University Of Chicago Analysis

Musarrat Lamia
Supplement #1: How does the University of Chicago, as you know it now, satisfy your desire for a particular kind of learning community and, future? Please address with some specificity of your own wishes and how they relate to UChicago.
When a valence electron absorbs energy in the form of light, the electrons jump to higher orbitals, and the atom is then in the excited state. This basic concept of quantum mechanics is almost identical to how I feel at the thought of attending the University of Chicago. When you understand the dimensions of a new concept and create your own interpretations of it, a feeling of self and intellectual satisfaction fills you. The University of Chicago offers the most versatile way to replicate this feeling for me, starting from its restless attitude toward academia, to the quirky campus house
communities and traditions, to endless extra-curricular opportunities, all concentrated in the birthplace of the skyscraper. The University of Chicago is an invigorating province of knowledge catered to stroke, challenge, and satisfy the minds of most acquisitive students. Many are frightened by the statistics that name the University one of the most rigorous in the country, but this only draws me closer to the school because it assures me that the environment provided will help me fulfill my highest potential. A widespread opinion shared among the UChicago alumni I have spoken to is that the college gives school a whole new meaning. The Core at UChicago creates analytical thinking skills that teach one how to think about thought itself. I admire the breakup of the undergraduate courses (1/3 of your classes being Core classes, 1/3 being major classes, and 1/3 being electives) because it suits my learning style by creating a clever balance between structure and leniency. Social Sciences, South Asian Languages and Civilizations, Fundamentals: Issues and Texts, Chemistry, and Environmental Studies, are a few of the many programs offered at UChicago that I want the opportunity to take part in. I have no doubt that at times, the academic workload may become strenuous for me, but the environment at UChicago sculpts that strain to be an achievement in progress rather than a burden to resolve. The thought given to housing at UChicago is often overlooked.
Most colleges randomize living arrangements, but I appreciate how UChicago hand creates a home and community for students. House traditions at UChicago like Breckinridge and Henderson break the reputation the school has for being the place where “fun goes to die”. Customs like these combined with over 354 student run organizations offer virtually any creative outlet one could want and to me, there is an unnoticed beauty in just having the options available. It creates a dynamic where opportunity is encouraged and endless. In addition, the unique quarter system at UChicago is one of the most tempting aspects of the college for me. In my high school right now, the semester breakup is very skewed. The fall and winter semester is composed of many days off for public holidays, while the spring semester has a fraction of those days off which creates an uncomfortable learning groove for me. The routine of ten weeks of instruction, one week of finals, and three weeks of break throughout the year at UChicago offers a good stable balance of school life and
break. The breathtaking city of Chicago completes the UChicago experience. Last summer, when I visited Chicago, I remember feeling like a traitor because a part of me considered the thought of liking the city of Chicago even more than my own home city of New York. Chicago is filled with an immense amount of culture and art with a better view of Lake Michigan than Michigan itself. The cleanliness of the city is remarkable because so much is happening yet pollution is a fraction of what it is in New York City. Although New York’s skyline has my heart, Chicago’s is a close second. I have the most unforgettable memories of Navy Pier and Willis Tower and attending the University of Chicago would allow my soothing love for the city to simmer. The University of Chicago’s attitude toward academics is my main attraction to the school because the institution’s sole purpose is to help students indulge in their love for learning. It makes me feel secure that a college experience at UChicago consists of learning the things I want to learn and the things I never thought I’d know. The liberal arts style college, along with the Core, the community life, the quarter system, the research environment, the philosophies the school runs on, and the endless portals of opportunity, all concentrated in one of my favorite cities, brings my mind to an unparalleled state of excitation. Ever since I started receiving mail from the University of Chicago, from the short novel, The Life of the Mind, to the poster that canvases the view of Lake Michigan, to the postcard with a matching game of areas and monuments in Chicago, my mind resorts to that distinct excited state – an altered electron configuration that only the University of Chicago can create.