uchicago nobel prize essay

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Nobel Prizes have been awarded to 99 scholars who were UChicago faculty members, students, or researchers at some point in their careers. Some of the Nobel winners whose work is closely associated with the University are Milton Friedman (Economics, 1976), Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar (Physics, 1983), Saul Bellow (Literature, 1976), Charles Huggins (Physiology or Medicine, 1966), and Willard Libby (Chemistry, 1960). The University of Chicago’s first Nobel Laureate was Albert A. Michelson . The first American to win the Nobel Prize in any of the sciences, Michelson was recognized in 1907 for his measurements of the speed of light. Robert A. Millikan (Physics, 1923) did both of his prize-winning experiments on campus in the Ryerson Laboratory.

Moungi Bawendi* , 2023
John Goodenough* , 2019
Ada E. Yonath , 2009
Irwin Rose* , 2004
Richard E. Smalley , 1996
Paul Crutzen , 1995
F. Sherwood Rowland* , 1995
Yuan T. Lee , 1986
Henry Taube , 1983
Herbert C. Brown* , 1979
Ilya Prigogine , 1977
William H. Stein , 1972
Gerhard Herzberg , 1971
Robert S. Mulliken* , 1966
Karl Ziegler , 1963
Willard Frank Libby , 1960
Glenn Theodore Seaborg , 1951
Harold Clayton Urey , 1934

Economic Sciences

Claudia Goldin* , 2023
Douglas Diamond‡ , 2022
David Card , 2021
Michael Kremer‡ , 2019
Paul M. Romer* , 2018
Richard Thaler‡ , 2017
Lars Peter Hansen‡ , 2013
Eugene F. Fama*‡ , 2013
Thomas J. Sargent , 2011
Leonid Hurwicz , 2007
Roger B. Myerson‡ , 2007
Edward C. Prescott , 2004
Daniel L. McFadden , 2000
James J. Heckman‡ , 2000
Robert A. Mundell , 1999
Myron S. Scholes* , 1997
Robert E. Lucas Jr.*‡ , 1995
Robert W. Fogel , 1993
Gary S. Becker* , 1992
Ronald H. Coase , 1991
Harry M. Markowitz* , 1990
Merton H. Miller , 1990
Trygve Haavelmo , 1989
James M. Buchanan Jr.* , 1986
Gerard Debreu , 1983
George J. Stigler* , 1982
Lawrence R. Klein , 1980
Theodore W. Schultz , 1979
Herbert A. Simon* , 1978
Milton Friedman* , 1976
Tjalling C. Koopmans , 1975
Friedrich August von Hayek , 1974
Kenneth J. Arrow , 1972
Paul A. Samuelson* , 1970
John M. Coetzee , 2003
Saul Bellow* , 1976
Bertrand Russell , 1950
Barack Obama , 2009
Andrea Ghez* , 2020
George E. Smith* , 2009
Yoichiro Nambu , 2008
Frank Wilczek* , 2004
Alexei A. Abrikosov , 2003
Masatoshi Koshiba , 2002
Daniel C. Tsui* , 1998
Jerome I. Friedman* , 1990
Leon M. Lederman , 1988
Jack Steinberger* , 1988
Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar , 1983
James W. Cronin* , 1980
J. Robert Schrieffer , 1972
Murray Gell-Mann , 1969
Luis W. Alvarez* , 1968
Hans Albrecht Bethe , 1967
Julian Schwinger , 1965
Maria Goeppert-Mayer , 1963
Eugene P. Wigner , 1963
Owen Chamberlain* , 1959
Tsung-Dao Lee* , 1957
Chen Ning Yang* , 1957
Ernest Orlando Lawrence* , 1939
Enrico Fermi , 1938
Clinton Joseph Davisson* , 1937
Werner Heisenberg , 1932
Arthur Holly Compton , 1927
James Franck , 1925
Robert Andrews Millikan* , 1923
Albert Abraham Michelson , 1907

Physiology or Medicine

Bruce A. Beutler* , 2011
Jack Szostak , 2009
Roger W. Sperry* , 1981
George Wald , 1967
Charles Brenton Huggins , 1966
Konrad Bloch , 1964
Sir John Carew Eccles , 1963
James Dewey Watson* , 1962
George Wells Beadle , 1958
Edward Lawrie Tatum* , 1958
Hermann Joseph Muller , 1946
Edward Adelbert Doisy , 1943
Alexis Carrel , 1912

* University of Chicago alumnus ‡ Current member of faculty

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The 7 UChicago Essay Prompts: How to Write Stellar Responses

College Essays

The University of Chicago is famous for its unique essay topics. They're some of the most creative and off-the-wall essay prompts you'll see when applying to colleges, and it can sometimes be confusing to know how to tackle them.

What should you write about in your UChicago essays? How can you show that you're intelligent, creative, and worthy of a place at their school? As someone who spent a long time on my UChicago essays (and who got into the school), I've figured out exactly what UChicago is looking for in these essays.

Read on to learn all about the UChicago essays, what the admissions team expects to see in your responses, what topics you should write about, and which topics you should avoid. In this guide, we also suggest sample essay ideas for each of the 2022/2023 UChicago supplement essay prompts and analyze past University of Chicago essay samples so you can see what a great UChicago essay looks like.

What Are the UChicago Essays?

Before you can begin figuring out how you'll write your UChicago essays, you should know which prompts you'll be seeing and the rules for each one. You'll need to write two essays, and the UChicago essay prompts you must answer are commonly referred to as Question 1 and Question 2.

Question 1: Why UChicago?

The Question 1 prompt is the only UChicago supplement essay that stays the same each year, and it's also the only prompt that all applicants must answer (for Question 2 you'll have multiple prompts to choose from).

For this question, you'll need to write an essay that explains why you want to attend the University of Chicago and why you think the school is a good fit for you and your goals. UChicago doesn't have strict word limits for essays, but they suggest a response of 1-2 pages.

Here's the prompt:

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 your own wishes and how they relate to UChicago.

The nice part about this prompt is that it's a pretty standard "why this school" essay . And luckily for you, we have a complete guide that walks you through how to knock this type of essay out of the park.

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Question 2: Extended Essay

For Question 2, you have a choice of six essay prompts, and you'll choose the one you want to respond to. The essay prompts for this question change every year, and while there are always around six prompts, some years there may be one more or one less to choose from.

These are the more unique and offbeat essay prompts that UChicago is known for. Many of them were created by UChicago alumni and current students. Again, UChicago asks you submit a response 1-2 pages long.

Below are the essay prompts for the 2022/2023 school year.

Essay Option 2: “Where have all the flowers gone?” – Pete Seeger. Pick a question from a song title or lyric and give it your best answer.

Essay Option 3: “Vlog,” “Labradoodle,” and “Fauxmage.” Language is filled with portmanteaus. Create a new portmanteau and explain why those two things are a “patch” (perfect match).

Essay Option 4: A jellyfish is not a fish. Cat burglars don’t burgle cats. Rhode Island is not an island. Write an essay about some other misnomer, and either come up with and defend a new name for it or explain why its inaccurate name should be kept.

Essay Option 5: Despite their origins in the Gupta Empire of India or Ancient Egypt, games like chess or bowling remain widely enjoyed today. What modern game do you believe will withstand the test of time, and why?

Essay Option 6: And, as always… the classic choose your own adventure option! In the spirit of adventurous inquiry, choose one of our past prompts (or create a question of your own). Be original, creative, thought provoking. Draw on your best qualities as a writer, thinker, visionary, social critic, sage, citizen of the world, or future citizen of the University of Chicago; take a little risk, and have fun!

The world is your oyster when it comes to answering UChicago essay prompts.

How to Answer the University of Chicago Essay Prompts

In this section, we explain what UChicago wants to see in your essays, give ideas for topics to write about for each of the essays, and discuss topics you are better off avoiding.

For this University of Chicago supplement essay, UChicago wants to know why you want to attend their school, what you hope to get out of attending, and how University of Chicago will help you achieve their goals. Basically, they want to know why you think their school is a better fit for you than all the other schools out there. For more analysis of this essay, check out our in-depth guide to the Why UChicago essay .

What Do They Want to See in Your Response?

The "why our school?" is probably the most common essay prompt you'll see on college applications. Why do schools, including UChicago, ask this question?

UChicago wants to first see that you really want to go to their school. Students who love a school are more likely to accept an offer of admission and attend it, and they are more likely to be committed to their studies, participate in extracurriculars, and give back after they graduate. Your passion for UChicago should be shining through in this essay.

Next, UChicago wants to see that you've done your research on their school and have an idea of what opportunities you want to take advantage of while there. You can do this by mentioning specific things you like about UChicago or that you plan to take advantage of as a student there. Potential things to discuss include professors you admire or are interested in working with, specific classes you want to take, and extracurriculars you want to participate in.

Finally, UChicago wants to see that you are a good match for their school. Your essay should explain how you'll make the best use of what UChicago offers, how your strengths match the opportunities they provide, and how UChicago will help you reach your goals for the future.

Potential Topics to Write About

There are many ways you could approach this essay prompt; although since UChicago is best known for its academics (as opposed to killer sports teams, for example), most people will discuss the academic side for at least part of their response. Below is a list of possible topics; most people will discuss one to three topics in their essay.

Majors or classes you're especially interested in
UChicago's core curriculum
Professors whose work you admire and whom you'd like to study with or conduct research with
Unique events like Scav and Kuviasungnerk/Kangeiko
Research opportunities you'd like to have
University of Chicago students you've met who you admire
Volunteer opportunities
Financial aid opportunities UChicago offers that make it possible for you to attend

Topics to Avoid

The key here is to avoid generic topics that could apply to practically any school or any student. You want it to be clear in your response what opportunities the University of Chicago offers you that no other school does and how you're going to make use of them. Topics that won't show this include discussing:

How pretty the campus is
Chicago weather
The food on campus
Where UChicago places on college ranking lists
Your future major and career path without connecting it back to what UChicago offers
Bashing other schools

The extended essay is when you can get especially creative. These prompts require you to move outside your comfort zone of typical essay topics and answer in a way that gives readers insight into who you are and what you care about. Remember: Question 2 is required, but you have six different prompts to choose from for this essay response.

Your response to Question 1 is meant to show what you like about UChicago and how you’re going to make the most of the opportunities it offers. Question 2 is less about UChicago and more about you. The admissions team wants to see who you are and what's important to you. Three main things they'd like to see in your essay response are:

Your personality
Your thirst for knowledge

Who are you? What have been the important events in your life? What kind of person are you? What do you love learning about? These are the questions UChicago wants you to answer. They want to know what's important to you, what events from your past shaped you, what kind of person you are now, and what you want to accomplish in the future.

UChicago is particularly interested in students who love learning and have a lot of interests in different fields and topics. A mathematician who also does ballet? A creative writing major who started her own business? Bring it on! Make sure to show your love for learning in your essay.

Your passions and goals don't always need to be lofty though; in the second example essay below you can see how the writer took a quirky interest and managed to connect it to larger ideas. If you can connect one of your pet passions to an essay topic, do so!

The great thing about these UChicago essay prompts is you can write about almost anything you want to since they're so different from each other and give you lots of chances to be creative. And you can tackle it from any angle you want. On their website , UChicago states that "[This essay] can be approached with utter seriousness, complete fancy, or something in between." Just remember, you want this essay to give UChicago a good idea of the type of person you are and what's important to you.

Essay Option 1

Exponents and square roots, pencils and erasers, beta decay and electron capture. Name two things that undo each other and explain why both are necessary.

You're allowed to let your imagination run wild with this prompt. You should try to find a pair of objects that the admissions panel didn’t think of, something wholly original that only you would think of. For this prompt, they want to see how imaginative you can be, but the most important part of this essay is justifying why your pairing makes sense and why it matters . The pair you choose will show off your personality, creativity, and cultural experiences.

Make your response as wacky and original as you like, but remember to tie it back to yourself and your interests a nd/or potential major. For instance, say you go with the idea of an art conservator and the passage of time. You could discuss how time degrades the materials of a work of art, and then an art conservationist revitalizes the work, only to have the passage of time wear it down again. This would be an excellent segue into writing about your interest in history, creative writing, or U Chicago’s Department of Art History Conservation Science Teaching Program .

You could also write about how you developed an interest in these subjects, and what other interests you have could be applicable . Weaving your story into your essay will show UChicago that you’re creative and intellectually curious. This can include your niche interests, quirky hobbies, or pet projects.

Essay Option 2

“Where have all the flowers gone?” – Pete Seeger. Pick a question from a song title or lyric and give it your best answer.

This is a classic UChicago question that allows you to answer the question literally...or not. (The year I applied, the version of this question was "Describe your table.") So, if this exemple were your actual song lyric, you address, where have all the flowers gone? You could answer this literally and describe how, for instance, flowers are changing colors in response to climate change . Perhaps you could then discuss your interest in horticulture and what led you to pursue that field.

Or (as always with UChicago essays), you can take it in a totally unexpected direction. This prompt is a chance to put your interpretive and reasoning skills into action. In fact, you could almost think of it like a riddle, except that the answer is anything that you can come up with and justify:

“Where Do Broken Hearts Go?” A valid question in a world where loneliness has been declared a public health emergency and social isolation can increase the likelihood of heart disease by as much as 29% !

“Do You Remember Rock and Roll Radio?” Likely not, considering radio listening has been trending downward for years, especially amongst young listeners and Rock Music is at the lowest point in its popularity since about 1960 . Where does this leave you, a young would-be guitar player with an interest in U Chicago’s ethnomusicology program ?

“Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?” Perhaps you do, considering recent studies show a decline in empathy and corresponding rise in narcissism .

You get the idea. Whatever question you choose, don’t worry too much about having a great answer for it; the idea is to find a context for the question that is meaningful to you and relates to your interests , which will give UChicago insight into your values and personality, two things they want to see in these essays!

Essay Option 3

“Vlog,” “Labradoodle,” and “Fauxmage.” Language is filled with portmanteaus. Create a new portmanteau and explain why those two things are a “patch” (perfect match).

This prompt is a bit sillier, but you still have the chance to show U Chicago your personality and unique worldview. This prompt gives you a chance to play with language and create something that expresses a meaning that we don’t have a word for. The best way to go about this is to think of two areas that are important to you and find a pair of rhyming words related to each and combine them.

So, for instance, if you’re math-oriented but somewhat spiritual, you could take words from both mathematics and spirituality, and come up with something like “stamystics” (statistics+mystics). You could talk about how you became interested in math and how it relates to your spirituality, and so forth.

If you are more interested in sports than spirituality, you could come up with something like “mathleticism.” You could write about how you had to train your mind in order to grasp difficult or advanced mathematical concepts and, inversely, how your understanding of math deepens your appreciation of sports.

What U Chicago is looking for here is how you can connect two seemingly unrelated concepts and find a bridge between them. They’re looking for problem-solving in addition to insight into your personality.

Essay Option 4

A jellyfish is not a fish. Cat burglars don’t burgle cats. Rhode Island is not an island. Write an essay about some other misnomer, and either come up with and defend a new name for it or explain why its inaccurate name should be kept.

This prompt gives you an opportunity to think about familiar things in a new way. We probably don’t think much about peanuts not being nuts, but it’s obvious once you think about it that they are legumes. But, on the other hand, they are also closely related to peas–so the name has some validity. Even though they’re not actually nuts, they do taste like nuts…so is it wrong to call them nuts? Think about other examples that exist in your fields of interest.

And of course, be sure to let your experiences, interests, and values shape the way you rename or defend your misnomer . That way, UChicago will get a good idea of who you are and what’s meaningful to you!

Essay Option 5

Despite their origins in the Gupta Empire of India or Ancient Egypt, games like chess or bowling remain widely enjoyed today. What modern game do you believe will withstand the test of time, and why?

This prompt is your chance to be more overtly academic in your response . In writing about how this game will remain relevant in the future, you’ll be able to show your knowledge of history, culture, politics, economics, religion, scientific discovery…and so on! Choose a game that interests you in some way that you can tie into your personal history and academic interests.

While brainstorming possible games will be really fun, the most important part of this essay is justifying why you think something that’s relevant today will continue to be relevant in the future. Think about what cultural, social, and political changes could be possible and what the implications of that could be for people today. As long as you’re creative, descriptive, and thorough, your response can range from serious to silly and meet the requirements for this prompt.

Essay Option 6

And, as always… the classic choose your own adventure option! In the spirit of adventurous inquiry, choose one of our past prompts (or create a question of your own). Be original, creative, thought provoking. Draw on your best qualities as a writer, thinker, visionary, social critic, sage, citizen of the world, or future citizen of the University of Chicago; take a little risk, and have fun!

If you aren't feeling any of the other five optional prompts, you can respond to this one, which asks you to choose and respond to a past UChicago optional essay prompt, or write and respond to your own prompt. With either option, you'll want to consider your identity, interests, strengths, and goals, and let those factors inform which prompt you choose, how you write your own prompt, and how you craft your response.

You may not feel up to the task of writing your own prompt, but you might like the idea of tracking down an old prompt that catches your eye. Read through the past prompts and consider which one will allow you to play to your strengths . If there's a particular experience or skill that you want to showcase in your response, select a prompt that is conducive to that.

Alternatively, if there's a specific experience you want to write about, you can write your own prompt and respond to it. To write your prompt, use the tone and structure of the existing UChicago prompts as a guide. It'll probably come as no surprise that your original prompt should fit right in with the ones provided on the application. This means you might have to be a little goofy, cryptic, or risky...and that's a good thing!

Though this option allows you to write your own prompt if you so choose, it's important to remember that your response to the prompt should still focus on showcasing who you are , what strengths you will bring to UChicago as a student, and why UChicago is the perfect place for you. Don't get too carried away trying to impress admissions with punny phrases or cryptic logic; be authentic, be bold, and be you.

Some people shy away from this prompt because they feel like it's "cheating" or less impressive to not follow one of the specific prompts that UChicago gives. However, this isn't true! As long as you write a compelling essay that gives readers a better insight into who you are, your essay will strengthen your application. For what it's worth, when I applied to UChicago, this is the prompt I chose, and I was still accepted to the school.

