript. And every applicant is required to fill out the mid-year.

We hope you're all surviving winter. Application reading continues!

Aaaaaand the midyear

2008-01-25T13:55:00.000-06:00

Here is the email.

Please look at the form or at least take the tour before you email or call with questions or protests. No matter who you are, you will find that there are questions on the midyear report that pertain to you.

It is due February 4, but will remain live until March 1 for students who get their grades or exam results after February 4.

Here is the previous post on the midyear report.

Credentials are open

2008-01-22T16:00:00.000-06:00

We've opened credentials for regular notification candidates, even though we aren't quite done opening mail and processing documents. In fact, most applications remain incomplete at this point. Also, credentials are not yet open for early action applicants--we are working on getting them up this week.

So, to head off calls and emails (both of which are unwarranted at this time!) we are sending this email this afternoon:

This message is to let you know that the credentials checking feature of the online application is available once again.

To check your credentials, log into the online application and click "Check Credentials." What you see listed is what we have received and processed in support of your application, and the date on which we processed it. (Please note that this does not reflect the date on which you submitted it.) If we have not received a required credential, it will say "Not received."

At this time, we do not want you to re-send any credentials. If your application remains incomplete well into the admissions cycle, we will send you an email and give you plenty of time to re-send whatever is missing.

Thank you for your patience while we opened your mail and processed your credentials this winter. If you have any information to add to your application, an appropriate place to do that is on our Midyear Report, which will be available on the online application in a few days. Admissions decisions will be mailed in late March; scholarship winners will also be notified when the admissions decisions are released.

Good luck,
Office of College Admissions

We also say:

Supplemental Materials

Supplemental materials—such as supplemental recommendations, artwork, music, or writing—will be listed on the credentials checking site if we have received and processed them. Please note that supplemental materials will be processed after we have taken care of everyone's required application materials.

International Applicants

Unfortunately international applicants will not be able to view SAT or ACT scores on the credentials checking feature. If you have sent SAT or ACT scores to the office and want to know if we have received them, you can reply to this email and we will get back to you.

International applicants who took the TOEFL (students whose primary language of instruction is not English) should note that TOEFL scores are sent to the Office of International Affairs, not the Office of College Admissions, so we may only get access to your TOEFL scores later. Please be patient and do not worry if you see that your TOEFL score has not been received.

So, there you have it. No emails! No calls! Here is what the email looks like.

Notes on the midyear report

2008-01-17T15:16:00.000-06:00

Everyone must fill out the midyear report, even if they've been admitted, even if they graduated from high school eight years ago, even if they have already enrolled, and even if they live in Singapore. No one is safe.

Our midyear report is to be filled out online by you the student. You should have your report card or transcript handy, and your counselor's name, email address, and phone number. We only want final grades for your first term, not provisional grades, not exam grades, not advisory grades.

If your school has already sent your transcript or report card, that is fine - you do not need to fill out the midyear report. However, the midyear report is a great way to tell us a funny joke you've learned since we last corresponded. If you were deferred, it's a perfect place to express interest, or tell us about something you learned about the university that is appealing to you.

We did make a boo-boo on January 10 and make the midyear report available for a few hours, until we noticed the mistake. Then we closed it. If you filled out your midyear report on January 10 (about 90 do-gooders did this), you do not need to do it again. In fact, you cannot do it again.

If you were one of those 90 do-gooders, or you're any kind of do-gooder, and you want your midyear report unlocked because you made a mistake, email me at questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu with your full name.

This midyear report will be available on January 24. It will be due on February 4. If you do not have midyear grades by then, it will be available until March 1.

If you do not get grades because you go to moon school, or you are in Singapore and are taking A-levels, still log into the midyear report and answer as many questions as you can. You are not only reporting your midyear grades, you are also telling us you haven't gotten arrested in the last few months.

Students who are taking A-levels get their results around late February, and the midyear report is a great way to report your A-level results to us without having to mail them all the way over here.

We do not require an official transcript at this time - all students will be required to submit a final transcript by July 1.

News from the office

2008-01-09T09:55:00.001-06:00

Right now we are opening mail. Lots and lots of mail. We are opening so much mail that I don't even have time to take a picture of the mail.

So, here are pictures of last year's mail, which looks a lot like this year's mail. That post includes the famous Envelope Monster that everyone keeps referencing.

Yesterday a first-year student who was one of my favorite applicants from last year came into the office to do some volunteer work, and said "Wow, I had no idea you had so much mail. Now I feel bad for sending you 14 extra things." And she had seen the envelope monster!

Right now the question that is taking up most of my time in emails and on the blog is "Can I send this" and "When is it due." The answers are "Yes" and "Never." We wouldn't be much of an admissions office if we told you there was something you couldn't send us, and that we would not accept whatever you were willing to send us. We are making decisions up until we send them in late March. If you have relevant new information, you should absolutely show it to us.

A great place to give us updates is the Midyear Report, which will be available later this month.

Instead of asking if you can send something, you should just send it. It takes up a lot of time to answer all those emails with a "Yes." In admissions, it is easier and better to beg forgiveness than to ask permission. Maybe also in life.

How often do I read the comments?

I'm emailed every new comment, so I check them every day and tag the ones I want to address in the next post.

Plagiarism

Typically if we find that two essays are suspiciously similar, we will call the involved parties and hear out their versions of the situation. We try to only punish those who took others' original work, but of course, it is never a good idea to show an admissions essay to an unknown public.

Were you supposed to be witty in the Baker Island email?

Yes, and you made me sad by not being so.

What's next - credentials and midyear report

2008-01-04T09:22:00.000-06:00

Credential checking

Credential checking will open in late January, like maybe January 22, but maybe not.

Midyear report

The midyear report will open in late January (later than previously thought), like maybe January 24, but maybe not. It will maybe be due on February 4, but maybe not. But it will remain open until March 1 for students whose grades come in later.

More lolcats

Aashirwad of Chennai, India noticed that we didn't have any lolcats of essay option 4, so he made a few. He was admitted early and has already enrolled. Our students are nothing if not thorough.

It's January 3!

2008-01-03T09:00:00.001-06:00

Before we get into the great time zone emails I received last night, here are a few notes.

If your application says it was submitted on January 3

Even though the due date was on Baker Island time, obviously our application servers are not on Baker Island. So, your application might say that you submitted it on January 3. This is true -- you technically did. But we don't mind.

Why not? Well, let's have a test. If you were an admissions counselor, which of the following would be your line of thinking?

a. I want to read thousands of awesome applications, so I'm going to be lenient about when people can send things in.
b. I detest students and I want to make their lives hard, so I'm going to insist they send things in at a specific date and time, with no do-overs.

I wonder which one it is.

Or:

a. I love answering hundreds of emails and calls asking me if we will take a student's entire application to the Social Sciences quad and burn it in a huge fire, just because one piece of it is two seconds late, with a resounding "Yes!"
b. I love answering hundreds of emails and calls asking me if we will take a student's entire application to the Social Sciences quad and burn it in a huge fire, just because one piece of it is two seconds late, with a resounding "No!"
c. I just don't want to get hundreds of emails or calls, so I am doing a blog post about how lenient we are.

The one thing we are not lenient about is actually getting the application, the part with your personal information and essays. That should have been submitted last night. Or, you should have made your best effort to submit it (see below.)

Sending credentials via email

I've been receiving tons of things at questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu -- resumes, supplemental materials, essays, even recommendations from your teachers. Keep 'em coming. You are welcome to send anything you want to add to your application.

If you log in and, gasp, you forgot to actually submit your application after paying your fee

So far, I can see 406 people who accidentally did this. Later, we will send these 406 people, and anyone else we identify, an email. But I'd recommend that, if you think you recently submitted your application, but did not get a confirmation email about it, you log back into your application. If you still see the link that says "Submit application," that means you did not successfully submit it. Click that link and submit it! Quick, before someone notices! (Someone who is not all-knowing and all-seeing like me.)

If you're wondering if we've received your credentials

Online credential checking will be available in late January, and I mean late. We opened mail for four hours yesterday, and will probably be opening more today. There is a lot of mail. We suspect that we will be done opening it and sorting everything in late January. Until then, no need to ask if we've received your documents. Because we will not know. We'll just look at the pile of mail and roll our eyes.

And now, here is a sampling of the emails I got last night.

I just finished scuba diving off the coast of Baker Island and submitted my application to the U of C at 12:14 PM January 2nd. I swear the volcanic eruption that just took place a mile away from Baker Island had increased the total radius of Earth just enough to extend the length of this glorious day, January 2nd by an additional 14 minutes and 22 milliseconds. It's true!

Kevin from Taipei, Taiwan

Please consider my application under Baker Island time, GMC/UTC -12. I started submitting my application at 11:59 p.m. on January 2nd, and finished submitting it at 12:01 a.m. on January 3rd, but I'm sure you can imagine how slow the internet connection is all the way out here in the middle of the Pacific. :( Please give me a break; I will mail you a cool Baker Island turtle.

Cheers,
Joanna

Well, it's been a pretty frightening journey.
After having finished my application three weeks before it was available to even send in, I took a break. Much to my dismay, my computer crashed, the economy of my small home nation-state collapsed, a right-wing militant group took control, and I fled as a refugee to Baker Island, from which I am applying now. It's a chilly night, 11:45 PM, here. Unfortunately, the airstrip has not been maintained very well -- I believe it was last used in the forties -- and my small aircraft has been seriously damaged. My satellite up link is providing me with this internet connection. Don't fret, though; I'll be rescued in time to attend Chicago, should I be admitted.

Andrew from Modesto, CA (which, last I checked, was not its own nation-state)

Please note that my application was sent under the time zone UTC-12 (home of Baker Island and Bikini Atoll), where it was still around 11:30PM on January 2, 2008 when I submitted it. I hope you are understanding in my tardiness as here in Florida we are currently in a state of emergency due to our sub-freezing temperatures of 31F (okay, despite my attempted humor it is really cold here, I swear it was like 80F yesterday).

Jacklyn

My name is Sophia. I have just submitted my application and it is after midnight in my local time. I am applying under the Pacific Standard Time. However, if by doing that, my application will be late, then I choose to be applying on Pago Pago's time, which is one of the last places on earth to be January 2nd.

I know my mailing address says Noida, India but I happen to be submitting my application while vacationing and am currently in Baker Island (GMT - 11 hours) so I will be submitting under that time.

Disha

Unfortunately, it seems that villagers in Apia, Samoa kidnapped me. But, remembering my James Bond tricks, I was able to free myself from them and submit it by 11:23 P.M. Samoan time. Hooray for Samoa!

Christopher from San Francisco, CA

I turned my application on Honolulu time

My computer just seems to be in California for some odd reason, so its on-time right....?

Marcos

Just wanted to let you know that I am submitting my application around Wednesday, January 2nd, 11:06 PM (local time in Gambier Islands of France). I was also wondering what time zone Baker Island is. On Wikipedia it said it was currently not decided on, and so they left it at 12 hours behind GMT? Its funny because UChicago is mentioned in the article...

