Webinar Transcript: Featuring UChicago: A Conversation With Undergraduate Students & Alumni

Elton Lin: Hey. Welcome to everybody who's joining us on our webinar series. Before we get started, go on to the chat, and we always like hearing where people are calling in from. For our webinar series we've had people from like all over the United States, all over the world, all over everywhere! So if you don't mind, go ahead and post in the chat, for everybody —  not just for the host or panelists, but for everybody. 

Go ahead and keep posting where you are calling in from, so we can check it out. But we're doing our student panel portion of this webinar series. I’m excited to have four highly motivated, super interesting students from the University of Chicago come in and share a little bit about their experience as students.

I always feel like — as I talk with more students about the University of Chicago — it's a little bit of a misunderstood school. There are certainly a lot of questions that you might have for these students about their experience. But I want to give these four amazing students an opportunity to share about themselves and their journey in the University of Chicago.

So let me, if I may, start with Carlyn. Carlyn, can you share a little bit about yourself: what you're in, what you're studying, and any other interesting facts about yourself?

Carlyn Yang: Yeah, sure. I'm Carlyn. I'm a fourth-year, studying economics and philosophy. On campus, I'm involved in a lot of dance activities and other arts-related activities. So if you have questions about that type of stuff, I'm happy to field any of them.

Elton Lin: All right —  fantastic. Why don't we move over to Anezi?

Anezi Bueno: Yeah, sure. I'm Anezi. I'm a rising fourth year at the college, and I'm majoring in East Asian languages and civilizations with a specialization in Korean. And an interesting fact about me, I guess, is that I've changed majors quite a few times! I landed on this [as] like my third or fourth major, and I'm kind of forced into it. I wasn't able to add a minor this year because it's too late.

Elton Lin: Awesome. Why don't we move over to Daniel?

Daniel Mark: I'm a rising third year engineering fellow at the college, and I'm majoring in quantum molecular engineering. I'm currently a part of one of the lab groups here. And also enjoy doing archery in my free time.

Elton Lin: Super. And Anna?

Anna Lu: Hi, I'm Anna. I'm a very recent graduate. I majored in creative writing, and also psychology. And I'd say a lot of my RSO experience —  or clubs; that's what we call clubs at UChicago —  is a lot of student-run publication stuff, and also dance and cultural events. So if you have any questions about that, feel free to ask.

Elton Lin: All right. Fantastic. Good to have the four of you on.

Why don't we start off with: certainly all four of you are super high-achieving and well-accomplished students. And certainly, you applied to a lot of different schools. Maybe some of you applied Early Decision, and this was definitely your choice, but you certainly had a lot of options with regards to which school you could have gone to. Why did you choose UChicago?

Anezi Bueno: I can take it off first. To frame my response, I applied through the QuestBridge application, which is somewhat like ED because it's binding. Basically, I rank colleges in a list, and then they also rank me in a list of students. And if a college wants me, then I get bound to the school that ranks me the highest.

But actually Northwestern was my number one! UChicago was my number two for a bit. And then I went to visit the UChicago campus. And I remember, on that visit, a bee landed on my nose, and I was really scared. I had never been that close to a bee before! I had a lot of memorable experiences —  that might have been a little bit negative!

But I had a lot of fun just exploring campus, and really seeing how beautiful campus was, and how exciting, and just interesting, people were! I remember I stayed up until like 3:00 a.m going over a Vine excel spreadsheet. Someone put their favorite Vines in a list of like 1-100. And we basically just went through those, and then I made my own after that!

That's what pushed UChicago above Northwestern for me, personally. And then they chose me too! So then I ended up going to UChicago.

Elton Lin: How about for some of you other guys? Among all the different choices —  and this is, perhaps, before you stepped on the campus —  what really made UChicago stand out for you?

Carlyn Yang: Yeah, I can go. I actually didn't see campus until literally move-in day. I had never seen pictures of it either! So this is totally on the flip side of what Anezi was just saying.

