BPA State Qualifier (1st at Regionals for a large BPA chapter)
NHS Member
Extracurriculars
Band President
Clarinet Section Leader
Rotary Vice President
Worked at summer camp to teach kids about science for two years
DECA
BPA
150+ volunteer hours
Essays/LORs/Other
My essay was pretty good, probably a 7.8/10, my LORs are from my APUSH and Lang teachers, who I spent a lot of time with and knew a lot about me on a personal level.
Schools
Got into UTD and A&M
Applied EA for UT, also applied for Plan II and Liberal Arts Honors
Applied SMU RD
Deferred from USC EA
Since I’m not auto admit, I’m a little scared for my chances at UT specifically. Thank you for reading!
It’s hard to say because of auto admit. SMU is a certainty. And you could use NMSF to go to great schools for free. You’re worthy of UT but it’d be truly hard to chance. And given the major, the where doesn’t really matter although I’m not sure I’d go to UTD for it. It’s just a huge STEM vibe.
Lemme say this. Most people won’t even try to chance you because they know there are too many factors that come into play. That concept used to annoy me until…
I asked to be “chanced” and I was actually NEGATIVELY chanced. I was told “that’s not likely and that’s a reach” etc. I was so upset. But guess what: They were all wrong! Not because they’re stupid but because they didn’t know every factor of my life and what each school saw in me. While I was told I may not even get places like Purdue or UMass Amherst, I not only got them but also Notre Dame, Rice, and Princeton! So just put your best foot forward and be proud of who you are. Best of luck to you!
PS the exact same thing is happening to my little bro. Told he likely wouldn’t get this or that school and so far he is getting everything ! So maybe just don’t ask to be chanced…
You’re a very good candidate for UT. Just keep in mind with the application to UT, you need to apply to both the school AND your major, otherwise, you’ll get capped and given a different major. If you applied by the priority deadline that may give you a boost in admission.
From those in my school who applied to UT but weren’t auto admit, their chances dropped drastically. Frankly, many of us say that applying to UT is more of an extreme lottery to get in. I know several students who were not in the top 6% and were rejected from UT but went on to attend universities like JHU & more.
From my view, applications to UT is a game of chance, whether you get in or not is extremely difficult to chance.
Congratulations on your other acceptances, however! A&M does have a strong government program both undergraduate and post-graduate with their Bush School. Best of luck.
Fast forward My son is smarter than me, had better grades than me, higher scores than me and better extracurricular than me. He was instate top 10% at a top public Texas high school. He told me when he was a freshman he wasn t getting in. He was right (he got CAP) and is now at a comparable school out of state.
UT is a complete crapshoot after top 6%.
Your test scores however are higher than his. Major choice will play a big role in your chances. There’s a great website by a college counselor that breaks down all things UT by rank, test score and major and other things which I found very helpful. If you haven’t been there check out The Unofficial UT-Austin Admissions Blog — Tex Admissions
I hope you get in. If it is your first choice read up on how to appeal. If you don’t get in, appeal immediately. It might work. Good luck! I say luck because it think that is the only factor left.
I don’t know if anyone is reading this, but I got in! I also got into Liberal Arts Honors! I got deferred from Plan II but even if I don’t get it that’s fine with me. Thank you all for responding!