"The University of Chicago requires that freshman applications be submitted before 12:00 AM January 3rd Baker Island Time."

Its okay if you don't end up responding to my question, I'm sure you guys are receiving tons of e-mails about these applications!

Take Care,

Mohit

I THINK I MIGHT HAVE A HEART ATTACK. I AM APPLYING UNDER BAKER ISLAND TIME ZONE.
I SUBMITTED MY APP ON JANUARY 2, 2008 6:07 PM BAKER WILL IT BE ACCEPTED!!!!!!???

APPLICANT NAME: TEDMAN

OMG!!! (That was my favorite one, as I think it accurately depicts what we all are feeling.)

Having been told I'd submitted my application at 11:16 PM, I set out to find a fitting location under which to apply. I considered Acapulco, Aguascalientes, and Chihuahua, but no cool Mexican name could outweigh the appropriateness of my eventual choice.

However shameful, I don't hesitate to admit that I'm a bit of a government geek and news junkie. I confess I took more than a few breaks this evening as I was putting the finishing touches on my application to check out new posts on the NY Times' "The Caucus" blog.
I read about the candidates' gaffes caused by sleep deprivation as I was wasting time at the expense of my own rest. And, yes, I will probably be up even later tomorrow night watching returns.

I am submitting my application [in spirit] from Des Moines, Iowa.

Zina

Despite living in Niskayuna, New York, I am choosing to submit my application under Itascatown, Howland Island time, since Howland Island is actually even farther to the west than Baker Island (but within the same time zone), and I love the U.S. Minor Outlying islands.

Thank you for your understanding,
Jonathan

And some pictures

Also, Sebastian of Upper Nyack, NY, supplied me with the following lolcats, based on the essay questions. Enjoy!

I'm not sure why we didn't have these pictures on the application, instead of writing out the prompts. And...

Spot for final questions

2008-01-02T19:27:00.000-06:00

Tonight is the deadline for all freshman regular notification applications. You should have postmarked your application by today, or submitted it online by tonight... well, into tomorrow morning. Have something to say after you submit your application tonight? A final question? Ask it here.

I'll be up, working on my essays for graduate school. So I'm in the same boat as you.

Remember, the Baker Island thing is supposed to be fun, so don't take it too seriously.

Small School Talent Search

2008-01-02T16:58:00.000-06:00

A record number of students are calling and emailing, asking about the Small School Talent Search fee waiver. The weird thing is, though, that these students have been granted the fee waiver and are complaining that they cannot pay their fees online. Just take the fee waiver! Don't worry about it! If it is being offered for you, you cannot pay your fee, and that is final. Just submit your application.

Note to students applying from Pakistan

2007-12-31T07:23:00.000-06:00

Our thoughts are with prospective and current students living in Pakistan as their country works through the crisis after the assassination of leader Benazir Bhutto. A number of students have e-mailed to request an extension on mailing application materials, and we want be accommodating at this troubled time. Please e-mail me at isabel@uchicago.edu to let me know your situation.

Isabel Gomez

Who's up late?

2007-12-31T06:57:00.001-06:00

I'm up really late, or really early, working on applications. Okay, I have not actually started working on applications. I have made myself some tea and am eating the vegan chocolate cake I bought last night. It is the biggest slice of chocolate cake I have ever seen. I also cleaned the kitchen. And the living room. But anyway, I realized that I am probably one of thousands doing the same thing.

So...

1. It's 7 a.m. Do you know where your essay is? How late have you stayed up this winter break working on these things?

2. What are you drinking?

3. What are you eating?

4. What did you clean to put off writing your essays?

5. How long until you give up and let your cat write your essay?

Answers to questions from the last post

2007-12-27T12:15:00.000-06:00

Address change

If you want to change your address, email questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu

Midyear report

Do not delay in sending your secondary school report or transcript just because your midyear grades are not on them. They must be sent by mail by January 2.

In mid-January, we will open the midyear report online, and you will self-report your grades when you get them. It is due February 1, but we will keep it open until March 1 if people get grades after the February 1 deadline. However, the sooner the better! You do not need to send an official transcript at that time.

Merit scholarships

If you have financial need, your merit scholarships will take away your loans, then your contribution, then your parental contribution, until your non-grant aid is zero. However, you can use it however you want. Some people say "Instead of not having any loans, I want my parents to not have to pay anything," and take loans anyway. Some say "Instead of working over the summer, I want my scholarship to cover that, and my term-time employment." So you can really use it however you want. However, we obviously will not pay you to go to college. Eventually the scholarship will be reduced if you get a million other scholarships and gifts from your rich uncle.

Merit scholarships come out with regular notification decisions.

Revisions to deferred applications

We will not look at your application until your midyear grades come in -- that is our signal that you are ready for it to be reviewed again. So if you send something in before February 1, you're fine.

No limits! No word limits! No limits for pictures of lolcats! No limits at all! No deadlines! It's a free for all!

Can you edit your original application? No. You cannot have your application unlocked so that you can add one more activity or something. But you can just email little updates to your counselor or to questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu, or you can wait and include those extras on your midyear report when we ask for any other updates.

No interviews left

If this is the case, I just want to remind everyone that there is no statistical advantage (or disadvantage) to having an interview. Most admitted students do not have one. I didn't have one. I got a letter that said "There are no University of Chicago alumni within 75 miles of you." And then I felt alone.

Sending five million resumes

Sigh.

Okay, I am going to ask for your advice. I am filling out an application for graduate school, and the application does not ask for a resume. There is no way to upload a resume, and they don't ask you to send one in separately. But I really want to! Also, there's no word limit on the personal statement, and don't ask me how confused and at sea that makes me feel. So I feel like I should include all of the extracurriculars that would have been on the resume on the personal statement. OR they may be signaling to me that they do not care about my resume or my good works and my job, or even my personal statement since they have not bothered to provide me with any necessities, like, oh, a prompt... and a word count. They care about other things. But what could they be?!

Admissions is complicated! Even we get confused.

Rounding the bend

2007-12-24T08:49:00.000-06:00

You may have noticed that the regular notification deadline falls after a long stretch of no school and no work. A lot of the admissions staff is off and does not have access to email. However, we want to make sure you get your questions answered. You can post questions to the blog for everyone's edification, or email questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu, which is the general email address that I answer.

Here are some notes:

- If you want your teacher recommendations or other documents to get here as quickly as possible, you can email them to questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu and I can forward them directly in your application. Things can be attachments or in the body of the message. Just make sure you label it correctly, i. e. "Essay Question 1" or "Supplemental Recommendation."

You can fax the documents to 773-702-8599 (domestic fax) or 773-702-4704 (international fax).

The only thing you cannot email or fax is your transcript or your fee.

Also, please do not send multiple copies of things multiple ways. Do not both mail and email something. Do not both email and fax something. Once is enough.

- Remember to press the submit button at the end. Paying your fee is not the last step -- at the very end, you check a box that says you are presenting yourself honestly, and then you click "Submit application." If you log back into your application and it does not say "Application submitted on..." then you did not submit it!

Here are some questions that are getting more frequent:

What if I have to send some things after the deadline?

Don't fret too much. If your documents get here by January 8 (and with the email or fax, they can get here instantly), you should be in good shape.

Many students are asking if testing done in January or February is valid for the regular notification cycle. All testing must be done before the deadline, but if for some reason you could not take the SAT until January, that should be fine. Tests taken in February or March really are too late. Do not rush your scores.

When is the deadline exactly?

Funny you should ask.

How can I see what you've received from me?

The credentials checking feature will not be available again until late January. Until then, you should not worry, and you definitely should not resend anything. It will take us most of the month of January to open all of our mail, sort it, scan it, and link it to your application. No, I am not kidding. Until then, neither y'all nor we know if we have received what you have sent, so you should just stop worrying.

Any other questions? Post them to the comments.

Uncommon - it is up

2007-12-20T13:04:00.000-06:00

After writing down a bunch of things on the white board and treating at least three diseases without first diagnosing them, Uncommon has been cured.

Uncommon - it is down

2007-12-18T11:49:00.001-06:00

Why? We do not know, but no one can log in right now. We will update when things get working again, or when we have a diagnosis (I've been watching too much House.)

Advice for the deferred

2007-12-14T08:56:00.000-06:00

Deferred applicants who did not request alumni interviews before can request them until midnight on tonight (unfortunately not midnight Baker Island time.) So, log in, click "Request an alumni interview," and click "Save." If you requested one before and did not get one, we will do everything in our power to make sure you get one for regular notification.

Right now, as you can imagine, emails and calls are pouring in about how to do as well as you can in regular notification, and how exactly you should update your file. I find myself giving the same answer to everyone, because it is applicable for everyone -- do as well as you can in what is left of this semester, and continue to express interest. You can express interest by writing us a nice note in your midyear report, which will be available online in January and due on February 1. The midyear report -- either online or in the form of a new transcript from your counselor -- is required. It is your signal to us that we should re-read your application.

If you have new test scores, send us an official report. If you have improved essays, email them to your admissions counselor. Make sure your full real name and what essay it is (Question 1, Question 2, or Extended Essay, and what topic you are addressing) is on every page. If you have another recommendation, have the recommender fax or mail it in. If you have new glassblowing techniques, email your counselor a picture. There is no particular due date for new materials, but if you could get them sent before mid-January, that would be best.

Another note: we are not able to give reasons for decisions over the phone or via email, no matter how much we might want to. Our admissions decisions are made over the course of weeks (or months, for regular notification), by several people, sometimes during a conversation, taking into account the entire applicant pool. It really is impossible to recreate the reasons behind our decisions in a way that would be adequate or helpful to the applicant. We also do not have an appeals process.

Decisions are ready

2007-12-13T16:00:00.000-06:00

Your decisions are available online -- you can log into the online application to view your decision. Everyone is getting an email, in waves spaced 15 minutes apart, with their user name and password, and the announcement that the decisions are ready. We started the emails with the East Coast at 3 p.m. CST, and will conclude with the West Coast at 4:30 p.m. CST. If, for some reason, you do not get this email, and you have never logged in before, your user name is your email address, and you can look up your password by clicking "Forgot your password?"

When you log in, you will be given one last chance to not view your decision online, in case you were just strolling by and suddenly tripped and logged into your application and didn't even want to find out your decision that way. If you do indeed want to know your decision right now, you can proceed and see your letter.

We admissionscats would just like you know that despite our 45 percent increase in applications we are sending decisions a day earlier than planned. The goal date was actually December 14. So, even if I had told you what the goal date was, I would still have been wrong.

What decisions mean

Sometimes they can be confusing.

Admit - Okay, this one is not confusing.

But we would like to take this opportunity to remind you that your offer of admission does not bind you to the University of Chicago. You can wait until May 1 to reply to us. However, if you reply right away, you will have your pick of housing.

Remember, you are still required to fill out the midyear report when it becomes available online in January.

Defer - If you were deferred, it means that we have put you in the regular notification pool. You do not have to reapply, but you are welcome to give us more information. In fact, you are required, along with admitted students, to fill out the midyear report in January.

