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How long did it take everyone to hear back on their decision? I know during my interview they told our group 8-12 weeks, but does it really take that long? I guess I'm just getting antsy 
University of Chicago-Pritzker Class of 2011
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How long did it take everyone to hear back on their decision? I know during my interview they told our group 8-12 weeks, but does it really take that long? I guess I'm just getting antsy
i'm waiting too. i interviewed on jan 23rd. i called today and she said 6-8 weeks from interview date. i'm in the 7th week so hopefully something this week or next. i'm about to start pulling out my hair.
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It takes a while for U chicago to let you know...it seems it has been right around 8 weeks...for me I interview Oct 9th and found out Dec 5th...best of luck...
for those who care I got my financial aid award letter yesterday! Looking like I am headed to Chicago!
for those who care I got my financial aid award letter yesterday! Looking like I am headed to Chicago!
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When did you submit everything?
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I submitted all my financial aid stuff essentially by Feb 9th.
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Hey Falco, I submitted my info like the same day! (whoa, didn't mean to sound like a valley girl there, sorry, too much caffeine...)
Did you get a hard letter or an email? I am looking forward to seeing the breakdown esp. since Pritzker has such on average massive debt...but I really love the school!!
Do you mind telling how much money they gave you? I will like to have an estimate of how much they are giving out. Money is how I am going to choose between pritzker and Hopkins so I am anxiously awaiting my award. Thanks
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Hey everyone okay so I was complete a week earlier than i previously said...i looked it up....also i got just over 50K so I am pretty happy...I did not expect a whole lot but I think it is a decent offer
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Hey, great job, hope to see you there in September...And I'll wait at least another week before freaking out about where my award is in the mail
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Hey, great job, hope to see you there in September...And I'll wait at least another week before freaking out about where my award is in the mail
oh yeah btw it was via email...and sent to the email address that I put on the FAFSA so check that one...i was surprised to see it there since I had not given it to Pritzker
That is so weird because I just called them and they said they sent it to me this morning via snail mail and i asked if they would email it to me and they said they weren't emailing them this year?
grrr its going to my school and i'm on spring break right now!That is so weird because I just called them and they said they sent it to me this morning via snail mail and i asked if they would email it to me and they said they weren't emailing them this year?
I just spoke to Dave Owen and he told me their software guy who puts the aid packages in the email form is not there today so they will be emailing tomorrow
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Haha, that sounds classicly like the UChicago admissions / finaid office(s). They seem so terrified of technology...But thanks for the heads up, maybe I'll hear something tomorrow...sweet.
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Financial aid came today, to my home address (good thing it's spring break). It was dated March 15 -- mail takes forever to get to our house.
Overall, ~58k offered for first year (I think that's how much it costs total) and they promised $120,000 over 4 years in scholarship $$, broken down into 25k each of first two years, 35k each 3rd/4th year. So, out of that 58k, about 30k in loans with a little bit of parent (or i guess, me) contribution too. I have no idea if this is good or not? It seems like a lot but it would still leave me with a lot of loan $$ in the end over four years. Ah well...I'm not complaining!!
Oh, and no email yet
Overall, ~58k offered for first year (I think that's how much it costs total) and they promised $120,000 over 4 years in scholarship $$, broken down into 25k each of first two years, 35k each 3rd/4th year. So, out of that 58k, about 30k in loans with a little bit of parent (or i guess, me) contribution too. I have no idea if this is good or not? It seems like a lot but it would still leave me with a lot of loan $$ in the end over four years. Ah well...I'm not complaining!!
Oh, and no email yet
hey guys! i got in today just wanted to say hi! pritzker was my dream school since last two years but i'm not certain where i'm going. i have a really weird question, though. i got a call today and called back and spoke to joni who said i got in after they met yesterday and she was just so excited that she called as soon as she could, buti just checked the website and it still says yes/no as in no decision has been made. did the rest of you have anything similar? it's just that im afraid after all this waiting and this 80 degree weather that perhaps i'm delusional and the call never happened.
