The college application process has always been, understandably, a stressful one, and no less so because some of the admissions criteria remain a bit murky. For example: what is demonstrated interest exactly, and how much does it matter?
The truth is that you’ve got enough on your plate without worrying about making a bunch of superficial gestures to UChicago’s admissions team (you heard it here first: NO ONE cares if you subscribe to the @UChicago YouTube channel, and honestly if they’re not doing OOTD videos we’re not interested). We’re going to cut through the noise and tell you the only things you need to know about demonstrated interest here.
UChicago’s Policy
In recent years, most top-tier colleges have made sure to transparently state their stance on demonstrated interest, and strangely UChicago is an exception. However, they have given us enough information to parse their general policy, and we can also safely assume they are following suit with selective peer institutions, who uniformly say they do not consider demonstrated interest.
So what’s the deal? Historically, UChicago has not published their common data set (again breaking rank with the institutional norm), but they did so for the first time in December 2022. According to their 2021-2022 report, “level of applicant’s interest” is “considered” in application review, but for context that is the lowest tier of importance, below “important” and “very important.” In a letter from the Dean of Admissions, UChicago confirmed its indifference on the topic, assuring prospective applicants that “UChicago does not consider demonstrated interest as part of our admissions process.”
We know this is confusing — what does it mean that the CDS says UChicago does consider demonstrated interest (albeit lightly) and they’ve stated elsewhere that they don’t? It means they have some internal confusion about how to define demonstrated interest for themselves, but it is not a significant factor in admissions.
If you think about it, this is just common sense. What do you think would be more important to you if positions were reversed — a high GPA, or proof that someone signed up for a virtual Q&A session? The good news is that you don’t have to waste a bunch of time showing you care through busywork.
Regarding the CDS designation of “level of applicant’s interest,” this category is purposefully murky. Colleges, like UChicago, do not define what they consider demonstrated interest, and that’s because there is no data that has ever proven demonstrated interest has a significant impact on college acceptance rates. We can take their word for it that things like college tours and campus visits do not factor in at any point. Beyond that, demonstrated interest really just comes into play in your application, and it stands to reason that someone who wrote a sincere supplemental essay with tons of specific facts about UChicago is going to come off more interested (and as a better candidate) than someone with equally good grades who seems like they recycled an essay from MIT.
What This Means for You
You can proceed with your college research without worrying about demonstrated interest. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t demonstrate interest — just understand that it’s for your benefit and not for admissions reps’. The better you know UChicago, the more you can confirm your impression that it’s the perfect school for you, and every personal anecdote or specific detail you write about strengthens your application. That’s all the demonstrated interest UChicago needs, in the end.
Looking for ways to bring demonstrated interest into your college apps? Contact us today.