The defer letter says that we need to check on your senior grades, and to look at the rest of the applicant pool -- this is true. Deferral is an actual admission decision -- it does not mean we did not read your file, and it does not mean you will necessarily be denied later (two uncommon but troubling misconceptions.) This year we deferred more people than we admitted or denied (but not more people than we admitted and denied combined, just to be clear!)

If you requested an early action alumni interview, never had one, and were deferred, we will do everything we can to see to it that you will get a regular notification alumni interview. If you live near campus, you can interview on campus until January 11 by calling 773-702-8650. If you did not request an early action alumni interview but still want an interview, you can request one online until December 15, the deadline to request regular notification interviews.

Defer Incomplete - An entirely separate letter from "Defer." This means that we did not receive enough of your application to render a decision, despite gentle prodding by displaying your credentials to you and sending you an email telling you that you were in danger of being deferred. But don't worry -- you have the entire regular notification cycle to send in the missing documents, notice of which is now available on the credentials checker.

Deny - This is your final decision for the year. You may not reapply this year.

What happens next

We put paper decisions in the mail today.

You will be able to view your decision for a few weeks, after which denied applicants will not be able to log in again, but admitted and deferred applicants will still have full functionality on the online application.

We have a pizza and cake party (yes, nothing has changed since our birthday parties in third grade) and go on vacation.

Regular notification applications pour in while we are away. The deadline is January 2.

We come back to find a big mail monster waiting for us.

Everyone - students who were admitted or deferred early action, and regular notification applicants - fills out the midyear report in January.

Regular Notification Haven: FAQs

2007-12-12T09:28:00.000-06:00

This post is meant to be a safe space for regular notification applicants to ask their questions -- I have not been able to read all the comments on the posts, and I don't want RN voices to get drowned out.

So, here are some FAQs that have been popping up for the last few days, and an invitation for RN applicants to ask your questions. EA applicants, stay out!

Filling out the application

If you having trouble viewing your information after you've submitted it, make sure cookies and Javascript are enabled on your browser. That usually means lower your security settings.

Make sure to actually submit the application after paying the application fee. Hundreds of students during the EA cycle closed their browser after paying the fee, but before actually clicking "Submit." Don't be like them!

You pay the application fee right at the end -- after you have filled out all the required fields. You are given an option to pay by credit card, check, or fee waiver. Some students will automatically qualify for a fee waiver, such as Chicago Public Schools students, children of alumni, and students in our Small School Talent Search. If we offer you an automatic fee waiver, do not put up a fight! Just take it!

There is no word limit for essays. Here is what I said for early action:

Remember that there is no word limit on the essays. There is a suggested length. But if you ask us what the word limit is, we will not be able to tell you, because we don't know. Or we may make something up. Actually, I've just decided that the word limit is u73i words. I obviously just closed my eyes and typed something in, or u is an imaginary number I didn't hear about in the Core.

Follow directions.

If the online application confuses you, you should check out the application tour, or send an email to me at phoenix@questions.uchicago.edu, or post a question in the comments.

Recommendations and other forms

We were getting a lot of questions about who can write your two required recommendations, so here is what I said to the EA folks:

3A (English/social studies)

Okay: English, social studies, history, government, economics, art history, music theory, foreign literature, anthropology, psychology
Not okay: music performance, studio art, foreign language, speech and debate, journalism, business, marketing

3B (Math/science)

Okay: math, science with a lab, statistics, science without a lab, computer science
Not okay: psychology

In every case, these letters should be written by a teacher who taught you in that subject during high school, not in a college or university (unless you are home schooled and that is the only context in which you took that class).

And yes, both recommendations are a requirement! All other kinds of teachers should send in a recommendation with a Form 3C.

Testing

All testing must be completed by the deadline, which means that all test dates have passed. If you are planning on taking the SAT again in January, we will eventually see those scores, but we cannot guarantee that we will see them before we make a final decision.

Do not rush your scores. You must send official score reports from the testing agency, so you might as well send them now.

We require either the SAT or the ACT, and no SAT IIs. For international student, we also require the TOEFL or IELTS. We only require the SAT or ACT if they are offered in your country, so we do not require that mainland Chinese applicants take the SAT or ACT.

Further questions

Post to the comments, or email questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu

The regular notification deadline to request an alumni interview is December 15

2007-12-11T15:48:00.000-06:00

Regular notification candidates should log into the online application soon to request their alumni interview, because the requestin' place goes down on December 15. Remember, you do not have to submit your application before the request is processed, and you do not have to be interviewed before the deadline.

Yes, early action people, even more people are applying regular notification, and they have not yet been through all that you have.

Also, as you fill out the application, make sure Javascript and cookies are enabled, so that your information displays correctly after you save it.

Let's worry about something else for a little bit

2007-12-11T10:52:00.000-06:00

Year-end roundups are starting to pop up in mainstream and "new" media sources. So, while you're waiting, tell us:

- What was your favorite book of 2007?
OR
- What was your favorite movie of 2007?
OR
- What was your favorite album or musician of 2007?
OR
- Who is your favorite 30 Rock character, and why?

Bonus points for answering all questions*.
Bonus points for awesome answers*.

*Please note that "bonus points" are not transferable to the application process, and only affect the esteem that Libby and I hold for you all, and the love that we feel for you all**.

**Except, of course, that we love you all and hold you all in very high esteem.

If you could choose any way to receive your decision...

2007-12-10T11:08:00.000-06:00

What would it be?

Knight in shining armor at your door?

Fireworks?

Message in a bottle?

Credentials are closing tonight

2007-12-05T16:27:00.001-06:00

As we work to get the final applications complete, we will to be closing the credentials checking system tonight at midnight. If for some reason the credentials checking frenzy hasn't hit you, you have time to check your credentials tonight before the feature closes. If you have any further questions about your credentials, you should call the office at 773-702-8650.

Credentials checking for early action candidates who were deferred will reopen right after we send decisions.

Credentials checking for regular notification candidates will open in late January. We are expecting to need a lot of time to process all of the regular notification credentials. Usually twice the number of early action candidates apply regular notification. Again, we will notify students if their applications remain incomplete long after the deadline, and give them time to complete their applications before we make final decisions. Early action candidates, we are counting on you to calm the regular notification candidates while they wait for credentials to open.

Operation Snowball...

2007-12-05T00:31:00.000-06:00

I have no idea what it means when you list it as an activity on Form 1, but here, now, it means...THE BIGGEST SNOWBALL FIGHT I'VE EVER SEEN. Outside Rosenwald where, yours truly, Admissions Officer, is toiling away in the wee hours.

[pauses to go throw snowball]

[eek, snow is cold]

And I'm back. So, to begin in the middle, it's finals week for students and whatever-the-equivalent for admissions staff. Finals month.

And during finals week, stuff happens. Stuff like midnight breakfast in Hutch Commons, or free jelly donuts and latkes in the Reg basement. Stuff like sleeping in the library. And, tonight, this white powdery stuff that came down, a lot of it, for a long time.

Bringing me, bringing 50+ sleep-starved, smarts-binged undergrads howling around the quads in various states of (in)appropriate dress (get Jon to tell you his Big Coat story), to: spontaneous, semi-organized snow revelry.

Or, as Thucydides would put it: War. But in a way longer sentence.

Fun with Flickr

2007-12-04T10:44:00.000-06:00

Since my eyes have already fallen out due to reading too much, I'm trying to set up a Flickr thing so that we can get some random photos of the campus and community on this blog for your viewing pleasure. Also, I thought it would be fun if you guys could post any pictures you take of the campus when you visit (or any dioramas you made with toilet paper and glue after your visit.)

You can view pictures here: http://www.flickr.com/groups/uchicago_applicants/

If you want to be invited to the group to post your pictures, email me at eap@uchicago.edu.

This is only the beginning! It's going to snow today, so we might make a Snow Committee or a Snow Class (since it's exam week and we can't take pictures of classes.)

If you know how to make a feed from the group that I can put on the sidebar, let me know.

Incomplete early action applications

2007-11-29T09:21:00.000-06:00

We just sent an email to students whose applications remain incomplete past the deadline. Here is what it said:

As of this date, your University of Chicago Early Action Application remains incomplete. It is likely that whatever is not here has gone astray, though we assume that you and your school have made every effort to send all material in a timely way. We still have time to complete your file, to read it, and to render a decision in December. Let us work together to complete your application.
Please go to the Uncommon Application homepage. Enter your username and password, and click "Login." Click "Check Credentials" in order to see which credentials are missing.

If any of the following credentials are missing from your application, please email the documents by the end of the day on Monday, December 3 to recommendations@phoenix.uchicago.edu or fax the documents to 773-702-8599 (domestic fax) or 773-702-4704 (international fax):

Essays
Secondary School Report (Form 2)
SAT or ACT test scores as reported to your high school
Teacher recommendations (Forms 3A or 3B)

Official high school transcripts and application fees, which must be paid by check or money order at this time, must be mailed to:

The University of Chicago
Office of College Admissions
1101 E 58th Street, Suite 105
Chicago, IL
60637

Transcripts and fees must arrive in our office by Monday, December 3.

We look forward to working with you to complete the remaining credentials required in support of your application.

Applications that remain incomplete after December 5, 2007, will be deferred to our Regular Notification program.

Please explicitly follow the instructions.

Also, if you're worried about your supplemental credentials, now would be a time to resend those, if you want to. You can use the email address above.

Again, here are the instructions for how to send different items:

Documents that can be emailed or faxed
Essays
Secondary School Report (Form 2)
SAT or ACT test scores as reported to your high school
Teacher recommendations (Forms 3A or 3B)
Documents that must be mailed
High school transcripts
Application fees

A note about TOEFL scores

2007-11-27T11:56:00.001-06:00

Not very interesting, but I thought I'd address some of the panic.

TOEFL scores can only be sent to one office in a university, and that office isn't this one. So, when you send your TOEFL scores, they go to the Office of International Affairs, and the OIA sends them to us in a big spreadsheet at certain times throughout the year. Your scores may be sitting at the OIA -- you'll have to be patient while we wait to receive them from over there. After we receive them, we also have to enter them.

And remember, all international students see the TOEFL credential on their credentials site, regardless if the TOEFL is required for them.

No international students see SATs, regardless if they've sent them. If you want to make sure we've received your SATs, you should email me at questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu

Happy Thanksgiving!

2007-11-22T07:56:00.000-06:00

I would link to our Thanksgiving email, but it appears that all of our web servers are down. How nice!

Don't resend anything.

The Seminary Cooperative Bookstore

2007-11-18T10:03:00.000-06:00

A couple of days ago Libby, Jeffrey, and I took a trip to the Seminary Cooperative Bookstore to take some pictures for the blog. Why is it called the Seminary Coop? Well, because it's in the basement of the Chicago Theological Seminary, a graduate divinity school loosely affiliated with our own Divinity School. Plus, it's owned by its customers. Shares are $30 a pop, and confer a 10 percent discount. Hooray! If the three bookstores (The Seminary Coop, the 57th Street Bookstore, and the Newberry Library Bookstore) have a good year, then you get a little check in the mail.

