<p>As a parent of a rising sophomore at Texas Tech's Honors College who has had a wonderful experience there, I believe Tech's Honors College can be an excellent choice for many very good students (top 20 percent of class or higher and SAT's of 1200 or higher). There are approximately 1,000 students in the Honors College which includes among its offerings: special admissions criteria to Tech's Medical School (with minimum 1300 on old SAT or 30 ACT) where no MEDCAT exam is required; a 3:3 program with the Law School; faculty whose only appointment is in the Honors College (one of only four universities nationally that do this); and bachelors programs designed only for honors students such as a general liberal arts major; Natural History/Humanities major; etc. The average SAT for entering Honors freshmen is 1325-1350 on the old scale, but those with lower scores are often admitted as well since the Honors Admissions Committee genuinely considers the "whole person" (EC's, essays, grades, and scores) when making its admissions decisions. Again, this is from personal knowledge. If you'd like to know more or have specific questions, just pm me or post on this thread</p>
<p>My son is considering Tech and Honors Program. What more can you tell me? He is interest also due to possible merit money. SAT score is 1500. I would appreciate any info you have.</p>
<p>Akadad - Thanks for your question. Texas Tech provides a table of the qualifications for guaranteed merit scholarships at <a href="http://www.honr.ttu.edu/meritscholarships%5B/url%5D">http://www.honr.ttu.edu/meritscholarships</a> The merit scholarships start with a combination of top 10 % or IB degree and SAT/ACT scores of 1200/26. The Honors College administers Tech's merit scholarship programs. </p>
<p>To add a bit more to my post that started this thread on Tech's Honors College, there is also an honor's track program in the Business School for a bachelor's degree and a 150 hour MBA program (basically 1 year in graduate business school to get an MBA). </p>
<p>Undergraduate research is also encouraged with some funds available for students collaborating with faculty (especially in the sciences).</p>
<p>My son has been very impressed with the caliber of teaching and interest by faculty members in the Honors College (such as students visiting faculty homes). For instance, Dean Bell teaches an honors freshman course in U.S. History that regularly gets kudos from the students. What I personally like is that the honors students are also encouraged to "give back" through community activities in Lubbock such as assisting the Salvation Army. The Honors College strives mightily to create a sense of community and bonding among the honors students through various activities throughout the year. Many of those activities are focused on the honors dorm residents in Gordon Hall. For instance, at final exam time for the "first year experience" (fye) classes, all the fye faculty go to an "exam jam" at Gordon Hall where the professors individually go over the highlights of the courses before the exam. My son said, "you can ask anything you want" about the course in a relaxed atmosphere. </p>
<p>If you have any more questions after reviewing Tech's honors college website, give me a holler.</p>
<p>MY son also very seriously considered the Tech Honors program... really a good campus, environment, and strong academics-in the honors progra... and apparently rising through out the school</p>
<p>15mbw - Thanks for commenting on Tech's Honors College and the improving academics in general at Tech. My motivation in promoting the Honors College in particular is that my son, a very good but not stellar student in high school, almost did not apply to the Honors College because he thought he would not be admitted. However, as "they say", the rest is history. He has has received a very personalized education and attention through the Honors College to which he has responded (and performed) very positively. There are many thousands of good to very good students in Texas (top 20 percent of their classes) who could be among the tens of thousands of undergraduates at A&M or UT-Austin in the huge lecture hall classes or they could be among those in Tech's Honors College getting "special treatment". And I am trying in my small way to get the word out.</p>
<p>My equivalent of a "bump" so folks can read this as an active (rather than mothballed) thread.</p>
<p>Wanted to jump in on Texas Tech and the honors college. While probably not at the level --certainly in terms of reputation as UT, Mich, etc ... My analysis is tha tTech is a very solid alternative to the student just below those that can thrive at the top 20 type school. </p>
<p>Not just get admitted --but thrive. I have seen many kids able to kid into a MIch/ UNC/ UT-Austin .. who would have a more fruitful college experince at Tech, especialyl if you plan to go on to grad school.</p>
<p>Not a comprehensive list but a few notable alums .... </p>
<p>Rick Husband-Commander of the Shuttle Columbia
Ed Whitacre- Chairman adn CEO of SBC COmmunications
Wayne Isom- heart sugeon of David Letterman</p>
<p>A few real people that come to mind immediately</p>
<p>zxc123 - First, thanks very much for posting. Your points regarding successful placement of Tech Honors College graduates into the top graduate schools is true. Here are a couple for instances for others reading this thread. While I was "googling up" some other Tech Honors College material, I happened across several online resumes from Tech Honors grads. One student is a graduate student in Physics at the University of Chicago (my alma mater). Another is a psychology graduate student at Vanderbilt. </p>