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Financial aid came today, to my home address (good thing it's spring break). It was dated March 15 -- mail takes forever to get to our house.
Overall, ~58k offered for first year (I think that's how much it costs total) and they promised $120,000 over 4 years in scholarship $$, broken down into 25k each of first two years, 35k each 3rd/4th year. So, out of that 58k, about 30k in loans with a little bit of parent (or i guess, me) contribution too. I have no idea if this is good or not? It seems like a lot but it would still leave me with a lot of loan $$ in the end over four years. Ah well...I'm not complaining!!
Oh, and no email yet
for med school, any fellowship $ is nice and 120k is pretty generous (granted that some other top 20 schools have aid *at least* as generous). in the end, all that matters is how the aid compares to that of other schools at which you were accepted. right?
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It took my paqe at least 24 hours to update. Congrats, man. You're in.
And to doctor-detroit: yes, absolutely, it's the relative cash that matters. NYU doesn't look likely to pony up the big dollars and, looking at the competition this year, I'm just glad to be accepted to Pritzker, much less get much cash. If I get into Penn, though...of course, they SURELY won't give me money ... i'll be lucky to squeek into their 2011 class by some mistake!!!
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So who here is definitely 100% going to U of C next year????
i'm at about 50%. i like pritzker for its research opportunities and clinical years, but i think i might actually be happier overall at pitt. financial aid will help me out with the decision.
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So who here is definitely 100% going to U of C next year????
how about 99%...thats as close as I can get right now...but unless something dramatic happens I will be there in the Fall!
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hey out of curiosity - did anyone ever get confirmation on all the financial aid stuff? i havent heard a peep and i sent mine in really early, hopin i didnt forget anything as there was a lot of stuff on that list of things to send...
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I did the same and hadn't heard anything, so I called. They said I would hear from them within two weeks or so, and that I was in the "processing" stages.
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I sent mine in snail-mail and never received a confirmation but I did email asking if my file was complete and they said yes. A few days ago, fin aid showed up in my mail -- i had submitted mine just a day or two after they sent the forms out, so it did take a while. As long as you sent your taxes and those school-specific forms I'm sure they'll take care of you!
I am about 65%...aahh this is such a tough decision. I am going to ask this here because I have noticed most of you got into some really great schools or at least, one really great one (Prtizker) so I hopefully won't be making anyone feel bad. Will u guys go to hopkins for 250k or pritzker for 200K? this is assuming u will go to hopkins if all things were equal. will appreciate some thoughts from future class mates. thanks
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$50,000 is both a lot of money and not a lot of money when it comes to debt. I don't think it would make a significant difference in my mind when deciding on which school to go to, but I know I'm not interested in primary care (of course, if you're getting into Pritzker/JHU, you probably aren't either). I didn't even apply to JHU because of a lack of things for my fiancee to do in Baltimore, a lingering reputation of competition, the neighborhood (although Hyde Park isn't much better), etc. Major kudos on being accepted there. Like so many choices we talk about on SDN, I think you'll have made a great choice regardless of where you end up.
Have you received your fin aid award from Pritzker yet? I would assume if you're good enough to get into UChicago and JHU they'll toss some scholarshp your way, unless you won the lottery last year or something.
I will give u guys the whole story. The main block to aid for me is my international student status. That is what keeping me from getting aid from hopkins since hopkins is not allowed to give aid to internationals so i have to borrow all 250k. I have received my pritzker aid and only got 60k over 4 years again because of international status which will make my pritzker education around 200K. Keep in mind that over 9 years (4 med school and 5 residency), the principal will be accumulating an interest of 9% since these will all be private loans. SO in the end, the difference will more like 80k-100k. Please advice on. I am so confused and change my mind each day.
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I guess a lot of it depends on your goals.