Here we are descending into knowledge (and idealism, since it is a coop):

We stopped first in the section on MATHS. I am confused by all the numbers:

In the center of the bookstore is a selection of new academic titles. Here's an overhead view:

From there we walked back across the bookstore to the textbooks. On the way, Jeffrey bumped his head on the ceiling. Fortunately, the kind staff of the bookstore have placed fuzzy tennis balls on the low-hanging pipes to prevent tall people from knocking themselves out. This is not an issue for most of us:

OMG, Ramayana:

This is the section for textbooks. Most humanities and social science courses are sold here; most science and math courses are sold at the "official" university bookstore.

The piece of paper tacked onto the bookshelf represents the full list of books required for each course. To the left a blank space is checked (or not) to represent whether or not the book is in stock. As you can see, lots of classes require lots of reading.

Jeffrey asks a question we have often wondered: Why do men barbecue?

There is even a section for graphic novels:

After grabbing some Neil Gaiman, we left the bookstore. I needed to pick up something from the Regenstein Library, so we took the camera with us. Here is a picture of Hull Gate. We are standing facing south, towards the main quadrangle. Look at all that hustle and bustle!

Here we are inside the library. At nerd school, there is a line for the elevator in the library:

The book I need to get is on the B level of the basement, where the movable stacks are. Here's a picture:

Here Jeffrey tries to crush me inside the movable stacks:

Wow, look! It's the place where the first controlled, sustained nuclear reaction took place! Also, you can place your books here for re-shelving. History and convenience.

On our way back to the office, we saw a tree that looked a lot like fall:

And we stopped in the basement of the divinity school for some coffee. The coffee shop there has been holding a tournament-style battle of the gods for many months now. The most recent competition, as you can see on this board, was a "battle of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning gods," Mother Theresa vs. Al Gore:

Mother Theresa won by $0.23.

Hope you enjoyed this; please let us know in the comments. Coming soon: a section on The School of Engineering at The University of Chicago.

Credentials - what will be listed

2007-11-16T11:25:00.000-06:00

Students will see listed all of the required parts of the application. If the item has been received, it will be followed by the date when we processed it. If it has not been received, there will be a red "Not received" note. Very ominous. If you see any "Not received" notes, it means your application is not yet complete. If you see none, your application is complete.

Here is what we consider to be required for domestic students (the international list does not include test scores and some other things, though most international applicants are able to send standardized test scores):

Form 1: Application for Admission
Writing: Question 1
Writing: Question 2
Writing: Extended Essay
$60 Application Fee Paid or Waived
HS Transcript
Form 3A: Teacher Recommendation English/Social Studies
Form 3B: Teacher Recommendation Science/Mathematics
Official SAT or ACT Test Scores (if we received more than one set, this may be listed more than once)
Form 2: Secondary School Report

You may also see this:

Other/Additional Application Supplement
Additional Recommendation 3C

So, we WILL be listing additional recommendations and supplements on the credentials checker. Of course, these are the last things we process, since our priority right now is to make applications complete and ready to be read.

We will not list on campus or alumni interviews, but if you had one, it will be written up. Rest assured.

Credentials checking is updated nightly to reflect what's in our Database of All Teenagers. We will be taking it down as we get ready to send decisions, so it will be down from mid-December to mid-January.

Lastly, don't resend anything! Unless, of course, you are sure it was not sent in the first place.

Update on the TOEFL

All international applicants, because of their citizenship status, will see the TOEFL listed on their credentials. We accept the TOEFL or IELTS for proof of English proficiency, and if you want to know about our required scores, you can go to the admissions website.

For students who have lived in the US or been educated in English for two or more years, your TOEFL or IELTS requirement is waived. However, this fact will not show up on the credentials site. We will not mark your TOEFL as having been received because we will never receive it, but you should rest assured that this is not a required document for you.

OMG, You don't have my stuff!!!!

2007-11-15T16:07:00.000-06:00

Hi. Many of you have noticed that credentials checking has opened. Many of you have also panicked about said credentials checking feature. A few posts back, Libby mentioned that the process for all of you seems something like:
1. Mail stuff in.
2. Get decision.

For us, the process looks like:
1. Get tons of mail.
2. Open tons of mail.
3. Remove tons of staples that are affixed to the prominently featured "do not staple" corner of the application.
4. Sort mail.
5. Scan mail.
6. Proof scanned mail.
7. Create files.
8. Read files.
9. Read more files; lose personal life...

And so forth, until you get your decisions. Credentials work similarly. The credentials checking feature of the website lists items that we have both received and processed. That means it came in the mail, it was opened, it was sorted, it was added to your file, it was recorded as having been added to your file. Because of the volume of mail we receive, it often takes a very long time for us to process all of your application materials.

At this time, DO NOT re-send ANY portion of your application. We will contact you at some point in the near future if we need you to resubmit any portion of your application. Resubmission of application materials actually delays the processing of ALL application materials. So if you resend stuff, your friends will shun you, because that means it will take us longer to get to their applications. Reason enough, if you ask me. But perhaps more importantly, it delays our ability to read your file!

Additionally, as a favor to us, please DO NOT call or email our office or your admissions counselor asking if we've received certain documents or if you need to resubmit certain documents. A few of you were discussing the dramatic increase in EA applications that we've seen this year; it was mentioned in a Wall Street Journal article a few days ago. We're doing our absolute best to get through all of these files, but handling inquiries only delays that process, as well. Rest assured we are not evil and we are, in fact, doing our best to make sure the process works smoothly for you and for us.

In other news, Project Runway, anyone? Amazing.

Also, coming soon: The Seminary Cooperative Bookstore, in pictures...

Whoops

2007-11-15T08:24:00.001-06:00

Thanks, guys, for complaining so vociferously that credentials checking did not in fact come up last night. I have been logging into your accounts all morning, though, and have not seen any accounts for whom it did come up (your comments seem to suggest that, for some of you, it's working). If credentials checking is working for you, please email me your name and hometown.

I can tell you that I don't see a pattern of who is able to check their credentials and who is not -- for example, if your application is complete, it doesn't work, and if your application is incomplete, it doesn't work. So that's not the issue. We're working on finding out what it is. Another culprit might be that we were updating our Database of All Teenagers last night, so the feed might not have gone over to the online application. If that's the case, that was poor planning on our part.

Later that morning... Credentials are up now.

After you fill out your application, don't forget to actually submit it!

2007-11-14T09:10:00.000-06:00

We've been having an issue this year with students filling out the application, paying their application fee, and then closing their browser window before actually submitting the application. Don't let this happen to you! After you pay the fee, you need to keep clicking forward to digitally "sign" your application and submit it. Until you click "Submit Application" and that confirmation email is in your sweaty, anxious digital hands, your application has not been submitted. You will also know if you have submitted your application because the next time you log in, the application homepage should look completely different.

About 170 students did this early action, and luckily we caught them in time to let them submit their application. However, 60 students have already done this for regular notification. Be aware!

Credentials Checking

Also, credentials checking will open tonight at midnight. That might sound like a good thing, but we in admissions know that it will probably cause a run on the bank, and everyone will call and re-send their documents, neither of which you should do. Do not call us, and do not resend your documents at this time. Just continue to bite your fingernails until you receive an email telling you to resend things. In the meantime, allow us to search through the office couch cushions in search of your English teacher's recommendation...

Decisions - what?

2007-11-09T08:24:00.001-06:00

If you have applied early action, you will either be admitted, deferred, or denied.

I think you can guess what admitted means. It means that you can come join us next year. However, you do not have to. That is because our early action program is non-binding. You can apply to other schools if you want. You can enroll the next day if you want. The choice is yours. Financial aid information should follow within days, if you applied on time and your application was complete.

If you are deferred, you will be read again in the regular notification pool. We will ask for your midyear grades in January (we ask for them from everyone), and they will give us the information we need to make a decision in the regular notification pool. We also would like you to show interest by attaching a comment to your midyear report or just telling us what you're up to. Or just sending an email that says "It's too bad that you deferred me, but I still want to attend your school."

Students who are denied will not be read again that year. That is the final decision.

How many students will be admitted, deferred, and denied this year? I we don't aren't know telling.

What will the envelopes look like? They'll all be rectangles, and probably white or white-ish.

When do you do the midyear report? January. Our midyear report is special, and you can only fill it out online. You self-report your grades. That way you can also tell us what you're up to.

Decisions - how, when, where?

2007-11-08T10:13:00.000-06:00

The comments have recently turned toward the topic of how you will get your decision, now that you have figured out how to send in your application. For you, the process goes like this:

Send in application
Get decision

But to us, the process looks like this:

Receive lots of mail
Get lots of paper cuts
Remove lots of staples
Scan lots of documents
Link the documents to your account in our Massive Database of All Teenagers (MDAT)
Read your applications
Read them again
Have a committee
Have staring contests during committee (ahem, Kate)
Read more applications
Read them again
Have another committee
Go home for Thanksgiving and watch What Not to Wear with mom
Read more applications
Have another committee
Stuff lots of envelopes
Mail them (not only on the same day, but in the same second)
Catch up on all the New Yorkers we haven't gotten to read because we were reading applications

So, we are not thinking about decisions, and we are actually baffled as to why our applicants are, when there is obviously so much to do! But that's behind the scenes.

In the world, there are usually three answers to any questions: Yes, No, and I don't know. But here in admissions, there are four: Yes, No, I don't know, and We are not telling.

So, when are decisions coming out? I we don't are not know telling. That is a mixture between "I don't know" and "We are not telling." We have a goal date. Do we ever meet the goal date? No. So we're not even going to tell you the goal date, because we probably won't meet it. If we do, we'll be happy, and you'll get your decision in mid-December. If we don't, we'll be less happy, but you'll still get your decision in mid-December.

I can tell you that you will get a letter in the mail. We still do that. I can also tell you that we will email you and tell you to check your decision online when it is available. That is different from last year. Last year we emailed the decisions themselves, but this year we are going to make your official decision available when you log into the online application. So, it is to your benefit to be familiar with your user name and password on the online application! I can also tell you that we will not send this email during school hours, so don't expect it in the morning.

If you are admitted, you will also be able to go immediately to a website called ThickEnvelope (haha!) and accept your offer of admission right away! You'll also be able to log into bulletin boards to chat with fellow future classmates, sign up for April overnight programs, etc.

But all this is in the far future. Don't worry about it now. Worry about water. Here is the next installment of Look Around You, entitled Water.

We're here to serve you

2007-11-07T21:24:00.000-06:00

Well, we found Libby under the mail, and she was a little dehydrated, but will be okay. She brought back with her another installment of "Look Around You," the origin of the segment about MATHS she posted a few days ago. Well, it turns out it's a series produced by the BBC. Crazy awesome satiric British humor, or actual show about science? Well, like Fox News, we report, you decide: http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/lookaroundyou/

In other news, keep commenting about what you'd like to see. As our faithful correspondent Zach pointed out, we posted about dorms and coffee shops last year, but they might deserve an update, depending on your interest. I think the bookstores could certainly be in order.