But at the beginning of my senior year, I was considering studying economics in college. So I went to my AP econ teacher, and I was like, “What school should I go to if I want to study economics at college?” He was like, “The motherland: University of Chicago!”

That was not the only reason. But then I did more research into the actual school. And I also knew that I wanted to go to school in a city. And I think UChicago is nice in that it is technically located in the city of Chicago, but there is some distance from the concentrated downtown. So there is an actual campus. I liked that aspect of it.

Additionally, I think I was really was sold on the quirky culture that UChicago markets itself as having because I like to be surrounded by interesting and perhaps maybe a little weird people.

Anna Lu: For me, I applied ED1 to Pomona actually and didn't get in. At that point, I realized, “Okay, I actually have to make decisions about what other colleges I’m going to be applying to, and whether I want to do an ED2 at all.” And I'm not a very picky person, so I had to learn how to be picky! I built up a list of criteria over exploring different colleges. I did that very typical spring break thing where you just go to a bunch of colleges on the East Coast and stuff.

And something I liked about UChicago was that it had a liberal arts sort of education. I also applied to a lot of liberal arts colleges. But UChicago also has the common core, which is a general ed thing. And I really liked the selection of courses and the requirements that they had there.

I liked that UChicago had kind of an enclosed… not “enclosed,” but a very defined campus. Unlike, say, NYU, which is literally in the city. They say the city is your campus because all the buildings are just there! Or compared to Amherst, which is very widespread and very rural. I liked UChicago because the campus is defined and pretty tight-knit, but you could still explore the city from there.

And I also, like Carlyn, was kind of attracted by the quirky nature of UChicago. I wanted to be challenged, and UChicago was definitely a reach school for me!

Daniel Mark: For me, I knew that I was really interested in physics and engineering. And a new major they've come up with here at UChicago is the molecular engineering major. I saw that: read about it online, saw all these articles, and everything like that —  and that's what really piqued my interest in UChicago.

And not only that, there's the whole thing where they're a part of the Chicago Quantum Exchange. There's the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship, which is something that, eventually, I want to become more involved in. I just saw all these future interests and aspirations that were really being developed at UChicago —  and that's really what made me decide that I wanted to come here.

And then, I had thought of the culture as well. Different campuses have different feels… the architecture. And those were really the main contributing factors.

Elton Lin: Yeah. So, Daniel, at least from what you're saying, a lot of the resources that are currently at the University of Chicago really fit exactly what you're looking for!

But all four of you mentioned something specific about the culture. And Carlyn, you said something about the quirkiness. And you talked about somebody posting up to top 100 Vines, which is pretty crazy! Just tackling that sounds pretty unnerving.

But as you began your college career and began to interact with more students, tell me a little bit more about that culture. What was really interesting to you and attractive to you, and how did it enhance your educational experience?

Carlyn Yang: I can talk a little bit about that. One thing that has enhanced my experience at UChicago is just how people here are very passionate about the things that they're interested in. And usually they're things that you’d have never have thought that people would be interested in or would never have crossed your mind!

It’s really —  they always say this — but it's really broadened my horizons to get to know people around campus and to interact with them, learn from them, and hear about their experiences.

In particular, an example is my group of roommates. First year, I lived in a suite with three other people. And we all were majoring in different things and came from vastly different backgrounds. For context, I'm from suburban Texas. And these other people… one of them was from Ethiopia. One was from New York. And one of them was from Korea. So they were hugely different backgrounds! And we were all interested in so many different things. We all majored in very different fields, too.

Hearing about how their past led them here, and how we were all living in the same room together, and eating ramen at like 2:00a.m together was such a fascinating experience. It really helped me grow, I think, a lot in terms of my mindset about the world.

Anna Lu: Yeah, I think definitely the fact that everybody is so passionate about things. You're not surprised if someone's very eccentric, and they’re very eccentric in a very informed manner!

