The University of Chicago

Date: Jan 11 2003
Major: Sociology (This Major's Salary over time)
Among my fondest memories of the UofC is the night two of my friends nearly came to blows when a conversation about tax policy turned into a heated argument over Aristotle's ethics. Very few other schools force a passion for ideas and for learning the way Chicago does. Ancient thoughts and great thinkers matter. Students and faculty expect you to be able to ground your opinion in the larger schemes and traditions of thought. Comments without such grounding rarely escape without punishment.

This means that Chicago is not for everyone (indeed not for most people). Attending the college requires a committment beyond doing the required reading and making a decent effort on papers and tests. To enjoy one's time there, one must accept the basic tenet that ideas matter. If you are interested primarily in finding a job, don't waste your time. If you already know exactly what you want to do and don't have any interest in anything else, don't waste your money.

My education has served me well. I'm in a top 5 PhD program now and it is much, much easier than my undergrad. Other students in my cohort know I'm from Chicago and are intimidated by that. Professors in my department accord me more respect because of it.

My biggest problem is now that I'm not in Hyde Park (which is as dangerous as any city neighborhood but far safer than I was led to believe before I moved there) is missing the intellectual community there. I live in a large, respected college town but can not find near the degree of stimulation intellectually that Chicago offers. I am unable to relate on a fundemental level to the college experiences of my peers here. I think my education far more valuable than theirs. While most are technically competant, they lack the wider perspective Chicago gave me.

One final piece of advice, try to find a copy of the Collected Aims of Education Addresses printed by the UofC Press (I know its available at the Seminary Co-op bookstore). They tell the story of what Chicago tries to be, and often is, all about