University of Chicago facts for kids
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| Latin: Universitas Chicaginiensis | |
| Motto | Crescat scientia; vita excolatur (Latin) |
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Motto in English
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"Let knowledge grow from more to more; and so be human life enriched" |
| Type | Private research university |
| Established | 1890 |
| Founder | John D. Rockefeller |
| Accreditation | HLC |
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Academic affiliations
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| Endowment | $10.3 billion (2022) |
| President | A. Paul Alivisatos |
| Provost | Katherine Baicker |
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Academic staff
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2,859 |
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Administrative staff
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15,949 (including employees of The University of Chicago Medical Center) |
| Students | 18,452 |
| Undergraduates | 7,559 |
| Postgraduates | 10,893 |
| Location |
Chicago
,
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United States
41°47′23″N 87°35′59″W / 41.78972°N 87.59972°W |
| Campus | Large city, 217 acres (87.8 ha) (main campus) Warren Woods Ecological Field Station, Warren Woods State Park, 42 acres (17.0 ha) |
| Other campuses | |
| Newspaper | The Chicago Maroon |
| Colors | Maroon |
| Nickname | Maroons |
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Sporting affiliations
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NCAA Division III –
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| Mascot | Phil the Phoenix |
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The University of Chicago (often called UChicago or just Chicago) is a private research university located in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago.
This university is made up of an undergraduate college and several graduate research divisions. It also has eight professional schools, like the Law School and the Booth School of Business. UChicago has other campuses and centers in cities around the world, including London, Paris, Beijing, Delhi, and Hong Kong.
Scholars at the University of Chicago have made big contributions to many subjects. These include economics, law, math, physics, and sociology. For example, the university's Metallurgical Laboratory created the world's first human-made, self-sustaining nuclear reaction in 1942. This happened under the stands of the university's old Stagg Field. The university also helps manage important science labs like Fermilab and Argonne National Laboratory.
Many people connected to the University of Chicago have won major awards. This includes 99 Nobel Prize winners. Its faculty and alumni also include winners of the Fields Medal, Turing Award, and Pulitzer Prize.
Contents
Discover the History of UChicago
How the University of Chicago Started
The University of Chicago was officially started in 1890. It was created as a school for both boys and girls. The American Baptist Education Society helped, using money from John D. Rockefeller, who co-founded Standard Oil. Other wealthy people from Chicago, like Marshall Field, also donated land and money for buildings.
The university continued the legacy of an older school with the same name. That first university had closed in the 1880s after facing money problems. The symbol of the University of Chicago is a phoenix rising from ashes. This reminds everyone of how the old university closed and the new one began. A stone from the old university's building is even placed in a wall on the current campus.
William Rainey Harper became the university's first president in 1891. He worked hard to bring in many talented professors. Harper also believed that studying faith was important. He brought a Baptist seminary to the university, which became the University of Chicago Divinity School in 1891.
Harper also hired Amos Alonzo Stagg to coach the football team. Stagg was a famous athlete and became the first athletic coach in the U.S. to be a faculty member. He even invented the numbered football jersey and the huddle! The university's Stagg Field is named after him.
The business school opened in 1898, and the law school in 1902. In the early 1900s, the university also started working with smaller colleges. This helped those schools improve their courses and allowed their students to study at UChicago.
UChicago from the 1920s to the 1980s
In 1929, Robert Maynard Hutchins became the university's president at just 30 years old. He made many changes during his 24 years. Hutchins updated the main courses for undergraduate students. He also stopped varsity football to focus more on academics. During his time, the University of Chicago Hospitals were built.
Money from the 1920s and the Rockefeller Foundation helped the university during the Great Depression. During World War II, the university's Metallurgical Laboratory played a key role in the Manhattan Project. This is where scientists first isolated plutonium. Also, Enrico Fermi created the first controlled nuclear reaction here in 1942.
In the 1950s, the university helped with a big project to improve the Hyde Park neighborhood. This changed the area's buildings and streets.
The university saw student protests in the 1960s. For example, in 1962, Bernie Sanders helped lead a sit-in against the university's housing rules. In 1967, the university released the Kalven Report. This report stated that a university should be free to explore ideas without political pressure.
In 1978, Hanna Holborn Gray became the president of the University of Chicago. She was the first woman to lead a major university in the United States.
UChicago from the 1990s to Today
In 1999, President Hugo F. Sonnenschein planned to make the university's core curriculum (required courses) more flexible. This caused a national discussion about education. The changes were made, but the debate led to Sonnenschein stepping down in 2000.
Since the mid-2000s, the university has been building many new facilities. In 2008, David G. Booth donated $300 million to the university's business school, which is now called the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. This was the largest gift ever given to a business school.
In 2019, the university opened its first new school in 30 years: the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering.
Explore the University of Chicago Campus
Main Campus Features
The main campus of the University of Chicago covers 217 acres. It is located in the Hyde Park and Woodlawn neighborhoods of Chicago. This is about 8 miles south of downtown Chicago. A large park called the Midway Plaisance divides the campus. In 2011, Travel+Leisure magazine called UChicago one of the most beautiful college campuses in the U.S.