What specialty do you see yourself in? If you know 100% that you want to do derm or plastics, then Hopkins would again give you a big edge. If you are 100% set on EM or Path, then it makes much less difference.
Where do you think you would be happier? What city do you prefer? What curriculum do you like better?
It's hard for a bunch of strangers to answer these types of questions. For only a $50K difference, it makes sense to me to go where you would prefer to go.
I'm not sure if this helps, but I think that the cost of attending Hopkins for 4 years is $220K, not $250K. Pritzker is more expensive (slightly).
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yeah pritzker is a little more expensive in the 3rd and 4th years and i imagine housing is cheaper in balto. speaking to the cost, is anyone else a little skeptical to how they added this up? seems to me the transportation, housing, and personal costs might be a little on the high end. i guess you can always give the loan money back if you dont need it though.
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Remember that the "estimated cost" is the maximum you're allowed to borrow from federal sources. So, it's good for them to over-estimate so their students aren't going broke. Like you said, you can always not take the entire loan. I think I'll be cutting back $1000-3000....
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i swear to you that the budget *is* on the high side! it looks like they budget around 17k for living expenses just for nine months. well, i know grad students at u of chicago that are getting by okay on stipends of around 12k per year! if you share a 2 bedroom/1 bath, that can be about $500 per month with utilities, or 6 k per year. that leaves $500 per month for all other living expenses. you won't be living in regents or eating at chicago's finest restaurants, but you can make ends meet and still go out on the weekends on 12k per year. i'm also not sure about how much i'd use the book budget. i mean, don't they have the textbooks online now?
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no you have to fill out the fafsa....and no they send it with the financial aid award letter you receive after filling it out...
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I got it with the acceptance letter.
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good times falco, im pretty sure ill be there too, know for sure by the end of the week. i screwed up part of my aid paperwork though so im currently dealing with that mess.
did everybody see the "leaked" rankings that have uc up to 15 or something? the greatest and most legitimate ranking body on earth has given us greater vigor! it is a new era! but seriously, the school is quite good and im looking forward to finally being done with all this picking nonsense.
did everybody see the "leaked" rankings that have uc up to 15 or something? the greatest and most legitimate ranking body on earth has given us greater vigor! it is a new era! but seriously, the school is quite good and im looking forward to finally being done with all this picking nonsense.
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Haha yeah I saw it. Made me feel better about my decision (because you know rankings mean everything). It was actually pretty cool I withdrew all my waitlists and acceptances and then I went to my mailbox to get the offical financial aid award letter in the mail...turns out I got 10k more than I thought when I made my decision...it was pretty cool
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Oh and I really hope you guys do come to Chicago...I know you have tough decisions also and best of luck I am sure you can not make a bad one...if you do decide Chicago it will be awesome next year....the class is going to rock
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Hi folks,
Congrats to those of you who are trickling in to the class...you won't be disappointed.
As you're probably starting to at least think about where to live, I came across these maps of neighborhoods in Chicago (especially for those of you who are thinking about living outside of HP).
http://mojansami.com/map/chicagoneighborhoodsmap_lrg.jpg
http://www.wildonions.org/Neighborhoods.jpg
Ben
Congrats to those of you who are trickling in to the class...you won't be disappointed.
As you're probably starting to at least think about where to live, I came across these maps of neighborhoods in Chicago (especially for those of you who are thinking about living outside of HP).
http://mojansami.com/map/chicagoneighborhoodsmap_lrg.jpg
http://www.wildonions.org/Neighborhoods.jpg
Ben
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Hey Ben thanks for the maps very helpful.
on that note which neighborhoods outside of hyde park are
fairly close, nicer areas, safe, and areas where some students live.
Do you recommend living in hyde park? If so where? Thanks
on that note which neighborhoods outside of hyde park are
fairly close, nicer areas, safe, and areas where some students live.