UChicago wants you to be creative here, so there aren't many topics that are off limits. However, you're trying to convince them that you'd be a great and interesting student to add to their school, so make sure you use your essay to show who you are and why UChicago would want to admit you.

This means you should avoid responses that don't give readers a good idea of who you are. For example, if you choose essay option 1, don't just state that “taco cat” is funny because it reminds you of your favorite meme. Instead, tie it back to yourself and your life by explaining its relevance, like making tacos with your abuela and fending off the family cat’s attempts to steal tacos.

Because these prompts are creative, it can be easy to run away with them, but always remember to answer the prompt completely and give UChicago better insight into who you are.

Additionally, don't feel that certain University of Chicago essay prompts are "better" or more impressive than others . UChicago wouldn't have chosen these essay topics if they didn't think applicants could write outstanding responses to them, so please choose the prompt that you feel you can write the best essay for.

University of Chicago Essay Examples

In this section are two University of Chicago essay examples, each written by an accepted applicant.

Below each UChicago supplement essay we discuss what makes the essay work so well.

Dear University of Chicago,

And now you inquire as to my wishes? They're simple, accept me for who I am! Why can't you just love and not ask why? Not ask about my assets or my past? I'm living in the now, I'm waiting for you to catch up, but you're too caught up in my past, I offer us a future together, not a past to dwell upon. Whenever I'm around you, I just get that tingle deep inside me that tells me you're the one; you have that air of brilliance and ingenuity that I crave in a person, you're so mature and sophisticated, originality is really your strongest and most admirable trait. I wish we could be together, I still think in my heart of hearts we were meant to be, but you have to meet me halfway, dear. I'm on one knee here with tears welling up in my eyes, the fireworks are timed and ready to light up the night sky for you, just say 'I accept...you.'

Why Does This Essay Work?

Creative take on a standard prompt: The writer chose a very unique angle for this essay: comparing the University of Chicago to a lover. He's probably the first applicant to answer the essay prompt this way, which definitely makes this a memorable essay. In fact, UChicago loved this essay so much that they mailed it out to thousands of potential applicants (which actually got them a bit of backlash ). You absolutely don't have to take as unique an approach to this essay as the above writer did, but doing so can definitely help your essay stand out.
It answers the entire prompt: Even though this is an unusual essay, the writer still manages to answer everything the prompt asks for. He mentions his goal for the future (to become a lawyer), mentions varied interests he has (the Gothic era, the philosopher Kierkegaard), and explains what he likes about UChicago (the brilliance, ingenuity, and originality the school offers). He even manages to mention that he visited campus three times, which shows a serious interest in the school. If you choose to write an especially offbeat essay, it's key to do what this essay did and still answer the prompt while being creative.

This essay is from several years ago, so it doesn't use a current prompt, but it's still helpful to read and analyze.

Share with us a few of your favorite books, poems, authors, films, plays, pieces of music, musicians, performers, paintings, artists, blogs, magazines, or newspapers. Feel free to touch on one, some, or all of the categories listed, or add a category of your own.

Now let's take a look at the successful essay:

The Illuminati changed my life. Three years ago, I found my first ambigram in one of my favorite novels, Angels and Demons by Dan Brown. I turned the page, and there it was: the word "Illuminati" printed into the exact center of the book. It was styled like a newspaper masthead, exquisite and complex, yet oddly symmetric. Curious, I rotated the book upside-down.

Impossibly, the inverted word was still "Illuminati." Gazing closer, I realized that the letters, I-L-L-U-M, actually shaped into a flipped I-N-A-T-I. Suddenly, I was reading it in both directions. My eyes waltzed along the broad curves and sharp twists of the calligraphy, striking poses in a glamorous font against a sheet of creamy whiteness, sliding between the dense vertical strokes, peering at the edge of the defined serif as it angled away, then bent boldly toward me. Every line was deliberate, every flourish smiling with purpose, and the whole word balanced on the delicate cord that joined two letters into one. It was unforgettable.

Ambigrams are words that can be read from different directions. Actually, "ambigram" is an umbrella term that encompasses dozens of distinct types of visual wordplay. The most popular ones are rotational, mirror image, and-my personal favorites-symbiotic ambigrams, which can spell two different things when viewed normally and upside-down.

Compelled by the striking art, I could not help but try my own hand at designing ambigrams, and slowly I felt the pitiful stick-figure artist inside me shrink away as my inner energetic graphic designer sprang up. Before early volleyball tournaments, I work myself up by filling up pages and pages of experimental letter combinations, gleefully satisfied at the way that a rounded lowercase "a" was a perfect upside-down lowercase "e." In my AP Literature class, I drew "She's a witch!" which revealed, when flipped, "Communist" to reflect Arthur Miller's contemporary motives for writing The Crucible. On a challenge from a friend, I even drew an ambigram of "Jay-Z" and "Beyonce" on a bumpy bus ride back from a leadership retreat.

In the last few months, I have also practiced drawing ambigrams as fast as I can. I dream about the day when I can effortlessly write out a message saying "Hi, how are you today?" normally and "The password is cherry268" upside-down, without pausing or rotating the paper. I imagine a world in which everyone had this ability, and could literally write two things at once. How would that change communication? Encryption? Trust? My legs swing comfortably from this innovative edge, excited to take a stab at the answers.

The best part about the ambigram is that it refuses to define itself as just one thing. It is a linguistic passion, a cryptographic endeavor, an artistic design, and an ironic illusion. I relish the fact that ambigrams force both the artist and the audience to reject first glances and embrace secret identities.

This may just be a nerdy obsession, but ambigrams have taught me far more than how to sketch fancy words. Their multidimensional truth implies that my hobbies of both writing Italian sonnets and solving logical riddles are not opposing functions of my left and right brains, but rather, a perfect conglomeration of my passion for creating and solving puzzles. The beauty of the most surprising combinations reminds me to take bold risks in both my life and my designs.

Above all else, ambigrams have taught me that I can create the impossible. I can make true and false the same word depending on something as simple as a 180-degree head turn. Victory can be defeat. Open can be closed. Am amateur piano player with an obsession for cryptology can learn how to program iPhone apps and get the game-winning kill at the varsity volleyball championship. A girl with divorced parents can make time for both families, and an inspired teenager from California can write her name into world history--both normally and upside-down.

- Samantha M.

Why This Essay Works

Shows passion: This essay focuses on a pretty unusual and specific topic: ambigrams. While many people may not even know what an ambigram is, the writer is clearly passionate about them. She discusses how much time she spends trying to create different ambigrams, what her goals for ambigram creating are, and some of her favorite ambigrams she's created. UChicago loves people who are passionate about something, even if it's an unusual or offbeat interest. It makes UChicago believe those students will bring that passion with them onto campus.
Gives insight into the writer's personality: The majority of this essay is about the author's interest in ambigrams, but she also manages to cleverly slip in multiple other references to her personality and interests. From her essay, we learn that she's a volleyball player, writes Italian sonnets, and loves solving puzzles. Adding these details gives UChicago a fuller look at what makes her tick.
Connects it to a bigger picture: The writer chose to write about a very specific topic—ambigrams—but was still able to connect that to bigger concepts, such as communication, truth, and how she's able to balance her different interests. She's able to take a quirky topic and show how it influences her worldview.

Final Advice: UChicago Essays

When answering the University of Chicago essay prompts, keep in mind that the main reason UChicago is reading these essays is to find out who you are as a person and if you'd be a good fit at their school.

The University of Chicago wants students who are passionate about learning, creative, are excited to make the most of their time on campus, and have big dreams for themselves, and the UChicago supplement questions are designed to help you show these sides of yourself to the school.

For the "Why UChicago?" prompt, you'll want to show the school why you want to go there, why you think you're a good fit for the school, and how UChicago will help you achieve your goals during college and beyond.

For the extended essay, you can (and should) be more creative. These UChicago essays are more "out there," and in your response, you should show your personality and passion for learning.

For both University of Chicago essays, remember to show who you are and what you're passionate about, include details about yourself and the school to help you stand out from other essays, and mention your plans and goals for the future.

What's Next?

If you want a more in-depth look how to write about Question 1, check out our guide to the Why UChicago Essay , which includes an additional sample essay along with analysis of how to answer this prompt.

Are you working on the Common App essay ? Read our breakdown of the Common App prompts and our guide to picking the best prompt for you.

If you're planning to take the SAT or ACT one last time , try out some of our famous test prep guides, like "How to Get a Perfect Score on the SAT" and "15 Key ACT Test Day Tips."

Want to write the perfect college application essay? We can help. Your dedicated PrepScholar Admissions counselor will help you craft your perfect college essay, from the ground up. We learn your background and interests, brainstorm essay topics, and walk you through the essay drafting process, step-by-step. At the end, you'll have a unique essay to proudly submit to colleges. Don't leave your college application to chance. Find out more about PrepScholar Admissions now:

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Christine graduated from Michigan State University with degrees in Environmental Biology and Geography and received her Master's from Duke University. In high school she scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT and was named a National Merit Finalist. She has taught English and biology in several countries.

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UChicago Released 2022-2023 Essay Prompts and We're Loving Them

Each year, applicants to The University of Chicago are asked to answer two supplemental essay questions. Sounds normal enough, right? Not quite – UChicago is famous for its unique essay prompts which are often creative and uniquely fun.

Applicants are asked to submit two essays with their application. The first is the standard "why UChicago" question. The second question takes a more creative approach. The essay prompts change wildly each year–because they are submitted by current students!

The University of Chicago’s history of unique essay questions began in 1984 when the admissions staff added a fun prompt asking students to image themselves as astronauts on Mars. In 2000, UChicago students took over the task of writing essay questions. Each year, UChicago receives several hundred essay prompt submissions from students enrolled at the university and narrows it down to a handful for applicants to choose from.

When asked why they offer such unique essay prompts Peter Wilson, assistant vice president of enrollment and student advancement and director of undergraduate admissions, says: “We are interested in diversity in all its forms, and a wide variety of questions allows for a wide variety of ideas to be represented.”

2022-2023 University of Chicago Supplemental Essay Prompts

Question 1 (required): .

How does the university of Chicago, as you know it, satisfy your desire for a particular kind of learning, community, and future? Please address with some specificity your own wishes and how they relate to UChicago.

Question 2: Extended Essay (Required; Choose 1)

Essay Option 1 : Was it a cat I saw? Yo-no-na-ka, ho-ka-ho-ka na-no-yo (Japanese for “the world is a warm place”). Może jutro ta dama da tortu jeżom (Polish for “maybe tomorrow that lady will give a cake to the hedgehogs”). Share a palindrome in any language, and give it a backstory.

— Inspired by Leah Beach, Class of 2026, Lib Gray SB ’12, and Agnes Mazur AB ‘09

Essay Option 2 : What advice would a wisdom tooth have?

— Inspired by Melody Dias, Class of 2025

Essay Option 3 : You are on an expedition to found a colony on Mars, when from a nearby crater, a group of Martians suddenly emerges. They seem eager to communicate, but they're the impatient kind and demand you represent the human race in one song, image, memory, proof, or other idea. What do you share with them to show that humanity is worth their time?

— Inspired by Alexander Hastings, Class of 2023, and Olivia Okun-Dubitsky, Class of 2026

Essay Option 4 : UChicago has been affiliated with over 90 Nobel laureates. But, why should economics, physics, and peace get all the glory? You are tasked with creating a new category for the Nobel Prize. Explain what it would be, why you chose your specific category, and the criteria necessary to achieve this accomplishment.

— Inspired by Isabel Alvarez, Class of 2026

Essay Option 5 : Genghis Khan with an F1 racecar. George Washington with a SuperSoaker. Emperor Nero with a toaster. Leonardo da Vinci with a Furby. If you could give any historical figure any piece of technology, who and what would it be, and why do you think they’d work so well together?

— Inspired by Braden Hajer, Class of 2025

Essay Option 6 : And, as always… the classic choose your own adventure option! In the spirit of adventurous inquiry, choose one of our past prompts (or create a question of your own). Be original, creative, thought provoking. Draw on your best qualities as a writer, thinker, visionary, social critic, sage, citizen of the world, or future citizen of the University of Chicago; take a little risk, and have fun!

Past Supplemental Extended Essay Prompts

Lost your keys? Alohomora. Noisy roommate? Quietus. Feel the need to shatter windows for some reason? Finestra. Create your own spell, charm, jinx, or other means for magical mayhem. How is it enacted? Is there an incantation? Does it involve a potion or other magical object? If so, what's in it or what is it? What does it do? — Inspired by Emma Sorkin, Class of 2021 

UChicago professor W. J. T. Mitchell entitled his 2005 book What Do Pictures Want? Describe a picture, and explore what it wants. —Inspired by Anna Andel

Heisenberg claims that you cannot know both the position and momentum of an electron with total certainty. Choose two other concepts that cannot be known simultaneously and discuss the implications. (Do not consider yourself limited to the field of physics). — Inspired by Doran Bennett, AB’07

Alice falls down the rabbit hole. Milo drives through the tollbooth. Dorothy is swept up in the tornado. Neo takes the red pill. Don’t tell us about another world you’ve imagined, heard about, or created. Rather, tell us about its portal. Sure, some people think of the University of Chicago as a portal to their future, but please choose another portal to write about. — Inspired by Raphael Hallerman, Class of 2020

Due to a series of clerical errors, there is exactly one typo (an extra letter, a removed letter, or an altered letter) in the name of every department at the University of Chicago. Oops! Describe your new intended major. Why are you interested in it and what courses or areas of focus within it might you want to explore? Potential options include Commuter Science, Bromance Languages and Literatures, Pundamentals: Issues and Texts, Ant History... a full list of unmodified majors ready for your editor’s eye is available  here . — Inspired by Josh Kaufman, AB'18

How did you get caught? (Or not caught, as the case may be.) — Inspired by Kelly Kennedy, AB’10

Discover more of The University of Chicago’s past essay prompts on their admissions essay website .

And don't forget to join the CC Community for more discussion on application essays, admission tips, and applying to college.

Sam is a freelance writer. She studied at the University of Massachusetts Boston where she earned a degree in English.

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UChicago Supplemental Essay Questions

The University of Chicago has long been renowned for our provocative essay questions. We think of them as an opportunity for students to tell us about themselves, their tastes, and their ambitions. They can be approached with utter seriousness, complete fancy, or something in between.

Each year we email newly admitted and current College students and ask them for essay topics. We receive several hundred responses, many of which are eloquent, intriguing, or downright wacky.

As you can see from the attributions, the questions below were inspired by submissions from UChicago students and alumni.

2024-25 UChicago Supplement

Question 1 (required).

Question 2: Extended Essay (Required; Choose one)

Essay option 1.

We’re all familiar with green-eyed envy or feeling blue, but what about being “caught purple-handed”? Or “tickled orange”? Give an old color-infused expression a new hue and tell us what it represents. – Inspired by Ramsey Bottorff, Class of 2026

Essay Option 2

"Ah, but I was so much older then / I'm younger than that now” – Bob Dylan. In what ways do we become younger as we get older? – Inspired by Joshua Harris, Class of 2016

Essay Option 3

Pluto, the demoted planet. Ophiuchus, the thirteenth Zodiac. Andy Murray, the fourth to tennis's Big Three. Every grouping has something that doesn’t quite fit in. Tell us about a group and its unofficial member, why (or why not) should it be excluded? – Inspired by Veronica Chang, Class of 2022

Essay Option 4

"Daddy-o", "Far Out", "Gnarly": the list of slang terms goes on and on. Sadly, most of these aren’t so "fly" anymore – “as if!” Name an outdated slang from any decade or language that you'd bring back and explain why you totally “dig it.” – Inspired by Napat Sakdibhornssup, Class of 2028

Essay Option 5

How many piano tuners are there in Chicago? What is the total length of chalk used by UChicago professors in a year? How many pages of books are in the Regenstein Library? These questions are among a class of estimation problems named after University of Chicago physicist Enrico Fermi. Create your own Fermi estimation problem, give it your best answer, and show us how you got there. – Inspired by Malhar Manek, Class of 2028

Essay Option 6

Some classic questions from previous years…

Exponents and square roots, pencils and erasers, beta decay and electron capture. Name two things that undo each other and explain why both are necessary. – Inspired by Emmett Cho, Class of 2027

“Where have all the flowers gone?” – Pete Seeger. Pick a question from a song title or lyric and give it your best answer. – Inspired by Ryan Murphy, AB’21

“Vlog,” “Labradoodle,” and “Fauxmage.” Language is filled with portmanteaus. Create a new portmanteau and explain why those two things are a “patch” (perfect match). – Inspired by Garrett Chalfin, Class of 2027

You are on an expedition to found a colony on Mars, when from a nearby crater, a group of Martians suddenly emerges. They seem eager to communicate, but they're the impatient kind and demand you represent the human race in one song, image, memory, proof, or other idea. What do you share with them to show that humanity is worth their time? —Inspired by Alexander Hastings, Class of 2023, and Olivia Okun-Dubitsky, Class of 2026

Who does Sally sell her seashells to? How much wood can a woodchuck really chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? Pick a favorite tongue twister (either originally in English or translated from another language) and consider a resolution to its conundrum using the method of your choice. Math, philosophy, linguistics... it's all up to you (or your woodchuck). —Inspired by Blessing Nnate, Class of 2024

What can actually be divided by zero? —Inspired by Mai Vu, Class of 2024

The seven liberal arts in antiquity consisted of the Quadrivium — astronomy, mathematics, geometry, and music — and the Trivium — rhetoric, grammar, and logic. Describe your own take on the Quadrivium or the Trivium. What do you think is essential for everyone to know? —Inspired by Peter Wang, Class of 2022

Subway maps, evolutionary trees, Lewis diagrams. Each of these schematics tells the relationships and stories of their component parts. Reimagine a map, diagram, or chart. If your work is largely or exclusively visual, please include a cartographer's key of at least 300 words to help us best understand your creation. —Inspired by Maximilian Site, Class of 2020