The first buildings on campus are known as the Main Quadrangles. They were designed in a style called Collegiate Gothic. This style looks like the old colleges at the University of Oxford in England. For example, Mitchell Tower looks like Oxford's Magdalen Tower.
After the 1940s, newer buildings were designed in modern styles. The Regenstein Library, built in the Brutalist style, is the largest building on campus. In 2011, the glass-domed Joe and Rika Mansueto Library was completed. It has a huge reading room and an automated system to store and retrieve books.
The spot where the first nuclear reaction happened, Chicago Pile-1, is a special landmark. It's marked by a sculpture called Nuclear Energy by Henry Moore. Robie House, a building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, is also on campus and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Other University Locations
Besides its main campus, the university has other facilities. The University of Chicago Booth School of Business has campuses in Hong Kong, London, and downtown Chicago. The Center in Paris hosts study programs for students. In 2010, the university opened a center in Beijing, China. More recently, centers opened in New Delhi, India (2014), and Hong Kong (2018).
How UChicago is Run
The university is managed by a board of trustees. This board plans for the university's future and handles fundraising. The university president, currently Paul Alivisatos, leads the school.
The university's endowment (money saved for the future) was $10 billion in 2020. This makes it one of the wealthiest universities.
Academics at UChicago
The University of Chicago has a College for undergraduate students. It also has four divisions for graduate research and seven professional schools. The university has a large library system, its own publishing company (the University of Chicago Press), and the University of Chicago Medical Center. It also helps manage famous labs like Fermilab and Argonne National Laboratory.
The university uses a quarter system. This means the school year is divided into four terms: Summer, Autumn, Winter, and Spring. Students usually take three to four classes each term.
UChicago's Reputation and Rankings
The University of Chicago quickly became known as one of America's top universities. It helped start the Association of American Universities in 1900 to improve higher education. Many sources, like the ARWU, consistently rank UChicago among the top 10 universities in the world.
The university's Law School and Business School are also ranked among the top professional schools in the United States.
Undergraduate College Experience
The College of the University of Chicago offers Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees. Students can choose from 51 main subjects and 33 smaller subjects.
All undergraduate students must take a set of required courses called the Core Curriculum. These classes are usually taught by full-time professors. UChicago courses are known for being challenging and requiring a lot of work. Many say it offers a very intense learning experience.
Graduate Schools and Programs
The university's graduate programs are divided into four main areas: Biological Sciences, Humanities, Physical Sciences, and Social Sciences. There are also eight professional schools. In 2022, over 10,000 graduate students were studying at UChicago.
Professional Schools
UChicago has eight professional schools. These include the Law School, the Pritzker School of Medicine, the Booth School of Business, and the University of Chicago Divinity School. These schools train students for specific careers.
Other Academic Institutions
The university also runs other schools and programs. It operates the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools, which is a private school for students from kindergarten through 12th grade. It also runs public charter schools on the South Side of Chicago.
University Library System
The University of Chicago Library system has six libraries. Together, they hold over 11 million books and other materials. The main library is the Regenstein Library, which has one of the largest collections of print books in the U.S. The Joe and Rika Mansueto Library has a huge study area and an automated system to store and find books.
Research and Discoveries
The University of Chicago spends a lot of money on research and development. It is known for its very high research activity. The university is a founding member of the Association of American Universities.
UChicago has over 140 research centers and institutes on campus. It also manages or works with other research places. This includes Argonne National Laboratory and Fermilab, which are national labs for the U.S. Department of Energy.
The university has been the site of many important scientific breakthroughs. In physics, it was where the first controlled nuclear chain reaction happened. Scientists also developed radiocarbon dating here, which helps figure out the age of ancient objects. The famous Miller–Urey experiment, which tested how life might have started on early Earth, was also done at UChicago. Even REM sleep was discovered here in 1953!
Arts and Culture at UChicago
UChicago Arts brings together academic departments and professional groups. These include the Court Theatre and the Smart Museum of Art. The university offers degrees in music, film, and visual arts. It also has programs for creative writing and theater.
Many students take creative and performing arts classes. The University of Chicago is often seen as the birthplace of improvisational comedy. The student comedy group, the Compass Players, later became the famous Second City improv theater. The Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts, which opened in 2012, provides spaces for art shows, performances, and classes.
Student Life and Admissions
Becoming a UChicago Student
In Fall 2021, UChicago had over 7,500 undergraduate students and nearly 11,000 graduate students. The university tries to admit students without considering their ability to pay.
Getting into the University of Chicago has become very competitive. In 1996, 71% of applicants were accepted. By 2023, only 4.7% were accepted. This shows how popular the school has become.
In 2018, UChicago made headlines by being the first major research university to no longer require SAT or ACT scores from college applicants.
Sports at UChicago
The University of Chicago has 19 varsity sports teams. They are all called the Maroons. The Maroons compete in NCAA Division III.
