In at Chicago: Class of 2015 Forum

[curiouscat]

I thought the ASW was great. I was really impressed with some of the profs, and I'll echo Doorkeeper's comment on how accessible they were. I met some awesome people there, and it's the sort of place where I can see myself feeling at home. I wasn't crazy about Hyde Park (and the buses only go until 6pm? Really?) but the UChicago campus was gorgeous.

I'm kind of annoyed at this whole situation with the deposit deadline. That's some pretty manipulative language. When I read the thing they had on their website, I jumped to the conclusion that it meant I was required to withdraw from schools that hadn't made a decision yet and sent out a LOCI to another school saying something to that effect. Even if it's a somewhat reasonable mistake, I'm worried that misinterpreting the terms of an agreement isn't exactly the sort of thing that will gain me points at that school. I'm not expecting that this will be the thing that breaks my application, but I wish I had looked into that more closely before sending off the LOCI...

[Dany]

(and the buses only go until 6pm? Really?)

The CTA buses only go to 6, but after 6 there are shuttles every 10-20 minutes (university shuttles leaving from the undergrad library and a shuttle to Regents run by the management company leaving from the law school.)

Also, I'd encourage those who have a problem with the deposit deadline language to voice those concerns to Dean Perry whether you enroll or not (perhaps especially if you choose to attend elsewhere). The administration is pretty great about listening to student concerns, and if enough of you mention that you think it's misleading, it might help next year's applicants at the very least.

Hope those who attended Admitted Students Weekend enjoyed it, and as always I'm around to answer questions as y'all are deciding.

[vickers711]

Only the express busses run till 6pm. Other buses, like the 6 which takes you to the Loop from Regents runs late (if not all night). And it's only a thirty dollar cab ride to the Loop, and getting to Ohare is only an hour, plus you would probably be using Midway anyway which is like 30 mins away tops.

[soj]

Only the express busses run till 6pm. Other buses, like the 6 which takes you to the Loop from Regents runs late (if not all night). And it's only a thirty dollar cab ride to the Loop, and getting to Ohare is only an hour, plus you would probably be using Midway anyway which is like 30 mins away tops.

Not if you take public transportation. But taking public transit between the law school, Regents, and downtown doesn't seem to be a problem at all, even late at night.

[curiouscat]

The CTA buses only go to 6, but after 6 there are shuttles every 10-20 minutes (university shuttles leaving from the undergrad library and a shuttle to Regents run by the management company leaving from the law school.)

Oh neat, that sounds good. How long does the shuttle trip to Regents take?

[Dany]

The CTA buses only go to 6, but after 6 there are shuttles every 10-20 minutes (university shuttles leaving from the undergrad library and a shuttle to Regents run by the management company leaving from the law school.)

Oh neat, that sounds good. How long does the shuttle trip to Regents take?

I actually haven't used it yet (it just started up right before spring break) but the UChicago shuttle takes maybe 20 minutes, and since the Regents shuttle goes straight to Regents and doesn't follow a longer route, I imagine it takes 10, maybe 15 minutes? If I try it out I'll let y'all know. I use the other shuttles a lot though and think they're pretty convenient. I don't really mind public transit or longer travel times, though, so I might be an anomaly.

[nametaken]

Only the express busses run till 6pm. Other buses, like the 6 which takes you to the Loop from Regents runs late (if not all night). And it's only a thirty dollar cab ride to the Loop, and getting to Ohare is only an hour, plus you would probably be using Midway anyway which is like 30 mins away tops.

Not if you take public transportation. But taking public transit between the law school, Regents, and downtown doesn't seem to be a problem at all, even late at night.

My friends who grew up in Chi (some downtown and some in Hyde Park) seconded this. They also said living downtown wouldn't be a problem, especially if you're from a city and are used to/don't mind public transit

[StrictlyBusiness]

Just received my financial aid email about 20 minutes ago. 60k. Can't decide if I'm a little disappointed or a lot excited. Still hoping to negotiate that up but overall I'm excited to have something to start with.

