IvanDiabloHorn
250+ posts
03/05/12 07:37 AM
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My son's friend was CAP in 2008, but had placed out of some hours. He was planning on going to UTSA and transfer to UT, but instead took 12 hours at UT in the summer after graduating high school and started in the fall with the rest of the freshman. It seem it was under the cap program as he had to maintain a certain gpa. Not sure if this is still possible, but maybe a route to look at. I know he had placed out of some hours.
My son also played football and ran track at a large competative 5A high school, was an Eagle scout and we were very concerned about being accepted. Luckily, he ended up in the top 10%. I say luckily because the NEISD had a system to determine the top 10% that was most likely put together by three monkeys and a rock.
I also know from experience what your son went through to maintain his GPA and play football at a 5A school.
As a previous poster said , something is out of whack with our admissions. All you have to do is look at the holistic admission matrix. Especially the points given to the applicant for special circumstances. The special circumstances grid is what your son went up against after he did not make the top 10%, just like my son's friend.
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ut1969
100+ posts
03/05/12 12:23 PM
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I have a cousin who's nephew graduated from Westwood several years ago. He could not get into UT but ended up getting a full ride to Cal Berkley for 4 years. Something is seriously wrong with admissions when something like that happens.
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ShinerTX
1000+ posts
03/05/12 01:38 PM
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I hear stories like this over and over again. I swear that the "best and the brightest" are no longer going to UT and that disturbs me. 
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Mr. Fiesta
500+ posts
03/05/12 01:47 PM
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St. John's University keeping sending him letters asking him to come there along with numerous scholarship offers. St. John's won't leave him alone and he can't get in UT.
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Mr. Fiesta
500+ posts
03/05/12 02:24 PM
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I appreciate the offers of talking with others regarding Okie Lite but, unfortunately, we already are well acquinted with it. I have several cousins whose daughters currenlty attend there (although I would would think he would consider that would have some benefits since it may be somewhat easy to become acquinted with other girls). Since there isn't a rivalry to speak of, Okie Lite didn't mention Texas in their spiel like Baylor and Arky did so that's a plus.
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IvanDiabloHorn
250+ posts
03/05/12 02:35 PM
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Fiesta, check out UT summer school under cap program.
He might be able to enroll under cap program the summer after his HS graduation and enter full time in the fall.
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Mr. Fiesta
500+ posts
03/05/12 02:48 PM
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They discontinued that program a couple of years ago. There were over 30,000 applications this year so it was extremely competative. However, it leaves out plenty of bright, motivated yound men and women from entering my beloved University. Which is a little irritating but unless you know someone, or your child was in the top 10%, you may be out of luck.
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IvanDiabloHorn
250+ posts
03/05/12 03:48 PM
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75% of the entering class is admitted under the top 10% rule, which is approx the top 7.5%(Not 10%) of the Texas high school graduating seniors.
The remaining 25% are being admitted under the "holistic" matrix which is blatantly unfair to applicants like your son.
Your son cannot change that you are still married to your wife, change his race, change the socio- economic status of his family, change the socio-economic status of his high school, change the english language spoken at home or change his family responsibilities. SAT/ACT scores should be equally compared, not have another applicant have added value by having his scores compared only to the ACT/SAT averages at his high school.
The above extra points given to other applicants is what your son had to overcome (you can eliminate any that don't apply and give yourself those points) in order to admitted to the last 25% of the class.
In other words, if you are successful both economically and in marraige, you only speak the language of the country at home, you move to a good neighborhood that has great competitive schools that challenge your children, then your child will be at a disadvantage for entry to UT under the "holistic" admissions policy.
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LongJohn
250+ posts
03/05/12 04:22 PM
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Interesting and encouraging comments about OSU. My wife and I are UT grads and my son has a 3.7 at Westwood but couldn't sniff the top 10. We visited all over but OSU got on the radar based on the program he's interested in. We visited and got a great vibe. No sense of obsession for either OU or UT. Probably feels like A&M minus the cult. The campus is nice and the buildings have a very collegiate feel. Boone's money has helped as well.
The scholarship money based on SAT score makes it cheaper than Texas State so that's where my son is headed. I have a feeling he will always have a dual allegiance though...OSU and UT.
Don't ask a man where he's from. If he's from Texas he'll tell you, if he's not, don't embarrass him.