I had a roommate, my second year, who was the biggest chemistry nerd I've ever met. And I learned so much just from hearing her rant about all kinds of things. I didn't know that biochemistry and non-biochemistry were very different things. But she abhorred biological chemistry and stuck to minerals!

And I learned so much just from her research publications. She would use me to prepare for presentations and stuff.

And then like you'll see that someone's an econ major or whatever, but they're super super into botany for some reason. You just learn a lot about people from the random rants that you hear. Especially when you're very tired from doing homework at midnight —  a lot of things come out! You learn a lot from all these kinds of different people that you wouldn't have thought you would learn otherwise.

Daniel Mark:

Just to add on to that, I've had a lot of different experiences at a multitude of universities, through summer programs and stuff like that, and taking courses there. Having those late night experiences, where you're arguing over politics, or whether or not pasta is a deconstructed sandwich or something like that —  those are conversations I feel like you're probably gonna have no matter where you go.

But here at UChicago, you definitely find more people who would describe themselves as aspiring polymaths. People who want to major in their field of interest, but they're also just entranced by everything else, and they're down to have a conversation about math or philosophy. There's really no one line that they want to travel. They want to go the entire radius. I think that's what really sets the majority of UChicago students apart.

Anezi Bueno: Echoing everything that everyone else has just said, UChicago has people who are super interested in really random things that almost have nothing to do with anything else that they're doing. That creates a culture where you can go off and do something that you've never really tried before.

That, for me, was something that was huge my first year. Specifically, I had never danced before. And I was super, super, super scared of trying out for any dance clubs on campus. But I just went for it. I remember: my hands were sweating, and I was very, very nervous. But at the end of the day, everyone who went to those clubs to dance —  they were there to dance, not to judge others, or not to be in a space of superiority or to instill fear.

Which I think is something that might be really intimidating — going into a new space. UChicago is a very intimidating space to enter from your high school environment —  going to this new space where everyone is supposed to be the best of the best! But, at the end of the day, we're going to dance practice because we want to dance together.

And I think that that's something that you can really find. People know a lot about different things, but at the end of the day, they're there to enjoy those different things. I think that that's something that people are passionate about. At UChicago, everyone is passionate about something. That’s really evident and really makes things enjoyable.

Elton Lin: All four of you talked about running into people who have contrasting interests —  and it's really, in many ways, eye-opening. And in Anezi's case, you talked about having the courage to join a dance group. And I'll have you share the YouTube channel! But it challenged you to step out of your comfort zone and really go try something that you had no experience, or any prior involvement!

So for all four of you, how else have you grown by being at the University of Chicago. How else have you been challenged? I would love to hear whatever stories that you have from your experience.

Anezi Bueno: I can speak to it a little bit. And I actually think that, very surprisingly, I've reflected on this a lot through quarantine —  I guess which has now been approximately like a year and a half.

And I definitely think that I've really grown and matured as a person at UChicago. Mentally, a little bit less, I feel though. I think in comparison to just my growth as a social person in a communal space.

I think that I've grown a lot just in learning how to communicate with others. Being in a space where everyone does have different ideas — how do you properly communicate with others,so that you're being aware that this person has feelings? I can't just say things and not expect them to react!

And that's definitely a feeling that you'd have in a social class that can have really diverging opinions. At that point, you can't really just tell someone, “No, you're wrong because you're wrong!” So I think that really being in a space where there are people that have come from different backgrounds, and you're all in the same space, but you come with different ideologies and with different thoughts about different things… I think that you really learn how to consider other people when you're interacting in a space with others.

And then also, I think that that has just matured me in general. Because you're gonna need that skill in the future when you're working on a team, or just even, living in a community. I really think that that's something that really surprised me and wasn't necessarily something that I thought about when I was thinking about going to college. And like, wow, being an adult at college —  I definitely think that that's an unexpected plus from being at the school

Anna Lu: For me, being at UChicago specifically, really helped me become both kind of humbled, and learn how to be more confident in who I was. Something that kind of runs rampant at UChicago —  and maybe a lot of other schools too but I think in particular UChicago because of this unique, quirky culture that we have —  is imposter syndrome. To the point that campus administration will hold imposter syndrome workshops and stuff for incoming students!

