Morgan Park Academy seniors caught the eye of top colleges and universities at a citywide college admissions forum on Oct. 30, 2026, earning early offers of admission as part of the Chicago Scholars program.

Students pre-selected up to 10 schools with whom they would interview at the event. They had submitted application materials to these schools by mid-September, allowing admission officers time to review their applications prior to the interviews, which were held in person.

During the event, MPA seniors engaged in college interviews with admission officers from schools including:

  • University of Chicago
  • Spelman College
  • Georgetown University
  • Northwestern University
  • Vanderbilt University
  • DePaul University
  • Wake Forest University
  • University of Dayton
  • Saint Mary’s College
  • Eastern Illinois University
  • Boston University
  • Tulane University
  • Purdue University
  • Bradley University
  • University of Pittsburgh
  • Drake University

While many of the colleges and universities have not begun extending admission offers at this point in the annual cycle, MPA seniors did receive admission and merit-based scholarships at the forum from Bradley, Pitt, Drake, DePaul, and Eastern Illinois.

Students will hear about merit scholarships and other admission decisions in the coming days and months.

It’s been a busy semester for Upper School students and our Director of College Counseling, with SAT, ACT, and PSAT/NMSQT testing and visits to our campus by representatives of dozens of colleges and universities eager to meet our students.

On campus this fall — U. Chicago, Northwestern, Michigan, Carnegie Mellon, Case Western, Syracuse, Boston U., Spelman, Vanderbilt, Tulane, Memphis, UNLV, N.C. State, Saint Louis U., Loyola Chicago, Mount Holyoke, UIC, Kenyon, Seton Hall, Dominican, Lawrence, Millikin, Grinnell, Butler, Drake, Dayton, John Carroll, Saint Benedict, SIU Edwardsville, Universidad de Navarra in Spain, University of Manchester in the UK, and more!

In recent years, Morgan Park Academy students have gained admission to 49 of the nation’s top 50 colleges and universities, including nearly all of what Forbes has dubbed “The New Ivies,” a group of 20 highly selective institutions “that are attracting the best and the brightest, and graduating students that are outpacing most Ivy Leaguers in the eyes of employers.”

Last spring, the Class of 2026 averaged nearly $475,000 in scholarship offers per student.