University of Chicago

A private university chartered in 1890 by John D. Rockefeller, the University of Chicago has been shaping higher education and the intellectual lives of undergraduates for more than a century. William Rainey Harper, the first president, imagined a university that would combine an American-style undergraduate liberal arts college with a German-style graduate research university. The University of Chicago quickly fulfilled Harper's dream, becoming a national leader in academia and research.

Boasting its 211-acre campus on the shores of Lake Michigan, UChicago has been home to over eighty Nobel Laureates, the largest number affiliated with any American university. UChicago scholars were the first to split the atom, to measure the speed of light, and to develop the field of sociology. The College is the largest academic unit of the University, which encompasses 10 graduate divisions and professional schools, including on-campus law, business, and medical schools. 

The Core

The Core is a UChicago student’s introduction to the tools of inquiry used in primary disciplines—science, mathematics, humanities, and social sciences. Instead of reading “about” Greek philosophers or Western economic theorists, the Core will take you directly to source materials so you can interpret the world for yourself. Designed by our faculty, the Core aims to engage all students with the same fundamental questions and help them become familiar with the powerful ideas that shape our world. This gives every student a common vocabulary of ideas and skills, no matter his or her background before coming to the College. Students continue work in their major having discovered new academic passions and, what’s more, having learned how to walk 360 degrees around an idea to understand its nuances and complexities.

Majors

With the help of an academic adviser, students navigate through the Core and begin taking classes in their chosen major, which doesn’t have to be declared until the beginning of their third year. UChicago grants the bachelor of arts or bachelor of science degree in nearly 50 fields in the arts, humanities, natural sciences, social sciences, and in such interdisciplinary areas as biological chemistry, environmental studies, and cinema and media studies. The most popular majors are economics, biology, English, mathematics, and political science. Students also have the opportunity to design personalized courses of study through a major in tutorial studies.

Electives

Rounding out the academic experience are electives that allow students to choose from more than 2,500 classes in any department and, if the spirit moves them, acquire a second major, or a minor in one of more than 20 fields. Since every student applies to one liberal arts college, it is very easy to take classes in a number of different academic disciplines.   

Research 

The structure of DNA, efficient market theory, the link between genetics and cancer, REM sleep, black holes, revolutionary theories of education, the first controlled self-sustained nuclear chain reaction: UChicago has changed the world through research and attracts nearly $500 million in research funding every year.  Original research drives the mission of UChicago, and College students have ample opportunities to participate in exciting discoveries.

Because there are more research positions than there are students to fill them, the problem is often how to narrow down opportunities rather than how to find them.  You’ll have the opportunities to take part in independent or team research projects alongside graduate students, medical students, postdoctoral fellows, and faculty members.

Chicago Careers In Programs

For students with an eye toward pre-professional development, UChicago offers non-major programs that supplement the College’s influential liberal arts curriculum.  Many of these experiential learning programs work with our graduate schools to provide world-class resources and support for students interested in different career paths, such as the health professions, business, law, journalism, public and social service, science and technology, higher education, and the arts.  

Student Life

Think of campus life as an endless feast for your mind. There are more than 400 registered student organizations, consisting of experimental music, groundbreaking theatre, the world’s largest scavenger hunt, and championship Division III sports teams.  Our students study with the Grammy-winning ensemble-in-residence, the Pacifica Quartet. They act in, design, or direct more than 40 productions annually with University Theater. Campus life stays out late for Midnight Soccer and gets up early for the lakeside midwinter salute to the rising sun.  It moves to live music in Hutchinson Courtyard, is captured by student writers and filmmakers, and live far beyond the classroom, with countless opportunities for involvement and extracurricular enjoyment.

Housing

The House System at the University of Chicago is composed of 35 undergraduate Houses spread across 10 residence halls and is guaranteed for all four years. The House is the basic unit of community life; it serves as a "home base" for students, a place where they can relax, study, spend time with friends, and talk big ideas into the early hours of the morning. A House consists of a group of seventy students (on average) sharing a cluster of individual rooms and common areas within the residence hall. Each House has its own designated "House Tables" in one of the campus dining commons, so residents always have a place to sit and dine with friends, if they wish. 

Hyde Park

Located just seven miles directly south of the loop (downtown Chicago) and along the shores of Lake Michigan, UChicago’s neighbourhood, Hyde Park, is home to almost all of its students, two-thirds of its faculty, and, unofficially, the President of the United States. Here, you can stumble into independent bookstores, sample a variety of restaurants, catch up with friends over coffee or gelato, and play at parks and beaches. It is the ideal place to branch out on your own while also remaining grounded in UChicago’s close-knit, diverse, and intellectually vibrant community. 

Chicago – the City

The city of Chicago is yours to explore at all hours, in countless ways. Experience the cultures and cuisines of its 77 distinct neighbourhoods. Chicago is one of the original jazz and blues centers of the nation—those with a taste for blues should visit the Checkerboard Lounge.  The Chicago Symphony is world class; tickets to concerts at the newly renovated Orchestra Hall are inexpensive and easy to get, whether for full orchestra concerts or intimate chamber music.  The major theaters (the Shubert and the grand old Louis Sullivan-designed Auditorium Theater) put on new and classic plays and musicals. The Chicago Shakespeare Theater is widely acclaimed. There is also an array of small, inexpensive, experimental theaters, several founded by the University of Chicago alumni on the north side, where one can see Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind or an avant-garde production of Aeschylus’ Agamemnon.  Chicago is also a city that loves to eat: Chinese (try dim sum at Hong Minh in Chinatown) or Japanese, Thai (four restaurants in Hyde Park alone!), Korean, Vietnamese, Polish, Italian, Indian, French, Cajun, or down-home American. 

Admissions Process

The University seeks academically talented, intellectually ambitious candidates from around the globe who possess awareness of and curiosity about the world around them. UChicago considers you an international applicant to the College if you are neither a U.S. citizen nor a U.S. permanent resident, regardless of where in the world you live.

Every culture in the world is represented in the city of Chicago, and The University of Chicago prides itself on reflecting that global diversity on our campus. International students account for 15 percent of UChicago’s undergraduate applicant pool and the university as a whole includes students from 110 countries outside the US.

At the University of Chicago, we evaluate students based on a holistic admissions process and have no rigid definition of what makes a successful applicant. You should find plenty of room for creativity in the Common Application and the UChicago Supplement as you describe your accomplishments, qualifications, talents, and passions.

Financial Aid

The University of Chicago is committed to enrolling a diverse and talented student body with representation from all areas of the globe. If you apply for financial aid and you are offered admission, you will receive a financial award that meets your full demonstrated need. To accommodate low-income students, our aid packages are based on an estimate of the full costs of enrolling at the University of Chicago, including books, personal expenses, and travel.

In our admissions process, we must be “need-sensitive” for international candidates. This means that when reviewing international applications, UChicago takes into account whether or not an applicant has requested financial assistance. Though we will meet every admitted student’s demonstrated need, we advise you to apply for financial aid only if you do not have the resources to fund your education, and to complete the financial aid form as accurately as possible.

International students are only eligible for financial aid if they apply for support during the admissions process. If you think that you will need financial aid at any point during your four years at the College, you should apply for financial aid when you apply for admission.