And I think you really have to learn. I've said this metaphor many times, but that when you're in high school, you're a big fish. Usually you're a big fish. With a lot of small fish, or some other big fish, but in a relatively small area. And then you come to college. You come to UChicago, and you're like, “Oh shoot, everyone's huge and I'm kind of small in comparison!”

I remember I got an email, around orientation time my first year, that was telling us about all these cool accomplishments that other people in my incoming class had done. They had discovered new species of butterflies and stuff! And I was, “I've never done any of that stuff.” So you get humbled very fast. You're surrounded by incredibly intelligent, incredibly passionate people. You're going to have to face the fact that you're not as good as maybe you thought you were.

At the same time, I think that challenged me to really understand what I was good at  rather than comparing myself to others because that's kind of how you have to survive here. You have to find your own niche. And then other people are interested in your niche even if they're not in it. You just trade facts like that.

So you really learn to become your own person at UChicago. And it really challenges you in that sense —  both in and out of the classroom.

Carlyn Yang: Definitely. I second everything. And in a similar vein to humbling yourself and finding your niche, also keeping an open mind. Going into college, I was very much like, “I'm gonna be an econ major; I'm gonna get an econ PhD.” It's not where I'm at right now.

I remember I took a class first year —  this is part of the general education: the core requirement, which is a big part of the appeal of the college. I had to take a PhySci class: a physical sciences class. And so, I took an astrophysics class. I think it's called “Matter, Energy, Space, and Time.” And the professor was really amazing. I think that really sold me on the material of the course.

That actually led me to have a whole major crisis in my second year: I was like, “Maybe I should switch to astrophysics. Am I doing the right thing? Aristotle is all about studying philosophy and physics in the world, so maybe I should do that too.” And that's actually how I got into philosophy, too —  because I took a class first year, and I really liked it. And I was just like, “Yeah, I'll just add on a philosophy major.”

So I think being able to keep an open mind to try new things is also a great way to humble yourself. Because you really realize how many other things are out there, and how many other people are out there doing those things very well. And also be discovering, maybe, what you're really interested in —  or your “niche,” per se.

Daniel Mark: This is probably not specific to UChicago, but there is really no shortage of opportunities that you have on campus. So when I first arrived as a first year, I came in with the mindset, “I'm going to major in everything!” Everything interests me. Why don't I just dabble in everything? Because… why not?

I know a lot of people who have come in with that same mindset. Really one thing you have to learn is narrowing down and focusing on maybe one or just a few things as opposed to four different potential majors that you probably cannot fit into your four-year plan!

So just you know coming in and having that experience, I think, is really important, as well as getting used to a more dynamic schedule. Because when you're in high school, you have one set schedule for the entire year. But here, especially being on the quarter system, everything changes. And your friend group’s schedules are going to change. So just trying to rearrange all of that as well —  it's a very different kind of experience.

Elton Lin: Let's talk a little bit about the classes. Although I really appreciate you all sharing taking certain classes, and allowing some of those classes to really inspire you into other disciplines that you would not have expected, UChicago has this reputation of being very academically rigorous. Students are a little bit stressed. Perhaps you can either burst that bubble or share a little bit about your experience with the courses.

It sounds like there is a lot of room for exploration. But tell me about your academic experience, and what students in this audience need to know about it.

Carlyn Yang: I guess I can talk about this a little as an econ major, because I feel like that discipline at UChicago is kind of notorious for being a little strict, especially with grades and stuff. Actually, I think that reputation goes for most STEM classes, honestly. But, yeah, the classes are hard. They're not going to be easy. Like what Anna said in high school, about you being a big fish. If you're coasting through high school, I don't think you can expect the same thing at UChicago!