In the meanwhile, mail opening and reading continues...

Mail and mail and mail and mail

2007-11-06T13:14:00.001-06:00

Rumor has it we received 27 bins of mail yesterday. 27! I almost fainted when I heard the rumor. Needless to say, we are incredibly busy opening, sorting, and processing all your mail. At this point it is WAY too early to call or office or contact your admissions counselor to ask if we've received all of your stuff. I haven't seen Libby in a few days; I think she might be buried under the mail.

We really do appreciate your patience as we prepare to read early action applications - we're very excited to learn about you. Yes, you.

I read some of the comments on the last post, and someone indicated that they would love to see us use more pictures. As we start to read, we'll use the blog less and less to give you instructions and more and more to give you information. So, in an example of what my more tech-savvy friends might call "user-created content," or something, tell us in the comments of this post what you'd like to see on campus. Dorms? Dining Halls? My office? The gym? Let us know.

In other attractions, I was at the Museum of Contemporary Art last night and I saw a great show about the relationship between rock music and contemporary art. Details are here: http://www.mcachicago.org/exhibitions/exh_detail.php?id=56. Check it out next time you're in town. Worried about it costing too much? The Frugal Traveler, one of my favorites in the Times, visits Chicago: http://travel.nytimes.com/2007/11/04/travel/04frugal.html?ref=travel

Applications from around the world... and under the sea

2007-11-02T10:37:00.001-05:00

Here's a sampling of the emails I received last night. East coasters moved to Texas, Midwesterners moved to California, Californians moved to Hawai'i, and some people moved underwater to the post office in Vantuatu...

I submitted my UChicago application online 10 minutes ago. Please consider it under "Papeete, Tahiti, France" time zone (currently Nov 1st 10:48 PM).

Thanks,
Vikram M. (Dublin, OH)

In my current time zone in Florida, I submitted my application at 4:30 AM November 2nd. I am choosing, however, to send it from the time zone of Honolulu where it was 10:30 PM on November 1st and within the deadline. Thank you very much for your continued understanding throughout this process.

Anna T. (Pompano Beach, FL)

Hi Libby!

I was looking forward to sending my application from the famed underwater post office in Vanuatu, but when I hopped on a plane to the world's happiest place, I realized that I would have a few difficulties with this scheme because a) after a summer of disuse, I have no French skills left to speak of, b) my application isn't waterproof, and c) most importantly, Vanuatu is at GMT+11, not GMT-11. And I do not want to incur the wrath of the admissions gods by going backwards in time.

So, now I'm in Hawaii and hopped up on jet lag and sleep deprivation and Nyquil and cough drops and I'm flailing and everyone's scared of me and running away and even my application is trying to escape so that's why you're getting it now.

Thanks for your understanding.

Sincerely,
Yibo S. (Mason, OH)

While I admit it was somewhat irresponsible to travel all the way to Baker Island when my online application deadline was looming so threateningly on the horizon, I couldn't resist the opportunity for such a pleasant getaway. It is currently 11:20 PM here, and I'm sure I'm not alone when I say thank god for wireless internet!

-Alina Y. (Marietta, GA)

I was... on... a... bone digging-up trip... in Middle-earth (GMT/UTC - 12:00 hour).
Sincerely,
Alexander S. (Lindenhurst, IL)

I'm just emailing to confirm that my UC application was sent last night at 12:54 am central time, which means that it was sent six minutes earlier than the due date in El Paso, Texas. I'm glad to have finally found a reason to appreciate Texas, and hope that the school has received all of my paperwork by now.

Best,
Kelsey G. (Carol Stream, IL)

Sorry for turning in the application late, I guess I don't have any legitimate excuses, but it is still Nov. 1st somewhere. So, if you don't track down my IP address to Chicago's suburbia, I am hoping you will take my word and trust me that I am writing from Alofi, in the country of Niue, where it is currently 10:03 pm on the first of November.

-Matthew C. (East Dundee, IL)

Wow, you must've gone through a lot of coffees by now.
It's 12:30 in Pago Pago, so I'm applying under Pago Pago's time zone!

Take care,
Bonnie D. (Potomac, MD)

Please excuse my missing the midnight deadline of my home address time zone. However, currently I am on Baker Island hosting an oompa loompa volleyball tournament. They play the Keebler Elves today, who are coming off a dominating victory over the Village People. Also, I am conducting a speech on fire drill safety and procedure. A congo line proves most effective in evacuating and moving a large number of people quickly. Attached, please find pictures of my adventures. Feel free to request more. I'm the fellow in the Willy Wonka suit. The oompas wouldn't have it any other way. Isn't WiFi just amazing, all the way from Baker Island?

P.S. Seems as if all of Collegeboard's staff, especially those who's responsibilities involve sending SAT and AP scores, are on Baker Island with me. They seem to have enjoyed the Keebler Elves' victory a bit too much and do not look like they are in any condition to work. I'll give them the day off so you can expect my SAT and AP scores shortly.

Thank you,
Nino M. (Alpine, NJ)

Although it may appear that my (Josh V.'s) early action application to the U of C was sent at around 3:10 a.m. Central time on November 2, it was actually sent at about 9:10 p.m. on November 1st using the time standards of Alofi, the capital of Niue. Just in case you were confused.

thanks,
Josh V. (Germantown, TN)

I am emailing you to inform you that I will be applying under Alaska Daylight Time. Thanks so much!

-Megan K. (Laguna Niguel, CA)

My name is Cesar L., I have just submitted my application but would like to let you know that I am submitting under Pacific Daylight Time. Thank you and I hope you have a good night.

Cesar L. (El Paso, TX)

I was having a cow because three different email accounts wouldn't work, and a fourth one I tried creating wouldn't load either.

This is Anne Y. from Louisville Ky, sending in a late early application. I was going to say I'm sending it from Honolulu's time zone because I want to be on the beach, but right now, I'm just to relieved that one email account (this is actually my mothers) worked.

Anne Y. (Louisville, KY)

Um, Libby?

I'm a little worried. I emailed you earlier to let you know I was applying early with my deadline time based on California time (-8 hours time zone). Right now, when I finished my early application, it said "Your Application for Admission was successfully submitted online at 1:43 AM on 11/2/2007." The time on that notification is worrying me a little.. Also, when I log in, it says I submitted my form on November 2nd. But right now, it still is November first somewhere on the globe, so I'm alright, aren't I? That's what a part of the website said earlier.

Anyway, I hope everything runs smoothly. Thanks,
Fahim Z. (Lombard, IL)

A strange thing happened to me when I was spell-checking my essays for the University of Chicago EARLY ACTION application. My clock fast forward three hours! Isn't that creepy? Perhaps I watched too many episodes of Supernatural, but I'm feeling that the demons are out to get me. Please allow my application to be submitted under the Pacific time zone. Thank you very much.

UChicago Class of '12 Hopeful,
Chao X. (Rockville, MD)

I am applying from the "Gambier Islands" in France GAMT.

Sincerely,
Lakshmi S. (River Forest, IL)

I am submitting my application in the time of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, which, I believe, is in the CST zone.

Thank you so much,
Rachael L. (West Bloomfield, MI)

So, this crazy fiasco just happened in my living room. Elephants came charging into my living room. Mine. Elephants. I don't know where or why they came here, but they were chanting something about the University of Chicago. I don't know if these are new scare tactics for your college recruiting purposes, but its... probably something that isn't going to go over very well with homeowners. Anyway, I booked it to the Galapagos Islands, from which I will be sending my application.

Sincerely,
Jessica T. (Monroe, MI [[before the elephants so rudely barged in]])

Great job, guys! With your excuse-making skills, you'll go far in life.

I just wanted to clear up a question that all of us have gotten this morning -- the fact that your application says it was submitted on November 2. Well, let's not forget that technically it was. Computers cannot bend time and space the way lenient admissions offices can. But you don't need to worry about it.

Another thing you shouldn't be worried about yet -- your credentials. That is for us to worry about. Right now we have a 10-foot pile of credentials that has grown arms and legs and is walking around the mail room. While we work on opening all of the mail and scanning and linking your documents, we won't really know how to answer the question "Do you have what I sent?" The answer is generally, "we don't know." We don't want to say "no" when your 3A recommendation could very well be under our left elbow.

When we are confident that we have opened and scanned most of what is in the office, we will open the credentials checking link on the online application, and you will be able to see what we have received. If you are missing something, you will have time to send it again or harass your teachers. We will also email all students whose applications are missing required documents in enough time for them to resubmit whatever we are missing.

Another thing you can use to majorly geek out

2007-11-02T08:18:00.002-05:00

So Libby was driving me downtown a couple of days ago, and we saw an ad on a cab for a "festival of maps." It led us to this website:
http://festivalofmaps.org/.
We were all like, whoa...a two-month long, city-wide festival of maps. I almost died and went to geek heaven right out there on Lake Shore Drive.

Anyway, if you're in town for a visit over the next few months, for a tour, overnight, or class visit, take some extra time out to check out one of the exhibits.

Finally, congratulations, EA applicants! Your long, hard slog is over and ours has just begun. Wish us luck, and cookies.

A treat for after you hit "submit"

2007-11-01T16:23:00.001-05:00

This is just some fun stuff to reward yourself with after you complete your application, or while you're sitting in front of your computer with your fingers frozen over the keys, in some kind of shock that has not been medically identified. We were there. We're not actually trying to torture you.

One of the women on Project Runway this season is a Chicago alum! I know that was important enough to stop spell-checking your essays.

But this is -- installment one of the Look Around You series, courtesy of YouTube. You don't even need to go to the University of Chicago! You can learn everything about our world through these videos. It's over eight minutes long, though, so I really do recommend you turn in your application before viewing.

Why I Haven't Responded to Your Email

2007-11-01T10:42:00.000-05:00

It's not because I don't like you and am trying to give you the brush-off.

I have - and many of my colleagues are in similar positions - over 300 unread emails in my inbox. As we've been busy in meetings and prepping mail for the Early Action cycle, I've so far only been able to address a small number of those. Again, my colleagues are probably in similar situations.

I know many of you have questions, especially on D-Day. Please visit our home page at http://collegeadmissions.uchicago.edu for help with frequently asked questions. If you absolutely, positively, 100% cannot find the answer to your question on our incredibly thorough website (thanks, Libby) call our office at 773.702.8650. Be advised, though, that our office closes at 5 PM CST today, and no one will be available to answer calls after that time. PLEASE DO NOT FLOOD OUR OFFICE WITH PHONE CALLS TODAY.

If some of you feel like you cannot finish your application by the deadline tonight and would like to change your status from an Early applicant to a Regular Notification applicant, send an email to your admissions counselor with that information.

And, finally, let me add to Libby's congratulations: you guys made it! Only a few more hours to go, and then we do all the work. Good luck.

Extra note from Libby: Post questions on the blog instead of emailing your counselor tonight. I will answer in the comments section.

Happy early action deadline!