Do you recommend living in hyde park? If so where? Thanks
Here's another question Ben: if you live outside of hyde park in one of the other, hipper neighborhoods do you absolutely need to have a car to get back and forth to the hospital? i really want to sell my car but i REALLY want to live outside of HP for the last 3 years of med school.
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The areas of Chicago in which you'd absolutely need a car to function are few and far between, and chances are you'll not even be considering them. I live in the South Loop, a couple of blocks west of Soldier Field, and take the Metra down, which isn't bad at all. The ride is between 8-11 minutes for me, and if you walk from the station, it's another 15 minutes or so to the hospital. I usually take my bike, so it's more like 15-20 minutes of total transit time. Needless to say, if you're living outside of Hyde Park, the South Loop is probably your best option in terms of proximity while still being in a decent area of town. It's also probably the most populous area outside of Hyde Park in which students live, with areas like Lincoln Park, Italian Village, Old Town, and the general Loop area not terribly far behind. The carless commute from these latter places, however, is more difficult since you have to deal with the relatively slower buses and more transfers. But, it's certainly possible. I sold my car a few weeks ago myself, and I haven't minded the new commute too much at all.
To be honest, no. That's mostly because I never have lived there, and I've never regretted that decision. I personally need to physically remove myself from school on a regular basis for my own sanity, and while Hyde Park is honestly a very cool place (parts of it, at least), I happen to enjoy the chaotic downtown atmosphere better and my proximity to some of the cooler things in the city. Obviously most of any class will live in Hyde Park, and I don't know many people who absolutely hate it there; most I've talked to find living in HP at least tolerable, if not quite pleasant.
There aren't too many so-called hot spots to live in HP; everyone is just kind of sprawled out depending on how nice a place they want, how close they want to be to the hospital/BSLC, etc. Regents tends to be the most popular place by far, mostly for its overall quality of apartments, building amenities, and number of fellow classmates living there, but it's also pretty far from campus and usually requires a bus ride to campus or a very long walk.
Keep in mind that I am one person with one opinion. The more people you talk to, the more opinions you will get, but I'm guessing I feel similarly to anyone who lives outside of Hyde Park in terms of recommending that you live outside of Hyde Park if it's possible. You'll all be getting materials in a several weeks with much more information on neighborhoods and also on apartments and buildings in Hyde Park, so that should be helpful too. It's got a lot of student reviews, surveys on where people like/don't like living, etc.
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For what it's worth, I literally am sitting next to a first-year at Rush right now at Starbucks...looks like she wants to shoot herself.
Edit: ****, she caught me...but confirmed my observations.
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hey ben,
as always, thanks for stopping by! couple q's related to living away from campus:
-i know that the bus from regents is free for uc kids, but what about the metra? can you pay a fee for unlimited rides for a month/year? also, is there a bus connecting the metra to uc?
-how is pricing in the south loop relative to, say, regents (which i think is around 6-700 per person in a 3br)? i only know one person who lives in your neck of the woods, but he lives in a 300k condo, not so much my range.
-lastly, when we get all this housing info from the uc people, will it include resources for outside hp?
thanks again!
as always, thanks for stopping by! couple q's related to living away from campus:
-i know that the bus from regents is free for uc kids, but what about the metra? can you pay a fee for unlimited rides for a month/year? also, is there a bus connecting the metra to uc?
-how is pricing in the south loop relative to, say, regents (which i think is around 6-700 per person in a 3br)? i only know one person who lives in your neck of the woods, but he lives in a 300k condo, not so much my range.
-lastly, when we get all this housing info from the uc people, will it include resources for outside hp?
thanks again!
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If you'd be taking the Metra to downtown, it's roughly $58 for a monthly pass (I'm getting ready to pay mine here soon). Keep in mind that that only gets you to just south of the river, so if you're trying to get to like Water Tower or something, it's another 10-15-minute walk. Buses from every HP stop to campus are frequent and free.