But they're not impossible. And there are definitely a wealth of resources on campus —  both from the students and from the faculty; both from your professors, students, and also the administration: tutors, for example, with the library, that will help you. If you need help and ask for it and really dedicate yourself to doing well in class, I think it's entirely possible.

So I think the rumors about UChicago being hard — and grade deflation and whatnot — are not exactly untrue. But that doesn't mean that you won't thrive in this environment if you really want to.

Anna Lu: As for specific classes… like Daniel mentioned, the quarter system means that you take a bunch more classes than you normally would in a semester system. And course selection time is always a huge deal because people are just trying to figure it out —  even if you're a stem major, and like Carlyn said, you have kind of a strict schedule! You have a common core to think about. You have electives to think about. So you're looking at all these different classes that are offered, and all the course evaluations, and whether or not they fulfill credits for your major. And if they don't, “Can I appeal this?”

And every quarter this college also offers signature courses where they often combine very interesting interdisciplinary courses. Or maybe your professor is an expert about this very niche thing. I took a class once called “Music in the mind,” which was a blend of music and psychology. And I took it, I think, intending for it to be one of my arts cores. But I managed to talk my advisor into letting me take it as a psych elective later on because I needed that! And it was really interesting. I loved that class.

Signature classes tend to be kind of small, too. So you have a small discussion group. You can just bounce ideas off.

Also for the core itself, they're very rigorous. We have this thing called “sosh,” which is sort of a pseudo-philosophy class sequence that everybody has to take. I took that my first year. Most people take it in their first or second year. And I was very intimidated by the whole thing! My professor was super strict. I think half of my class secretly kind of hated him, but were too scared to say so! But he was an expert, and he knew what he was talking about. And he took no nonsense from anybody. Some people would try to be pretentious, maybe, like, “I know exactly what he’s talking about.” And you'd be like, “No, you don't!”

I think you really get challenged by the core and the classes in general. And the professors, like Carlyn said, really know what they're talking about. You learn so much from them.

Elton Lin So you guys are mentioning a lot about the academic challenge. It's not so much that it's inherently stressful, but a lot of people who are really passionate about their subjects are sort of challenging everybody else to really be passionate about their subject as well. I hear you saying that even though it seems like it's a little bit stressful, it is really this hearty pursuit of the subject matter and really diving deeply into whatever degree it may be!

But let me ask you —  especially, maybe because Anna's graduated. Perhaps there's a lot of time spent on really stretching yourself intellectually, and exploring other subject areas that, perhaps, you might not be as familiar with. But do you feel prepared for graduation? Do you feel you have a sense of where you want to be after you graduate? A couple of you, I think, are entering into your final year in school or getting closer. Do you have this sense that you are being prepared for graduation?

What do you guys think?

Anezi Bueno: I feel like, if we're talking about entering this real world with taxes and jobs, maybe UChicago isn't preparing you for that all too much. We're kind of notorious for having majors that aren’t really labeled by career fields per se. The closest one is probably Econ.

Maybe you're not seeing it directly in the classes you take, like, “Oh yes, I'm learning how to file taxes. Yes, I'm learning how to do these tasks that will be useful in a job later on.” But I think that you really learn a lot of the soft skills that are necessary for being in a work environment. And for just how to be productive and how to collaborate, which I think is something that has been emphasized a lot in my classes.

And I definitely think that, outside of classes, the school also has a lot of resources. Like Daniel was mentioning earlier, there are so many programs. They push having an internship for the summer of your first year so much. And I learned from someone who graduated from Berkeley that so few colleges do that! Here I was stressing over not having an internship, when like turns out I'm not behind!

Although you might feel behind at the school, I think that that means that the school is preparing you a little bit more —  just by making you be ahead of the crowd. In terms of, like, finding an internship or getting experiences that can really be useful and really can boost up your résumé to make you feel more prepared for entering the real world. Which might not necessarily be the hard math that people might want to see, but I do think that at the end of the day, that's also really valuable for graduating and just being able to handle yourself on your own.

