<p>Texas has the top 10% . Currently for University of Texas it is somewhere around the top 8%. My child can go to a top STEM high school (very competitive) with many AP STEM courses, such as AP calc AB and BC, physics C, AP stats, AP computer science but would most likely not be able to graduate in the top 8-10% of the class. Or go to a small high (current tract) school where they have AP precalc, AP calc AB but not BC or physics, however could graduate in the top 8-10% of the class, thus assuring acceptance into the University of Texas. If the my child scored 4 or 5 on calc AB, would they still be able to get into CS or engineering? </p>
<p>It is currently at 7 percent for automatic admission AND general admission. Check the requirements for specific colleges of natural sciences and engineering. </p>
<br>
<br>
<p>I doubt that AP scores are used for admission. Scores are usually sent to the student’s chosen school after graduation. When would the child be taking AP Cal AB? </p>
<p>Are you asking if your child is in the top % required for auto admission to UT, will a good AP score get him into eng’g? </p>
<p>Does UT require SAT II scores? if so, then I would think a strong Math SAT II score would help. If the school doesnt require, then top math grades would help. Does UT require mid-year grade reporting?</p>
<p>If top 7% is close to assured at the current HS and UT-Austin is your goal (and for engineering/CS, in-state tuition at UT-Austin is hard to beat), then staying in the current HS may be the best move.</p>
<p>If top 7% isn’t assured or your child is really good so that elite privates (and/or full-tuition scholarships) are a real possibility (and you don’t make a lot so can expect good fin aid at those places), then the STEM magnet may be better.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>There are a few twists to consider. First, and worth repeating, the automatic admission does NOT ensure a spot in the most sought-after schools such as Cockrell, McCombs, etc. It is also good to remember that a number of the most competitive HS in the state are NON participants in the top 7 percent system. Their students are targeting the colleges that REQUIRE a specific application and are reviewed holistically. </p>
<p>In so many words, a strong student might be BETTER served to attend a very competitive school, complete the toughest curriculum, do well in hard advanced classes, get a high SAT, and NOT focus on getting a higher ranking at a lesser HS. </p>
<p>The students who worry excessively about the ranking game are not necessarily the students aiming at the honors programs in Austin. </p>
<p>The big question is, does the less competitive high school prepare the students well for college work? If top 7-10% students from that high school struggle in college due to inadequate preparation, then attending such a high school is not a good idea.</p>
<p>A major Texas school district puts out reports on AP courses and tests like this: <a href=“http://www.houstonisd.org/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?moduleinstanceid=73138&dataid=92561&FileName=2013%20AP_final.pdf”>http://www.houstonisd.org/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?moduleinstanceid=73138&dataid=92561&FileName=2013%20AP_final.pdf</a> . Note figure 5b on page 14, where the modal score for A students in AP courses is 1 overall, and 1 for the subareas of English and science (and 1 scores are worrisomely common for A students in math/CS AP courses). Such results are not good.</p>
<p>UCB, you hit on one of the dark sides of the 10 percent law. There are plenty of subpar schools in Texas from the Valleys to the football loving Bubbavilles. All of them have a top ten percent pool … just as the academic powerhouses. Much ink has been wasted on making proposals that would add an extra hurdle such as a minimum SAT or a state ranking. Texas political powers have been able to kill most sensible amendments. </p>
<p>The system, however, works, and perhaps as intended, because many students from lower performing districts simply do NOT use their free pass as they cannot afford the schools or feel comfortable away from family. </p>
<p>But there are many ways in which the system of auto admission could be more equitable and just. </p>
<p>I thought part of the point was to give some help to those who <em>don’t</em> have the scores because of sub-par schools and poor preparation, and let those who have shined in those circumstances have a chance. So adding another layer sort of defeats the purpose. No system can be perfect. </p>
<p>I was wanting to use the local community college for dual credit or classes outside of our school system for CS/pre-engineering preparation for any classes lacking at the smaller school. My dilemma is this: I am not confidant my child will graduate in the top 7% in the extremely competitive class. We live close to a community college and I am hopping to make up for the lack of rigorous classes. If my kid get the ACT/SAT scores required to make him competitive and top rank of HS and community college course, will that be rigorous enough to get him into CS at UT? We have one more year before high school starts. </p>