<p>Yesterday I spoke to a senior administrative official in Tech's Honors College who was giving me some coaching over the phone regarding what to say to potential Honors College prospects at an upcoming college fair I volunteered for. That official said that Tech Honors College is just starting to build its "what happened to our alums" database, but that person also said anecdotal evidence is strong that Honors College graduates do quite well in attending excellent graduate and professional (medical and law) schools offering Cambridge University, Harvard, and University of Chicago as examples from last year's graduating class.</p>
<p>Here's another little tidbit about the personalized education that is possible at Tech's Honors College that I also found illuminating. I mentioned the senior administrative official I spoke to yesterday in my last post and their advice to me on what to tell prospects at an upcoming college fair. As part of that conversation, the official told me how the deans (who teach Honors courses in the social sciences) take very seriously requests made to them from Honors College students for recommendations on grad school applications and scholarships. These deans are careful to write meaningful, detailed, and insightful recommendations for these students. That person felt that meaningful recommendations from Honors College faculty were a factor in the success of Honors College students in top grad school placement. What brought this part of the conversation up was that the official stressed to me to inform potential students that the Honors College Admissions Committee on its part wants high school senior applicants to provide recommendations from teachers who know the student's academic work very well, not someone like a high school principal who may have little direct knowledge of the applicant's capabilities but who has a higher level position at the school. These comments just underscored for me once more that Tech's Honors College is genuinely concerned about evaluating an applicant as a "whole person" and not just the numbers.</p>
<p>Which college fair did you volunteer at if you dont mind me asking?</p>
<p>Plano College Fair nights on September 12-13.</p>
<p>DO youhave a schedule of college fair somewhere... i am looking in the Houston area</p>
<p>zxc123 - Unfortunately, I do not have a listing of college fairs. The one I am going to is sponsored by the Plano School District primarily for students from its three senior high schools (though students from other nearby districts I'm sure will be attending as well).</p>
<p>The Tech Honors College website is:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.honor.ttu.edu%5B/url%5D">www.honor.ttu.edu</a></p>
<p>If you have questions that are not answered on the Honors College website, the senior administrative official said the best way to have your questions answered is to e-mail them at:</p>
<p><a href="mailto:honors@ttu.edu">honors@ttu.edu</a></p>
<p>The Honors College administrative staff reviews the incoming e-mails regularly and then assigns them for response to the appropriate staff members.</p>
<p>There is a college fair at UNT....ill be attending that one</p>
<p>Keeping the thread alive for the college application season.</p>
<p>My monthly post until the end of the application season.</p>
<p>LSD,</p>
<p>I don't like to put excessive emphaisis on "rankings," but because of your firsthand experience, would you please contrast the academic strengths and student life at Texas Tech with that of UT-Austin and UT-Arlington?</p>
<p>as a comment UTA is Arlington .. the Austin is almost always just UT</p>
<p>First as a Tech alum, married to a UT grad ,, I will admit to being biased somewhat but my son went through college search and ended up at a service academy after consideredin UT and TECH as well as Purdue and Ga Tech</p>
<p>First UT-Arlington just isnt in the same neigborhood as the other two . It is primarily a commuter school and/or way to get to Austin or a decent option for local kids. It is not to say one cant do ok from there it just isnt the same. </p>
<p>Having said that UT-Austin is clearly</p>
<p>Thanks very much to rty456 for your insightful and "been there" answer to Lake Washington. Of UT-Austin (or UT), UT-Arlington, and Texas Tech, UT clearly has the most and biggest of everything - the most students (50,000 with 38,000 undergraduates), the most faculty, the most in cutting research by faculty, the most "happening" town in student friendly Austin, etc.</p>
<p>But there are goods and bads with having the most which I think plays well to the advantage of Tech's Honors College for very good students that are also considering UT. Specifically, there are thousands and thousands of students with top 10 - 20 percent high school rank and mid-1200's and up (old scale) SAT's at UT. In the first couple years as an undergraduate at UT in particular, if these very good students are not among the few that are in honors programs at UT, then you are in competition for the very limited dorm space, will have introductory social science, humanities, and science classes often taught by TA's with hundreds of other students in the class, etc. Contrast this with being among the 1,000 or so students in Tech's Honors College in the best dorm on campus, with honors classes limited to 25 students or less taught by profs who enjoy teaching undergraduates, and the list goes on. </p>
<p>My son is one of those very good students in high school that I described who had this choice between UT and Tech's Honors College, and he hasn't looked back since. I encourage very good students to apply to UT, A&M, and Tech's Honors College. Visit all three and then make your choice. In a heads-up match Tech's Honors College will get more than its fair share of students.</p>
<p>Take a look at the weekly "Voice" for current students on Tech's Honors College website and see the variety of events, undergraduate research with top professors, honors advising, and other goodies that Tech Honors College students enjoy. Then decide for yourself whether Austin among the masses or Lubbock among the specially treated is your choice.</p>