"Do you feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?" - Eleanor Roosevelt. Misattribute a famous quote and explore the implications of doing so. —Inspired by Chris Davey, AB’13

Engineer George de Mestral got frustrated with burrs stuck to his dog’s fur and applied the same mechanic to create Velcro. Scientist Percy Lebaron Spencer found a melted chocolate bar in his magnetron lab and discovered microwave cooking. Dye-works owner Jean Baptiste Jolly found his tablecloth clean after a kerosene lamp was knocked over on it, consequently shaping the future of dry cleaning. Describe a creative or interesting solution, and then find the problem that it solves. —Inspired by Steve Berkowitz, AB’19, and Neeharika Venuturupalli, Class of 2024

Joan of Arkansas. Queen Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Babe Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Mash up a historical figure with a new time period, environment, location, or occupation, and tell us their story. —Inspired by Drew Donaldson, AB’16

What’s so odd about odd numbers? —Inspired by Mario Rosasco, AB’09

Vestigiality refers to genetically determined structures or attributes that have apparently lost most or all of their ancestral function, but have been retained during the process of evolution. In humans, for instance, the appendix is thought to be a vestigial structure. Describe something vestigial (real or imagined) and provide an explanation for its existence. —Inspired by Tiffany Kim, Class of 2020

In French, there is no difference between “conscience” and “consciousness.” In Japanese, there is a word that specifically refers to the splittable wooden chopsticks you get at restaurants. The German word “fremdschämen” encapsulates the feeling you get when you’re embarrassed on behalf of someone else. All of these require explanation in order to properly communicate their meaning, and are, to varying degrees, untranslatable. Choose a word, tell us what it means, and then explain why it cannot (or should not) be translated from its original language. —Inspired by Emily Driscoll, Class of 2018

Little pigs, French hens, a family of bears. Blind mice, musketeers, the Fates. Parts of an atom, laws of thought, a guideline for composition. Omne trium perfectum? Create your own group of threes, and describe why and how they fit together. —Inspired by Zilin Cui, Class of 2018

The mantis shrimp can perceive both polarized light and multispectral images; they have the most complex eyes in the animal kingdom. Human eyes have color receptors for three colors (red, green, and blue); the mantis shrimp has receptors for sixteen types of color, enabling them to see a spectrum far beyond the capacity of the human brain. Seriously, how cool is the mantis shrimp: mantisshrimp.uchicago.edu What might they be able to see that we cannot? What are we missing? —Inspired by Tess Moran, AB’16

How are apples and oranges supposed to be compared? Possible answers involve, but are not limited to, statistics, chemistry, physics, linguistics, and philosophy. —Inspired by Florence Chan, AB’15

The ball is in your court—a penny for your thoughts, but say it, don’t spray it. So long as you don’t bite off more than you can chew, beat around the bush, or cut corners, writing this essay should be a piece of cake. Create your own idiom, and tell us its origin—you know, the whole nine yards. PS: A picture is worth a thousand words. —Inspired by April Bell, AB'17, and Maya Shaked, Class of 2018 (It takes two to tango.)

“A man cannot be too careful in the choice of his enemies.” –Oscar Wilde. Othello and Iago. Dorothy and the Wicked Witch. Autobots and Decepticons. History and art are full of heroes and their enemies. Tell us about the relationship between you and your arch-nemesis (either real or imagined). —Inspired by Martin Krzywy, AB’16

Susan Sontag, AB’51, wrote that “[s]ilence remains, inescapably, a form of speech.” Write about an issue or a situation when you remained silent, and explain how silence may speak in ways that you did or did not intend. The Aesthetics of Silence, 1967. —Anonymous Suggestion

“…I [was] eager to escape backward again, to be off to invent a past for the present.” —The Rose Rabbi by Daniel Stern Present: pres·ent 1. Something that is offered, presented, or given as a gift. Let’s stick with this definition. Unusual presents, accidental presents, metaphorical presents, re-gifted presents, etc.—pick any present you have ever received and invent a past for it. —Inspired by Jennifer Qin, AB’16

So where is Waldo, really? —Inspired by Robin Ye, AB’16

Find x. —Inspired by Benjamin Nuzzo, an admitted student from Eton College, UK

Dog and Cat. Coffee and Tea. Great Gatsby and Catcher in the Rye. Everyone knows there are two types of people in the world. What are they? —Inspired by an anonymous alumna, AB'06

How did you get caught? (Or not caught, as the case may be.) —Inspired by Kelly Kennedy, AB’10

Chicago author Nelson Algren said, “A writer does well if in his whole life he can tell the story of one street.” Chicagoans, but not just Chicagoans, have always found something instructive, and pleasing, and profound in the stories of their block, of Main Street, of Highway 61, of a farm lane, of the Celestial Highway. Tell us the story of a street, path, road—real or imagined or metaphorical. —Anonymous Suggestion

UChicago professor W. J. T. Mitchell entitled his 2005 book What Do Pictures Want? Describe a picture, and explore what it wants. —Inspired by Anna Andel

“Don’t play what’s there, play what’s not there.“—Miles Davis (1926–91) —Inspired by Jack Reeves

University of Chicago alumna and renowned author/critic Susan Sontag said, “The only interesting answers are those that destroy the questions.” We all have heard serious questions, absurd questions, and seriously absurd questions, some of which cannot be answered without obliterating the very question. Destroy a question with your answer. —Inspired by Aleksandra Ciric

“Mind that does not stick.” —Zen Master Shoitsu (1202–80)

Superstring theory has revolutionized speculation about the physical world by suggesting that strings play a pivotal role in the universe. Strings, however, always have explained or enriched our lives, from Theseus’s escape route from the Labyrinth, to kittens playing with balls of yarn, to the single hair that held the sword above Damocles, to the Old Norse tradition that one’s life is a thread woven into a tapestry of fate, to the beautiful sounds of the finely tuned string of a violin, to the children’s game of cat’s cradle, to the concept of stringing someone along. Use the power of string to explain the biggest or the smallest phenomenon. —Inspired by Adam Sobolweski

Have you ever walked through the aisles of a warehouse store like Costco or Sam’s Club and wondered who would buy a jar of mustard a foot and a half tall? We’ve bought it, but it didn’t stop us from wondering about other things, like absurd eating contests, impulse buys, excess, unimagined uses for mustard, storage, preservatives, notions of bigness…and dozens of other ideas both silly and serious. Write an essay somehow inspired by super-huge mustard. —Inspired by Katherine Gold

People often think of language as a connector, something that brings people together by helping them share experiences, feelings, ideas, etc. We, however, are interested in how language sets people apart. Start with the peculiarities of your own personal language—the voice you use when speaking most intimately to yourself, the vocabulary that spills out when you’re startled, or special phrases and gestures that no one else seems to use or even understand—and tell us how your language makes you unique. You may want to think about subtle riffs or idiosyncrasies based on cadence, rhythm, rhyme, or (mis)pronunciation. —Inspired by Kimberly Traube

In 2015, the city of Melbourne, Australia created a "tree-mail" service, in which all of the trees in the city received an email address so that residents could report any tree-related issues. As an unexpected result, people began to email their favorite trees sweet and occasionally humorous letters. Imagine this has been expanded to any object (tree or otherwise) in the world, and share with us the letter you’d send to your favorite. -Inspired by Hannah Lu, Class of 2020

You’re on a voyage in the thirteenth century, sailing across the tempestuous seas. What if, suddenly, you fell off the edge of the Earth? -Inspired by Chandani Latey, AB'93

The word floccinaucinihilipilification is the act or habit of describing or regarding something as unimportant or of having no value. It originated in the mid-18th century from the Latin words "floccus," "naucum," "nihilum," and "pilus"—all words meaning “of little use.” Coin your own word using parts from any language you choose, tell us its meaning, and describe the plausible (if only to you) scenarios in which it would be most appropriately used. -Inspired by Ben Zhang, Class of 2022

Imagine you’ve struck a deal with the Dean of Admissions himself, Dean Nondorf. It goes as follows: you’re guaranteed admission to the University of Chicago regardless of any circumstances that arise. This bond is grounded on the condition that you’ll obtain a blank, 8.5 x 11 piece of paper, and draw, write, sketch, shade, stencil, paint etc., anything and everything you want on it; your only limitations will be the boundaries of both sides on the single page. Now the catch… your submission, for the rest of your life, will always be the first thing anyone you meet for the first time will see. Whether it’s at a job interview, a blind date, arrival at your first Humanities class, before you even say, “hey,” they’ll already have seen your page, and formulated that first impression. Show us your page. What’s on it, and why? If your piece is largely or exclusively visual, please make sure to share a creator's accompanying statement of at least 300 words, which we will happily allow to be on its own, separate page. PS: This is a creative thought experiment, and selecting this essay prompt does not guarantee your admission to UChicago. -Inspired by Amandeep Singh Ahluwalia, Class of 2022

Cats have nine lives, Pac-Man has three lives, and radioactive isotopes have half-lives. How many lives does something else—conceptual or actual—have, and why? -Inspired by Kendrick Shin, Class of 2019

If there’s a limited amount of matter in the universe, how can Olive Garden (along with other restaurants and their concepts of food infinity) offer truly unlimited soup, salad, and breadsticks? Explain this using any method of analysis you wish—physics, biology, economics, history, theology… the options, as you can tell, are endless. -Inspired by Yoonseo Lee, Class of 2023

A hot dog might be a sandwich, and cereal might be a soup, but is a ______ a ______? -Inspired by Arya Muralidharan, Class of 2021 (and dozens of others who, this year and in past years, have submitted the question “Is a hot dog a sandwich,” to which we reply, “maybe”)

“Fiction reveals truth that reality obscures.” – Jessamyn West -Inspired by Elizabeth Mansfield, Class of 2020

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2 Great UChicago Essay Examples

UChicago is famous —or shall we say infamous—for their highly-quirky essay prompts. In previous years, students have been tasked with mind-boggling questions like “Find X,” or “A hot dog might be a sandwich, and cereal might be a soup, but is a __ a __?”

These essays may seem silly, but they invite students to share their personalities and perspectives as fully as they wish. UChicago is looking for creative thinkers, and these essays help them distinguish the “kind” of applicant they want. After all, most applicants will have stellar grades and test scores, so these essays are your chance to stand out and beat the odds of the very low acceptance rate.

UChicago requires two essays—one that is a typical “ Why This College? ” prompt, and the other, your choice among seven zany prompts. The seventh option actually allows you to make your own prompt, or pick one from previous years.

In this post, we’ll go over some strong UChicago essay examples from real applicants and share what they did well and what could be improved.

Please note: Looking at examples of real essays students have submitted to colleges can be very beneficial to get inspiration for your essays. You should never copy or plagiarize from these examples when writing your own essays. Colleges can tell when an essay isn’t genuine and will not view students favorably if they plagiarized.

Read our UChicago essay breakdown to get a comprehensive overview of this year’s supplemental prompts.

Essay Example #1

Prompt: “There is no such thing as a new idea” – Mark Twain. Are any pieces of art, literature, philosophy, or technology truly original, or just a different combination of old ideas? Pick something, anything (besides yourself), and explain why it is, or is not, original.

As I entered the bare-walled room, I could see the sky was painted blue through the tinted windows. It was my first day in my new high school where I’d have to spend the next two years. I wanted to make new friends.

I started walking towards a boy, introduced myself and exchanged pleasantries. After a few minutes of conversation, the topic of music came up and I introduced him to my love for the iconic classical ambient hit ‘Clair de Lune’. He put on my headphones, the song started playing, and he was amazed by the music’s ethereal, mellow, and serene chords. Or so I thought.

You know that awkward feeling when you show a funny video to your friends and nobody laughs? It was equivalent to that.

As days passed, I started noticing everyone was only listening to the loud pounds of the bass, the buzz saw synths, the crispy hi-hats, and every other element found in Electronic Dance Music, also known as EDM. Realizing that people in my school didn’t like Clair de Lune because they were emotionally invested in only the EDM genre, I had an idea– “What if I create an EDM remix of Clair de Lune to reach out to the audience of both genres?”

I tried to understand what the composer was trying to express through his composition and attempted to create an impression of the classical piece. The main challenge was to add musical elements from relatively two of the most unconventional music genres– Classical and EDM. Incorporating the rich and sometimes heart-wrenching chord structure of Clair de Lune to the multiple layers of EDM saw synths, I adjusted the volume of my instruments to the intensities with which the notes needed to be played and panned the sound in different directions to set the appropriate ambiance.

A few weeks later, I uploaded my work to the various Discord music servers that I am a part of with shaky hands. Nervous of what people might interpret my work to be, I awaited the replies I would receive. The server was filled with users from North America, and since I was in India, I realized that most people weren’t active at midnight when I uploaded my mix. I called it a night and went to sleep. When I woke up, my inbox was flooded with a mix of appreciations and suggestions. The users from the server really liked my idea and it went on to become a weekly competition where everyone would try to incorporate multiple genres into one song. I also made my classmates listen to the mix and later made friends who were interested in music production.

Music has constantly been transcending and bridging different identities cross-culturally through the fusion of genres. The key lies in capturing the emotions and the structure linked to the song, but most importantly, working to understand diverse cultures.

This raises a critical question– are the genres we listen to now truly unique on their own or just a complex amalgam of countless genres throughout history? The answer is that it depends on how experienced an artist is at the art of impression. Honoring instead of degrading, studying instead of skimming, crediting instead of plagiarizing, and transforming instead of imitating will lead an artist to a remix instead of a rip-off. As an artist keeps repeating this process, they’ll make unique decisions– maybe they’ll add an inimitable form of reverb on the synth or include a cymbal crash in their alien music structure. Regardless, those small changes and preferences– in the long run– will amount to a magnitude of alteration in style and develop a completely new identity for an artist. This is when the art practically becomes original while bearing into itself countless unoriginal remixes and impressions of different songs, artists, and genres.

What This Essay Did Well

This essay is a great example of taking a prompt that seemingly has nothing to do with the student on the surface and turning it into an exposé of the student’s personality and interests. The point of every college essay is to reveal who you are, so even when the prompt asks for something unrelated like a piece of art or technology, the ability to tie that back to you is key.

The reader is taken on a journey from seeing the defeat this student felt when no one liked their music taste, to their determination to produce a remix, to the success and positive impact caused by their creativity. Having a well-defined beginning, middle, and end creates a good pace and makes it easy to follow.

Another positive aspect of this essay is the way the student describes music and their process. When you write about your hobbies or interests in an essay, your passion, as well as your expertise, should shine through. The reader can clearly tell this student cares about musical motifs and sound mixing through their description of classical and EDM music, but they also demonstrate their knowledge in this area by explaining the steps they took to produce a remix.

What Could Be Improved

While this student did a great job of turning this prompt into a story about themselves, a definitive answer to the prompt fell through the cracks. After an entire essay focused on them, the student generalized in the last paragraph in an attempt to answer the prompt. The result was an essay that ended on a good note, but didn’t leave the reader with a final impression of the student.

To make sure the ending was as strong as other parts of the essay and that there was a concrete answer to the prompt, this student should have tied the lessons they learned through their experience into their perspective on originality.

For example, they could have decided there’s no such thing as originality because even when they were developing their remix they relied on known aspects of music to recreate genres. On the flip side, they could have concluded that of course there are new ideas because even though they had influences, the comments on the Discord server said they had created something no one had ever seen before.

It’s okay to take a stance in a prompt like this one. You aren’t being evaluated on whether you picked the “right” answer because there is no right answer. The important part is to connect the answer back to the rest of the essay, and thus emphasize how the answer relates to you.

Essay Example #2

Prompt: Due to a series of clerical errors, there is exactly one typo (an extra letter, a removed letter, or an altered letter) in the name of every department at the University of Chicago. Oops! Describe your new intended major. Why are you interested in it and what courses or areas of focus within it might you want to explore? Potential options include Commuter Science, Bromance Languages and Literatures, Pundamentals: Issues and Texts, Ant History… a full list of unmodified majors ready for your editor’s eye is available here. —Inspired by Josh Kaufman, AB’18

When I shared the video of me eating fried insects in Thailand, my friends were seriously offended. Some stopped talking to me, while the rest thought I had lost my mind and recommended me the names of a few psychologists.

A major in Gastrophysics at UChicago is not for the faint hearted. You have to have a stomach for it! I do hope I am accepted to it as it is the only University in the U.S. with this unique major. My passion for trying unique food such as fish eye has made me want to understand the complexities of how it affects our digestive system. I understand that Gastrophysics started with a big pang of food, which quickly expanded to famish. Bite years are used to measure the amount of food ingested. I look forward to asking, “How many bite years can the stomach hold?” and “How do different enzymes react with the farticles?”

Gastrophysics truly unravels the physics of food. At UChicago I will understand the intricacies of what time to eat, how to eat and how food will be digested. Do we need to take antiparticle acid if we feel acidity is becoming a matter of concern? At what angle should the mouth be, for the best possible tasting experience? When I tried crocodile meat, I found that at a 0 degree tilt, it tasted like fish and chicken at the same time. But the same tasted more like fish at a negative angle and like chicken at a positive angle. I want to unravel these mysteries in a class by Professor Daniel Holz in gravitational gastrophysics, understanding the unseen strong and weak forces at play which attract food to our stomachs.

I find that Gastrophysics is also important for fastronomy. I want to learn the physics of fasting. How should we fast? Hubble bubble is a good chewing gum; an appetite suppressant in case you feel pangs of hunger. I have read how the UChicago Fastronauts are stepping up to test uncharted territories. Intermittent fasting is a new method being researched, and UChicago offers the opportunity for furthering this research. Which is better: fasting for 16 hours and eating for 8, or fasting for 24 hours twice a week? It is just one of the problems that UChicago offers a chance to solve.

