@mikeinsugarland I got accepted to UMD-CP and I’m deciding between the two. I’m leaning towards A&M but want to go to Preview Day before making that decision. I’m just a little worried about campus cause its on its own island and since i’m OOS student, not sure if can get car there. I want to go to the one in June and I don’t wanna do the ones in July. That’s why i’m asking cause not sure where i want to go. Thanks for your comment.
@93txag Hmm… interesting strategy - something to think about. Just make sure you don’t tank too far and drop below 15 … 
@VEXisLife I lived in that area all my life so very familiar with the campus. Remember all students are required to stay in dorms - so not sure if a car is necessary. You can always Uber with your dorm mates since Galveston is so small - the Strand is only about 5 miles away. Most of the groceries are within the same distance as well.
Remember Engineering Preview Day is 3/22 so you still have time to decide before the deadline of May 1 to accept/decline.
If you can’t attend the Preview Day since you’re OOS, PM me your questions and I will try to get them answers along with mine and report back.
For those considering Galveston, it seems like you have to accept admission by signing up for a NSC before you can apply for housing? Has anyone applied for housing without signing up for NSC and if so did it seem to “go through”? I don’t know that there is a housing rush for Galveston like there is in CS, but just wondering. My son likely won’t decide until we visit, but not sure how timely we need to be.
Yes, my son applied for housing first and there was no problem. If you Google TAMU-Galveston housing, you will see the link to apply for housing. Application cost $75, if I remember correctly. I didn’t check for cancellation refund policy. Let us know if you find out anything about housing choices available.
so for the MPE it says that we cannot use a calculator, but does that only include graphing calculators or four function calculators? I’m doing the practice tests and not having too much trouble, its just that the actual exam is timed and a four function would really speed things up.
@bluefordaggie Thank you so much for the heads up on this. It says no calculator. MPE1 looks like mostly Algebra II due to lots of functions questions, some logarithms and exponentials, and a few trig questions. It should be easier once you all have actual multiple choice answers to choose from. 90 min, 40 problems. I taught high school math for a while and cannot stop recommending that a person always, always check their work.
My son and I just spent the day in Galveston. We attended a 2-hr tour that was designed for their “marine-oriented” majors. There was a little bit of info that didn’t apply to engineering, but mostly it was an enormous help. Afterwards we met with an academic advisor for about an hour and a half. Super nice, helpful staff and students!
I highly recommend going to visit! If you’re not able to, I’d be glad to share what we learned. What questions do you have?
@93txag Did the advisor give your son an idea of what courses he would be taking his fall and spring semesters?
@93txag Is your son more inclined to spend his next year there after the visit, less inclined, or about the same?
@93txag Thank you for your post.
Our school system has March 30 off. March 22 Eng’g Preview Day is going to be tough for him to make.
The Galveston folks offer the same tour you had today again on Mar. 30.
Do you think it would be OK to go on Mar. 30? Were you able to see all the buildings, dorms, and such?
@MomHopesNxtGenAg the day started with a meeting in one of the largest lecture rooms they have…I’d say it seats around 100. (Already a plus knowing classes won’t be any bigger than that, and some will most likely be smaller). Col. Fossom (Galveston’s COO) spoke to the group, as did Donna Lang (AVP of Academic Operations) and two professors. We did a campus tour which included seeing a room in the Pacific dorm (newest/nicest). Last there was a panel of students who did Q&A for us. The most helpful part was being able to pick the brains of the tour guides (who are students) and ask questions of the student panel. We got tips on everything from best professors to the best fishing spots on campus. If you can’t make it 3/22, then yes definitely go to the next “regular” tour day. If you can go on the 22nd, we were told that College Station Engineering staff will be there too and I would think engineering profs would be speaking. We only got to interact with marine-related profs today, so we will definitely go back on 3/22.
In case anyone is wondering, our engineering kids can go to Fish Camp with the College Station kids AND/OR Salt Camp…it’s their choice to do one, both, neither.