2007-11-01T09:11:00.000-05:00

I got a lot of emails last night about what time zone people were applying from. One guy from Singapore sent this:

"I am applying from Singapore [GMT +8], and I apologise for not being able to meet the deadline as I had jungle combat training in Brunei and my military flight home was delayed. All the supporting documentation has been sent, and I apologise for any inconvenience caused."

The scary thing is that I think he is telling the truth!

I'm looking forward to all sorts of harebrained stories tonight, fact or fiction, but I wanted to remind everyone that the deadline is November 1, not October 31! So, tonight is when I should be receiving all those fun emails.

Here's a sample of some of the emails I received last year.

Early Admissions and the Secret of the Deadline

2007-10-31T12:14:00.000-05:00

This was sent in an email to all students on our mailing list. Here's the news in case you didn't get it.

Each year, students ask us what is the latest time they can submit their Early Action applications online. Is it midnight on November 1, Central Standard Time?

So here's the deal: you have until midnight on November 1 -- anywhere in the world.
Come back and check here to see if it's still November 1, 2007 somewhere around the globe.
If you are submitting your application after midnight in your local time, e-mail Libby (eap@uchicago.edu) and tell her under which time zone you're applying. She will be awake, making sure everything runs smoothly until it's November 2 everywhere. Supporting documents, such as teacher recommendations and the secondary school and transcript report, should be in our office by November 8.
P.S. One of the last places on earth that it is November 1, 2007 is Baker Island.
P.P.S. If you're mailing your application, be sure it's postmarked no later than November 1.
P.P.P.S. Relax! The Dean of Admissions will not be reading applications until after he counts all of his trick-or-treating candy, so do not fret if you need to turn in the application on Baker Island time.

And here's a generic copy of the Halloween update that we sent on Monday.

How Should I Address My Recommendation/Essays/Application Fee/Whatever?

2007-10-30T12:14:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone. We are all slowly starting to gather together in the office for meetings in preparation for the Early Action cycle. In my absence I received a number of pieces of mail that contained pieces of your application(s). This is not the most efficient way to send in pieces of your application. You should mail things to:

The University of Chicago
Office of College Admissions
1101 E. 58th St., Suite 105
Chicago, IL 60637

That way it'll get entered into the mail-opener-o-matic (i.e., us) a lot more quickly, instead of waiting for me to sort through the pile of letters on my desk and then realizing you sent me $60. Oh, that's not for me...

Also, don't panic or worry if you think we might not receive all your application documents from the various sources - you, your school, your teachers. The USPS does a good job and almost 99.99% of stuff ends up where it needs to be. If it doesn't we WILL notify you later in the cycle with enough time to resubmit appropriate materials. You do not need to call or write at this time asking if we've received materials or if they should be resubmitted.

I was in DC this weekend and visited the National Archives and saw the actual, original Constitution of the United States of America. It was pretty neat, and I recommend a visit.

Finally, please enjoy this article about the Manhattan Project: http://nytimes.com/2007/10/30/science/30manh.html?8dpc

Good luck all, and keep your heads on. You're almost through it!

While you freak out about your early action application...

2007-10-21T19:56:00.000-05:00

Hovercat is always here to help and understand.

Here is what Hovercat wants you to do.

1. Follow directions.

2. Unless we explicitly tell you not to do something, it must be okay to do it! There is no need to ask your admissions counselor about every little thing. It is highly unlikely that you will make a mistake so monstrous that we will change our admissions decision.

3. Remember that there is no word limit on the essays. There is a suggested length. But if you ask us what the word limit is, we will not be able to tell you, because we don't know. Or we may make something up. Actually, I've just decided that the word limit is u73i words. I obviously just closed my eyes and typed something in, or u is an imaginary number I didn't hear about in the Core.

4. I've just found out about rushed electronic scores. We tell you not to rush your scores because rushed scores are typically sent on paper, but if you are being told that they will be sent electronically, that's wonderful and you can go ahead and rush them.

However, there is no need to rush your scores! Testing must be completed by the deadline. If your scores are not in our office by the deadline, that's fine! They will get there eventually!

You may be thinking that we start reading applications right on November 1 at midnight. This is not so. We are too busy putting envelopes on our hands and heads and becoming envelope monsters.

5. Can you write your essay on a past essay topic? Well, the past essay topic is neither topics one through four, nor is it a topic you made up yourself, so technically this is something we discourage. But we also welcome being challenged.

6. We will look at EVERYTHING. We don't throw anything out! So, send it! If you want us to see it, send it! No need to ask first!

7. Except if you "accidentally" wrote an 11 page essay when we just asked for your name. Just because you misread the instructions doesn't mean they weren't there in the first place.

8. The credentials checking feature on the application will be available later in the fall. We will open the feature when we are sure we have catalogued every credential we have received... which will take a while.

9. If there are many students applying from your school, your application is neither at an advantage or at a disadvantage. We read applications one at a time.

10. All materials should be sent to the admissions office, and postmarked by the deadline you have chosen. There are no separate deadlines for separate application materials, and no separate addresses other than our own address:

Office of College Admissions
1101 E 58th St
Rosenwald 105A
Chicago, IL 60637
USA

11. Yes, your early action application for financial aid is due on November 1. The College Aid website is here.

That is all Hovercat has to say right now. Hovercat can't remember ever getting this many panicked emails about minute details before. Maybe because Hovercat is just a cat lying on a glass table, and not actually an admissions counselor...

While you were cheating on the Sudoku puzzle...

2007-10-19T10:05:00.001-05:00

We've been traveling like crazy. Next week I'll be in (deep inhale) El Paso, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Tucson and Albuquerque. If you're one of those people who have been calling me on this telephone contraption recently, I ask you politely to knock that off. Please write me an electronic mail. You can find my (and everyone else in the office's) email address here, and drop off your letter at the nearest internet box.

What do I love even more than being able to answer your questions at 8:30pm while watching football from my suite at the Marriott? Free stuff! You may not know it, but there's a lot of free that you can get when you visit a college admissions office. Our office will give you a free meal pass (though your parents/grandmother/personal assistant/bodyguard will have to pay us six bucks) just for stopping by, and if you call ahead in advance we can put you up in a dorm for a Thursday or Friday night (call 773 702 8650).

But, man, Amtrak has got us beat. Buy a ticket to go visit a college, and Amtrak will give you a FREE companion pass for your parent or guardian. No, seriously. Remember that train rides are significantly longer than plane flights -- I recommend you choose the parent or guardian who tells the best stories and can make shadow animals with their fingers.

Who can write my recommendations?

2007-10-18T18:38:00.004-05:00

We have been getting a lot of questions this year about who can write the 3A and 3B recommendations. Well, I will tell you.

3A (English/social studies)

Okay: English, social studies, history, government, economics, art history, music theory, foreign literature, anthropology, psychology
Not okay: music performance, studio art, foreign language, speech and debate, journalism, business, marketing

3B (Math/science)

Okay: math, science with a lab, statistics, science without a lab, computer science
Not okay: psychology

In every case, these letters should be written by a teacher who taught you in that subject during high school, not in a college or university (unless you are home schooled and that is the only context in which you took that class).

And yes, both recommendations are a requirement!

If I'm missing any kinds of classes, let me know!

The CSS PROFILE is now available online

2007-10-14T13:34:00.001-05:00

Straight from the College Aid office:

The 2008-09 CSS Profile is now available at https://profileonline.collegeboard.com/index.jsp. Our school code is 1832. Early Admission Applicants please remember that all of your financial aid materials are due on November 1st!

International applicants, we are working on getting the International Student Financial Aid Application for 2008-2009, which is also produced by the College Board (our friends). However, remember that international students applying for financial aid cannot apply early action.

Alumni interviews are being matched!

2007-10-13T10:15:00.000-05:00

The Alumni Interview Match-o-Matic is finally working, so students who have requested alumni interviews should be receiving a confirmation email, and your alumni chair will be receiving your information to distribute to the volunteers.

This is also a good chance to remind everyone applying early action that the deadline to request your alumni interview online is TODAY. Just log into the application and click "Request an alumni interview" and "Save." That is all you need to do -- now you should get an email the next day.

We apologize to everyone who was freaking out because they didn't get an email right away, but it all worked out in the end, and this shouldn't keep anyone from being interviewed on time.

If you have any questions about the interview process or haven't gotten an email yet (check your junk mail folder!), you can email asc-questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu.

In other news, I'm in LA for two weeks, and I think I just actually died of traffic.

Some Information About Alumni Interviews

2007-10-06T23:38:00.001-05:00

Hi guys. Don't panic. Many of you have written to me asking questions about requesting alumni interviews. Here are some answers:

You have probably not received an acknowledgment of your request, or been contacted by an alum, because we only started matching these requests at the end of this last week. Requests that have already been submitted were collected by our database, and we started releasing these requests to alumni only just recently.

You do not need to make multiple requests.

It may take some time for alumni to process your requests and contact you about scheduling an interview date and time. We receive a large volume of requests, and our alums are volunteers who are juggling a number of different obligations. Please be patient.

Your alumni interview may take place after the Early Action deadline, and we will receive the report in plenty of time to evaluate it as part of your application and render a decision in enough time. Do not worry if your interview takes place after November 1.

Finally, it is not always possible for us to match all requests for alumni interviews, though we do our best in all cases to do so.

While you were studying up for the ACT II...

2007-10-04T11:29:00.000-05:00

I was hanging out with your guidance counselor. No, seriously. We totally talked about you. You sound like a good kid.

We were hanging out at the National Association for College Admissions Counseling, or NACAC (pronounced "nack-ack" - I like to imagine the AFLAC duck saying it), National Conference in Austin, TX. Four days of panel discussions, "educational sessions" (which are like a one-off crash course), inspirational speeches, receptions, and being taken out to dinner by our publisher.

What are conferences like this for? Well, college admissions and guidance counselors learn a lot when we get together. We talk to each other about current research and the best ways to go about the work of reading files, managing student volunteers, and running visit programs. We also make a lot of contacts -- I once introduced myself to someone in line for the bathroom. Yes, it was a little weird. But she works at a high school I read a lot of applications from, and now I can put a face to the name on those letters!

Yet what I think is most important, though, is that we take the time to reassure ourselves that there is a great wide world of college counseling, that it is by and large an amicable, cooperative world, and that we're not going this alone.

With that in mind, here's a list of "You know you work in college admissions if..." that has been forwarded around my circle of conference buddies recently. This was originally a very long list, which I have edited down to the more funny/applicable ones.

You Know You're in College Admissions If ...

You are under 25 but you have purchased orthopedic insoles for your fair shoes.

You actually have shoes you call "fair shoes."

You are so familiar with the school that you are always next to alphabetically you know that you could easily work for them. (I haven't done a fair in a while, but I used to be able to tell you the number of astronauts who have graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder.)

You dread going back to the office because of all the email that awaits you.

You know the key to finding a school in a small town is to look for the football lights. (Helloooooo Tejas.)

While driving, you balance and read a map on your lap, steering with your knee while sipping the coffee in your right hand and eating a hotel donut from your left.