I can also study the new branch it offers that uses farticle physics. It is the science of tracking farticles and how they interact with each other and chemicals in the stomach space. It could give rise to supernovae explosions, turning people into gas giants. It would also teach about the best ways to expel gas and clean the system and prevent stomach space expansion.

I want to take Fluid dynamics 101, another important course in Gastrophysics; teaching about the importance of water and other fluids in the body, and the most important question: what happens if you try to drink superfluids?

I hope to do interdisciplinary courses with observational gastrophysicists and work with environmental science majors to track how much methane is given by the human and animal gastrointestinal tract in the atmosphere and how much it contributes to the global climate change. I believe, with the help of courses in date science, they have been able to keep a track of how much methane is entering each day, and they found that during Dec 24-Jan 3 period, a spike in the methane and ethane levels could be seen. Accordingly, algorithms are being programmed to predict the changes all year round. I would love to use my strong mathematical background to explore these algorithms.

These courses are specially designed by the distinguished faculty of UChicago. Doing interdisciplinary research in collaboration with biological science students to determine what aliens may eat, with fart historians to know more about the intestinal structure of medieval Italians, Japanese, Chinese, Swedish and French people to better their lives is what I look forward to. The Paris study abroad program is an immersion course into fastronomy, where I will have the opportunity to test my self-control with all the amazing French food and desserts around!

My stomach rumbles now, so I am going out to try out new food – hopefully it will be in Chicago a few months later.

What the Essay Did Well

This is a fun essay! This student’s voice is present and their goofy personality is especially evident. Not only did they change the name of their major, but this student incorporated word play throughout the essay to showcase their imagination. Phrases like “the big pang of food”, “bite years”, “fastronauts”, and “farticle physics” keep the tone lighthearted and amusing.

Beyond the humor and creativity that makes the reader chuckle—always a great way to stand out—this student still manages to incorporate aspects of their real intended major that fascinate them. While it might take a little extra connecting the dots to get from gastrophysic to astrophysics courses, the reader still understands what this student wants to study at UChicago and how they might use this knowledge.

While this essay definitely takes some risks, it’s safe to say that they paid off. They are able to delve into their love for astrophysics all while maintaining vivid, engaging language. The writing style is simultaneously playful and mad-scientist-esque. Truly “geeking out” about their interests makes for a great essay.

Even extremely creative essays like this one can always be made stronger. In this case, it would have been nice to get more background on what drew this student to astrophysics (not gastrophysics). We get a sense for their love of trying new foods, but the essay is lacking an explanation that relates to astrophysics.

Obviously, in an essay about gastrophysics, astrophysics would be out of place. But given this student’s level of creativity, they could have found a punny way to tie their interest in space into the essay. It doesn’t need to be too extensive, but since this effectively serves as UChicago’s “Why This Major?” essay, a strong essay should include more background on why the student wants to pursue their actual major (not the fake one).

Where to Get Your UChicago Essays Edited

Do you want feedback on your UChicago essays? After rereading your essays countless times, it can be difficult to evaluate your writing objectively. That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review tool , where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. You can also improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays.

If you want a college admissions expert to review your essay, advisors on CollegeVine have helped students refine their writing and submit successful applications to top schools. Find the right advisor for you to improve your chances of getting into your dream school!

How To Answer U Chicago's Supplemental Essay Prompts 2022/23

The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It has an acceptance rate of around 7%, making it one of the most prestigious and selective schools in the United States. One way in which applicants get to showcase their personality and separate themselves from the other applicants which whom they are competing against is through the U Chicago Supplementary Essays. The essay prompts serve to offer a more holistic view of each applicant to admission officers so as to allow them to make a more informed decision on whether to admit an applicant to the school. This blog serves as a guide as to how one may approach the U Chicago Supplementary Essays.

What are the University of Chicago supplemental essay prompts for 2022/23?

The University of Chicago is known for its unique and unusual supplemental essay prompts . This year wasn’t any different.

Prompt 1 (Required)

Prompt 2: Extended Essay (Required; Choose one)

Was it a cat I saw? Yo-no-na-ka, ho-ka-ho-ka na-no-yo (Japanese for “the world is a warm place”). Może jutro ta dama da tortu jeżom (Polish for “maybe tomorrow that lady will give a cake to the hedgehogs”). Share a palindrome in any language, and give it a backstory. - Inspired by Leah Beach, Class of 2026, Lib Gray SB ’12, and Agnes Mazur AB ‘09

What advice would a wisdom tooth have? –Inspired by Melody Dias, Class of 2025

UChicago has been affiliated with over 90 Nobel laureates. But, why should economics, physics, and peace get all the glory? You are tasked with creating a new category for the Nobel Prize. Explain what it would be, why you chose your specific category, and the criteria necessary to achieve this accomplishment. —Inspired by Isabel Alvarez, Class of 2026

Genghis Khan with an F1 racecar. George Washington with a SuperSoaker. Emperor Nero with a toaster. Leonardo da Vinci with a Furby. If you could give any historical figure any piece of technology, who and what would it be, and why do you think they’d work so well together? -Inspired by Braden Hajer, Class of 2025

Check out more UChicago questions from previous years

How this Economics Student got into UChicago

How to answer Prompt 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 your wishes and how they relate to uchicago..

This essay prompt essentially teases students' motivations and reasons for applying to UChicago. However, instead of asking, “Why UChicago?” the admission officers have decided to ask in a more specific manner. Hence, the last you want to do is to offer generic reasons that can be “copied-paste” to any “Why (this school)” question. Instead, it would help if you had researched what academic programs and extra-curriculextracurricularpportunitiesUChicago offers.

You should be able to explain why you have chosen UChicago, backed with adequate research. In doing so, you should also be able to ascertain what kind of learning environment/ community you wish to pursue and contribute to and how UChicago can satisfy your wishes. Through your answer, it is also essential to demonstrate your enthusiasm and show how you would contribute to UChicago.

Helpful Tips for Prompt 1

1. be specific.

For example, let’s say you’re interested in UChicago’s premier economics program. You’ve taken the AP courses , completed econ-related extracurriculars , and you want that interest to guide your college experience. Research how the economics program works at UChicago, any professors whose research you might be interested in, and any student organizations that work in econ. Then, imagine how your experience will grow when you have access to those resources.

2. It’s not just about school

UChicago will receive your grades separately, so set aside your GPA . You’re not just a student in college. You’re a roommate, study partner, and gym buddy. UChicago has a reputation for attracting hard workers and prides itself on diverse student cultures. Adding that layer of depth when you’ve only got 250 words is challenging. If you’re unsure whether to describe another detail about your studies or about an extraordinary experience you had, go with the latter.

3. Stay humble

It’s not just how you’ll take advantage of UChicago’s opportunities but how your contributions will benefit others. Listing your accomplishments might sound like an excellent way to show your worth, but remember you’re joining thousands of other hopefuls from many different walks of life. If you were lucky enough to have beautiful experiences, focus on how they changed your sense of self rather than just listing positive outcomes.

4. Stay positive

Never criticize other schools. If you want to talk about UChicago’s first-year “Core Experience,” with its focus on interdisciplinary texts, don’t write negatively about how other universities lack those courses! You can build up UChicago’s unique offerings without speaking negatively about other institutions.

Read more on how to answer the “Why This College” prompt

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How to answer Prompt 2

The University of Chicago is renowned for its provocative essay questions . These questions allow students to tell the school more about themselves, their tastes, and their ambitions. Students approach these questions with absolute seriousness, complete fancy, or something in between.

Each year UChicago asks newly admitted and current college students for essay topics. They receive several hundred responses, many of which are eloquent, intriguing, or downright wacky. The questions below were inspired by submissions from UChicago students and alumni.

Choose one of the following prompts and respond in a maximum of two pages.

Essay Option 1

A palindrome is **“**a word, phrase, or sequence that reads the same backward as forwards.” Here is a list of palindromes you can refer to spark some ideas.

The purpose of this prompt is for the admission officers to see how imaginative you can be . The palindrome you eventually choose and give a backstory to will illustrate your personality, cultural experiences, and creativity in a way that your academic grades or your CV cannot do.

Ideally, you should make your story as original and thought-provoking as possible and link the story to yourself or your thoughts or opinions. For example, if you choose the palindrome “Eva, can I stab bats in a cave?” , you may want to think of a story of how humans and animals interact.

It is possible to link this to the current COVID-19 pandemic, where there are theories that wildlife trade and animals such as bats are the sources of the coronavirus. You can then introduce your thoughts/ opinions on the matter. Of course, this is just one way to do this – there is no wrong way per se as long as your answer is engaging, compelling, and can demonstrate certain traits about you (e.g., being intellectually curious). If you wish to make this more personal, you can introduce other aspects of yourself through the story, such as your interests, hobbies, or projects.

Essay Option 2

Again, the admission officers are trying to test if you can think outside the box and justify your answer to the best of your ability. As long as you can explain your answer, you’re on the right track, given that the admission officers are not looking for a particular answer but a logical explanation that can demonstrate your values and personality to them.

One way to approach this question is to interpret it literally , in that your wisdom tooth was probably plucked out before college, and the experience was perhaps painful. Hence, what advice would your then wisdom tooth have given to your past self when undergoing painful experiences?

Another way to approach this question is to interpret it figuratively , in that a wisdom tooth represents obsolete events, given that the wisdom tooth eventually becomes obsolete after being plucked out. Hence, what advice can a wisdom tooth give to other things/people who seemingly have become obsolete?

In your essay, it is essential to set out how you interpret this question and then go ahead and give your answer and explain it in a way that shows admission officers that you are capable of reasoning and analytical thinking.

Essay Option 3

You are on an expedition to find a Mars colony when a group of Martians suddenly emerges from a nearby crater. They seem eager to communicate, but they're impatient and demand you represent the human race in one song, image, memory, proof, or another idea. What do you share with them to show that humanity is worth their time? —Inspired by Alexander Hastings, Class of 2023, and Olivia Okun-Dubitsky, Class of 2026

Essentially, this prompt wants to know your view on humanity . You may want to start by thinking about some art, history, or literature that you find fascinating and that can represent humanity. In choosing what you think is the most exciting thing to represent humanity, consider the values, message, and revelations that that thing conveys. In your answer, you should be able to articulate

The thing that you have chosen
Why have you chosen it?
What it represents on the value of humanity
What does it matter

Of course, there are two ways to approach this – one is by representing humanity in a positive manner and the other in a negative manner.

In the first way, you would want to persuade the Martians that humanity is worth their time by “marketing” humanity to them and showing how great it is.

Latterly, you can persuade the Martians that humanity is worth their time by showing some “crisis” of sorts and that urgent action is needed. Through your answer, the admission officers hope to gain insight into your perspective on humanity while also understanding who you are.

Essay Option 4

UChicago has been affiliated with over 90 Nobel laureates. But why should economics, physics, and peace get all the glory? You are tasked with creating a new category for the Nobel Prize. Explain what it would be, why you chose your specific type, and the criteria necessary to achieve this accomplishment. —Inspired by Isabel Alvarez, Class of 2026

This prompt is very broad and allows students to challenge the standard markers of glory in society . Currently, society seems to value economics, physics, and peace for the Nobel Prize. However, in answering this question, you may want to challenge this societal assumption and how society values one field/industry/issue over others.

You can talk about why other things should be recognized and included as a category for the Nobel Prize. In doing so, you can seize this opportunity to write about your passions, interests, and values.

For example, if you are very interested in baking, you can discuss creating a Nobel Prize category for baking. Let your experiences and values shape how you describe the category and its criteria. Of course, depending on how you frame this question, you can choose to be very serious or light-hearted in your response.

Essay Option 5

This prompt is more academic than the rest because it requires you to show your knowledge of history, politics, culture, and economics .

In brainstorming the historical figure, you should consider which historical figure you admire, how they have impacted the people and community they were in, and what about them resonates with you.

As for the piece of technology you wish to pair with them, think about what technology would be helpful to them, or what technology would have prompted their imagination and possibly changed their decisions, or what they would have done with this technology. This could have specific implications for the people and community they lived in. Be as creative and descriptive in your response!

Essay Option 6

And, as always… the classic choose your adventure option! In the spirit of adventurous inquiry, select one of our past prompts (or create a question of your own). Be original, creative, and thought-provoking. Draw on your best qualities as a writer, thinker, visionary, social critic, sage, a citizen of the world, or future citizen of the University of Chicago; take a little risk, and have fun!

If you do not like any of the other prompts, you may engage with this prompt, which essentially gives you free reign to design any prompt or choose any of the past UChicago prompts .

Regardless of your choice, think about what you want to showcase to the admission officer. Essentially, you want to show your thoughts, values, experiences, passions, interests, etc. Hence, when choosing a prompt, you want to select something that allows you to showcase these things about yourself to a certain degree.

If you choose to craft your own prompt, be sure to use the way UChicago craft their other application prompts as a guide – this would mean that you may have to think a little out of the box, which is something that UChicago admission officers are looking out for!

Helpful Tips for Prompt 2

1. remember your purpose..

Ultimately, you want your essays to show the admissions officers a facet of your personality that they want to see at UChicago in the fall. While you should write freely, the creativity of prompts means it’s easy to deviate from the prompt. If the prompt asks you to write a letter, tell a story, or argue a point of view, make sure you’re doing that, even as your imagination runs wild.

2. Get someone (or three) to proofread.

There is no quicker essay-killer than a bad typo during the good part. While this advice applies to anything you write, it is especially crucial for this type of essay since you’re likely not sticking to a standard paragraph format. Writing dialogue, keeping tenses in a story, and even staying consistent in your tone and vocabulary isn’t easy. Pick people who know you and your voice. Increase the font size to check for spacing and spelling errors. Break down each paragraph into one-sentence summaries, and check that the flow of the essay moves smoothly.

3. If you choose to write on your own prompt, keep the scope narrow.

The “choose your own prompt” option is always a temptation. Sometimes it’s an excellent choice! But it can be hard to keep the bigger goal in mind when deciding what to write. Your purpose is to display your writing abilities on a specific topic while showing admissions a bit of your personality.

4. Admissions officers are human beings too.

UChicago’s fun prompts highlight a critical aspect of all college admission essays: no formula will guarantee entry or even predict your college experience. The answer to the prompts is not as important as how you express your thoughts. Don’t write what you think UChicago wants to hear. If you’re not confident in your humor, rely on persuasion instead. If you are excited about a contentious topic, write with the same balance and respect you’d use when talking to a human being.

Final Thoughts

The UChicago essays are offbeat and eccentric. Try to have fun with them. The committee wants you to convey a sense of playfulness, hoping these essays will help them better understand your personality.

What Makes Crimson Different

Key Resources & Further Reading

University of Chicago University Profile
MIT Supplemental Essay 2021/22
Harvard Supplemental Essay 2021/22
Columbia Supplemental Essay 2021/22
Princeton Supplemental Essay 2021/22
Acing your College Application Essay: 5 Expert Tips to Make it Stand Out from the Rest
How to Tackle Every Type of Supplemental Essay
2021-22 Essay Prompts Common App Essay Prompts
What are the Most Unusual US College Supplemental Essay Prompts?

How to answer upenn's 2024/25 supplemental essays: tips & insights.

Ace Your NYU Supplemental Essay: Expert Advice from a Former Admissions Officer

How To Answer Northwestern Supplemental Essays in 2024-2025

Add Project Key Words

A Guide to the UChicago Supplemental Essays 2022-2023

Padya Paramita

July 26, 2022

You probably already know that admission into the University of Chicago, with its acceptance rate of around 5%, is far from guaranteed. But as you gear up to apply, you might get further thrown off by the essays you have to write. Alongside the required classic “why UChicago” question, this highly selective school also presents you with some rather unusual prompts in the UChicago supplemental essays 2022-2023 .

You don’t expect to see references to wisdom teeth or F1 racecars when you’re getting into the mindset of convincing admissions officers why you’re a good fit for a school, and yet these have been part of past UChicago prompts. It goes without saying that UChicago’s unconventional prompts aren’t your typical supplemental essay questions. But despite their unique nature, the goal of the university is the same as any other school—to understand your perspective, to get a sense of your goals, and determine whether your values align with those that UChicago looks for in its students. To guide you through each of the prompts, I have outlined the questions, how to go about tackling them, and more tips to help you write the UChicago supplemental essays 2022-2023 .

The UChicago Supplemental Essays 2022-2023

UChicago prides itself on its thought-provoking supplemental essay prompts. Use these as an opportunity to introduce yourself, what you’re passionate about, and your ambitions and goals. Although there is no set word limit for any of the prompts, InGenius Prep counselor Natalia Ostrowski, who worked as the Assistant Director of Admissions at UChicago, recommends that you limit the first essay (“Why UChicago”) to a page (double-spaced in 12-point font). The second essay—the more unusual one of the two—should be about two pages, double spaced, and in 12-point font.

The voice in your essay can be serious, you can let your creativity completely loose, or you can find an in-between take on any issue you’re writing about. According to Natalia, “UChicago admissions officers want to see how you connect ideas and get a front-row view into your critical thinking, intellectual curiosity, and excitement for knowledge.”

So without further ado, let’s go through all of the prompts—including each of the odd ones—for the UChicago supplemental essays 2022-2023, and the ways you should dissect and answer them:

Question 1 (Required)

Although there is no strict word limit on this “why UChicago” essay, don’t go overboard with what you like about the university. Admissions officers already know it’s a great school. How do you narrow down what you love about the school? Well, look at the question for hints. The question asks that you elaborate on how UChicago can help meet your needs when it comes to the following:

When reading your response to this question, admissions officers are looking for whether you’ve done your homework on UChicago to determine how much you’d fit into the college. Below are a few questions that Natalia suggests you ask yourself to brainstorm for this essay:

Why is the Core important to you? (And don’t just copy/paste what you wrote for Columbia and vice versa—they’ll know)
What specific majors are you interested in and why?
Has it always been your dream to work with [ insert professor here ] or study abroad in [ insert location here ]? Why?
Which activities are you excited to contribute to? Why do you want to be a Maroon (yes, UChicago has sports!)?