<p>I guess I need to get the stats the incoming students for CS at UT? Can you direct me as to what I need to be evaluating to see if we can be competitive.</p>
<p>This link may be helpful:</p>
<p><a href=“http://bealonghorn.utexas.edu/whyut/profile/scores”>http://bealonghorn.utexas.edu/whyut/profile/scores</a></p>
<p>It only breaks it down by college (such as Engineering), not major. </p>
<p>So, how hard is it for a top 7% student to get into UT’s engineering? What stats are needed? Is there any assurance if the student also has A’s in math/calc and a 7XX Math SAT score? </p>
<p>If your student can get into the top X% for guraranteed admissions for UT Austin, that is one thing. To get into a specific school at UT, is a whole other. I have nephews in TX who went to rigorous high schools, did well but didn’t make the cut for Austin neither of them did, for UT at all. However, some friends of theirs who did at less rigorous schools who did get into UT Austin.did not all get into their first choice schools within the university. My one nephew is now at UT Austin after a year at A&M in one of those hard to get into as a freshman major, but the field does open up after freshman year for some of those schools do to the first year weed out courses. CS and engineering, along with other STEM majors have a high attrition rate.</p>
<p>I feel like first of all I have to offer the caution that your child is young and may decide he likes debate or premed more than CS. Who knows what he will want to study.</p>
<p>Second, the info in post 10 is helpful. I suspect four years from now it will be at least as hard or harder to get in to UT and to CNS and Engineering. The lege doesn’t seem likely to change the rules, and UT is a strong school with a low price. </p>
<p>Your child could transfer in. He could transfer in from a CAP/PACE type program, in which he starts at a branch of UT or a CC, or transfer internally, like go from being an engineer to a CS. This is touched on above. Because a good number of kids do drop out of the “hard” majors, there is generally room for kids who make good grades to transfer in to the majors they want after freshman year. I say generally; anecdotally, CS is the one major where that doesn’t always happen. There are so many kids that want CS that there isn’t always room for transfers. Will this still be true in four-five years? IDK. Maybe more profs will be hired and the department will be larger. </p>
<p>If it were my child, I would place him in the high school where he could get the best education and be the happiest. We didn’t choose the local STEM magnet because it wasn’t enough better academically than the local HS and had less good ECs. (And it was far away, which would cut down on the kids’ ability to play sports and music.) My kids were top 7% so now worries there, but had they not been, I would have considered A&M or UT Dallas, which are both strong in STEM and more generous with aid.</p>
<p>I like the caution above about your child going in to college well prepared btw. Our local high school had the same APs as the STEM magnet, so no difference there. Kids do struggle at UT if they go into STEM majors underprepared. While there are resources to help them, it is better to go in ready.</p>
<p>1) AP Scores aren’t needed for admission. Heck, even AP classes on your transcript aren’t necessary for admission if you have taken a few classes at the local CC.
2) SAT Math + Writing, or ACT English and Writing combined + Math are the most important factors for Engineering admissions.
3) SAT IIs aren’t needed.
4) I am not exactly sure how they handle ECs, but the consensus is that UT likes to see excellence in at least one EC in addition to several other minor ECs. Regardless of the ECs you have, make sure you can write about one for Essay C showing why you’re a fit for Engineering/CS.
5) UT does not require mid year reports. However, if you fall within the automatic admission threshold in the middle of your senior year, absolutely send your new transcript.</p>
<p>This is coming from a student outside the top 7% at the time of admissions from a low-performing H.S. (where most APs are reserved for senior year) who got into Engineering.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>But how is the quality of the courses? For example, what AP scores do A students in the AP courses at each school tend to get?</p>
<p>At our school no big difference. It is possible that at some of the other big neighborhood publics kids made significantly lower AP scores than at the magnet. </p>
<p>Personally, magnet schools offer seemingly intangible benefits that are not present in other “local” schools. Your child will be surrounded by other high-performing kids and an overall academic atmosphere.</p>
<p>First, I will suggest to check with the GC how does your school rank. Is it weighed or unweighed GPA? Second, even you get autoadmission by within the top 7% in class, to get into engineering will depend on the rest of your credential.</p>