The availability of academic support outside of class sounds fantastic. All tutoring is included in student fees. You sign up for what you need as you need it. Also they have “Supplemental Instruction.” This is when another student who has taken the class previously and made an “A” takes the course again alongside you and your classmates and then provides additional instruction/tutoring outside of class. FREE!!
They do not provide group transportation to football games in C-Stat. However, the campus does get an allotment of tickets that tend to be better seats than counterparts in C-Stat can get. SCORE!
There was someone on this forum asking whether it’s feasible to attend here without a car. I saw a bus stop on campus that was marked “city bus.” You might ask about that. I forgot to do it. Except for a gas station next door, there is absolutely nothing in walking distance to campus. Campus is small and you’re going to want a change of scenery from time to time.
So bottom line…my son was pleased. He’s ready to go and feels it’s worth any possible downside if he gets to be an Aggie in C-Stat next year. I’m on the fence. It’s not Aggieland. Not even close.
@tad1985 yes, it’s going to be chemistry w/lab, 2 semesters math, physics ((2nd semester), 2 semesters engineering. Then you’ll pick a course or two from the core curriculum (like English, psychology, or whatever core classes you pick). A student told us that 3.5 (needed for guaranteed acceptance to your major) is very do-able. The advisor was far more hesitant on that. But she did say 85% of the engineering students ETAM after 2 semesters. They expect 500+ students this fall. Campus overall is 2500 students.
I should also mention that one of my concerns was that the engineering students might be treated like the red headed stepchildren, getting passed back and forth between C-Stat and Galveston with no one who really knowing how the program works. No so. Every single person we spoke to was familiar with this program and could answer questions.
Thanks for the info! I’m disappointed about no shuttle bus to games! We are visiting next week - I’m anxious to see what my son will think. He goes to a large HS so this may be underwhelming - but living on the island might make up for it - we will see.
Thank you @93txag for the detailed info… Regarding the courses, is there a minimum hours required for each semesters, like at least 12 hrs ? I saw a schedule somewhere and it shows 16hrs first semester and 17hrs second semesters. That is just recommended but NOT required, correct ?
We will be going on 3/22 so if you have questions that you like us to ask if you can’t be there, let us know and we will try to get them answer for you.
@mikeinsugarland they have to take the required classes, but I believe the number of “core curriculum” classes would be the student’s choice on which one(s) to take and how many to take. You only need to take 12 hrs to be a FT student. On the other hand, taking 2 core curriculum classes gives you enough hours overall that you could Q drop one if you needed to and still be at the FT course load.
I’m sure there are groups of student who go to CS games and majority of student at Galveston go
I would hope so anyway
I was offered engineering at Galveston and will most likely take it
My son got his acceptance letter to A&M at Galveston for Engineering. Yay to him! He’s also interested in joining their NROTC program over there and continue on with the Corps of Cadets when he reaches his sophomore year. He was looking at the deadline to apply and now he’s worried he was too late. We tried emailing them and never got a response. Is it too late to apply? If not, will he be able to apply for NROTC at NSC?
I emailed Mr. Refugio (Commandant) about the Corps there, not ROTC but Drill and Ceremonies. He was quick to respond and wrote at length. It is not too late for that at all. The Maritime Academy had a Feb. 1 deadline for its own admissions, not relevant for Engineering at Galveston.
I am not sure about deadlines for NROTC scholarships, but it’s not too late to join the Corps per se as an engineering student at Galveston. There is an email for the Corps there, easily found, but I don’t have it handy now. The forms for Corps application and the required medical are online, too.
@TranscendentAxel The Galveston Corps info email is corpsinfo@tamug.edu. I have the Commandant’s direct emails (from his return email to me). Please let me know if you tried the corpsinfo@tamug.edu. If that didn’t work, I could give you the phone number and two different direct email addresses for Commander Buzz Refugio, their Commandant.