Emphasize the community aspect —how do you hope to find your people on campus? Is it the opportunity to participate in student organizations such as Humor Magazine or the intramural wiffleball team that call out to you? Or are you keen to explore Chicago’s Revival Community Improv Theater within walking distance of the college? You might want to continue your community involvement work from high school by participating in the Neighborhood Schools Program, The Civic Knowledge Project, or one of the college’s several organizations that help give back to the greater Chicago community.

Since you have space, you can provide context on who you are, your passions, and the kind of values you hope to bring to UChicago. Whatever you choose to write about, make sure you prioritize what you’re looking for from your college experience and how UChicago is the ideal place to explore these interests or goals. Show admissions officers that you have done your research and can convincingly argue for your place at the school, clearly outlining the parts of campus you wish to commit to.

Question 2: Extended Essay (Required; Choose One)

Now we get to the more peculiar essays. At first—and even second or third glance—these questions are out of the box in comparison to other schools’ supplemental essays. But where do you even start? Natalia affirms that “Admissions officers want to see how your brain works. It doesn’t matter what you write about or which question you answer—your ideas and how you write about those ideas is what matters.”

She also adds that from your essay, “Admissions officers will be able to have a glimpse of who you might be in the classroom, or when you’re deep in discussion in the dining halls or dorms, or walking through the snowy Harper Quad on your way to get some hot chocolate at Hallowed Grounds.”

The takeaway for admissions officers reading your UChicago supplemental essays 2022-2023 should be to understand what makes you tick and how you are going to contribute to the community. This is the goal you should keep in mind throughout your writing process.

Essay Option 1

Was it a cat I saw? Yo-no-na-ka, ho-ka-ho-ka na-no-yo (Japanese for “the world is a warm place”). Może jutro ta dama da tortu jeżom (Polish for “maybe tomorrow that lady will give a cake to the hedgehogs”). Share a palindrome in any language, and give it a backstory.

For those who don’t know, a palindrome is a word, phrase, or sequence that reads the same backwards as forwards, such as civic, race car, madam—you get the picture. This is actually one of the most open-ended questions among the UChicago supplemental essays 2022-2023 , because with a convincing enough argument, you might just be able to sway admissions officers to believe—or not—that a certain palindrome has a backstory we might not have thought about before. Here are some palindromic phrases to help get you started on your brainstorming:

Never odd or even
Step on no pets
A man, a plan, a canal: Panama
Anne, I vote more cars race Rome to Vienna
Did Hannah see bees? Hannah did
Sit on a potato pan, Otis
Cigar? Toss it in a can. It is so tragic
Eva, can I see bees in a cave?

Don’t get so caught up in finding the perfect palindrome that you miss the second half of the question: “give it a backstory.” You can use this question to discuss your potential major or favorite activity, because after all these are your supplemental essays. How can a certain law in physics explain how Otis can sit on a pan? Does the law of demand and supply in economics help answer the question of whether Hannah saw bees. This is a great question to combine both your imagination and creativity alongside your curiosity within your academic interest.

Essay Option 2

What advice would a wisdom tooth have?

Up next on the UChicago supplemental essays 2022-2023 is another open-ended question. UChicago has used this guise of the “wisdom tooth” to see what students might value and what advice they might hold true in their daily life. Consider any advice that you’ve been given, sayings that resonate with you, words that you hold close to your heart and follow as you continue your journey as a student. Don’t use something cliche like “don’t judge a book by its cover.” That’s too generic! Instead, think of advice that’s specific to your interests and goals—advice that you can then exemplify with anecdotes from your life. The more specific you get in your explanation, the better admissions officers will understand who you are and why you should be a future UChicago student.

Essay Option 3

The next prompt is another open-ended question because let’s face it “one song, image, memory, proof, or other idea,” can truly include anything. Think carefully about your interests, about areas of knowledge that you have in your arsenal, and what you think you can make a convincing argument about because, after all, you’re trying to convince Martians that humanity is worth their time! This is a prompt that you can have a lot of fun with because you don’t necessarily have to talk about something academic, although you can. Avoid common and broad topics and don’t be afraid to get niche and weird. You can talk about how sharks don’t have bones, or about why Martians should visit a certain country or spot in your hometown, you can talk about your favorite sports team and why the Martians should root for them, or you can talk about your favorite character on your favorite TV show. Regardless of the topic you choose, make sure your reasoning is compelling enough.

Essay Option 4

Here is another question you can get creative with—but this one can lean in a more academic direction than the rest of the prompts among the UChicago supplemental essay prompts 2022-2023 . For example, if you’re a visual artist you can invent a category in visual arts. However, you could—and probably should—get even more creative than that. Think out of the box. Consider both the category and what one would require to win a prize in the category. What about a Nobel Prize in driving for the best engine builder? Nobel Prize in engineering for the person who fixes door hinges the best? A Nobel Prize in Architecture for building sandcastles? No matter what the category and criteria, make sure your personality comes through in your explanation so that the admissions officers know you’re an individual to watch out for!

Essay Option 5

Genghis Khan with an F1 racecar. George Washington with a SuperSoaker. Emperor Nero with a toaster. Leonardo da Vinci with a Furby. If you could give any historical figure any piece of technology, who and what would it be, and why do you think they’d work so well together?

This question is a bit random, but I recommend it to those who are interested in a bit more creative writing in their essays rather than those who feel more comfortable with straightforward responses or academic writing. If there is a historical figure you know quite a bit about—or someone who is from your area—you probably have a grasp on their personality. As a result, you can assign them a piece of technology that you think they could use to create something revolutionary or simply have fun with. Think Einstein with an iPad, or Napoleon with a Fitbit. Why exactly are you assigning the person of your choice with the tech of your choice? Choose wisely and talk about the possibilities that could be out there!

Essay Option 6

If you don’t like any of the other options, why not look at 30 of the previous years’ questions that UChicago has provided to inspire you. The question “What can actually be divided by zero?” might appeal to you more than any of the new prompts for UChicago supplemental essays 2022-2023 . And that is okay.

Note that UChicago is giving you an incredible amount of choice here by providing access to their past prompts. If you decide to go the alternative route and come up with your own question, it HAS to be good enough. It wouldn’t be the wisest decision to go with your own silly prompt with the plethora of options in your arsenal.

While UChicago doesn’t prefer that you answer questions 1-5 rather than 6, carefully weigh your options before you decide to pick number 6. Is there nothing you might have to say for the first five essay questions? If that is indeed the case, and you’re willing to take the risk (and UChicago appreciates risk-takers) put your unique spin on a previous—or completely original—question!

Additional Tips for Writing the UChicago Supplemental Essays 2020-2021

Now that you’ve taken a look at the prompts for the UChicago supplemental essays 2022-2023 , here are a few tips to help your brainstorming process:

Standout essays for standout prompts : The prompts for the UChicago supplemental essays 2022-2023 are without a doubt, highly unique. It’s okay to feel intimidated, and you might choose a prompt that asks for a more academic-leaning response if you’re not a creative writer. While it’s fine to find an option that’s tailored towards your assets, note that other applicants will be writing all sorts of weird and highly imaginative essays. So you need to come up with something memorable and original to stand out from the competition.
Consider multiple approaches : Each of the questions for the UChicago supplemental essays 2022-2023 has different routes you can choose. For some, such as the what would you show Martians prompt or the topic of your choice questions, you can write about anything. So don’t restrict yourself to thinking there is a right answer. While it might feel like the college may want you to answer a certain way, UChicago wants to understand your personality and background. Stay true to yourself and authentically convey who you are and the way you view the world.
Don’t let the prompts discourage you from applying to the school : While the prompts set by the University of Chicago are definitely unusual and undoubtedly tricky, they are not impossible to answer. The school has set a standard for similarly quirky questions and hundreds of students still get in every year. So the minute you see these on the Common App, don’t be tempted to run away and remove UChicago from your school list. It’s a great school, and if you have a strong application to compete with other top students, don’t miss out on the chance just because the supplemental essays seem a little intimidating!

The UChicago supplemental essays 2022-2023 can add depth to your application and help admissions officers understand who you are and what you’re looking for from your college experience. The “why UChicago” prompt is your chance to convey how you would be a good fit at UChicago and vice versa. On the other hand, the essay question is a great component to capitalize on so that admissions officers understand your interests, creativity, and how you view the world. The task at hand might seem like a tough uphill battle, but it’s definitely not impossible. Good luck!

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UChicago Supplemental Essays 2024-25 – Prompts and Advice

July 8, 2024

UChicago has long been known for its “provocative” essay prompts, viewing them as a chance for “students to talk about themselves, their tastes, and their ambitions.” The University of Chicago admissions committee invites you to approach the UChicago supplemental essays with “utter seriousness, complete fancy, or something in between.” While writing this “uncommon essay” sounds like a real lark, we have to keep in mind the sobering facts that UChicago admits just 4% of applicants, and the mid-50% SAT range of those who enroll is 1510-1560. This level of competition places the UChicago essay prompts squarely in the spotlight.

(Want to learn more about How to Get Into UChicago? Visit our blog entitled: How to Get Into the University of Chicago: Admissions Data and Strategies for all of the most recent admissions data as well as tips for gaining acceptance.)

When applying to an institution like the University of Chicago that rejects 19 of every 20 applicants, you’ll need to put maximum effort into every area of the application, including the two UChicago supplemental essays. Below are UChicago’s supplemental prompts for the 2024-25 admissions cycle along with our advice for composing a winning essay.

UChicago Essay Prompts – Question 1 (Required)

For the absurd level of uniqueness in the prompt choices in Question #2, Question #1 is as common as they come—the good ol’ “Why Us?” essay, Chicago style!

How to write a winning “Why University of Chicago?” essay

Specify how you will take advantage of UChicago’s endless resources, both inside and outside of the classroom.
Cite specific academic programs, professors, research opportunities, internship/externship programs, study abroad programs, student-run organizations, etc.
Show evidence of how your past/current endeavors will carry over onto the University’s campus community.
Lastly, note any special talents and passions that you bring to the University of Chicago.

Examples of items to include in a “Why UChicago?” essay

Examples of items that quality “Why UChicago?” essays may touch upon include:

Two-thirds of UChicago professors live in Hyde Park, making for a particularly cohesive campus.
80% of undergrads elect to participate in undergraduate research .
Additionally, the quarter system allows students to explore a greater number of courses each year in a more in-depth manner.
85% of UChicago classes enroll fewer than 25 students.
The school has 160+ research centers, institutes, and committees.

UChicago Supplemental Essays (Continued)

Many students win Rhodes, Marshall, and Fulbright Scholarships after graduation.
The Jeff Metcalf Internship Program also offers 3,500 paid internships.
UChicago has 450 student organizations .
The university sponsors 66 study abroad programs in 31 cities ; many include chances to study with UChicago professors around the globe.

Of course, these are just a small sampling of the thousands of possible features that could be part of a successful essay, but we hope this helps your brainstorming session take flight!

Question 2: Extended Essay (Required; Choose one)

Before offering a few words about how one might address each of the following prompts, we want to stress to future UChicago applicants that there is no right way to talk about color-infused expressions, demoted planets, or Fermi estimation problems. What matters is that your response to any of the following prompts demonstrates your excellence and creativity as a writer. If the first five prompts don’t appeal to you, there is no downside in constructing your own via option #6.

University of Chicago Supplemental Essays

Essay option 1.

An applicant can quite easily take this in a very serious or seriously humorous direction. Our only suggestion is that your rule doesn’t include the phrase, “If it’s yellow, let it mellow.” Or, it can. This is the UChicago supplemental section. Anything goes. Get weird.

Essay Option 2

“Ah, but I was so much older then / I’m younger than that now” – Bob Dylan. In what ways do we become younger as we get older?

As with all UChicago questions, you can take this in a serious or off-the-wall direction. For example, as we get older, many of us need additional physical and/or mental support, similar to young children. Alternatively, we may adopt a “younger” attitude as we get older, perhaps not caring as much about what others think about us, or vowing to live life more spontaneously. Or, you could get a little wild and talk about how the version of yourself in any given photograph will seem younger and younger the older you get. Overall, if ruminating on Bob Dylan lyrics appeals to you, knock yourself out. If not, keep moving down the list of prompts…

Essay Option 3

Pluto, the demoted planet. Ophiuchus, the thirteenth Zodiac. Andy Murray, the fourth to tennis’s Big Three. Every grouping has something that doesn’t quite fit in. Tell us about a group and its unofficial member, why (or why not) should it be excluded?

A few years back, UChicago offered a prompt for imagining that the moon was made of cheese or Neptune from soap. To that prompt, we advised that it didn’t matter if you wrote about a quasar made of Jergens Enriching Shea Butter or Jupiter’s moons constructed from Bored Ape NFTs—your imagination and writing ability are what matters here. The latter half of that advice remains applicable to this prompt. There are an endless number of interesting groups that may be worth unpacking, so if you happen to have one in mind, go wild. The explanation will be far more important than the group itself.

Essay Option 4

“Daddy-o”, “Far Out”, “Gnarly”: the list of slang terms goes on and on. Sadly, most of these aren’t so “fly” anymore – “as if!” Name an outdated slang from any decade or language that you’d bring back and explain why you totally “dig it.”

If you, as a ridiculously busy applicant, have time to spare, this is a pretty fun prompt to ponder. The only downside is that—since this is so specific— you may not be able to reuse your composition for any other college to which you are applying. That said, if you’ve always felt called to muse about the near-constant use of “Booyah” in the ’90s or reflect on a Spanish slang word from the 70s that your grandmother still says on a regular basis, your day has come.

Essay Option 5

This essay affords applicants a chance to flex their intellectual muscles and show off a talent for navigating complex answers. As illustrated in the built-in examples, the estimation problems may be straightforward (number of book pages in a library) or zany (total length of chalk used in a year). Your explanation of how you arrived at your answer is where the real creativity comes in.

Essay Option 6

If you elect to go with an archived prompt, you can locate some past entries around the internet such as here and here . There are also a number of past prompts listed directly on the UChicago admissions website . A good number of applicants we have worked with avail themselves of the flexibility offered by this restriction-free offering.

How important are the UChicago essay prompts?

The University of Chicago lists six factors as being “very important” to the admissions committee and the essays are among them. In addition to the essays, UChicago most heavily weighs the rigor of your secondary school record, recommendations, extracurricular activities, talent/ability, and character/personal qualities. Clearly, the Common App and supplemental essays are among the most important considerations for the University of Chicago in its decision-making process.

UChicago Supplemental Essays – Personalized Assistance

Lastly, if you are interested in working with one of College Transitions’ experienced and knowledgeable essay coaches as you craft your UChicago supplemental essays, we encourage you to get a quote today.

Ready to start working on your essays? You might consider checking out the following:

Common App Essay Prompts
10 Instructive Common App Essay Examples
College Application Essay Topics to Avoid
How to Brainstorm a College Essay
25 Inspiring College Essay Topics
“Why This College?” Essay Examples
How to Write the Community Essay
College Essay

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Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar spent 27 years working and living on the grounds of Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay, Wisconsin. (UChicago Photographic Archive, apf1-01654, Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library)

Astrophysicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar (1910–95) illuminated stellar evolution.

Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar—child prodigy, predictor of black holes, Nobelist, and UChicago professor for nearly 60 years—often distilled his life into two sentences: “I left India and went to England in 1930. I returned to India in 1936 and married a girl who had been waiting for six years, came to Chicago, and lived happily thereafter.”

Chandrasekhar is best known for the earliest part of his career, when he determined the fate of massive stars and was betrayed by a mentor. Yet he spent the next six decades making equally influential breakthroughs in stellar structure and dynamics, and training a new generation of astrophysicists. He also faced discrimination and alienation, elided from the fairy-tale ending he liked to recount.

Chandra, as he was known, was born in 1910 in Lahore—then British India, now Pakistan—the third of 10 children. In Chandra: A Biography of S. Chandrasekhar (University of Chicago Press, 1990) his biographer Kameshwar C. Wali, a UChicago physicist in the late ’60s, describes him as a mischievous child with an early aptitude for math.

Chandra didn’t attend traditional school until he was 11; prior to that he was taught by tutors and allowed to follow his intellectual interests. Regarded as a mathematics prodigy, he entered Presidency College in Madras at 15, where he gravitated toward physics. His precociousness recalled that of his uncle C. V. Raman, who went on to win the 1930 Nobel Prize in Physics for demonstrating quantum effects in the scattering of light.

At 17 Chandra spent the summer working in his uncle’s lab, where early on he broke a crucial piece of equipment. Experimental physics was not in his future. But he befriended one of Raman’s colleagues, who introduced him to the work of Arnold Sommerfeld, one of several theorists transforming physics through quantum mechanics. This group included Ralph H. Fowler, who helped Chandra publish a paper in the Proceedings of the Royal Society of London , the first of about 400 articles—and numerous books—in his lifetime.

Near the end of his undergraduate studies, Chandra was offered a special Government of India scholarship to study in England. In 1930 he set out for the University of Cambridge. While at sea on one leg of the voyage, reading physics publications to pass the time, the 19-year-old Chandra famously arrived at his Nobel-winning insight.

Sixty-eight years earlier, astronomers had first observed a white dwarf: the small, hot, extremely dense remnant left after a star burns through its fuel. But it didn’t make sense—such an object shouldn’t be able to resist its own gravity and should have collapsed. Fowler, Chandra’s soon-to-be PhD adviser at Cambridge, solved the puzzle using quantum theory to explain the phenomenon.

Chandra’s maritime math took Fowler’s explanation a step further, calculating that the physics stabilizing ultra-dense white dwarfs worked only up to a point. Over a certain mass, a dying star in fact could not overcome gravity and would collapse into some incomprehensibly dense object (what we now call a neutron star) or maybe even an infinitely dense point (a black hole). That upper boundary, later named the Chandrasekhar limit, is about 1.4 times the mass of our sun.

