A few questions about UTexas Austin

[Myrmidon73]

<p>I’ll try to answer these:</p>

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1. Is it worth applying to the Turing scholars program? My stats are kind of(just a little ) bad - 3.1UW GPA, 740M/670CR/660W 710 math iic, 640 chem, 5 on AP Calc AB, 3 on AP Chem, but I do have strong computer ECs(doing two CS research projects, teaching robotics). I guess I don’t have much to lose(just the time it takes to write the essay, but if the program is completely useless, or there’s no chance in hell I’ll get in, I won’t bother.

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<p>I don’t think it costs anything extra, so you might as well try. I’m not too familiar with Turing, but if its like any of the other honors programs, you will definitely get some preference over stuff like interviews, research opporutinites,…etc.</p>

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2. What’s the weather like in Austin? Is it usually hot? Can you almost always wear T-shirts and shorts?

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<p>During December and January, you usually have to wear jeans, but, yes, it’s quite hot. Right now, the temperature is hovering a little above 80 degrees, but the humidity makes it so that its still in the 70s in the middle of the night. It’s definitely one of the warmest climates you could be at for college.</p>

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3. What’s the food like at UT? I’m sort of a foodie(I was spoiled by Cornell food at their summer program), so food is an important attribute of the school I’ll be attending. Specifically, is the food good on/off campus? Pricey? Is the Whole Foods flagship store any good?

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<p>I don’t eat whole foods because I’m poor, but I’d say the campus food is so-so. There is a LOT of fried stuff, and you get tired of that really quick. IMO, the best on-campus food is an Kinsolving, but it’s pretty standardized dorm food. There are a lot of restaurants in the union, Jester, and on the drag, so you’ll definitley find whatever you’re looking for. There are also like 5 HEB grocery stores somewhat near campus, so if you (or a friend) have a car, that’s always an option.</p>

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4. Is it easy to become a Texas resident(if your parents don’t live in Texas), after the first year of going to UT?

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<p>I think so. I’m OOS, but I think you can get in-state tuition for your fourth semester onwards, unless you decide to live in Texas all summer (and even then, I’m not sure you can achieve residency before tuition is due).</p>

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5. Are the on campus dorms good? Personally, I’m not much of a party-er(yeah, yeah, I know UT is the #1 party school), and I’d much prefer to live in a quiet place, but I don’t want to give up sociability. Are dorms the way most people meet each other?

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<p>I live off-campus, but I met the most people during Freshman Orientation when there were 1200 of us living in Jester. People always complain about it, but I really like Jester. The dorm itself isn’t too bad, and it’s definitely the most sociable. Most of the parties happen off-campus, so don’t be too worried about partying…etc. </p>

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6. What’s UT’s policy on courses taken elsewhere? For example, I took a Data Structures and Algorithms course at Cornell, and I’m taking Calc III at my HS now(Multivariate calc, differentiation, integration, and vector calc). Will UT honor these courses for credit, or will I have to endure a bureaucratic nightmare to make that happen?

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<p>I took Calc III, Linear Algebra, and Diff Eqs in high school, but I didn’t get any UT credit from them. I think the only ways you can get credit are your accredited colleges and universities or APs.</p>

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7. What are class sizes like? I guess this, along with getting a job, is one of my prime concerns about UT, as compared to the Ivy League schools I applied to. When I think of UT CS courses, I think of huge lecture halls with hundreds of people and almost no student-prof interaction. Is this an accurate picture?

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<p>I don’t know much about CS in particular, but the freshman classes are HUGE. As you go into upper division, the classes get noticeably smaller though. This semester, I’m taking a lot of UD classes, and only 2 of my classes have more than 100 people (compared to 5 last semester).</p>

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8. How is UT’s job office for jobs outside of Texas? I know UT has a particularly strong alumni network in Texas, but I’m not sure I want to go stay in TX after I graduate(I probably will want to move back to NYC). Does the job office help in getting internships?

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<p>I’m not entirely sure about this, because I haven’t looked much into the job placement for engineering or CS. I know that for finance, most people choose to stay in Texas, although if you want, upon getting an offer, most people have a choice in location (so you can go back to NYC).</p>

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9. Are there a lot of research opportunities (specifically in CS) at UT? Going with #7, the current picture of UT in my mind contains very little undergrad research involvement.

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<p>I’m not sure about CS (I’m in biomedical engineering), but a lot of my freshman friends work in labs across the engineering school. I’d imagine that CS would be similar. There are a lot of opportunities. You just have to look for them.</p>

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10. Are prereqs set in stone? Not to sound arrogant(I really don’t mean to be), but I do have a fair amount of programming experience, and starting with the introductory level CS classes would likely be very boring and would not teach me much(considering I’ve taken Data Structures and Algorithms already), so again, I wouldn’t want to have to jump through bureaucratic nightmares to make this happen.

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<p>If you took Data Structures from Cornell, you can probably get that waived. Prereqs are only set in stone if you don’t talk to your advisor/department head(s). For example, I can take some higher math-major classes because I showed the math department head that I had taken the prereq courses before hand. Your advisor also has a lot of power is removing prerequisite bars in course selection. </p>

<p>I hope that helped. If you have anymore questions, just ask.</p>