[EdgarWinter]

I'll second curiouscat. ASW was a lot of fun. Sure a couple events (the dumb wheel thing?) were lame but the general tenor was, I thought, awesome. My opinions might have been colored by my incredible host and by the fact that free booze flowed for seven hours on both Thursday and Friday, but I think I am ok with that.

Also at some level I don't think ASW is about learning things that aren't on the website. Everything is on everybody's website. It's about feel for the town and the school and the potential classmates. All of which were positive for me. Check is on the way; glad my cycle is finally done. Good luck to everybody!

[potl]

I'll second curiouscat. ASW was a lot of fun. Sure a couple events (the dumb wheel thing?) were lame but the general tenor was, I thought, awesome. My opinions might have been colored by my incredible host and by the fact that free booze flowed for seven hours on both Thursday and Friday, but I think I am ok with that.

Also at some level I don't think ASW is about learning things that aren't on the website. Everything is on everybody's website. It's about feel for the town and the school and the potential classmates. All of which were positive for me. Check is on the way; glad my cycle is finally done. Good luck to everybody!

+1 (especially the purpose of ASW). Haven't committed yet, but I was very impressed.

[curiouscat]

Agree with all the above, minus the part about the wheel. I thought that was super cute.

Anyways, sorry to go back to the deadline thing again, but I'm curious, the "request" language applied to withdrawing from schools that had accepted you as well as schools that hadn't gotten back to you yet. So would that mean that we're not strictly required to withdraw from the former either? (I.e. does Chicago allow multiple deposits?)

[southwick]

Turned down a Ruby last night. Hopefully it goes to one of y'all!

[nametaken]

I'll second curiouscat. ASW was a lot of fun. Sure a couple events (the dumb wheel thing?) were lame but the general tenor was, I thought, awesome. My opinions might have been colored by my incredible host and by the fact that free booze flowed for seven hours on both Thursday and Friday, but I think I am ok with that.

Also at some level I don't think ASW is about learning things that aren't on the website. Everything is on everybody's website. It's about feel for the town and the school and the potential classmates. All of which were positive for me. Check is on the way; glad my cycle is finally done. Good luck to everybody!

+1 I felt the same, and sent in my deposit yesterday. Can't beat a full ride at a great school.

[AspiringAcademic]

Agree with all the above, minus the part about the wheel. I thought that was super cute.

Anyways, sorry to go back to the deadline thing again, but I'm curious, the "request" language applied to withdrawing from schools that had accepted you as well as schools that hadn't gotten back to you yet. So would that mean that we're not strictly required to withdraw from the former either? (I.e. does Chicago allow multiple deposits?)

I deposited a few days ago. If I recall the language on the form correctly, they eventually find out if you deposited multiple places and would be upset (to what degree is unclear) if you had another outstanding deposit at that point.

Whether you can fail to withdraw an acceptance (without depositing) is a lot less clear from the form. It struck me that you could probably leave an acceptance active at, say, Harvard, while depositing at Chicago and Chicago's thoughts on the matter would be less than overwhelmingly relevant provided that Harvard didn't mind.

I loved ASW, including the wheel and Thursday night's booze

[Dany]

Agree with all the above, minus the part about the wheel. I thought that was super cute.

Anyways, sorry to go back to the deadline thing again, but I'm curious, the "request" language applied to withdrawing from schools that had accepted you as well as schools that hadn't gotten back to you yet. So would that mean that we're not strictly required to withdraw from the former either? (I.e. does Chicago allow multiple deposits?)

This is only my opinion, but I treated anything qualified with "we ask" as optional but strongly encouraged. I only did things if the school said "you must."

[Nelson]

Scholarship negotiation hail mary sent today. We'll see if all that Ruby money has made them as generous as some of the current students hinted at ASW.

[nametaken]

Scholarship negotiation hail mary sent today. We'll see if all that Ruby money has made them as generous as some of the current students hinted at ASW.

