<p>@undecided2014</p>
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<p>Let’s address the “scripted” part. This is called branding and I will be the first to admit UT is a brand. If you ever go to the Parents forum, college tours are a big topic of conversation. I get what you are saying, a good down home girl giving you her life story to how she landed at TAMU is warm and fuzzy and all that happy stuff. People in Austin are generally chill and I would not stay they “look past” you, but they really just don’t care what other people do. Maybe that rubs you wrong and that is perfectly ok. But it is more of a culture of Austin than UT specifically.</p>
<p>As far as the Plan II program goes, I am drawing the conclusion that you are still waiting to hear from them. This is a much different story than general UT admission. The people that make the decisions about Plan II admission are some of the nicest people I have ever met. They are meticulous, generous and hard working. They also read what you wrote. First your essays that you wrote on Apply Texas and then your Plan II supplement. They start these applications as soon as the first batches start rolling in. They read your resume, they read your transcript, your test scores, everything. Then they build an incoming class. They look for avid readers, musicians, scientists, poets, painters, mathematicians, mechanical engineers, all the while looking for that special “Plan2ness” that they advertise. I have no idea what that is, but I will tell you when you are involved in the program as a parent or a student you know it when you see even if you can’t describe it. Building and making these incoming classes take time, a great deal of patience and sometimes negotiation. The people behind the curtain know you are anxious to hear form them, but to them it is an art and frankly rushing it is a disservice to every word written by every applicant. The structure of the Plan II incoming class is what makes Plan II special. It might not be the Ivy League, but it is a really special program for a really good price if you are instate. Classes are small, the community is very close knit and the support is amazing. Plan II kids don’t judge or compete against each other, they leave that for the rest of the University. They spend their time on collaboration, drinking in knowledge and learning from not only their professors but from each other. They bond through the toughest class at UT…Plan II Physics and they celebrate really heavily when it is done. So I have complete respect that you don’t want to wait anymore. But they are taking their time to make sure everyone has a place and that the fit is just right. And if that is not worth waiting for so be it. But I can assure you I have never met a Plan II kid who for one minute regretted their decision to wait for that big brown envelope. And of course some get their envelopes in November. These are the very, very Plan II kids. You’ll know them when you meet them. You are drawn right to them. They crafted their application in just a way where the class is built around them. The admission committee has to start somewhere. It is just how it is. </p>
<p>Edited to add @undecided2014: I also looked at another post where you posted that you had everything into UT by Nov 10 “Liberal Arts and Plan II.” Priority Deadline for Plan II was October 15, 2013. At that point Plan II starts to review apps and build that class. By Nov 10, 2013, the first wave of acceptances where being prepared to be mailed. That quickly shrunk your chance. If they offer admission to X number of kids and they send out X number of acceptances, then you know how math works, there are less to go around. Of course there are still spaces, but the just like cars that pour into a parking lot, the later you arrive, the fewer spots there are. </p>