College admissions is competitive,

The University of Chicago is a wonderful school if you truly care about academics. Its reputation is widely known for the academic rigor and the prestige that comes with such an elite program. The administration really cares about the students and providing the best environment for students to thrive academically and socially.

If you are looking for a small school in a rural setting, this school is not for you. On the other hand, if you love the excitement of a big city and want to be at a large research university that has the resources and opportunities for you to thrive, UChicago is wonderful. I love getting to experience the city and the experiences that come with the location.

One thing that I don't like about the university's location is the crime in the surrounding neighborhoods. While I have always felt 100% safe on campus, it is just a hassle to have to thing about the problems that any big city has in certain parts of town. That being said, it is still very easy to access downtown Chicago and the many ethnic neighborhoods by way of the city's wonderful public transportation system.

While there is very little school pride when it comes to athletics, people are passionate about their extracurriculars. From debate team to model U.N., people really get into their extra activities.

Being such an academically rigorous school, many people spend a lot of time in the libraries. UChicago has a fantastic library system and there are many from which to choose. Whether you like old and prestigious or new and sleek, there are wonderful libraries to enhance the overall studying experience.

Overall, I greatly enjoy the University of Chicago. Being from a rural area, I was nervous about coming to a big city and a large research university, but it was the best decision I could have made. It has provided me with opportunities to explore my passions and chart a bright future.

Academics at University of Chicago are top-notch. Speaking from personal experience, I have had great interactions with my professors. Most of my classes are very small (<20 students) and serves to facilitate a lot of class participation. With great instruction comes high expectations, and students here study a lot. While I have never felt competition from other students, there is still a pressure to do your best.

I am a Political Science major with a minor in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations or NELC. The Poly Sci department is great in that I can take many classes from other departments that count for the major, giving me the chance to explore. The NELC department is wonderful and the teachers are top-notch. The language teachers in the department, in my case my Arabic professor, are really passionate about teaching and put in time in and outside of class to make learning fun.

The best class that I have taken would be "Power, Identity, and Resistance." It was to complete part of the core requirement of classes and really set up a foundation of great political intellectuals that I draw upon for almost every class. My least favorite class was "Chemistry in the Atmosphere," but that was probably due to my passion for the social sciences.

On a whole, UChicago gives you a liberal arts education. You really learn how to think. This does not mean that you are in some bubble outside of the current economic conditions. The college has a extensive program from helping students chart their path to internships, grad school, and jobs after college. They really do care about the prestige factor for the university and the success of its students is a great part of that.

There is no typical student at UChicago. The campus is very diverse racially with very large numbers of South and East Asians. The diversity also extends to socio-economics because of the university's commitment to generous financial aid. Like most campuses, I would say that most students are religiously apathetic but there are many religious communities well represented on campus. Apathy also extends to the political area and those who are active are part of the UC Democrats, one of the largest organizations on campus.

The student that would feel out of place at this school would be the person looking for D1 sports and D1 pride. That is definitely not the case on campus, and many students don't even know that we have sports teams. Students here tend to be very intellectual but not at all prude about their intelligence. Everyone here is smart in their own way and it really adds to the diversity of campus.

Some of the most popular groups on campus would have to be cultural organizations. Political and activist groups are also popular.