Daniel Mark: To add on to that as an engineering major, when you consider the field of engineering, you think of a lot of hands-on work. And UChicago's kind of known for being a bit more theory-centric than practical. A lot of students I know will joke, “Well, in theory I know that we could do this,” or, “In theory…” such and such.

Since we don't really do real-world simulations or anything like that, we haven't actually done the things that we've learned, applying that to engineering. The classes that I've taken… it does call into question, are you really ready to go straight from UChicago to industry? Or is preparing you a bit more for, like, a PhD program?

I think, if you have all this in-depth theoretical knowledge, you should be able to apply it to real-world situations. But I think what really shines is the versatility in the education that you receive. It's not just, “We’re preparing you to do civil engineering,” or something like that. It's free. You have the potential to go down that route if you so choose, but you could also take the route of going to higher education and continuing studies.

Elton Lin: What I hear you saying, Daniel, is that with regards to the educational perspective, they're training you to really think broadly and to really be thinkers. And this way it's sort of giving you the tools to be able to really make a more hearty decision on your own, once you get to that point.

And then perhaps, going back to Anezi’s point, there indeed are internships. You are preparing yourself for post-graduation. There are opportunities to really build your résumé properly. and — once you get out of college — to really take the next step into whatever field you want.

Anna and Carlyn, how do you feel about the University of Chicago preparing you for post-grad?

Carlyn Yang: I can go.

I think that because UChicago is so structurally not pre-professional that you're surrounded by people who — if they do want to go into industry and stuff — are very much like self-starters. So even though the school does have a lot of career advancement resources, you have to do the work to do your research and look into that.

Also, student organizations are really great for giving you experience. Especially if you're interested in fields around… honestly any field! Pretty much any field —  there's some kind of student organization that will help you get some experience. And also just meet other people who are interested in that field as well.

I think the environment overall at UChicago is rather conducive to opportunity —  if you can find it and take advantage of it. It's not just going to be handed to you like it might be, I guess, at other schools that have more pre-professional programs that will kind of funnel you into the private sector or whatever.

But, if you're also interested in post-grad opportunities, I think UChicago is excellent for that. Very notorious for sending people into academia! But overall yeah, there's something for everybody, I think, if you look hard enough.

Anna Lu: Carlyn covered most of what I wanted to say! I definitely want to emphasize the grad school programs and academia. Labs as well, if you're into STEM, are very huge on campus. There are so many labs on campus and so many research things going on; there are constantly offers for students to work in labs during the course of their time there!

Personally, I have been applying to jobs, mostly in HR-related fields. And my career advisor has been with me every step of the way. Even after I graduated, I keep getting emails about new postings or asking me if I need help. Or I'll have meetings; we'll have conversations about résumés or directions, stuff like that.

So even after you graduate, your career advisor is very willing to talk to you. And I think she has expressed that if I want to change my mind and go to grad school, there are plenty of people she can point me to to help me with that as well. So I don't think opportunities are lacking here!

And what Carlyn said about the student environment really bolstering that pre-professional wisdom that UChicago might not have officially.

Elton Lin: Absolutely. Thanks, Anna.

And before we get on to Q&A, there are certainly some students in the audience who are thinking about applying to the University of Chicago, and potentially making it their top choice. What is your best reason why they should consider UChicago their top choice?

And this certainly could lend into: what's really the right fit student for the University of Chicago? What type of student would really thrive at the University of Chicago?

Carlyn Yang: This might be kind of overdone by the admissions marketing group because they always say this, but honestly, it's very true: that if you are the type of person that just likes learning a lot — either about a lot of things or very deeply about something — and really just is open to learning —  like if you like surfing Wikipedia, or just reading random articles, or any kind of curiosity about the world. If that's what you truly enjoy, I really think you will fit in at UChicago —  and you will be surrounded by people who are like you.

That's a good reason to go!