Good luck!

[lsdream]

I'll second curiouscat. ASW was a lot of fun. Sure a couple events (the dumb wheel thing?) were lame but the general tenor was, I thought, awesome. My opinions might have been colored by my incredible host and by the fact that free booze flowed for seven hours on both Thursday and Friday, but I think I am ok with that.

Also at some level I don't think ASW is about learning things that aren't on the website. Everything is on everybody's website. It's about feel for the town and the school and the potential classmates. All of which were positive for me. Check is on the way; glad my cycle is finally done. Good luck to everybody!

+1 (especially the purpose of ASW). Haven't committed yet, but I was very impressed.

I was impressed - sent in my seat deposit yesterday!

[potl]

So... I just called the admissions office and asked about how quickly I'd have to withdraw other applications if I sent in my commitment form/seat deposit (I previously requested a deadline extension because I wanted to visit NYU/Columbia the week after the deadline, but was denied). The guy said "uh...immediately. When you're sending in your seat deposit you're committing to attend the University of Chicago so I'd say it would definitely be frowned upon if you didn't withdraw from everywhere else immediately."

I also specifically asked if that included schools from which I haven't heard back yet and he said "yes."

I... don't really know what to do at this point.

[yojuro]

.

[curiouscat]

So... I just called the admissions office and asked about how quickly I'd have to withdraw other applications if I sent in my commitment form/seat deposit (I previously requested a deadline extension because I wanted to visit NYU/Columbia the week after the deadline, but was denied). The guy said "uh...immediately. When you're sending in your seat deposit you're committing to attend the University of Chicago so I'd say it would definitely be frowned upon if you didn't withdraw from everywhere else immediately."

I also specifically asked if that included schools from which I haven't heard back yet and he said "yes."

I... don't really know what to do at this point.

Huh...? It sounds like the person who picked up the phone was not very well informed, since soj reported getting an email from the dean of admissions that contradicted at least part of what he said.

[curiouscat]

Anyone know if there's any sort of ranking cut off for scholarship negotiation? The T10 schools I got into all offered me very similar $, but I do have a full scholarship from a lower ranked school (which I am considering taking over UChi). Could I use that to negotiate, or will they not care since it's not from a peer school?

I do recall reading somewhere that they would only consider offers from "peer schools," but it never hurts to try.

[soj]

So... I just called the admissions office and asked about how quickly I'd have to withdraw other applications if I sent in my commitment form/seat deposit (I previously requested a deadline extension because I wanted to visit NYU/Columbia the week after the deadline, but was denied). The guy said "uh...immediately. When you're sending in your seat deposit you're committing to attend the University of Chicago so I'd say it would definitely be frowned upon if you didn't withdraw from everywhere else immediately."

I also specifically asked if that included schools from which I haven't heard back yet and he said "yes."

I... don't really know what to do at this point.

Dean Perry herself told me this is not true, precisely because of LSAC Good Practices. Ask again by email. Let's see if they're willing to say the same thing in writing.

[larsoner]

University of Chicago is a member of LSAC. That means they have agreed to this statement: "After April 1, except under binding early decision plans, every accepted applicant should be free to accept a new offer from a law school even though a scholarship has been accepted, a deposit has been paid, or a committment has been made to another school," which is in the LSAC's statement of good admissions policies. They can't demand you withdraw pending applications.

[Elston Gunn]

So... I just called the admissions office and asked about how quickly I'd have to withdraw other applications if I sent in my commitment form/seat deposit (I previously requested a deadline extension because I wanted to visit NYU/Columbia the week after the deadline, but was denied). The guy said "uh...immediately. When you're sending in your seat deposit you're committing to attend the University of Chicago so I'd say it would definitely be frowned upon if you didn't withdraw from everywhere else immediately."

I also specifically asked if that included schools from which I haven't heard back yet and he said "yes."

I... don't really know what to do at this point.

This is really really messed up. It's one thing to lie by implication in an official statement, but it's another to repeat it when pressed.