IT'S IN OUR CORE
GALLERY
We’ve asked students, alumni and faculty to share their thoughts and experiences on what makes UChicago, well, UChicago. Perhaps you’ll be inspired to share yours.
“The Core Curriculum was definitely something I didn’t think I would really enjoy starting at UChicago. But it really opened up a lot of areas that I never thought I’d be interested in—but then I was. It shows you thing that you never would have been shown anywhere else. I’ve known so many people who has had a moment where they said, wait… maybe I should major in this.“
—Class of 2026
“People are so excited about all these random things.”
—Class of 2024
“There’s an old African proverb that says ‘If you want to run fast, run alone. If you want to run far, run together.’ I think the same principle applies here. Class of 2024, we have made it quite far from where we started, and we made it here together. In a time of isolation, we found connection, we found community.”
—Blessing, Class Day, 2024
“Scav represents the same explosion of creativity and community that brought me to UChicago in the first place! And as incredible as it is watching our headquarters and sleep schedules gradually deteriorate over the week in a mess of hot glue, cardboard scraps, and wood chips, it’s just as wonderful convincing my friends to complete one or two items of the list and discover the magic of Scav for themselves. There truly is something for everyone in Scav and such a palpable and welcoming sense of community.”
—Class of 2026
“There’s always something to do on campus, and you unlock different experiences as you go through. For example, Senior Pub Night is so fun—and SO HARD—because, you know, UChicago.”
—Class of 2024
“I was a William Benton Fellow in 1983-84. Seeking to participate in the everyday life of the school, I joined the Blackfriars Theatre production of ‘Kiss Me Kate’ in the fall quarter. What made this a uniquely UChicago experience was that, even during the week leading up to opening night, performers were excused from rehearsal if they had an exam scheduled the following day. Even though the show must go on, academic requirements ALWAYS came first!”
“The Core allowed me to gain a breadth of knowledge and take classes that interested me, even if they weren’t in my major. Non-UChicago alumni are always surprised when I mention things like ‘the astrophysics class I took in college,’ replying, ‘But I thought you were an English major?'”
—Class of 2016
“I will forever be grateful that the College gave me four years where I could linger on the deeper questions of life, and be sincere about it too.”
—Class of 2017
“As you interact with students on campus, everyone here is so in love with learning. I’m enamored with that.”
—Class of 2024
“The things that UChicago students are passionate about are very eclectic—all over the place. The way that people here talk about the things that they’re interested in shows nothing short of extreme passion. It’s true, deep thoughts about issues or ideas that they believe could impact knowledge or impact the world.”
—Class of 2024
“Everyone has a lot of drive a lot of ambition, and wants to be doing something. People want to take advantage of opportunities that you have here, so everyone you meet is involved. Being around people that care is so motivating.“
—Class of 2024
“UChicago is not just a place where I’ve been able to learn everything I wish I knew—it has given me a family. The friends I’ve made here and the person it’s allowed me to become are invaluable experiences that I wouldn’t have been able to realize elsewhere.”
—Class of 2024
“While we’ve just earned college degrees, we will always have so much to learn. So, let us find gratitude in the opportunity to be challenged.”
—Arushi, Class Day, 2024
“I personally love biking around Chicago. I go a lot to the Calumet area and then even into Indiana, and that’s been fun. I also really like just being in the Hyde Park community. I feel like it has a lot of culture on its own beyond the University even. Obviously, the University has a big presence too. But it’s been really cool to see the dynamic between the community and the University. I love the academics here but I also think being in a city has informed my experiences.”
—Class of 2025
“I always looked at math as something I had to do to get into finance or economics—but, then I took the introductory calculus sequence. That course changed my entire perspective on math. The ideas behind these numbers, these rules, and how these rules and theories are actually all connected was so interesting.”
—Class of 2024
“At UChicago, we have every single type of person. Every morning, they wake up at 8am and they’re gonna be grinding. Whatever they’re passionate about, they’re gonna be doing it to the best of their capability.”
—Class of 2026
“People study different things across different disciplines and are involved in different activities on campus, but I think we all share this drive of curiosity.”
—Class of 2024
“UChicago is weird, quirky questions or statements. My friends and I talk about it all the time—every time I say something that I would not say to anybody at home: ‘That’s such a UChicago thing to say.'”
—Class of 2026
“It’s having the freedom and flexibility to study anything I want—do a double major and a minor. It’s having these different opportunities and taking advantage of it all. Anything you want to do, UChicago makes sure you can fit it in.”
—Class of 2026
“Even the conversations I have at home with my husband are different—they’re rooted in a level of inquiry.”
—Class of 2005
“I firmly believe that being a student within UChicago’s unique intellectual culture, one defined by a true enthusiasm for unconventional, interdisciplinary ideas and an eagerness to share those ideas, is the reason that I ultimately decided to pursue an MD/PhD.”
—Class of 2025
“I knew that attending the University of Chicago and pursuing the ‘life of the mind’ was going to be the best investment I could ever make in myself. I wanted a lifelong community of students and faculty who could challenge me with the most rigorous academic standards. It had exactly what I was looking for—a robust, rich, and supportive community of scholars who sincerely celebrate and encourage diligence and intellectual accomplishment.“
—Class of 2016
“It is our student body that makes this university community so strong, and it is our commitment to the same defining values that makes us true UChicago students.“
—Nell, Class Day, 2024
“I loved UChicago’s celebration of knowledge and curiosity. No intellectual reference is too obscure. Your weird interests and skills were embraced—they may even come in handy during Scav!”
—Class of 2016
“A certain level of curiosity, and personal unhingedness, is what keeps me coming back to Scav. Getting to spend time attempting to make things and performing ridiculous tasks (all while disregarding my sleep schedule and schoolwork) is something that you aren’t able to do just anywhere.”
—Class of 2026
“Even at parties, people would be in the corners drinking and arguing about Foucalt or Das Capital.”
—Class of 2009
“Not everybody you meet here is the same, and that’s one of the best parts of the school—no matter what room you go into, or what building you walk into, you’re not going to get the same thing every time.”
—Class of 2025
“You meet people here through so many different ways—classes, social organizations, RSOs, whatever. Me and my friends always joke that any new person you meet you’ll have at least one person in common that you both know. That “six degrees” theory? At UChicago, it’s maximum one. I lived in Woodlawn my first two years, and when I was planning the walk back home from the Reg, I’d have to build in extra time to get there because I knew I was going to run into, and talk to, people that I knew along the way.”
—Class of 2025
“I love going here. I’ve been able to entertain every facet of myself, which is honestly a dream come true.“
—Class of 2024
“UChicago taught me to think harder and reconsider many assumptions. It gave me opportunities to learn about topics I never studied and to encounter ideas and challenges that were new to my learning experience. And, it let me join the return of the UChicago football team in 1969.”
—Class of 1970
“The thing that unites students is that we all are very passionate about something, whatever that may be.”
—Class of 2024
“Looking back, the me who wrote my ‘Why UChicago’ essay and my uncommon essay would be so proud of me now. That growth is such a beautiful thing and the definition of fulfillment.”
—Class of 2024
“After office hours, I found myself in a doorway waiting out a downpour of rain with my professor—and we just began having a philosophical discussion about life while we waited for the rain to subside. I thought to myself, this is a true UChicago moment, and felt such an overwhelming sense of gratitude for being at this institution.”
—Class of 2026
We’d love to hear from you.
Provide a short anecdote or your thoughts on what makes this place unlike any other.