Anez Bueno: I want to echo that, mostly because that's exactly what I was gonna say! If you are someone that asks questions, and you're someone that really likes to just talk about anything and everything, from the smallest things to really big and deep things that you might not really know the answers to. But you're just throwing your thoughts out. That's definitely something that I have found myself doing a lot at UChicago!

And like Carlyn said, it's with people who are similarly-minded. So you won't necessarily feel bad for wasting two hours of someone's night while you're talking about something that's really dumb, like, “Is a hot dog a sandwich?” But, rather, they'll be like, “Let me look into some research and find out if a hot dog really is a sandwich. I'll get back to you!”

They’re very deep about things that don't have to be deep, but at the same time that's something that’s heartwarming. And you come to really appreciate those 2:00 a.m or 3:00 a.m conversations about nothing,but also about everything. They really mean a lot to you, and stay in your memory.

If that's something that you're looking forward to, you'll find your people here.

Elton Lin: Anything to add, Daniel or Anna?

Daniel Mark: Not really. That's pretty much the crux of it: if you're just interested, curious, and you want to learn about everything —  the aspiring polymath mindset that I mentioned earlier. You're going to learn a lot from professors. You're going to learn a lot from any of the faculty you run into on the street, or in the labs. You're going to learn a lot from your fellow students. You'll learn from everyone, just being in this sort of environment, and absorb it. Enjoy!

Elton Lin: Indeed! So let’s take some questions from the audience. But I'm definitely curious about whether a hot dog is a sandwich, or spaghetti is a deconstructed sandwich!

Anthony Su: If anyone wants to stoke the flame and ask that question, we can definitely try to tackle that!

Everyone was talking about, “The University of Chicago is a place for people to learn!” And I know you talked a bit about opportunities that the University of Chicago has to set you up for careers or grad school after graduation. What are the things that you see among your peers or your classmates? Is it pretty common for students to go straight into grad school? What do you see there?

Anna Lu: I feel like people will go into all kinds of different fields. In just one of my small friend groups, two people, I think, went straight to grad school. One's at MIT for chemistry, for example! Another one went straight into a career —  she went to Wisconsin to work there and live on her own. And the other one, I think, is kind of in limbo right now. Not because of lack of resources —  I think she's getting offers —  but because she just doesn't know what she wants to do. She moved to New York, and she's figuring herself out there.

I think, as Carlyn said earlier, that the academic route is very well-traveled, and you have a lot of resources for that —  whether that's just your professors, or lab technicians. You get recruiters —  I know there's a whole recruiting season for a lot of econ majors. That's the most pre-professional that I hear about on campus. But definitely, I don't think there's ever been a lack of resources as far as careers go.

Anezi Bueno: There’s something I'd want to add regarding career prep because this is something that you do in your undergrad that makes you feel prepared. A few things that I've made use of are the Micro-Metcalf and Metcalf programs that the university has.

A Micro-Metcalf is, essentially, a three week work opportunity where you do a task, and then you get a stipend for completing that work. And that's supposed to give you experience, which will transfer into getting an internship. That's where the Metcalf program comes in, which is a full internship that will provide a stipend for an internship even if it's an unpaid internship. Which is really great, because if there's an experience that you really want to try or a skill that you really want to learn, and it's not funded — the school will actually fund it for you!

It's definitely a very widely-known and a very widely-used program at the university. I've used it for two years: during my first and second year summers, I did a Metcalf internship. I think that those are two really good resources that prepare you to be competitive in the pre-professional aspect.

Elton Lin: I think it's really interesting, that Metcalf scholarship-internship where it's both preparing you, potentially, for taking steps into your career, as well as fueling your interests. If those resources are not there, they'll fund it for you to be able to explore! So it's maintaining the core values that the University of Chicago seems to embody, both pre-professional and helping you explore other areas.

Let me ask the other three of you: what are other critical resources that you feel like, if you're going to UChicago, you should not miss this? What's one thing that you feel like students shouldn't miss?

Carlyn Yang: In the career vein?

Elton Lin: Career or anything.

Carlyn Yang: Sure I'll talk about both —  academics and career.

