Kudzai Ndondo

Class: 2009
From: Zimbabwe
Academic interests: Mathematics and Economics

What do you think about the core?

The core, once you start it, stays the core of the curriculum no longer. It becomes the core of your mind, your life. It gives you that critical mind that appeals not only for how, but also for why things are what they are. I sometimes find myself discussing Socrates' speech in the Apology (or how to prove a math problem) at a party on a Friday night, or in downtown Chicago. It teaches you how to enjoy everything that you do. It allows you to express your feelings towards something and as long as you defend them and convince others that you are right (which is not easy), you are okay. It teaches you to be good at things that you enjoy, and to enjoy things that you think you are good at (which usually turns out to be a wrong thought anyway). Before I came to U of C I hated writing, but when I started brainstorming for my first Humanities paper, I realised that writing is one of the best qualities any person needs. How would I have convinced my professor that Socrates did not deserve to die if I had not used my scientific mind to observe the evidence from the text and infer from it my conclusions? Our lives are like a novel. It needs a preface, the introduction and the text. The core gives you the preface to add to your text.

What are professors and classes really like?

All that the professors really do is to facilitate learning, and we do the learning.You can hardly tell which of us is the professor if you walk into our Hum class (assuming age is just a number). If the profesor is five minutes late into the class, she faces the risk of not saying a word at all in that class (we just get our discussion going and she wouldn't want to disturb it) and she will be lucky if anybody hears her when she says, "Enjoy the rest of your day" at the end of the class because the discussion surely goes out of the classroom too.

I have two professors in my Calculus class, and two TAs (Teaching Assistants). All my math professors rarely touch the chalk. All they do is to pose a theorem and one student has to go up to the board and prove it (by the way class participation is essential, it can get you out of the C- grade). Every other student follows along and corrects the one up front. It is all fun. We spend the whole class time making proofs (difficult proofs). However, all these professors have office hours and you can always have the chance to get to hear your professor's voice if you missed it in class (busy into the discussion). TA's are always there to help with the homework, which is a good thing because you will need to bug them often (hopefully not the night before your homework is due).

Describe some of the "great conversations" you have had here:

Sometimes we just find ourselves in an exciting discussion, without the slightest idea how we got ourselves into it (At least we know what we will be talking about). Sometimes you just cannot get yourself to do your homework in the lounge because there is a discussion about religion, or why it is a 'blessing' to be at U of C and you do not want to miss out.

Why Chicago?

Well, if you are a person that is interested in determining what your classes should be like, if you want people to listen to you (and of course challenge you) whenever you say something and if you want to know who you really are (discovering yourself). If you are 'uncommon'. Come to U of C and experience a challenging but guided quest for education.

Last words?

The application is all about telling the admissions officers why they are lucky to have you applying to U of C. You need to be unique and creative. Show them that you will bring something different to the University. Just be yourself. The person that reads your essay should feel they want to meet you as soon as they can. Enjoy the application process and have confidence in yourself. You will get through the homesick times when you get here.

International Student Profiles

Kudzai Ndondo