UChicago was once a founding member of the Big Ten Conference and played in NCAA Division I. In 1935, Chicago Maroons football player Jay Berwanger won the first Heisman Trophy. However, the university left the Big Ten in 1946 to focus more on academics. Football was brought back in 1969 as a Division III team.
Student Clubs and Groups
Students at UChicago can join over 400 clubs and organizations. These include cultural groups, academic teams, and common-interest clubs.
Some famous student groups include the University of Chicago College Bowl Team, which has won many national championships. The university's Model United Nations team has also been ranked number one in North America several times. Other notable groups are Doc Films, a student film society, and The Chicago Maroon, the weekly student newspaper.
The university is also home to eight student-run a cappella groups. These groups often compete in national singing competitions.
Student Government
The The University of Chicago Student Government funds all recognized student organizations. This includes everything from the University of Chicago Scavenger Hunt to sports clubs and arts groups. Student Government members are elected by their fellow students.
Living on Campus
Undergraduate students living on campus are part of a "house system." Each student is assigned to a residence hall and a smaller community called a "house." There are 39 houses, each with about 70 students. These houses are named after important people from the university's past.
Starting with the Class of 2023, students are required to live in university housing for their first two years. About 60% of undergraduate students live on campus. The university also has apartment buildings for graduate students near campus.
Fun UChicago Traditions
Every May, the University of Chicago holds the University of Chicago Scavenger Hunt. Teams of students compete to find many unusual items from a long list. In January, the university has a winter festival called Kuviasungnerk/Kangeiko (Kuvia). This includes early morning exercise and fitness workshops.
The university also hosts a summer carnival and concert called Summer Breeze. It brings in outside musicians. Doc Films, a student film society founded in 1932, shows movies nightly. Since 1946, the university has held the Latke–Hamantash Debate. This is a funny discussion about the merits of latkes and hamantashen.
Famous People from UChicago
As of 2020, 100 Nobel Prize winners have been connected to the University of Chicago. Many of them were doing research or teaching at the university when they won. This includes 33 Nobel laureates in Economics.
Many UChicago alumni and faculty have also won other major awards, like the Fulbright and Rhodes scholarships.
Notable Alumni
In 2019, the University of Chicago had 188,000 alumni. Many of them have become very successful in business. These include Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Oracle Corporation founder Larry Ellison. Other alumni are leaders at companies like Goldman Sachs and Bloomberg.
Many alumni have become important figures in law and government. These include U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens and former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft. Leaders from other countries, like former Prime Minister of Canada William Lyon Mackenzie King, also studied here. Bernie Sanders, a U.S. Senator, is also an alumnus.
In journalism, famous alumni include The New York Times columnist David Brooks and FiveThirtyEight founder Nate Silver.
In literature, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Philip Roth and Nobel Prize winner Saul Bellow are alumni. Other writers like Susan Sontag and Kurt Vonnegut also attended.
In science, notable alumni include astronomers Carl Sagan and Edwin Hubble. James Watson, who helped discover the structure of DNA, and John B. Goodenough, who helped develop the lithium-ion battery, are also alumni.
In economics, many Nobel Prize winners are graduates. These include Milton Friedman, George Stigler, and Eugene Fama.
Other notable alumni include anthropologist Donald Johanson, who discovered the fossil "Lucy".
Notable Faculty
Many famous professors have taught at UChicago. In economics, these include Nobel Prize winners Milton Friedman, George Stigler, and James Heckman.
In physics, notable faculty include Albert A. Michelson, who calculated the speed of light, and Enrico Fermi, who created the first nuclear reactor.
In law, former U.S. President Barack Obama taught here. Supreme Court Justices Elena Kagan and Antonin Scalia also served on the faculty.
Philosophers like Nobel Prize winner Bertrand Russell and John Dewey have been faculty members. Famous writers like T. S. Eliot and J. M. Coetzee have also taught at UChicago.
Current faculty include Nobel Prize-winning economists like Richard Thaler and Douglas Diamond. Also, Steven Levitt, author of Freakonomics, teaches here.
Images for kids
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Albert A. Michelson, Professor of Physics and first American Nobel laureate, delivers the second Convocation Address in front of Goodspeed and Gates-Blake Halls, with President William Rainey Harper, professors, and trustees in attendance, July 1, 1894.
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Some of the University of Chicago team that worked on the production of the world's first human-caused self-sustaining nuclear reaction, including Enrico Fermi in the front row and Leó Szilárd in the second.
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The campus of the University of Chicago, from the top of Rockefeller Chapel, the Main Quadrangles can be seen on the left (West), the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures, West Asia & North Africa and the Becker Friedman Institute for Research in Economics can be seen in the center (North) and the Booth School of Business and Laboratory Schools can be seen on the right (East), as the panoramic is bounded on both sides by the Midway Plaisance (South).
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Many older buildings of the University of Chicago employ Collegiate Gothic architecture like that of the University of Oxford. For example, Chicago's Mitchell Tower (left) was modeled after Oxford's Magdalen Tower (right).
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University of Chicago building during fall
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Qwazy Quad Rally, Scav Hunt 2005
See also
In Spanish: Universidad de Chicago para niños