But in terms of career, I actually didn't realize this, but I feel like, in comparison to other schools that are at a similar level, UChicago actually does a lot to help students get access to external resources for career stuff.

For example, during the breaks —  so like summer, winter, and spring —  they have these career treks. Basically it's like a small cohort of people who travel to some location. And it's industry-specific, so based on what you want to do. And you get to talk to people at certain companies in that location that might be relevant to whatever industry you want to go into. So that's another great way to explore your interests, but also get pre-professional experience, networking, and all that stuff! That's a really cool resource that I didn't get to take advantage of because of COVID because my trek was cancelled!

And then in terms of academics… People say this is true for any school, but office hours! Professors are so smart, and they will set aside time just for you to pick their brain. So you should take advantage of that time and really talk to them. Even if it's not about the class, just learn about them and their lives and their interests, and how they got here. I think it's generally good for life advice, at the very least, if not academic help!

Elton Lin: Super. For the rest of you, what's one resource —  be it academic or perhaps extracurricular —  that students, if you're going to UChicago, you definitely shouldn’t miss!

Anna Lu: Two things. First: so the clubs on campus are called RSOs, or Recognized Student Organizations —  I believe that's what it stands for. The school kind of regularly, or at least once every year, maybe twice, holds giant student organization fairs.

And that, I think, is huge, if you're just trying to branch out your interests in places that you can't in your major. Because, like Daniel said, you shouldn't major in four things. That's too much! You can still learn about a lot of stuff outside of your major.

When it comes to a more pre-professional thing, there are a bunch of student-run consulting groups. Or if there's a martial art or a culture thing you want to do, you can dabble in that too. Or you don't even know what you want to do —  you will learn something about what people like to do just by window-shopping all the student organizations!

I would also really strongly echo what Carlyn said about going to office hours. I think a lot of people kind of feel a little prideful. They don't want to go seek help. Or, on the other end, they feel like they don't want to waste their professor’s time. But they're very much here for you.

And it's such a great resource that would be a really big shame not to take advantage of! There are so many bright minds who gather around UChicago, because of its reputation. And you're one of them now —  or you will be one of them now, if you get in. So you should definitely take advantage of that.

Elton Lin: All right. Fantastic.

But let me give Anezi an opportunity to share a little bit about their dance group because I feel like it's been a significant part of your growth. So if you don’t mind sharing a little bit about that as we finish off our conversation, that'd be terrific!

Anezi Bueno: Sure. I actually became friends with Carlyn and Anna through this organization. It's basically a dance organization that does K-pop dance covers, and it's called NeXus. And it's an RSO that Carlyn and I worked on starting. Our second year was when we began the process to turn into an official RSO.

So if you want to see something at the school that doesn't already exist, it's definitely possible for you to go through the process of creating the RSO and finding others who would like to share that interest with you as well! I'm pretty sure Carlyn was in some space organization that also got started at some point. So that's something that you can definitely do at UChicago.

And we've grown a lot in the past year. We just dance and film and have a lot of fun —  as most people do, I would hope, in the organizations that they join! So feel free to check it out. Feel free to check out our YouTube channel.

Elton Lin: All right. Thank you so much, everybody. I really appreciate everyone's input.

Anthony, what are our next webinars coming up?

Anthony Su: We have Brandeis next week. Jessica from Brandeis will be here to talk a little bit more about their campus. So that's something to look forward to.

Elton Lin: I don't mean to have Brandeis and UChicago compete on the same webinar! But we’re having the West Coast admissions rep from Brandeis come on with us next week.

Really appreciate everybody here on the student panel sharing about their experiences. And certainly, if there are questions, you can feel free to reach out to them. You can reach out to them through us. And definitely subscribe to their YouTube channel and give them some love —  they put in a lot of good work! I've watched a ton of videos and it's well worth your time. So go for it.

Thanks everybody for coming on. And we'll see you on the next one! Good to see you all. Thanks students!

Anthony Su: See you guys.