You start to wonder if your college does have a major in cosmetology.

Changing into comfortable travel clothes in a high school/hotel/rest stop bathroom is a necessity.

You are in a hotel hallway and trying to open the door for the room number that you had LAST night and can't understand why it won't work.

I'd like to add a few of my own to this list:

You drive a rental car so often you have attempted to push buttons or toggle levers in your own car that do not exist.

Realizing that many high school campuses look like low-security prisons, you have either slowed down or actually stopped at a low-security "detainment facility."

You have dialed a wrong number and asked a very confused housewife if you may speak to her college counseling office.

You are unclear whether you actually have co-workers any more, or if you work alone with a number of robots programmed to reply to all your emails with an "out of office" message.

What has college become?

2007-10-02T15:03:00.000-05:00

Click here for Rick Perlstein's article on how going to college, and the University of Chicago in particular, has changed.

Food for thought: Should colleges be as integrated as they are with the outside world, or should they be islands unto themselves? Is there a higher education "industry" or "market?" Should there be? Do you think the reason you are going to college is different from the reason your parents went? How do you expect your experiences to be the same or different from the ones they had (if they went)?

For more arguments, read Derek Bok's Universities in the Marketplace.

Also, Dean of Admissions Ted O'Neill in the Wall Street Journal's opinion journal. Why is that article in the "taste" section? I guess because there's no accounting for taste. I'm not going to say anything about Ms. Riley's conclusion in the article, except that it's pretty misinformed, and I'm not going to ask for comments on this blog because hackles always get raised. However, it also provides some food for thought.

If you want an opposing view, read Derek Bok and William Bowen's The Shape of the River.

At any rate, I'm in Berkeley, CA, in between school visits. I could see my breath this morning, something that I am proud to say has NOT yet happened in Chicago, where it is currently 75 degrees. It has been very exciting, especially since a giant spider decided to ride with me from Campolindo High School to The College Preparatory School. I offloaded it somewhere in Oakland.

One Thing You Should NOT DO

2007-09-27T17:02:00.000-05:00

We like to think of ourselves as a pretty unrestrictive office - write your essays however you'd like, submit extra recommendations if you think they will add to our understanding of you, apply early or regular.

But here's one thing you should NOT do: an on campus interview AND an alumni interview. Both carry the same weight and serve the same function in our evaluative process. Doing both an on campus and alumni interview deprives other students the opportunity to add an interview to their file.

In other news, Here's my contribution to the blog-off:
1. THE POINT: a small park that juts out into the lake on the eastern edge of Hyde Park, right across the street from the Shoreland (a dorm). The best views of downtown Chicago, possibly ever. A truly beautiful spot.
2. INTELLIGENTSIA: do you like your coffee artisanal? Get it here. There are three locations for this direct-trade roastery, two downtown and one in Lakeview. The best coffee you can get in Chicago, hands-down.
3. LULA CAFE: part hipster scene, part best neighborhood restaurant in Chicago, located in my own Logan Square. Come for brunch, or the Monday night farm dinner.
4. LANDMARK CENTURY CENTER: located in Lakeview, this is probably the best art-house movie theater in Chicago. I should get frequent flyer miles.
5. O'HARE AIRPORT: one of the busiest airports in the country, and a place where I spend a lot of time because of work. This place is an amazing mashup of people from all walks of life, from all around the world. It's also one of the cleanest airports I've been to. Plus it has a bunch of planes, and I love planes.

I can has test scores?

2007-09-26T11:51:00.000-05:00

The official policy of this office is that all testing must be completed by the deadline for which you are applying. This year, there is an ACT in late October and an SAT in early November. The ACT on October 27 is in time for the early action deadline,but the SAT is not. And even the ACT is cutting it a little close.

We have to turn around early action decisions very quickly -- in several weeks, as opposed to several months for regular notification. For this reason, we cannot guarantee that we will see November test scores in time for your application to be complete and read. October test scores will probably get to us in time.

Please do not rush your test scores. It actually takes longer for rushed test scores to get to us since they are on paper, not electronic.

Test scores do need to be sent to us from the testing service. The scores on your transcript will not suffice.

First day of school!

2007-09-24T15:14:00.000-05:00

As the sun rose over the Reynolds Club, students walked to their first day of classes.

Why do we start so late in the year? The University of Chicago is on the quarter system, which has three terms per regular school year. The fourth term is supposed to be summer, but in general calling it the "quarter system" is just another indication that we can't count.

At any rate, in the quarter system, there are 10 weeks of class and then one exam week, then a break, then 10 weeks, exam, break, etc. This means that students never have work to take home over breaks. Sweet. It also means that you have less time to forget things -- only 10 weeks as opposed to 15. However, it sometimes can feel like things are faster-paced. It seems that mid-terms begin in third week and continue until ninth week. But, is learning ever meant to stop or slow down? No, not here.

In other news, we are continuing to plan travel. I've printed all my Google maps for my first school visits later this week. To find out if we're coming to your school, check your email or mailbox, or look for a poster in your counselor's office.

We still have joint travel trips in the Midwest and Southeast, and our information sessions in London and Paris at the end of the month. We hope to see you on the road!

It’s A Blog-Off!

2007-09-20T14:16:00.000-05:00

I’m officially challenging Ruth and Libby, this blog’s other actual contributors (pay no attention to the list of names to the right of this post, folks, that’s just a list of other people who work in this office) to a blog-off. Or no, wait – a series of blog-offs. Each of us will put up a blog post about a topic, and you can vote by commenting on the post you like the best. We’ll give you a week, starting from when the last post goes up, to vote for your favorite. Winner gets to pick the next blog-off challenge. Here’s our first topic:

Our Favorite Places in Chicago (post up to 5)

OK? I’ll start, and I’m constructing my entry around “favorite places … on a student budget.” Here’s an unranked list:

- The Chicago Cultural Center. The C-cubed (no one calls it this) doesn’t seem to get as much love as other venerable tourist-friendly attractions, and I can’t for the life of me figure out why. From a gorgeous Tiffany dome to quirky art galleries to its well-stocked information center (near the Randolph Street en trace), the Cultural Center is your one-stop shop for things to look at. The building alone is well-worth the trip -- it used to be the Chicago Public Library, back when public libraries were real temples of learning, with all the pomp and mosaic you'd associate with a temple. While there, you can see some publicly-funded contemporary art, a dance performance or movie screening, and also catch up on what else there is to do around the city of Chicago. Best of all, entrance to all the galleries – and many of their events - is free. Be on the lookout for the old cigarette dispenser-turned-art dispenser on the first floor. Buy a token in the gift shop and you can take home a very small piece of art for yourself.

- The John Hancock Center. Sure, the observatory is for suckers and tourists, but the Hancock Center also has a restaurant/lounge at its top, where entrance is free and the food is not (really all that) expensive. For the price you’d pay to go up to the observatory and ogle the city lights or traffic on Lake Shore Drive (or the "Alper is Risen" sign written in the sand there every year by Alper house O-aides for the end of O-week reception), you get the view plus a sandwich or appetizer. I like to think I'm paying for the view and getting a free sandwich. Ladies, make sure to use the restroom before you leave – the view from there is spectacular.

- The IO (formerly ImprovOlympic). Close to my heart, as well as my apartment, the IO (rumor has it, the name change came after a threatened lawsuit from the actual IOC) has several improv shows running every night of the week. The IO does “long form” improvisation (commonly called “The Harold”) in which a team of improvisers performs a thirty-minute piece based on one suggestion. The theater is also a training center, where you can take classes in the theater where Del Close has his final resting place (no kidding!). Go on a Wednesday night at 8pm, when tickets are $0.00 ($0.00 with your student ID).

If you have any suggestions for future blog-offs, please put them in the comments. (To this post, so I can win.)

While U Were Txtng All Ur Friendz

2007-09-18T15:15:00.001-05:00

I was driving one of the 1,013 miles I logged last week in Texas.

Like Ruth wrote in here a few days ago, we spend some time each fall visiting high schools, doing slide show presentations in hotels, and (if you're me) eating some really great barbecue. While we can't visit every high school (not by a long shot), I do think these visits help us understand where you come from a little better. We chat with students and counselors about everything from zoning laws (or the lack thereof ... I'm looking at you, Houston) to state-mandated requirements for graduation (like when you're required to take a course on state history or pass a graduation test) to the differences between The Common Application, the UnCommon Application and the Texas Common Application. (Yes, that's a real thing.)

I have to give props to Grace from Austin, TX for giving me the best possible way to describe what it's like being on the road. I used to say it's like being a poorly paid rock star, but Grace pointed out it's much more like being on the professional wakeboarding circuit. As in, you roll from town to town, seeing the same competitors again and a again, but no one except the other professional wakeboarders recognize your mad skillz. Or even know there is such a thing as pro wakeboarding.

To give you a glipse of the explosion of excitement that is fall travel, here's a partial list of things I did while on the road:

- rode in a golf cart (possibly for the first time ever, since I have no memory of doing so before and it moved me to childish delight)

- accidentally ran a toll on the Dallas North Toll Road (seriously, TXDOT, it was a mistake; please don't send me a bill for $0.40)

- mistakenly mapquested the Texas state capitol building instead of my hotel

- drove around for about 20 minutes until the fact that the Texas capitol building was not going to rent me a room for $90 a night sunk in

- got really bad heartburn by overdoing the Diet Dr. Pepper (which I picked up in honor of my driving past Waco)

- drove 1,013 miles (yeah, I said that already, but it's, like, a lot)

- mourned the one year anniversary of the passing of Ann Richards

- learned how to do a really gnarly half-cab*

*Not really. That sounds dangerous.

Alumni interview requests are now available

2007-09-17T09:24:00.000-05:00

Students can now log into the application and click "Request an alumni interview." Remember to click "Save" when you are done.

We are currently collecting and holding the interview requests until our matching software is updated. Do not worry if you don't get a confirmation email right away -- it will come.

How You Know We're Coming For You

2007-09-10T09:27:00.001-05:00

Fall travel has begun. Ruth, who has posted to the blog, is in Alaska, or maybe Tacoma. Isabel is in Norway, and Kate is in Austin. Who knows where Libby is.

A few of you have written to me asking when we might be in your area, or visiting your school. Libby posted a brief note about this in an earlier post, but I wanted to address again the different ways we use to contact you about Chicago visiting your area or your school. Here's how you know we're coming for you:
1. Email. If we have a current, active email address on file for you, you will receive an email notification about 1-2 weeks prior to our visit. (Note: make sure to check your spam filter - sometimes our emails get caught).
2. Mail (the old-fashioned kind). If we have a current, active mailing address for you, you will receive a postcard in the mail about 1-2 weeks prior to our visit.
3. Your school. We mail confirmation letters and posters to your school 1-2 weeks prior to our visit. The poster includes an aerial picture of the main quad and a note about who's coming to your school and when. Check out your college counseling center/office (or equivalent) for notice.