His work built on Fowler’s research and that of Cambridge astronomer Arthur Eddington, who believed all stars were destined to become white dwarfs. As Chandra refined his calculations over four years in England, Eddington regularly dropped by to see how the work was progressing. When Chandra was ready to present his findings at the Royal Astronomical Society meeting in 1935, Eddington arranged for Chandra to have double the customary 15 minutes and scheduled his own presentation to immediately follow. When Chandra finished, Eddington ridiculed the young astrophysicist’s conclusion, publicly humiliating him.

In private, some colleagues reassured Chandra, but it would be more than 20 years before his limit was widely accepted. In one of his final interviews, he reflected on the incident: “Suppose Eddington, instead of finding that I was wrong, had instead said, ‘What you have done is very important.’ … Given Eddington’s reputation, he could have made me instantly a very well-known person.” But enjoying such early prominence, he said, could have diverted his research. “You lose your motivation to continue doing science.”

“The Eddington factor had the effect of closing the doors in England,” writes Eugene Parker, Chandra’s UChicago colleague and the discoverer of solar wind. (Parker wrote a biography for the National Academy of Sciences after Chandra’s death from heart failure in 1995.) His father suggested returning home, but Chandra “found himself increasingly out of sympathy with the political nature of academia in India.”

Chandra was invited to lecture for a few months at Harvard in early 1936. While he was there, the director of UChicago’s Yerkes Observatory, Otto Struve, PhD’23, offered him a position as research associate, with the promise of a tenure-track appointment at the University after a year. Harvard also offered a faculty position, but Struve was doing something new. He was recruiting “theoretical astrophysicists, a very rare breed in the United States” in those years, writes one of Chandra’s graduate students, Donald Osterbrock, PhB’48, SB’48, SM’49, PhD’52, in a brief history of Chandra’s time at Yerkes. Struve was merging theory and observational astronomy; he was also recruiting two of Chandra’s friends.

Against his father’s wishes, Chandra agreed to settle across the pond. But first he returned to India to see about a girl.

Chandra had been corresponding with his future wife for six years. They had been immediately drawn to one another, but their long-distance courtship was filled with uncertainty.

Chandra first met Lalitha in an honors physics course at Presidency College. Born Doraiswamy Lalithambal, she came from a family of educated women—uncommon in India at the time. Early marriage was out of the question for Lalitha and her female siblings and cousins. She would earn her master’s in physics first. In an autobiographical essay, she describes her love of physics as stemming from her interest in Marie Curie and the excitement in India over C. V. Raman’s Nobel Prize.

Lalitha had “noticed with interest the young man with a crew cut, always sitting behind her in the second row,” writes Wali. She asked him if she could see his laboratory record book, and he readily agreed. They shared the notebook from then on; at a party, Chandra gave her a rose. Days before he left for England, Chandra visited Lalitha’s home with books she’d requested; they sat in awkward silence until her family joined them.

At Cambridge he ventured an apprehensive letter: “Dear Miss Lalitha, I was for a long time hesitating whether I should allow myself the liberty of writing to you particularly as I am anxious not to displease you in any manner possible.” Encouraged by her swift reply, he wrote back without delay. Formalities turned to “sweet darling,” talk of physics turned to love, and soon they were engaged.

But in the spring of 1935, amid the dilemma of whether to move to America, Chandra told his father that he “realized that my relation with Lalitha was purely illusionary and that I really had not known her at all.” He had broken off the engagement.

A year later, before moving to Yerkes, Chandra visited India. He met with Lalitha to talk things over, and his decision to indefinitely postpone marriage “wilted away rather suddenly,” writes Wali. “She was more than a dream, she was quite real.”

They wed within a month—entering into a “love marriage,” unusual in their time—and soon moved to Williams Bay, Wisconsin, where Yerkes is located. Lalitha attended lectures at the observatory, and Chandra urged her to resume her physics research. “But I made the decision not to continue,” she told Wali, because she couldn’t devote all of her time. “Chandra had to give most of his time to his science. That is the way a scientist is made.”

Chandra and Lalitha lived at Yerkes for 27 years. “If you were in Williams Bay,” said UChicago astrophysicist and Chandra’s graduate student Peter Vandervoort, AB’54, SB’55, SM’56, PhD’60, in a 2017 interview, “you might as well be at the South Pole. Small towns in southern Wisconsin are not exactly the natural homes of academicians.” But nearly all of UChicago’s astronomy department worked there and lived in University-owned houses on the observatory’s grounds.

When Chandra was recruited, Struve was restructuring the astronomy graduate program to include more physics. He increased the coursework at the observatory, and Chandra did the bulk of his teaching there. His lectures followed his research: stellar interiors and atmospheres, stellar dynamics, and molecular spectroscopy.

The lectures were “formal and highly mathematical,” writes Osterbrock—organized, logical, eloquent. “There was a kind of cadence, a rhythm and music, to his lectures,” said Vandervoort. At the same time, Chandra was known to have little patience: “Frivolous questions from people who did not appear to have studied the material thoroughly,” said Carl Sagan, AB’54, SB’55, SM’56, PhD’60, “were dealt with in the manner of a summary execution.”

Chandra taught astrophysics for 15 years, but in 1952, the astronomy department revised its curriculum—which he had largely designed—effectively removing him. For the second time in his career, Wali notes, Chandra felt humiliated. “Most astronomers did not have very much appreciation for theoretical work of the type that Chandra did,” said Vandervoort. He “had a sense of being largely rejected by the astronomical community.”

The disaffection between Chandra and his colleagues grew, and he reexamined his early residency at Yerkes from a new perspective. His fellow recruits had been appointed assistant professors immediately and promoted the following year with tenure. Yet Chandra had started as a research associate and been reappointed the next year as an assistant professor—with no salary increase—and remained thus for four years. The others had received funds and resources denied to him.

He had found it curious that his research associate offer came directly from Robert Maynard Hutchins. “Such an appointment,” said Chandra, “does not normally need the intervention of the president of the university.” Wali notes that in the early 1960s—long past his presidency—Hutchins gave a lecture about racial strife at UChicago that explained why. He described how the appointment of a leading theoretical astronomer had been opposed “because he was an Indian, and black.” (Hutchins often claimed the best thing he did for the University was appoint Chandra.)

The young astrophysicist had also been unaware that Henry Gale, AB 1896, PhD 1899, dean of the physical sciences, attempted to block him from lecturing on campus in 1938; once again, Hutchins intervened. Chandra and Lalitha had both faced racism in their personal lives, but he later admitted to naivete about its effects on his professional life. “I was not even aware that something impolite, something improper had been done to me,” he told Wali.

Shortly after the astronomy department “repudiated” Chandra, as Vandervoort described it, Enrico Fermi invited him to join the physics department. From that point on, Chandra taught physics almost exclusively. But he didn’t abandon astrophysics altogether; that same year he became managing editor of the Astrophysical Journal , and over the next 20 years almost single-handedly developed it into the field’s leading international publication.

During his career, Chandra advised at least 46 doctoral students and presided over 1,000 colloquia. He received 20 honorary degrees, was elected to 21 learned societies, and won several prominent awards, including the National Medal of Science and, in 1983, the Nobel Prize in Physics for the work he’d conducted 53 years before, as a young man at the very start of his journey.

When Chandra first proposed black holes, the idea was deemed absurd, UChicago astrophysicist Daniel Holz , SM’94, PhD’98, told the University podcast Big Brains . Even Albert Einstein—whose work seeded the idea of black holes—had doubts. But Chandra’s math was sound.

Over the decades, evidence of their existence emerged. In 2015 the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory, of which Holz is a member, detected waves created by black holes colliding. Andrea Ghez , LAB’83, shared the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics for discovering a supermassive black hole by studying the movement of nearby stars. And the Event Horizon Telescope has released two pictures of black holes—Chandra’s unimaginable abstraction now plain to see.

UChicago Essay Examples (And Why They Worked)

The following essay examples were written by several different authors who were admitted to University of Chicago and are intended to provide examples of successful UChicago application essays. All names have been redacted for anonymity. Please note that CollegeAdvisor.com has shared these essays with admissions officers at University of Chicago in order to deter potential plagiarism.

For more help with your UChicago supplemental essays, check out our UChicago Essay Guide ! For more guidance on personal essays and the college application process in general, sign up for a monthly plan to work with an admissions coach 1-on-1.

Question 1 (Required; Choose one) 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 your own wishes and how they relate to UChicago.

When I visited UChicago, a friend invited me to step into her Comparative Literature class: Monstrosity and the Monstrous. Desperate for refuge from the cold (as a Bay Area resident, I hadn’t packed for the Chicago winter), I quickly obliged. I expected to silently observe, but when I mentioned that I’d read Antigone , her professor was thrilled–he immediately invited me into the discussion. For an hour and a half, we weighed the pros and cons of civil disobedience: did Antigone’s actions permanently destabilize Thebes, and in the modern day, when does protesting against a government cross the line? Was Antigone justified in interpreting the will of the gods? And, if so, would Sophocles support pardoning well-intentioned criminals? Beyond the enthralling analysis of the play, I was captivated by the spirit of UChicago: a campus that invites everyone (including a loitering high school student) to contribute and develop their ideas.

Now, it’s surreal to imagine taking “The Economics of Crime” from someone as renowned as Professor Levitt (I’ve been a fan since reading Freakonomics ) and staying after class to clarify the finer points of the latest Freakonomics podcast (I particularly enjoyed “Speak Softly and Carry Big Data,” on using data analysis to perfect foreign policy decisions). I hope to add to UChicago’s legacy of pushing the boundaries of our economic understanding by participating in undergraduate research, and perhaps put my findings to use through crafting social policy for the Harris School’s Public Policy Practicum. Prior to graduating, I’ll sample tastes of future careers through the Fried Public Policy and Service Program or the Trott Business Program. Simultaneously, as someone who enjoys conversing and respectfully challenging ideas, I look forward to immersing myself in the Core Curriculum and obtaining a strong foundation of knowledge. Above all, I appreciate that UChicago teaches students how to think, encourages dialogue, and prompts students to question norms.

Beyond an unparalleled education, UChicago boasts an incredible student body. Whether it’s over $1 milkshakes, at a desk beneath the stunning glass dome of the Mansueto library, or over a game of pick-up basketball, students at UChicago have a reputation for cultivating the most interesting conversations, both miscellaneous and profound. I hope that culture will only intensify within groups like the student government, Muslim Student Association, or the (undefeated) Model United Nations team. Though I look forward to Scav, the prospect of another scavenger hunt is even more enticing; over the next four years, my peers and I will discover the impact we intend to have on the world. Whether I end up delving into politics, finance, or the nonprofit sector, I know UChicago will guide me through that process–more importantly, as a member of a campus of visionaries, I hope to learn how I’ll change any field I enter. I look forward to four life-changing years–this time, with a warm winter coat.

Why this UChicago essay worked, from an ex-admissions officer

The author of this essay did a great job highlighting their familiarity with the faculty’s research and the university’s traditions. In doing so, admissions officers know that this student conducted the necessary research and is not solely interested in the university based on its rankings and reputation but rather the intangibles- the things that set UChicago apart, from other colleges/universities.

A few days ago, I had the pleasure of visiting UChicago’s campus. What I found was exactly what I’d hoped for: an absurdly specific and drawn-out debate over which poem was better, The Iliad, or The Odyssey.

It happened in a dorm. After my official tour, a good friend of mine, Lizzie, who I’d met two summers ago on a writer’s retreat offered to show me around campus. The insider tour: coveted by many, enjoyed by few. As we were leaving the common space on her floor in Max P., we were discussing our respective class schedules. We came to find that we were doing similar coursework with regard to Classical studies, and with a simple groan at my mention of the adventures of Achilles in Ilion, the battle began.

Quickly, I found myself drawing my spear—the initial jab: “The portrayal of Odysseus in The Odyssey is lackluster and inconsistent with prior descriptions at best.”

She dodged, “Maybe, but The Iliad is just a bunch of gore. I want a real story.” The phalanxes were starting to form; war cries echoing, bouncing off doors which held the empty beds of students wintering at Mansueto, I stopped.

“Listen,” I said, with a ring reminiscent of a sword being gloriously drawn from its sheath. “Homer may not have even been the mind behind much of The Odyssey . On top of that, how do you reconcile Odysseus’ supposed military genius spanning ten years with his seemingly cavalier attitude towards his men’s safety on the voyage home?” In turn, she threw her arms up with a sigh of exasperation—a shield, a deflection.

“Maybe, but Achilles’ melodramatic fits aren’t worth reading. If I wanted to witness overwrought pouting, I’d go find a four-year-old. Besides, an inconsistency doesn’t damn a story to the pits of inadequacy.”

Round and round we went, like Achilles and Hector around the city of Ilion, neither of us gaining an inch, and neither of us drawing nearer escape. But then, for us, escape wasn’t the point, was it? It was the chase. The Iliad would have been far less exciting had Achilles settled for glory, fought for Agamemnon, and killed Hector immediately. Likewise, The Odyssey is nothing but a story of a journey, and therefore wouldn’t have a leg to stand on without the chase. From my point of view, this is what UChicago is all about—the chase; the journey—the questions asked and examined, not only those answered. Lizzie and I never came to a conclusion about which poem is better (thankfully we could agree that The Aeneid was objectively well written, and well told), but we had a riveting, impassioned conversation on a dime. My favorite part of this? It happened on the way to her Physics discussion.

That’s why I love UChicago; this is what I crave. The perpetual hall pass to unapologetically geek out with fellow cats whom curiosity didn’t kill, but strengthened. To walk by the chapel, and hear the bells playing Kiss the Girl, to sit in the Reading Room and write, to marvel at the marketing genius behind the naming of Grounds of Being ; to have conversations with poetry nerds, language lovers, people who can rant about the beauty of the C7 chord or the curvature of a parabolic function. I can only see myself in a place that emphasizes interdisciplinary studies, that offers a slew of majors, minors, and career courses—that not just allows, but encourages exploration—that finds its students discussing Homer on the way to a physics class. I would not be able to function without the camaraderie that comes with the $1 shake, or the friendships born of mutual vitriol at the notion of their disappearance. This community is not tied, but melded together—one that challenges, one that nips stagnancy in the bud. So, paint me maroon and point me towards Axelrod; I’m ready to join this Odyssey-loving, manhole-cover-thieving, Royal Tenenbaum-esque family.

In this essay, the writer connected her seemingly random conversation with a friend to the interdisciplinary focus of the university and the ways in which, others challenge her views. Oftentimes, when we think of a college education- there is so much focus on the rankings, reputation, and major, career opportunities, return on investments, and salary– all of which, are very important; however, one could argue that that true purpose of college is to challenge yourself, to step outside of your comfort zone, meet new people and challenge others as well. This writer understands those values are paramount to an education at UChicago. The admissions officer reading this essay, knows this student will thrive at UChicago, but most importantly, this student will leave UChicago in a better place than where they found it by challenging those around them.

Question 2: Extended Essay (Required; Choose one)

Editor’s Note: The UChicago supplemental essays change each year, as the University is known to reach out to newly admitted and current students for essay prompts. These are examples of previous successful approaches to essay prompts.

2017-2018 UChicago Essay Prompt

What’s your armor.

I won’t knock on wood for luck if the wood isn’t demonstrably pure as the waters of the Piscine Molitor. When I say I won’t, I don’t mean that I will knock on a table, or a bench occasionally through gritted teeth if I’m in dire need of cosmic intervention, no, I mean I will not, under any circumstance, on a train, a plane, or even in Spain, knock on anything other than natural, uncoated in any way, wood. I recognize the scientific irrationality, not just of superstitions, but of being picking nits within a particular superstition. I have my reasons.

Two years ago, while scrolling through my Instagram feed, I stumbled across a disconcerting “fact” that probably wasn’t a fact . The post asserted that more than ninety-percent of all wooden tables, benches, chairs, etc are not, in fact, strictly wooden. Rather, they are a mix of synthetic materials and wood. Granted, in most cases, the synthetic is likely just a coat of protective varnish, but you see, that tarnishes the product for the superstitious. It was a moment of earth-shattering ramifications. In a matter of three seconds, I questioned every bit of trust I’d ever placed in the universe. It all seemed futile, meaningless. Now, I’m not knocking on wood, I’m knocking on wood that has been coated once, twice, ninety-six times with preservative varnish. At that point, it’s just a synthetic graveyard with a foundation of wood. There is no luck to be found in an ungodly cemetery of bones like that. I might as well knock on glass, or grass, or a plastic container. It surpasses trivial in the scheme of things, but imagine I were to have something especially important looming, something that has the potential to frame the context of the rest of my life, something like college applications. Why would I take a chance on something that merely resembles pure wood for luck? I wouldn’t. I’d run straight outside, find the nearest tree (the only real guarantee), and knock until my knuckles resembled shredded calf-liver. It’s really not worth the risk.

Why does it even matter, though? Who, and/or what enforces frivolous matters like outdated pseudo-religious compulsions? I like to imagine that there is a being in charge of each superstition, both the common and obscure. The Being of Repetition would oversee all attempts to cheat one’s destiny by uttering a word thirty-seven times, the Being of Self-Induced Discomfort would superintend those who hold their breath while they cross bridges or drive past cemeteries, and the Being of Sylvan Knocks would assure that not a single soul who bops their knuckles on a tarnished, synthetic-wood abomination receives their prize of favor. This being watches and keeps tabs on those foolish enough to put their faith in the preternatural equivalent of fool’s gold, and shames them by leaving their worlds deservedly unaltered. However, those who are devoted enough to search out the nearest tree and give it a few raps for good measure, will find magnificent rewards from their generous karmic sugar daddy. Call me a purist, call me ridiculous, but I’m convinced that this is the indisputable truth.