So that's one of the big differences between the South Loop and other areas. Just to give you a brief history of it, it used to be a big warehouse area, with the train tracks running right through it and being relatively close to downtown, the stockyards, and Printer's Row. When they all moved out, it turned into a really rough area up until probably the late 80s/early 90s, even, when condos started going up and many, many warehouses were converted into lofts. The mayor moved here. Crime went way down. The landscaping was paid attention. Things like that. (My mom went to school in Chicago in the 70s and basically moved out to the suburbs shortly after training; when I told here where I was living, she was like, "YOU'RE LIVING SOUTH OF ROOSEVELT?!? ARE YOU CRAZY?!?" Apparently it was a basic no-no for a long time to even set foot in the area.)
Anyway, it's an extremely livable area now (seriously, I'm not just saying that...there is practically zero crime here, and the landscaping is thuper(!)). Daley still lives right down the street from me. It's close to the lake. It's close to Grant Park and I can walk to Millennium Park. There's a new "strip mall" that has Panera, Starbucks, Whole Foods, Office Max/Staples, DSW, and Home Depot that just opened a few weeks ago. There's a Target next to it. There are tons of condos going up these days, and restaurants and bars are trickling in all the time. But, as a result, most of the places you will encounter are to own, and the amount of rentals are relatively slim, just because almost everybody here owns. Also, pretty much anything you rent outside of HP will be more expensive than anything you can find in HP.
But, it's still worth it. I'll try to find some links for you guys, but as a starter check out craigslist, Chicago Reader classifieds, and any realty website you can find. Also, the CTA map is indispensable; I use it all the time. It's a good way to map a location to el stops and bus lines.
A place with a similar feel is Printer's Row, and it has a ton of rentals and is nearly as convenient for getting to HP. Check it out if you're getting discouraged by places you're seeing in South Loop.
Tons, hopefully. It has in the past. If it doesn't, let me know and I'll see if some other peeps can get on this thing.
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I emailed the Regents Park people a while back; they responded quickly w/ rates for Pritzker students. Here it is:
Studio -- $995 (market rent $1050 -- $1195)
One Bedroom -- $1185 (market rent $1200 -- $1335)
Two Bedroom -- $1475 (market rent $1500 -- $1700)
Three Bedroom -- $1875 (market rent $1890 -- $2150)
Those prices include cable TV, DSL internet, and electric. Heat/Air comes in a separate bill (it's by the square footage of your apt) but the maximum is $65/mo according to one of their contract documents. So, compared at least to the NYC apartments I'm looking at, Regents isn't even a bad deal and it's one of the most expensive places to live in Hyde Park according to some of my friends who are MS1/MS2 (and live elsewhere).
Hope that helps someone. I'll probably end up in their since my fiancee is afraid of cities (perhaps rightly so, she's 5' 1") and walk-ups will make her nervous...And ~$600/mo for each of us is probably within our finances.
Studio -- $995 (market rent $1050 -- $1195)
One Bedroom -- $1185 (market rent $1200 -- $1335)
Two Bedroom -- $1475 (market rent $1500 -- $1700)
Three Bedroom -- $1875 (market rent $1890 -- $2150)
Those prices include cable TV, DSL internet, and electric. Heat/Air comes in a separate bill (it's by the square footage of your apt) but the maximum is $65/mo according to one of their contract documents. So, compared at least to the NYC apartments I'm looking at, Regents isn't even a bad deal and it's one of the most expensive places to live in Hyde Park according to some of my friends who are MS1/MS2 (and live elsewhere).
Hope that helps someone. I'll probably end up in their since my fiancee is afraid of cities (perhaps rightly so, she's 5' 1") and walk-ups will make her nervous...And ~$600/mo for each of us is probably within our finances.
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I was reading online about Regents park and there were tons of complaints of constant construction and unbearable noise from it. I would make sure to look into that.
I think I definitely want to live in south loop.
I think I definitely want to live in south loop.