Note that these conditions apply only to schools within the United States. We are not able to mail to all international schools that we visit. Note also that notification to you is conditional on having correct and updated information, so if your mailing address or email address has changed, go to http://uncommonapplication.uchicago.edu and update your info.

We would love to visit every school possible, but there are only a few of us and we have a limited amount of time and resources during this busy season. If we are not visiting your school, don't take it personally! See if you can find us during one of our many joint travel swings, or just drop your admissions counselor an email.

Top Three Reasons to Be Glad We're Not D-1 Anymore

2007-09-04T09:41:00.001-05:00

As those of you who have been paying attention already know, The University of Chicago was one of the founding members of the Big Ten football conference. Hell, we pretty much invented the sport as you and I know it today. The first Heisman trophy winner and very first player drafted in the first-ever pro football draft was our very own Jay Berwanger (drafted to my hometown Philadelphia Eagles). These days, those days are just a fond memory and a little display in our spiffy new gym.

Now, I am born-and-bred Big Ten fan. My dad's family talks about the state of Michigan the way my mom's family talks about "The Old Country." The first song I ever knew the words to was 'Hail to the Victors' (which is now my ring tone). We identified my family's white minivan in a parking lot of other people's white minivans by the 'GO BLUE' sticker on the bumper. You probably know where this is going. The best reasons to go to a D-3 school?

1. There isn't a separate athlete culture on campus.
2. We really, truly believe in the 'scholar-athlete' ... and the 'scholar' part comes first.
3. Our football team will never, ever, lose to Appalachian State.

I'm crying on the inside.

O Hay U Guise

2007-09-04T09:12:00.000-05:00

I recently logged onto the UnCommon Application blog (because there wasn't anything new up at bestweekever.tv) and found it to be full of helpful tidbits on how to fill out your application. To this, as to pretty much all else Libby says, I say, "Laaaaaaaaaaame." This blog's ratio of informative posts to mindless time-wasting and YouTube clips is looking like the student : teacher ratio in an Econ 101 class at a huge state school. (We're aiming for something closer to 6.6:1.)

I know nothing about how the online application works; I cannot answer any of your questions about it. Until recently I thought teh internets were in a box in Libby's office (turns out I wasn't 100% wrong, but the explanation of how a "server" is, like, a part of the internet went over my head). Instead, I am going to blog about the things that really matter when you choose which schools to apply to, namely: college football, things to do in Chicago, places you can eat in Chicago, and pro football. I will refrain from offering any helpful information. That's what Libby's here for.

Word limits, when to send things, and requesting alumni interviews

2007-09-04T09:02:00.000-05:00

Word limits

There are no word limits on the essays, and we are not thinking single-spaced or double-spaced when we suggest to you how many pages your essay should take up. The guidelines are for you, to make sure you don't feel like you have to write too much, and you don't make the mistake of writing too little. The online application will not cut off your essay. You will probably compose your essay in a word processor and then paste it into the online application, in which case the number of pages will change because the online application has its own font that it likes to use. Either way, don't worry about it.

SATs in November

Students who are applying early action cannot use the November SAT to apply. We will not get it in time. If you are deferred, we will have your scores for the regular notification cycle.

When do I send different documents?

Whenever you want, as long as they are postmarked before the deadline. If you have an account on the online application, that means we know your name and can put your documents together. If you have not yet made an account or submitted the paper Basic Information Form that you can find on the back of your application, you should do so as soon as possible, even if you don't end up applying.

Alumni interviews

Alumni interviews can only be requested online. Students who never made an account on the online application will get an email with a username and password -- you should use that username and password to log into the online application and do what needs to be done online, such as reqeusting an alumni interview starting September 13, checking credentials later on in the fall, and filling out the midyear report.

Gearing up for fall

2007-08-31T10:02:00.001-05:00

The weather has turned a bit crisp in Chicago (a high in the 70s instead of in the 90s), and we're thinking about fall travel. We will be traveling throughout the US with our joint travel partners, Columbia, Rice, Brown, and Cornell, in September and October. To see if we're coming to a Hilton property near you, go to www.exploringeducationalexcellence.org

We are also making high school visits as part of our yearly travels. You will receive an email if we are coming to a high school near you.

Interviews have been in full swing all summer. To schedule an on-campus interview, call 773-702-8650. Alumni interview requests will open on September 13 on the online application. Just log in and click "Request an alumni interview."

Overnight visits will be available on Thursday and Friday nights in October and November. To sign up for an overnight stay, call 773-702-8650.

Coffee Shops in the News

2007-08-24T14:09:00.000-05:00

Schools around Chicago are about to reconvene, and today's Chicago Tribune features an article about coffee shops at three area schools: Loyola, N*******tern, and us. If you've visited campus before, you're probably aware that coffee shops, both university- and student-run, are an important and popular feature of student life. The article profiles the coffee shop in the basement of the Divinity School, which is not only where God drinks coffee, but is also an Admissions Office favorite. Check it out here: http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/explore/chi-0823_c_campuscoffeeaug23,0,1004045.story

Application Calendar

2007-08-24T11:30:00.000-05:00

If you are using Google Calendar (or would like to start but didn't have anything to subscribe to), I created an Application Calendar that has important dates and deadlines during the College's application cycle this year. As you can see, nothing is really happening for a while, but I will update the calendar with important dates as we go on through the year.

All Nobel, All the Time

2007-08-10T12:22:00.000-05:00

To celebrate the centennial of the University of Chicago's first Nobel Prize (physics professor Albert A. Michelson in 1907), laureates James Dewey Watson, James Cronin, Robert Lucas, and James Heckman all spoke during Alumni Weekend this past June. You can now view videos of their talks on Mind Online, a collection of videotaped talks at the university.

James Watson, moderated by Ray Suarez.

James Cronin on Enrico Fermi

Robert Lucas and James Heckman on Milton Friedman

James Watson's Alumni Convocation speech

The age-old problem of getting your point across

2007-08-06T09:07:00.001-05:00

Most of the questions in the past few days have been about how we would like to view your information, or how "best" to fill out different sections or send in different things. Or even whether to send in some things, such as video clips.

You should fill out any section or any information in the way that it makes the most sense to you. Colleges cannot tell you what makes the most sense because it is your life you are talking about. There is always a wide gulf between the writer and the reader. The gulf is kind of scary, especially when it is so apparent in something as important as a college application. However, it's always supposed to be there.

So, here is what I'm trying to say:

1) It kind of doesn't matter how you fill out the Activities section. Fill it out and ask "is it clear? is it accurate? is it me?" If not, change it. This is how your entire application should be filled out.

2) There is no way we will read your application exactly the way you intended to write it, because that never happens. It never has and it never will.

3) The application reader can't decide whether you should include something because we don't know what it is. Only you know what it is. You can't control how we read something, but you can control what you choose to include. However, when it comes to sending in supplemental materials, these materials almost never change a decision into something it wouldn't already have been.

How do I know what you have received?

Later in the fall, we will turn on a feature called Credentials Checking on the online application. There you will see what we have received in support of your application, including test scores.

I want to apply early action, but you won't have my senior grades or certain test scores.

The test scores really don't matter. I wouldn't change deadlines just so we can have more test scores, especially not SAT II tests, which we do not see anyway.

It is true we won't have your senior grades. If you haven't always been the best student, you will probably be deferred from early action so that we can see better senior grades. If better senior grades would make a huge difference in your file, it may be to your benefit to apply regular notification.

PDF application works now

2007-07-30T08:49:00.000-05:00

The PDF application works, and you can download it by clicking here.

The application is ready!

2007-07-24T13:39:00.000-05:00

Click here to begin your Uncommon Application.

Post any comments or questions to this blog so we can get the frequently asked questions rolling. Make sure to check out the application tour and read the instructions.

Good luck, everyone!

Phoenix server is down today

2007-07-20T09:52:00.000-05:00

Starting at 10 a.m. (in five minutes) our Phoenix server will be moving across the Midway to be with its other server friends. This is a very exciting day for it.

Phoenix supports our main email address, questions@phoenix.uchicago.edu. That email address will be down until the end of the day, so if you email it and get a bounceback, that is why.

Also, some of the images on the College Admissions site are hosted on Phoenix, so those will come up blank. So are some of the mini web sites, such as the site for the Collegiate Scholars Program, for the Student at Large application, the visit survey, etc. So, if you get error messages when you click on a link, that is why. Everything should be plugged back in at the end of the day.

What will still work: College Admissions, PSAC, this blog, individual email addresses of the counseling staff. But remember, this is just for Friday!

Oh. Hello there.

2007-07-12T00:52:00.000-05:00

I'm Ruth, a new Admissions Counselor in the Office. I'm currently reading the Course Catalogue (for business) and The Idea of the University of Chicago (for pleasure). Or is it the other way round?

For your consideration: "I still think, as I have thought for many years, that the motto of the University should be that line from Walt Whitman, 'Solitary, singing in the West, I strike up for a new world.'"

Clearly Robert Maynard Hutchins (President of the University of Chicago, 1929-1951) would have written a mean Uncommon essay question. But is the question...

a) What do you think should be the motto of the University?

b) Just how bad for PR is it to market ourselves as "solitary"? "In the West"? "Singing"??

c) But does Whitman translate in Latin?

Or

d) [Suggestions welcome.]

In any case, never forget: Let knowledge grow solitary from more to more singing and so in the West strike human life up for an enriched new world.

While you apply to college, I'm applying to grad school

2007-07-10T15:15:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to let everyone know that I will be applying to public policy and education master's programs this fall, so I'll be taking standardized tests, visiting campuses, and trying to get recommendations just like everyone else. I'll keep you posted on how I'm doing if you keep me posted on your questions and concerns.

I use a Machintosh, though that is not the "official" computer of the office or the university (the admissions office uses PCs, but the university will support anything.) At any rate, I was playing around on the Apple website and I saw, not an iPhone, but a calendar of ACT and SAT dates that you can subscribe to. Neat! There are also popular calendars that do not have to do with college admissions that you can subscribe to.

Maybe we should publish a calendar with our dates and deadlines. I'll start thinking about that.

The graduate applicants have it so much better, though, since when you take the computer-based GRE, you can take it basically any day at any time at these testing centers around the country. It's very nice.

No commuters in 2008

2007-07-03T10:38:00.000-05:00

Students starting in 2008 will no longer be permitted to commute from home -- everyone must live on campus. Older students can still petition to live off campus, but that will be discouraged.

The Uncommon Application -- 2008-2009

2007-05-07T14:00:00.000-05:00

The years seem to be flying by... or maybe we have a different way of counting them than other schools. When we say it's the application for 2008-2009, we mean that students who apply with this application will be ready to start college in the 2008-2009 school year. Except the male applicants from Singapore who will be doing compulsory military service. Or anyone else who defers. So, really, it's a little misleading, but since the CSS PROFILE, one of the forms that is required of all people who apply for financial aid with us, says it's 2008-2009 this year, I guess we are, too.

Already we're working on recruiting the Class of 2012. This website will answer your frequently asked questions, especially about the application, and service as a place to leave your questions and comments about the university. Nothing you post in the comments section of this blog will affect your application in any way.