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Mr. Fiesta
500+ posts
03/05/12 05:07 PM
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OSU is wanting all these bright kids that can't get into Texas schools so they are basically giving them in-state tuition so they'll attend. Smart plan on their part. For those of us who wouldn't ever have any of their money going to blowu, OSU is taking full advantage of that mindset.
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Sangre Naranjada
10,000+ posts
03/06/12 09:20 AM
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My oldest son graduates this year too. We never even looked at UT - I don't think he would have been successful there, nor do I think he would have gained admission in the first place. He is very bright and capable of handling the UT coursework, but the school is too big, cold, and impersonal these days, and I think he would have simply drowned in that kind of atmosphere.
Fine by me though, because he is getting a 100% free ride at UNT as long as he maintains a 3.0 gpa there. He can learn to make GIS maps and get a good job and exit UNT debt free. That's a pretty big advantage for him, in my estimation.
The beacon of ignorance shines brightly from the eyes of aggy. - notanative
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Number_6
100+ posts
03/06/12 10:18 AM
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Texas badly needs to increase it's "supply" of quality higher education. UT and A&M are basically the same size as they were 20-30 years ago, but in that time the number of college-bound students has dramatically increased.
When I applied to UT in '89, it wasn't considered an especially hard school to get into. (I knew some real morons who got in somehow.). Not to mention that my first semester cost less than $400 for tuition and fees. I'm pretty dismayed by how the cost of attending UT has exploded in less than a generation.
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ut1969
100+ posts
03/06/12 10:26 AM
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Several of the SEC schools are coming into Texas and cherry picking. Offer in state tuition and up their student rankings at the same time.
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Rayug
100+ posts
03/06/12 12:49 PM
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There are a number of schools working on Tier 1 status now. I did my undergrad at UTA, which for the sciences, nursing, engineering is an excellent school. They kind of got screwed with the whole super collider getting canned many years ago. Last time I checked, UTA was pushing 33K students.
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nwking
250+ posts
03/06/12 02:48 PM
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I entered UT in 1985 with very average grades. I loved it and excelled. But, if I were doing it again I probably would have gone to community college or another school for the 1st year or 2. Learning to study, write, take notes and handle college life on this campus was a challenge. Many friends transferred in afte a year or two and graduated with better GPAs.
It is unfortunate it is so difficult to get in with such great traditions and families with history. My family is the same way. I was told early on that my family would help support me as needed through college as long as I worked...and went to Texas.
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MarylandHorn
500+ posts
03/12/12 11:40 AM
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The State of California model seems to have worked out better for an expanding population than the one Texas adopted. Specifically, California has a system of tier one universities across the state including UCLA, UCSD, UCBerkley, etc that are all great schools and are able to absorb the increasing population and continue to provide the best education to those who want it. The second tier system is the state schools and fills its niche.
On the other hand, Texas attempted to have two independent systems, each with a single flagship tier one University and tier two universities spread through the rest of the systems. The state has grown in population but these two flagship universities long ago maxed out on the number of students that could be reasonably accommodated. Creating one or more additional tier one universities within the two systems provides confusion and divided loyalties that likely would have been more manageable if for instance, all of the UTs would have been tier one and TAMU-CS was part of a large second tier group to serve other needs.
It's too late to make that sort of a sweeping change now, so some more creative solution needs to be sought.
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nashhorn
500+ posts
03/12/12 05:17 PM
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Granddaughter, lives in Tenn coming for campus visit, 4.0 in Magnet school in NashvIlle, 32 in SAT (or ACT whichever has the low scoring). any chance to get in? Runs cross country but would not attempt at this level.
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ViperHorn
2500+ posts
03/12/12 07:41 PM
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California's system is so great it has helped to bankrupt the state. The issue is forced acceptance without equivalency. This forces Texas to pass on very qualified potential students while holding spots open for what will be no shows.
Remember - the ugliest girl in the class is still the ugliest girl in the class no matter how much money daddy has.
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Sangre Naranjada
10,000+ posts
03/13/12 07:34 AM
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In reply to:
and TAMU-CS was part of a large second tier group to serve other needs
Like the need to squeeze one's nads in public?
The beacon of ignorance shines brightly from the eyes of aggy. - notanative
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Endust
5000+ posts
03/19/12 11:15 PM
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high school seniors that think they know what they want to major in make me laugh.
a third won't make it through two years of prerequisites for their preferred programs and another third will change their minds...
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