So convinced, in fact, that those closest to me have picked up on my idiosyncratic neurosis. I’ve been lucky enough to enjoy the friendship of observant souls, one of whom, named Jack, happens to be a skilled woodworker. Upon confessing to him my cognitive dissonance of being vehemently non-superstitious, while also controlled like a marionette by this irrational belief, he took it upon himself to, at the very least, ease the inconvenience of finding a tree in my panic. He gave me a teardrop-shaped, knuckle-sized piece of pure wood. Not just that, but he put a small hole in it so that it would fit on my keychain. I carry it everywhere. I give it a little knock every now and then just for the extra luck. Knowing that no matter the place, no matter the scenario, I’m always in the good graces of the Being of Sylvan Knocks means that I never again have to add “find a tree” to my mental to-do list. It means release—means freedom.

Maybe one day I’ll get over my manneristic malady, but until that day comes, I’ll keep carrying my teardrop everywhere I go, and hope that Jack never tells me that my charm is anything less than Piscine pure, unadulterated luck. Knock on wood, right?

2013-2014 UChicago Essay Prompt:

The mantis shrimp can perceive both polarized light and multispectral images; they have the most complex eyes in the animal kingdom. human eyes have color receptors for three colors (red, green, and blue); the mantis shrimp has receptors for sixteen types of color, enabling them to see a spectrum far beyond the capacity of the human brain. seriously, how cool is the mantis shrimp: mantisshrimp.uchicago.edu . what might they be able to see that we cannot what are we missing.

The red and purple hues of the sunset warm the chilly summer evening; the soft pastels blend perfectly under my fingers to emanate the photograph; each Van Gogh and Renoir mesmerize me as I creep through the brightly lit museum. Photographs and paintings capture the beauty that we see with our eyes. Our almighty sense of sight allows us to be immersed by the extraordinary, but at the same time, it hinders us.

Although breath-taking to witness, the mantis shrimp, majestic as a unicorn or narwhal from the outside, relates more closely to a soul-sucking dementor. Its mighty claws enable it to chomp nearby prey instantaneously. Is it possible that the violent behavior of a mantis shrimp is related in someway to its heightened abilities of sight?

Segregation, discrimination, isolation; so many “tion”s can be attributed to our sense of vision. In elementary school, the concept of being popular is already engrained in our minds. As a first grader, I got my first glimpse of this when a girl was forced to tell her best friend that they couldn’t hang out anymore because she “wasn’t cool enough.” And what deems someone to be popular? Of course, attitude and self-confidence are key, but popularity is equally derived from having the newest backpack and sparkly shoes that light up with each step. In the 1940s, having “the look” meant blonde hair and blue eyes with the emanating threat of concentration camps and execution. America, the land of the free, cannot forget its very own history of segregation that nearly split the nation in two. People were belittled and harassed due to the color of their skin. Throughout history, mankind has associated superiority with skin color and race. Our sense of sight has limited us oftentimes to fixate on seeing instead of understanding.

The kaleidoscopic exoskeleton of the mantis shrimp indicates its very own evolutionary emphasis on beauty. Why else would one attempt to look so radiant if not to mate and produce heirs? I would probably be pretty picky too if I had such a powerful pair of eyes—fixating on each segment, each tentacle, each antenna. Over the centuries, the selectivity of the mantis shrimp possibly eliminated less attractive members from the gene pool. It never thought “Oh well, maybe she has a nice personality and a good sense of humor.” In a world of plastic Barbie dolls and glossy magazine covers, I would hate to see an even greater emphasis on aesthetics.

As a child, I read A Wrinkle in Time and journeyed to the planet Ixchel where Madeline L’Engle’s fictional character Meg tries to explain the concept of seeing to a creature with no eyes. In response the beast states, “We do not know what things look like, as you say… We know what things are like. It must be a very limiting thing, this seeing.” As a child, I pondered the difficultly of explaining sight to someone incapable of it and all the words that a person wouldn’t understand—light, dark, colors, shades. When I initially read this prompt about the mantis shrimp, I was reminded of this passage. The difficulty of imagining all that the mantis shrimp can see is possibly just as difficult as it is for someone who is blind to imagine the red of a robin’s belly, the illustrious light blue sky, or the shades of skin tones. I was originally perplexed by the idea that seeing can be “a very limiting thing.” Over half a decade later, as I reread Madeline L’Engle’s words, I find the truth in this phrase. We do not need sight. It is convenient being able to color coordinate files and match shoes with shirts, but the ability to see can often overpower our other senses. We judge and make first impressions by the way a person dresses, often neglecting what that person says or thinks or knows.

Perhaps the mantis shrimp’s eyes allow it to see further than our color spectrum, into infrared, ultraviolet, or radio waves. Maybe this allows it to see its predators inching closer before they devise an attack. The shrimp’s vision could possibly replace its sense of feeling and hearing—observing sound waves in the wavy, salty sea or having thermal imaging abilities. However, the extent to its abilities is far greater than we can perceive. It would be impossible to imagine the full capabilities of the mantis shrimp without having a “Freaky Friday” moment and switching brains. As humans, we have become too accustomed to our perception of superiority that it is difficult to imagine abilities greater than our own. What we lack, we attempt to compensate for with technology and scientific advancements. We have escaped the mentality of our cavemen and cavewomen ancestors—scavenging for food and hiding from predators. Machine guns and others weapons of mass destruction have given humans the mindset that we are on the top of the food chain.

The short novel Flatland by Edwin A. Abbott was enforced upon my Geometry class over spring break. Although initially a lesson about the multiple dimensions, Flatland also explores the challenge of explaining higher realms to those who cannot experience it. The king of Pointland is so narrow-minded and insular that he refuses to believe that there are objects larger than he is. When confronted with a square, all he sees is another point. As humans, our abilities are limited as well. We do not have the innate skills of the mantis shrimp with its sixteen receptors; however, centuries of innovation have made us inept to fully perceive the skills we are incapable of.

The mantis shrimp can see a greater spectrum of rays and waves and possibly some great unknown, but perhaps, it is better that its abilities remain a mystery. At this time, we are probably not ready for such visual capabilities; our current ones have already proven to be overbearing. Maybe the best things in life are not meant to be seen because they must be felt or understood.

These UChicago essay examples were compiled by the advising team at CollegeAdvisor.com . If you want to get help writing your UChicago application essays from CollegeAdvisor.com Admissions Experts , register with CollegeAdvisor.com today.

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18 Successful UChicago Essays

Updated for the 2024-2025 admissions cycle.

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The University of Chicago is a private research institution with a strong history and dedication to education quality, located in the lively, diverse city of Chicago. Founded in 1890, UChicago has long been a national leader in research, academic rigor, and cutting-edge technology. Known for its strong humanities and social science programs—particularly its economics department—the University of Chicago houses Nobel Prize-winning faculty and over 15,000 students from all walks of life. The school is also known for its deep commitment to social justice, and it has projects centered around economics and poverty, the environment, and global health. For students hoping to access a vibrant campus culture at an excellent Midwestern school, the University of Chicago is an incredible option.

Unique traditions at UChicago

1. Fundamentals: University of Chicago students, faculty and alumni perform a complex swing dance known as "Fundamentals" each year at the University's reunion weekend. 2. Rubbing the Russell: It‚Äôs believed that if you rub the staff of sculptor Henry Hering‚Äôs Russell on the Main Quad at the University of Chicago, you will get an A in your next class. 3. Scav-Hunt: The world-renowned Scavenger Hunt is a five day event hosted by the student organization organization, the Hysterical Society. Teams compete to complete tasks, photo challenges, and other odd tasks for the chance to win a trophy. 4. Kerplunk: Every year, the University of Chicago holds an unofficial competition called ‚ÄúKerplunk,‚Äù in which teams compete to build an intricate, motorized sculpture and have it reach the top of the campus' tallest building. 5. Student Court: Each year, the University of Chicago holds a unique mock trial competition called the Student Court, in which students must put on a fully-staged trial in order to prove the innocence or guilt of one of the University's most famous alumni.

Programs at UChicago

1. Student Government: University of Chicago‚Äôs elected Student Government is a student-led organization that focuses on creating a more vibrant and passionate campus community. They host programming and advocate on behalf of students on a wide range of issues. 2. debate Team: The University of Chicago debate Team engages in preparation and research to compete with the highest levels of collegiate debate. It offers a unique space for students to both improve their debating skills and learn the importance of civic engagement. 3. Maroon Investment Group: This unique club provides University of Chicago students with the opportunity to develop their financial knowledge and to create and manage a real-world portfolio of local stocks and mutual funds. 4. Music Association: This student-run music association provides support for budding student musicians and creative expression. Through events, like jams and artist meetups, the Music Association provides a safe and collaborative space for students to explore various genres of music. 5. International House: Located near the main campus, the International House is a unique living space for students from all over the world to live together and develop a global perspective. The house also offers a range of educational, cultural and social activities that promote global understanding and cross-cultural exchange.

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Real Essays from UChicago Admits

Prompt: 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 your own wishes and how they relate to uchicago..

Reading about random things is fun. No seriously, have you ever tried it? Well, let me explain it to you! If a stranger could take a peek in my search history, they would find me dual-tasking subjects that have little to no connection, and leave with a puzzled look on their face. My after-midnight reading about the Collatz Conjecture is balanced with watching countless UChicago student videos filled with squirrels and hammocks. On other nights, they would see me looking through the New York Times, reading about the international disagreements of America, Russia, and China, all the while scrolling through the university’s vast, fascinating—and quite funny—meme Facebook page.

Because of my interest in exploring different topics, it has come to the pressing time where I need to make an important decision—which thematic track of global studies would I like to pursue at the University of Chicago? Law, Borders, and Security lets me dive into the complexities of borders, and how people immigrate to other countries to uncover new opportunities, as my Jamaican parents did. During high school, I conducted an independent study on misinformation and global politics. While researching, it led me to discover the ways these two things can create false perceptions concerning countries and migration. Reading the syllabus for Professor Solomon's course “Anthropology of Borders,” has made me excited to study the trends and practices of border crossings, and how the police and military play a role. However, the connections between different aspects of human life, from urbanism and environmentalism, compel me to consider the Health, Environment, and Urban Studies track. Getting lost in sustainable cities through my [Name Redacted] research, I learned about governance and the established policies for urban farming, while developing new solutions for food insecurity. Because of this, I wish to take Professor Schlutz’s course “Philosophies of Environmentalism and Sustainability,” allowing me to study the philosophical nature of land ethics, and the ways that humans have treated land.

Fueled by my night time Google searches, I’ve found myself intrigued with the stars up above and our genetic code. But there’s an easy fix for this, which also happens to be my favorite part of UChicago: the Core. My desire to take classes in these subjects is allowed by the various options within the interdisciplinary curriculum, and supported by the average class size of under twenty. I can apply all my searching and reading by being allowed to pick and choose what kind of classes I can take to fulfill the requirements. I can ultimately learn more about why stars shine so brightly and the development origins of cells. And, I can even ramble on and on about what I’ve learned to my future inquisitive and motivated UChicago classmates. Speaking of classmates, I have big plans to develop future friendships. Being able to spend time in one of many libraries—with my personal favorite being the automated Mansueto—we can study topics we’re deeply passionate about. At Hallowed Grounds, I can grab a snack and laugh with them over The Shady Dealer. And on Wednesdays, we can drink $1 milkshakes, while walking around the main Quad and talking about our lives.

UChicago allows me to keep up with my love for discussion and diplomacy through its Debate Society and Chicago Model United Nations. Providing accurate reporting is very important, so I aspire to get involved and become a positive influence in the UChicago journalism community. I wish to continue my journalistic writing I did throughout high school, by joining the university’s student newspaper, The Chicago Maroon, where I can report on campus, and cultural news. UChicago also fosters my interest in discovery and understanding, so I hope to conduct research in the Energy and Environment Lab. Here, I’m able to combine everything I did during my [Name Redacted] research, including when I studied the connection between food production and economics. I’m excited to work in this Lab where I can learn more about various aspects of city sustainability, including how to limit the impacts of air pollution and improve urban settings.

Ultimately, the university fulfills my desire to continue giving back, as many of my weekends are spent tutoring children in my city. The Neighborhood Schools Program allows me to keep my passion for mentoring by being able to help children around Hyde Park excel in various subjects. But, with everything that UChicago offers, it has left me with one final question: What impact do I wish to make? I have hopes of becoming knowledgeable about the laws that govern us in order to help people, but I also wish to pursue deeper research of global issues to benefit others. However, no matter where my future at UChicago takes me, I want to have a bit of fun by writing about it too.

Essay by Neverland

Political Science Major (Maybe Pre-Law we'll see lol) at the University of Chicago

.css-310tx6{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;text-align:center;gap:var(--chakra-space-4);} Find an essay from your twin at UChicago .css-1dkm51f{border-radius:var(--chakra-radii-full);border:1px solid black;} .css-1wp7s2d{margin:var(--chakra-space-3);position:relative;width:1em;height:1em;} .css-cfkose{display:inline;width:1em;height:1em;}

Someone with the same interests, stats, and background as you

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Economics at the University of Chicago

Nobel Prize Winners
The Chicago School of Economics
The Cowles Commission
Biographies of Notable Chicago Economists
Archival Collections

Nobel Laureates

Not technically a Nobel Prize, the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel was established in 1968. The first prizes were awarded in 1969. Thirty two economists associated with the University of Chicago at some point in their careers have been awarded the Prize.

2023 Claudia Goldin, 1946 - PhD, 1972

2022 Douglas W. Diamond, 1953 - Professor of Finance, 1979 -

2019 Micheal Kremer, 1964 - Professor of Economics, 2020 -

2018 Paul Romer, 1955 - Professor of Economics, 1988-1990

2017 Richard H. Thaler, 1945 - Professor of Behavioral Science and Economics, 1995 -

2013 Eugene F. Fama, 1939 - Professor of Finance, 1963 - MBA 1963, Ph.D 1964

Lars Peter Hansen 1952 - Professor in Economics, Statistics and the College 1981 -

2011 Thomas J. Sargent, 1943 - Professor of Economics, 1991-1998

2007 Roger B. Myerson, 1951 - Professor of Economics, 2001 -

2004 Edward C. Prescott, 1940 - Professor of Economics, 1998-99

2000 James J. Heckman, 1944 - Professor of Economics, 1973-

Daniel McFadden, 1937 - Visiting Associate Professor of Economics, 1966-67

1999 Robert A. Mundell 1932 - 2001 Professor of Economics, 1965 - 1971

1997 Myron Scholes, 1941 - MBA 1964, Ph.D 1969 Professor, Graduate School of Business, 1973-1983

1995 Robert E. Lucas, Jr., 1937 - 2023 Professor of Economics, 1974 - 2023

1993 Robert W. Fogel, 1926 - 2013 Professor of American Institutions 1981 - 2013

1992 Gary S. Becker, 1930 - 2014 Ph.D, 1955 University Professor in Economics, Booth School of Business, and Sociology, 1954-57, 1970 - 2014

1991 Ronald H. Coase, 1910 - 2013 Professor of Economics, the Law School, 1964 - 2013

1990 Harry M. Markowitz, 1927 - 2023 Ph.B. 1947, A.M., 1950, Ph.D 1954

Merton H. Miller 1923 - 2000 Professor of Finance and Economics, Graduate School of Business 1961-2000

1989 Trygve Haavelmo, 1911 - 1999 Visiting Professor of Economics, 1957-58 Research Associate of the Cowles Commission for Research in Economics, 1946-7

1986 James M. Buchanan, Jr., 1919 - 2013 Ph.D 1948

1985 Franco Modigliani, 1918 - 2003 Research Associate of the Cowles Commission for Research in Economics 1948-50

1983 Gerard Debreu, 1921 - 2004 Research Associate of the Cowles Commission for Research in Economics, 1950 - 1955

1982 George J. Stigler, 1911 - 1991 Ph.D 1938 Professor of Economics, 1958-81

1980 Lawrence R. Klein, 1920 - 2013 Research Associate of the Cowles Commission for Research in Economics, 1942-43

1979 Theodore W. Schultz, 1902 -1998 Professor of Economics 1943 - 72

1978 Herbert A. Simon, 1916 - 2001 AB 1936, Ph.D 1943 Research Associate of the Cowles Commission for Research in Economics, 1936 - 38

1976 Milton Friedman, 1912 - 2007 Professor of Economics, 1946 - 2007

1975 Tjalling C. Koopmans, 1910 - 1986 Research Associate of the Cowles Commission of Economics Research and Professor of Economics, 1944 - 1955

1974 Friedrich August von Hayek, 1889 - 1992 Professor of Social and Moral Science in the Committee on Social Thought, 1950-1962

1972 Kenneth J. Arrow, 1921 - 2017 Research Associate and Instructor in the Department of Economics, 1947-48; Assistant Professor, 1948-49.

1970 Paul A. Samuelson, 1915 - 2009 A.B., 1935

<< Previous: Archival Collections
Updated: Aug 21, 2024 2:49 PM
URL: https://guides.lib.uchicago.edu/ChicagoEconomics
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This Chicago university was just ranked one of the best in the world

The vast majority of schools mentioned in the 2024 Academic Ranking of World Universities are in the United States.

In today's ranking-related news: Our very own University of Chicago was just named the 10th best in the world by the 2024 Academic Ranking of World Universities report . We are, of course, so incredibly proud.

Nestled in Hyde Park, one of Time Out's coolest neighborhoods in the world , the school has been steadily landing at No. 10 on the same survey since at least 2022. More specifically, the institute offers top-notch economic and finance courses, the best ranked subjects within the school according to the study, but is also up there when it comes to law and statistics.

"UChicago prides itself on the strength of its intellectual traditions, including a dedication to intense critical analysis and lively debate, all of which result in creative solutions to complex problems," reads the writeup. "The University has been home to 92 Nobel Prize winners, over 260 Guggenheim fellows, over 50 Macarthur 'genius' fellows, and 25 Pulitzer Prize-winners."

Interestingly enough, eight out of the top 10 mentioned schools are American institutions, including Harvard University, which tops the list. The University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford, both in England, are the only two non-American entries.

In terms of methodology, the experts ranked the schools based on "several academic or research performance indicators, including alumni and staff winning Nobel Prizes and Fields Medals, Highly Cited Researchers, papers published in Nature and Science, papers indexed in major citation indices, and the per capita academic performance of an institution."

