University of Chicago Top Questions

The school is relatively diverse in relation to their students. One doesn't just meet students from all over the country, but also from around the world. Every student can find at least one way to immerse themselves in what the School has to offer. There are different groups of peoples here, with a wide range of ethnic, social and political groups.

The University of Chicago is very diverse indeed. There are a lot of people with different ideas, religions, ethnical and financial background. Here, everybody is interesting! I do not think that someone would feel out of place at UChicago. Chicago is cold so students wear a lot of layers to class. There are definitely preppy, hipster or casually dressed students in a class. But, different people here always interact. It is not surprising to see a football player speaking to a math geek. Furthermore, UChicago students and professors are politically aware. For example, in my Hum class last week, we discussed the reaction of UC Davis Police against student protestors. Students are predominantly liberal however there are also very conservative students. All in all, as it is aforementioned: the university is very diverse.

Aside from a common passion and intellectualism, we are reasonably diverse. For our backgrounds and races you could look through our statistics, but I believe we are nearly 60{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} white, and a even mix of Asians, Hispanics, and African-Americans. We have high religious diversity and secularism-- though there is a predominance of Jewish and Christian religions-- and almost students would view the world is a nearly secular way. We have an extremely active and supportive LGBTQ community, as well as cultural groups, Greek organizations, and multi-cultural Greek organizations. Our financial backgrounds are diverse as well, though the skew would probably be toward the upper-middle class. I'd say that our populations are generally more concerned with philosophy and theory behind the little things in life, rather than celebrities, pop music, or make up. Dining halls are filled with students discussing everything from Mad Men or Glee, to the meaning of life, to music, to worst tests. Politically, we might be less active and aware than other schools, though those groups are still quite large. We have a large number of human rights, green awareness and sustainability, etc activists who are making a lot of progress. I wouldn't say that many people are conservative, but that everyone has their beliefs and is open to other ones. Most importantly, our students are accepting of their uncommonness, their interest in academics, their random side athletic or artistic hobbies, and are generally less interested in money as a primary concern. We want to keep our thoughts provoking.

My classmates are very intelligent for the most part.

The diversity in the student body is great, which makes this place interesting as well as extremely open and accepting. I can’t really picture any student that wouldn’t fit in here. There are so many students here that it seems like everyone will be able to find a niche, even students that really want to go out every night. The party scene isn’t as crazy as state schools I’m sure, but if you want to go out, you will find a way. Bar nights on Wednesdays, frequent apartment parties, frat parties on Friday/Saturday nights, etc. What students wear to class is up to them. On any given day, it’ll vary from dressy clothes to sweats and a t-shirt. No pressure is put on what students wear. The student population really is very open. Different kinds of people are friends with each other. Particularly, with the house system, it encourages different types of people to interact because of house activities and the house table (the table in the dining hall designated for every individual house). I love this about the student population. Students here tend to become very close with their housemates, but also make friends outside of the house through classes and extracurricular activities. Some people become closer to other people – it’s natural – but the presence of cliques here is very minimal. Students here are from everywhere around the world, which I love, and come from a wide variety of socioeconomic backgrounds. People are generally politically aware, but activism on campus isn’t overwhelming. A recent survey of the student population shows that most students are liberal. And no, students don’t usually talk about the money they’ll make in the future. UChicago is great for both graduate school and job placement, but education here really focuses on learning for learning’s sake.

Racism, like I said before, is a big problem, though generally not among students. I can't really say for certain though, since I happen to be white. The student body is also extremely secular, though there are places of worship and a strong Divinity School. The student body is fairly liberal, though pretty conservative in comparison with peer schools. As a relatively poor person (lower middle class/lower class), I often feel alienated by the exceedingly wealthy trust fund babies around the school. Once I even heard someone proudly claim they picked this school because it was the most expensive. Only 52{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the Class of 2013 qualifies for any financial aid at all, including loans. (This was the number they told us based on a survey done by everyone at the beginning of the year, so there is probably a margin of error.) Almost all of my friends are significantly richer than me. Many of them live in fabulous houses in fabulously rich, predominantly white places and it gets pretty depressing at times. My roommate practically lived in a mansion, and I know people with yachts. That isn't to say there aren't poorer people around here, but most of them are middle/upper-middle class. International students are also, in general, fabulously wealthy. It's interesting to note that most people view themselves as poorer than they actually are, which I suppose is true of many Americans. I really wish I knew poorer people from outside of the United States, since I think that'd really give an interesting additional perspective.

They are quirky, funny, intellectual beyond belief, way smarter than me, and successful like I one day want to be.

My classmates at the University of Chicago vary from extremely quiet to annoyingly outspoken, but they have all challenged me to take on perspectives I had never considered.

Students here pursue knowledge for its own sake, but are saved from being classified as intellectual eggheads by a quirky sense of humor and a high level of involvement in extracurricular activities.

My classmates are the type of people that can be a little daunting because they are so determined to succed, but when one looks past that, they become the type of people who are intelligent, hardworking, and reasonable and who, because of their determination, will push a person to become competitive and driven when it comes to academics.

My class mates were very determined and unique.

Everyone here is really engaged with their learning , and you will a spectrum of students ranging from the laid back to the extremely studious with everything in between; regardless of the intensity with which they study though, almost everyone you'll meet at the University of Chicago is extremely nice, if not genuine.

Weird

They are either extremely science/math minded or social science minded, and they all care very much about whatever they have chosen to study, some times to the point of obsession; many are people who were very sucessful in high school but are humbled by the difficulty of our school once they come here and earn C's and D's for the first time.

University of Chicago students are self-selecting in that they are ready to enter an intense learning environment and become a resident of the city of Chicago; if you think you belong there, then you probably do.

Not everyone knows where they want to end up in life, but everyone has something that they feel passionately about.

Competetive and intellectual

My classmates are smart, academically competitive, and generally interesting.

There are no real words I can put to the student body that describes them as a whole. The school is a lot more geographically and socioeconomically diverse than I thought it would be, similarly racially diverse as I thought it would be, and a lot less politically diverse than I thought it would be. (As in, the vast majority of students are liberal, and it seems like the only place where non-traditional liberal viewpoints pop up is the Maroon). I do think this is a school where anybody can feel comfortable in their own skin. You will see about as many students who look like J. Crew ads as students who are wearing their ratty t-shirts inside out. You will see about as many students at Bar Night on Wednesdays as you will pulling all-nighters in Crerar. The one thing I haven't seen is a flashy culture here-- no students driving their BMW's around or downing expensive champagne to prove how awesome they are. Or if they are students who do that, they go over to the North Side, where people might dig that sort of thing. Another thing I'll point out is that Chicago students are incredibly active in extracurriculars, research, etc. It seems like everybody I know is doing crazy amazing things at the same time that they're taking four courses and keeping up with them.

Many of them are very quirky, in a way that can only be descrided as a 'U of C' thing, generally liberal, upper middle class backgrounds and also a bit elitist.