<p>Help a mom out! I have a junior son who is dead set on going to UT (his brother is a sophomore there, and family history of burnt orange is strong ;)).</p>
<p>I would very much like to present compelling opinions and options for why he should consider A&M for engineering (looking at chem or mechanical).</p>
<p>Also, I would like y'all's opinion of his chances (amounts) of scholarship money, as this is a COMPELLING reason for A&M!! I know UT is stingy, so not expecting anything...</p>
<p>He is a junior, stats:</p>
<p>Rank - top 5% (feeder school for A&M - suburban Houston)
GPA - uw 3.9ish (one b), weighted 4.47ish
ACT - Comp 33, math 36, science 33, English 35, reading 26 (uggh)
Lots of ecs - like editor of sports section for school paper, NHS, 2 varsity sports (2 year letter), worked summers, etc.</p>
<p>all you can do is have him apply to both TU and A&M and see what happens. APPLY EARLY. If the money rolls in, that is a pretty compelling reason to select one over the other. As Jr, I would definantly have him go to the engineering camps (or some kind of camp/weekend activity) offered at both Universitites where he stays in the dorm.
As former student with a BS in Engineering from A&M, I cant imagin not choosing A&M, but thats just me :)</p>
<p>Both engineering programs are pretty comparable. I think it is a matter of which university your son rather go to and what scholarships he might get. Check out both campuses, apply to both, carefully consider the merits of attending each. I was accepted to A&M Engineering and I gladly accepted admission because I liked the campus, wanted to be part of the Aggie Spirit, be in the Corps, I got some scholarships, among many other things. Gig'em :D</p>
<p>Career Fair and the Aggie Network have to be your two biggest reasons (along with scholarship potentials) to attend A&M. Both of which are much stronger than UT's. I may be an aggie engineer, but there's no bias in that statement; both are facts. Your son should look into applying for the following scholarship when he becomes a senior:</p>
<p>Also, as a chemE or mechE at A&M his class size would be smaller than that at UT's. Not to mention as a chemE he has the very nice and new Jack Brown building to look forward to taking classes/labs in.</p>
<p>All in all, both are great schools. I would let him chose where he wants to attend, but definitely encourage him to apply to A&M as his career opportunities will be great at either school.</p>
<p>Hi, my son is from the northeast. Can anyone attending A & M
tell me if he would feel like an "outsider,"? Are there many
students from other states?
A</p>
<p>Sun25, I went to school with several out-of-state kids when I was at A&M. I never gave a 2nd thought of them not being a Texan... I dont think your son would feel like an outsider. He may feel he has stepped into a total different culture, but I think he would be accepted totally.</p>
<p>His stats seem similar to mine, and I got enough different scholarships from them to constitute a full ride. All merit based. At least have him apply, and see if the cash can persuade him.</p>
<p>Which university is better for electrical/computer engineering with a minor in business UT Austin or A&M? Also, if I receive more money from A&M should I go to A&M just because of money itself or would I be better off paying more money and going to UT and getting into a better engineering program? Like are they similar enough to warrant going to A&M over UT just because of the money?</p>
<p>It can't be said enough: visit both and go to where you feel you fit in. You will receive an excellent education at either school. But they are very different and you usually will feel at home at one over the other. Go with your gut. If you aren't happy, you won't do well.</p>
<p>I am planning to visit UT Austin pretty soon. I still don't see how you can just decide where to go based on where you feel you will fit in. Like I'm the type of person that can pretty much fit anywhere. I visited A&M and I liked the campus and all it's kind of big but I think I would be able to manage it. I think I will feel the same for UT. I will probably be happy either way I go which is why I am asking about the engineering programs/money. I think I will feel at home at either university because I come from a small city in central Texas where there's very little to do. Like how will I know if this is the right university for me because I doubt I won't feel at home at either university. I would like to attend a good university that has lots of stuff to do like lots of activities if that helps. I will not be partying too much maybe once or twice every semester but that's it. Any advice/information is appreciated. Thanks.</p>
<p>AG54 - Your son's stats are very good. Did he do well on the PSAT? A&M gives lots of money for National Merit Finalists. I would say that both schools are generous with need-based financial aid, but A&M probably gives more merit based aid.</p>
<p>My son is headed to UT this fall to major in Chem Eng. Their merit money is primarily doled out based on class rank and SAT/ACT scores.</p>
<p>UT and A&M both have excellent engineering schools. Depending on the discipline, some programs are better at UT and some are better at A & M. I know Chem Eng at UT is ranked 7th nationally, while A & M is ranked 15th nationally. My husband is an Aggie and civil engineer. A & M is ranked higher than UT in civil. You should ask the schools about their rankings, they have them for all disciplines and will be happy to share them. Both schools' programs are ranked highly in all disciplines.</p>
<p>We are going to Austin this weekend for some type of open house thing where we are going to an informational session in the engineering school, so hopefully we'll get some good information there.</p>
<p>My son, right now, is interested in chemical engineering, but he isn't decided yet. I wonder how hard it is to change focus once you are in the school? What if you go in as a chem eng major and decide you really want electrical or petroleum? I mean, really, how is an 18 year old supposed to be certain of what they want to do for the rest of their life??</p>
<p>We are going to see if A&M has some type of open house too, if not, we'll just sign up for a visitation.</p>
<p>We have gone to the Info Sessions at both schools and last week we went on our own to A&M and worked through the Visitors Center to set up some meetings within engineering, tour dorms again and meet with scholarship office. This was much better for us since we weren't in a huge group of students and families - much more individual attention. Also, you get to see the campus on a normal school day and just blend in (as much as you can with your parents and a map). As an aside, we were very impressed that while we walking around, at least 10-15 kids said hello, came up and asked us if we needed directions or had questions and two even walked along with us to the next building and talked about their experience at A&M. Very friendly environment. But, going on a non-info session day has its advantages.</p>