These are the 10 best universities in the world

Harvard University
Stanford University
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
University of Cambridge
University of California, Berkeley
University of Oxford
Princeton University
Columbia University
California Institute of Technology
University of Chicago

Been there, done that? Think again, my friend.

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Coetzee, who has taught in the University’s Committee on Social Thought since 1996, became a Professor in 2001 and a Distinguished Service Professor in July.

In a statement released just hours after the Nobel announcement was made in Sweden, Coetzee wrote: “I received the news in a phone call from Stockholm at 6 this morning [Thursday, Oct. 2]. It came as a complete surprise—I was not even aware that the announcement was pending. I am particularly happy that the announcement has come during this Autumn Quarter, which is the time of year that I spend at the University of Chicago.

“The University of Chicago, and in particular the Committee on Social Thought, has been my intellectual home for the past seven years,” said Coetzee. He also noted that his literary predecessor in the Committee on Social Thought, Saul Bellow, had won the 1976 Nobel Prize in Literature.

One of Coetzee’s Chicago colleagues, Wayne Booth, the George M. Pullman Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus in English Language & Literature, praised Coetzee’s writing. “Having read almost all of Coetzee’s work, I can honestly say that if I had been on the Nobel Prize Committee, he would have received it earlier. This enthusiasm springs from the ways in which he imagines himself sympathetically into characters of so many diverse kinds.”

A scholar of literature who has written on the language, ethics and politics of figures ranging from Erasmus to Tolstoy and Kafka, Coetzee is the first writer to be awarded twice Britain’s highest honor for fiction, the Booker prize. He first won the prize in 1983 for The Life and Times of Michael K. and again in 1999 for Disgrace .

Robert Pippin, the Raymond W. and Martha Hilpert Gruner Distinguished Service Professor in Philosophy and the Committee on Social Thought, commented on Coetzee’s Disgrace just after Coetzee had won his second Booker Prize.

“I found it a very powerful book,” he said. “It presents the confusing moral world and dwindling moral alternatives faced by South Africans in ways that are almost unbearably painful to read about, and then helps you realize why such issues are not limited to South Africa.”

Among Coetzee’s academic writings are Giving Offense: Essays on Censorship , The Lives of Animals , and White Writing: On the Culture of Letters in South Africa .

Educated at the University of Cape Town, Coetzee earned B.A.s with honors in English (1960) and Mathematics (1961). He was awarded an M.A. in English there in 1963. After travel to Britain, he completed Ph.D. work in English at the University of Texas, Austin in 1969.

Coetzee, who also is a recipient of the Jerusalem Prize, the Commonwealth Literary Award and the rank of Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in the Royal Society of Literature, taught at the State University of New York and the University of Cape Town, as well as Harvard and the Johns Hopkins universities, before joining the Chicago faculty.

Nathan Tarcov, Chairman and Professor of the Committee on Social Thought, described Coetzee as a dedicated teacher. “John Coetzee has been an invaluable colleague on the Committee on Social Thought the past seven years,” said Tarcov. “He is admired by the students not only for his insight into works of literature, but for his conscientious dedication to their education. All the faculty and students of the Committee on Social Thought are thrilled at his newest honor.”

As with collaborative research at the University, co-taught courses also preserve and promote Chicago’s interdisciplinary approach to research and teaching. “This year I am teaching two courses with colleagues here—a course on Plato with the philosopher Jonathan Lear, and a course on Walt Whitman with the poet Mark Strand. And I am of course continuing with my own work. I am working on new fiction, and I have a book of translations of Dutch poets due out shortly,” said Coetzee in his statement.

Jonathan Lear, the John U. Nef Distinguished Service Professor in the Committee on Social Thought, described what Coetzee gives his students—those in the classroom and those who inevitably will learn from reading his books.

UChicago scholar Mitchell S. Jackson wins Pulitzer Prize for essay on Ahmaud Arbery

Writer honored for ‘deeply affecting account’ of arbery’s life and killing.

Asst. Prof. Mitchell S. Jackson of the University of Chicago was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for feature writing for his essay in Runner’s World about the life and death of Ahmaud Arbery.

Arbery, an unarmed 25-year-old Black man, was shot and killed in February 2020 while jogging in Georgia after being chased by white men in vehicles. Arrests were made only weeks after the killing, once video pertaining to the incident was shared widely on social media.

Jackson interviewed Arbery’s friends and family remotely while quarantining in New York City, he said. The essay, published in June last year, about four months after Arbery’s death, provides a detailed account of his life, personality and relationships and “how running fails Black America.”

“I was really thankful because many of Ahmaud’s family members and close friends really opened up to me about him,” said Jackson, a faculty member in the Program in Creative Writing and the Department of English Language and Literature.

“You can tell a lot about a person by who they have in their life; who cares about them. It was really clear that they cared deeply about him, and that they were really good people. That gave me a lot of energy when I was writing the piece.”

The Pulitzer Prize Board recognized Jackson “for a deeply affecting account of the killing” of Arbery that “combined vivid writing, thorough reporting and personal experience to shed light on systemic racism in America.”

Arbery’s killing, along with those of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and other Black Americans, contributed to a wave of protests last summer in the movement against systemic racism and police brutality.

“Oftentimes victims of police brutality or misconduct … are just seen as a victim,” Jackson said. “It was really important to me to show how Arbery lived, which is why I named the piece ‘Twelve Minutes and a Life,’ because his life was just as important as the 12 minutes when he was hunted.”

Jackson noted that the murder trial is still ongoing, and that justice has “not been served.” He said he hopes his Pulitzer win will help keep society’s attention “where it needs to be.”

A prolific writer and columnist for Esquire whose work has appeared in The New Yorker , Time , The Guardian , The New York Times Book Review , Harpers , The Paris Review and other leading publications, Jackson’s nonfiction often explores important social and political topics through a close, personal lens.

Jackson is the author of multiple works of fiction and nonfiction, including the recent memoir Survival Math , about his experiences growing up in the Black community in Portland, Oregon; and the novel The Residue Years . He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship , a Creative Capital Grant, a PEN/Hemingway debut fiction award and numerous other writing honors .

“Mitchell S. Jackson’s special brilliance, announced in his memoir, ‘Survival Math,’ lies in presenting individual Black men with respect, honesty and love, tracking with detailed research and in powerful prose how each has found ways to survive in a hostile world,” said Prof. John Wilkinson, chair of UChicago’s Program in Creative Writing and in the Department of English Language and Literature.

Jackson said he was deeply honored by the award, which he did not know he had won until a friend called him. Jackson initially thought the congratulations were for the National Magazine Award that he won yesterday, he said.

“I don’t think anyone can anticipate winning a Pulitzer,” he said. “I felt just flabbergasted when I got the news. It was a surreal moment.”

After June 30, 2021, he will be departing UChicago and joining the English and creative writing faculty at Arizona State University.

Two UChicago alumni were also collaborators on a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalism project last year: Andrew Fan, AB ’13, and Damini Sharma, AB ’15, SM ’20, worked on an investigation of police dogs and the damage that K-9 units inflict on Americans, which won the prize for national reporting .

Fan is a data reporter who spent more than a year investigating police dog bites at the Invisible Institute, a nonprofit journalism outlet based in Chicago that was one of four organizations that jointly won for their work on the project. Sharma also contributed as a data reporting fellow at the Marshall Project, which produces nonprofit journalism about criminal justice.

Other recent UChicago-affiliated winners of Pulitzer Prizes include alumni Brent Staples , AM’76, PhD’82 (editorial writing, 2019); Martyna Majok, AB’07 (drama, 2018); Tyehimba Jess, AB’91 (poetry, 2017).

New York Times columnist Bret Stephens, author Philip Roth, longtime Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham, historian John Hope Franklin, astronomer Carl Sagan and novelist and playwright Thornton Wilder are also former winners who are UChicago alumni or former faculty.

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Robyn Schiff’s epic poem ‘Information Desk’ draws critical acclaim

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NSF awards $20 million to build AI models that predict scientific discoveries and technological advancements

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William Myers, the first black resident of Levittown, Pennsylvania

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Around uchicago.

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Breakthrough by UChicago scientists could ease notoriously difficult chemical reaction

Quantrell and PhD Teaching Awards

UChicago announces 2024 winners of Quantrell and PhD Teaching Awards

Campus News

Project to improve accessibility, sustainability of Main Quadrangles

National Academy of Sciences

Five UChicago faculty elected to National Academy of Sciences in 2024

Group photo of 100+ people outside a building with many windows

UChicago’s Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics celebrates 20 years of discovery

Dean Thomas Miles with Richard Sandor (far right) and his wife Ellen (center)

University of Chicago Law School

Coase-Sandor Institute for Law and Economics celebrates decade of impact

Biological Sciences Division

“You have to be open minded, planning to reinvent yourself every five to seven years.”

Prof. Chuan He faces camera smiling with hands on hips with a chemistry lab in the background

Meet A UChicagoan

Organist pulls out all the stops to bring Bach to UChicago

COMMENTS

Nobel Prizes
Nobel Prizes have been awarded to 99 scholars who were UChicago faculty members, students, or researchers at some point in their careers. Some of the Nobel winners whose work is closely associated with the University are Milton Friedman (Economics, 1976), Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar (Physics, 1983), Saul Bellow (Literature, 1976), Charles Huggins (Physiology or Medicine, 1966), and Willard ...
The 7 UChicago Essay Prompts: How to Write Stellar Responses
Essay Option 3: "Vlog," "Labradoodle," and "Fauxmage.". Language is filled with portmanteaus. Create a new portmanteau and explain why those two things are a "patch" (perfect match). Essay Option 4: A jellyfish is not a fish. Cat burglars don't burgle cats. Rhode Island is not an island.
UChicago Releases 2022-2023 Essay Prompts
Essay Option 4: UChicago has been affiliated with over 90 Nobel laureates. But, why should economics, physics, and peace get all the glory? You are tasked with creating a new category for the Nobel Prize. Explain what it would be, why you chose your specific category, and the criteria necessary to achieve this accomplishment.
How to Write the University of Chicago Supplemental Essays: Guide
Here are some steps to figure that out. Step #1: Do your research. Spend 1 hr+ researching 10+ reasons why UChicago might be a great fit for you (ideally 3-5 of the reasons will be unique to UChicago and connect back to you). Step #2: Use this chart to map out your research. Step #3: Decide on your approach.
How to Write the University of Chicago Essays 2022-2023
The Nobel Prize is awarded to those who have "conferred the greatest benefit to mankind" in the categories of Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, and Peace. Through this prompt, UChicago wants to know what matters to you, and they want to see your analytical and creative side shine through your selection process ...
UChicago Supplemental Essay Questions
UChicago Essay Prompts - 2024-2025. 2024-2025 UChicago Essay Prompts - Hand Crafted for You! The University of Chicago has long been renowned for our provocative essay questions. We think of them as an opportunity for students to tell us about themselves, their tastes, and their ambitions. They can be approached with utter seriousness, complete ...
2 Great UChicago Essay Examples
2 Great UChicago Essay Examples. UChicago is famous —or shall we say infamous—for their highly-quirky essay prompts. In previous years, students have been tasked with mind-boggling questions like "Find X," or "A hot dog might be a sandwich, and cereal might be a soup, but is a __ a __?". These essays may seem silly, but they invite ...
How To Answer U Chicago's Supplemental Essay Prompts 2022/23
Essay Option 4. UChicago has been affiliated with over 90 Nobel laureates. But why should economics, physics, and peace get all the glory? You are tasked with creating a new category for the Nobel Prize. Explain what it would be, why you chose your specific type, and the criteria necessary to achieve this accomplishment.
A Guide to the UChicago Supplemental Essays 2022-2023
Essay Option 4. UChicago has been affiliated with over 90 Nobel laureates. But, why should economics, physics, and peace get all the glory? You are tasked with creating a new category for the Nobel Prize. Explain what it would be, why you chose your specific category, and the criteria necessary to achieve this accomplishment.
UChicago Supplemental Essays 2024-25
July 8, 2024. UChicago has long been known for its "provocative" essay prompts, viewing them as a chance for "students to talk about themselves, their tastes, and their ambitions.". The University of Chicago admissions committee invites you to approach the UChicago supplemental essays with "utter seriousness, complete fancy, or ...
Nobel Prizes
Essays; In the News; Releases; Class Notes ... University News. Fall/23. Top honors. By Laura Demanski, AM'94. Two alumni were recognized with 2023 Nobel Prizes. Economics & Business. Winter/23. A cut above. By Louise Lerner, ABʼ09. Douglas W. Diamond's banking research gave UChicago its 97th Nobel. Science & Medicine. Winter/23. It was ...
Richard Thaler wins Nobel Prize 'for his contributions to behavioural
Becomes 90th scholar associated with the University to receive Nobel Prize Richard Thaler wins Nobel Prize 'for his contributions to behavioural economics' ... five current UChicago faculty members are Nobel laureates in economics: Profs. Eugene Fama and Lars Hansen (who won in 2013), Roger Myerson (2007), James Heckman (2000) and Robert E ...
It was written in the stars
In an autobiographical essay, she describes her love of physics as stemming from her interest in Marie Curie and the excitement in India over C. V. Raman's Nobel Prize. ... LAB'83, shared the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics for discovering a supermassive black hole by studying the movement of nearby stars. And the Event Horizon Telescope has ...
PDF The Nobel Prize in Economics Turns 50
Abstract. The first Sveriges Riksbank Prizes in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, were awarded in 1969, 50 years ago. In this essay we provide the historical origins of this sixth. "Nobel" field, background information on the recipients, their nationalities, educational.
UChicago Essay Examples (And Why They Worked)
2013-2014 UChicago Essay Prompt: The mantis shrimp can perceive both polarized light and multispectral images; they have the most complex eyes in the animal kingdom. Human eyes have color receptors for three colors (red, green, and blue); the mantis shrimp has receptors for sixteen types of color, enabling them to see a spectrum far beyond the ...
How Nobel Prize winner John Goodenough sparked the wireless revolution
Three-quarters of a century later, at age 97, Goodenough will become the oldest person to receive the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. At a Dec. 10 ceremony in Sweden, he will be honored for pioneering breakthroughs that led to the widespread use of the lithium-ion battery—and helping spark the wireless revolution. The descendants of his batteries ...
18 Successful UChicago Essays
Founded in 1890, UChicago has long been a national leader in research, academic rigor, and cutting-edge technology. Known for its strong humanities and social science programs—particularly its economics department—the University of Chicago houses Nobel Prize-winning faculty and over 15,000 students from all walks of life.
Nobel Prize Winners
Thirty two economists associated with the University of Chicago at some point in their careers have been awarded the Prize. 2023. Claudia Goldin, 1946 -. PhD, 1972. 2022. Douglas W. Diamond, 1953 -. Professor of Finance, 1979 -. 2019. Micheal Kremer, 1964 -.
John B. Goodenough shares Nobel Prize in Chemistry for invention of
Goodenough is among the 92 scholars associated with the University of Chicago to receive a Nobel Prize. At age 97, Goodenough continues to conduct research in the lab, and on Wednesday he became the oldest person ever awarded a Nobel Prize.
This Chicago university was just ranked one of the best in the world
"UChicago prides itself on the strength of its intellectual traditions, including a dedication to intense critical analysis and lively debate, all of which result in creative solutions to complex ...
Robert Fogel, won Nobel Prize in Economics, 1926-2013
A reception will follow at the Charles M. Harper Center. Robert W. Fogel, an economic historian at the University of Chicago who won the Nobel Prize in 1993 for his studies of slavery in the United States and the role railroads played in the development of the economy, died Tuesday, June 11. His death at age 86 followed a brief illness ...
Coetzee wins Nobel Prize
John Coetzee, whose fiction and nonfiction are known for providing insights into the problems of violence, censorship and how people treat those different from themselves, was honored last Thursday for his body of work with the 2003 Nobel Prize in Literature. Coetzee, who has taught in the University's Committee on Social Thought since 1996 ...
UChicago scholar Mitchell S. Jackson wins Pulitzer Prize for essay on
Asst. Prof. Mitchell S. Jackson of the University of Chicago was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for feature writing for his essay in Runner's World about the life and death of Ahmaud Arbery.. Arbery, an unarmed 25-year-old Black man, was shot and killed in February 2020 while jogging in Georgia after being chased by white men in vehicles.

Nobel Laureates

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The 7 UChicago Essay Prompts: How to Write Stellar Responses

What Are the UChicago Essays?

Question 1: Why UChicago?

Question 2: Extended Essay

How to Answer the University of Chicago Essay Prompts

What Do They Want to See in Your Response?

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Topics to Avoid

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Essay Option 2

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Essay Option 4

Essay Option 5

Essay Option 6

University of Chicago Essay Examples

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UChicago Released 2022-2023 Essay Prompts and We're Loving Them

2022-2023 University of Chicago Supplemental Essay Prompts

Question 2: Extended Essay (Required; Choose 1)

Past Supplemental Extended Essay Prompts

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UChicago Supplemental Essay Questions

2024-25 UChicago Supplement

Question 2: Extended Essay (Required; Choose one)

Essay Option 2

Essay Option 3

Essay Option 4

Essay Option 5

Essay Option 6

Some classic questions from previous years…

What are your chances of acceptance?

Your chancing factors

2 Great UChicago Essay Examples

Essay Example #1

What This Essay Did Well

What Could Be Improved

Essay Example #2

What the Essay Did Well

Where to Get Your UChicago Essays Edited

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How To Answer U Chicago's Supplemental Essay Prompts 2022/23

What are the University of Chicago supplemental essay prompts for 2022/23?

Prompt 1 (Required)

Prompt 2: Extended Essay (Required; Choose one)

How to answer Prompt 1

Helpful Tips for Prompt 1

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3. Stay humble

4. Stay positive

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How to answer Prompt 2

Essay Option 1

Essay Option 2

Essay Option 3

Essay Option 4

Essay Option 5

Essay Option 6