Oh No, I’m Stressed About Grad School Again

Mozelle and I spent the day in Hyde Park last Tuesday. They’d never been to Powell’s bookstore so we decided to hang around the area. We spent about an hour or so in Powell’s. It’s probably my favorite book store in the city. I get out to Myopic more often since it’s so close to DePaul, but Powell’s, with their Loeb Classical collection, better curated books, and a focus on non-fiction/academic writing, gives them what they need to push ahead. I ended up buying The Surrealist Revolution in France by Herbert S. Gershman, and Some Aesthetic Decisions by Bonnie Clearwater. I’m taking some time to focus on art history, and right now my reading has taken me to the Surrealists. Some Aesthetic Decisions will probably draw me into Dada.

After buying our books we went for a bite at Saucy Porka, an Asian Latin fusion restaurant right by UChicago. It was a cute little place. We walked in and saw Guy Fieri’s face on a poster, so we knew it was gonna be good. I ended up ordering their Ropa Vieja rice bowl and a Lychee drink. The beef and the sauce were delicious. I could’ve gone for a little more kimchi on it, but what I had was great. I did feel like the bowl was missing something, but I wasn’t too sure what. I’ll definitely be back next time I’m in Hyde Park (which I promise you will be very soon). We decided to head to UChicago to check out their library and wander the campus. Neither of us had been and we’d heard it was beautiful. I’ve seen pictures, but I never realized just how perfect it was until I saw it in person.

If you haven’t been to UChicago and you’re about to apply for grad school, don’t visit UChicago. I can tell you now, whatever your plans were before, you’re going to want to go to UChicago. We visited to read, so to the library we went. There was a security desk that had an ID scanner at the front of the library. There was a security guard inside and we worried they wouldn’t let us in. Luckily, they offer a free visitor pass valid for a day. In the hallway to their library dome there was a sign that said “gallery opening soon” (or something along those lines). They have what seems to be a rotating exhibition of rare books in their collection? I didn’t know universities did this, but now I need to go to the one that does.

We made our way to the library dome and sat down to read. It could easily seat over a hundred people, and was completely open to the sun. I’ve never used DePaul’s quiet floor. Our library hasn’t ever provided me with an enjoyable atmosphere to study in. The air gets more stale as you go up each floor I think (they designed it this way on purpose). I went up there once. Freshman year had just begun and I had a hefty reading, Aeschylus’ Agamemnon for William O’Connor’s History of Dramatic Literature class, I had to finish in two days. I could barely make it through the first ode before I needed to leave. This was different.

We parked on the street opposite to the dome. From the outside it reminded me of the Louvre Pyramid. I could see my car from where we sat. It was their quiet area, so I was as careful as I could be when I pulled my chair out. Even the chair gliding softly on the floor disturbed the quiet. We sat down to read, but I spent just as much time people watching. After forty minutes I mouthed to Mozelle that we should grab a coffee (our second of the day), and wander the campus.

From the library we made our way to the quad. Another mistake. We passed through the main gate into an expanse of grass and trees, surrounded on all sides by the gothic architecture of their academic buildings, and made our way to the one that housed Hallowed Grounds, one of their on campus cafes. Walking through the quad was like walking through a private garden. I’ve never been a hammock person but I would be if I went to UChicago. Hallowed Grounds was unreal. It’s in a super tall room filled with with massive painted portraits across the walls. The cafe itself was closed, so we found a different one. We ended up going to the Plein Air Cafe nearby. It was a pretty standard cafe, but far beyond what I’m used to at DePaul. I ended up with a Cortado, which I enjoyed. I recently returned here with Lauren, where I had a fantastic al pastor bowl and an iced chai. Mozelle and I spent some time looking through their fridge as well. I was surprised to see they had wines for sale, and they were nice wines too. Throughout our trip I kept being reminded that it’s primarily a graduate school. Most people we saw around were thirty or older. I think the wine solidified that idea in my head. We spent more time there reading before we finally went back to the car.

So now I’m stressed again. I’m planning on going to law school as soon as I graduate. I took the LSAT in June and got a score I was very happy with after a moderate amount of studying. I was going to take it again in October and then apply early decision to Northwestern, see if I get in, and if not I’d apply to Loyola and some other schools. UChicago wasn’t ever on my radar because of the distance, but this visit shot it to my number one spot.

Just from a brief walkthrough of the library I could tell how many resources they had for researchers. I was looking at some stats and apparently they can deliver a book to you within three minutes of requesting it. I’ve been interested in theatrical law for a while, and I’d love to do some writing on theatre law history and some case studies, but I’d never considered that to be something I could do while in school. I think going to UChicago would let me treat the JD program as both a professional program and as a research degree. I would love to spend more time focusing on theatre law with the resources that only UChicago could offer me. It’s such an esteemed research school, I’d do anything for an education there.

I’m really focusing in on the LSAT this time around. I think it’s a lot different for me now that I am so committed to getting as high a score as I can. Just from a few days of studying my LSAT mistakes I’ve upped my average practice test score by six points. I’ll be studying for around an hour every day when I’m not taking a practice test. On practice test days I’ll be spending a little over two hours. My next LSAT is October so we’ll see where it takes me. I’m stressed but I’m excited. I haven’t felt this way about a school since I first discovered The Theatre School at DePaul. It ended up being the perfect school for me. I’m trusting this feeling again.