We are headed down to CSTAT for Aggieland Saturday next weekend (will drive in Friday evening). I’m looking over the schedule and timings and it all seems so overwhelming! Anyone have any advice on the best way to plan the day and maximize the day? My son (currently in 10th grade) is most interested in Economics as a major and Urban Planning as a minor. He is applying for Camp Arch as well this summer though and could very well flip the order of major/minor depending on how much he likes the summer program if accepted.
The time slots givin for both Colleges are conflicting with each other…is it possible to to still drop in and talk to adivisors outside those presentation timings?
@Momof3B We were there last year and went to an admissions presentation in the morning, then an open house at one of the engineering departments, and then dorm tours. There was quite a back-up for people trying to park close to Rudder for the morning presentations so I would recommend getting there really early if you need to park. Not sure what to say about the conflicting presentations…there’s always next year
@Eggscapgoats I think a second trip down next year is going to be in order as well lol! Our nephew is a junior majoring in ECON at A&M right and my son has gone and stayed with him during breaks and vacations so if need be, we can always schedule visitor appointments later I guess…we may just concentrate on the College of Arch for this trip since he’s trying to get in for the summer program on Urban Planning. I was firm with the husband that we had to get there Friday evening because I did not want to drive in directly and deal with all that traffic early Saturday! We’re staying at the Hilton Home2Suites on Texas Ave…looks like it’s right on the edge of campus, not sure if we can just walk it and leave the car at the hotel.
We did Aggieland Info Day in November (same event, just not as crowded). Dorm tour was fantastic-highly recommed! Business School in Rudder was also definitely worth attending. The Financial Aid/Scholarship meeting was a waste of time-10 minutes in a cramped, over capacity room (I had to sit on the floor, next to a trashcan). They told everyone to check box for scholarship consideration when applying thru Apply Texas-that was basically it. 10 minutes, not kidding, total waste of time…skip it!
Skip campus tour-do that another day.
@Momof3B The hotel plan sounds perfect! We’ll be driving in but will park in a garage or lot towards Kyle field, hopefully away from the Rudder traffic. Also, there is always the option of taking a department tour/presentation, although these are during the week. Hope everyone has a great day Saturday!
Sorry, I just saw this thread. @momof3b Since you already have an idea on econ through family, I would definitely go the route you’re taking And while yes you are somewhat close where there won’t be a ton of traffic… I wouldn’t walk that. Lots of garages, Koldus (across from Rudder and Kyle field), Cain (across from MSC and Kyle), and Central Campus garage (in the heart of the main campus and by the library) and the West campus which is across the tracks. Easy to get to though through the tunnel and it pops out by Kyle field. Phew… that’s a lot of info, I know.
If you want food suggestions let me know. I love to eat and drink (wine) so know all the hot spots that students and visitors may not know about!
I would love to attend this Saturday with my son but he has other plans that he does not want to change. He is admitted into Honors Engineering with hopes of Aerospace when it is time for entry to major, we have the financial end planned out (still trying for various scholarships though), we saw dorms last summer although I would love to see again to take pictures, and he saw the aerospace labs during a field trip with his aerospace class. I did not see that the office for disabilities would be available (type 1 diabetes).
So as much as I would love to attend, I feel that I probably should let him go to his other plans instead. Would he be significantly missing out or does it seem that it is okay to miss this Aggieland Day considering all of the above?
@momof3b So right across from you is First Watch. Not sure if you’re familiar with it or not as it is a chain, but it’s farm to table basically and great for breakfast/brunch (no dinner option). Also right by you is World of Beer. Their Sunday beerunch is really really good and you can walk there without fear of getting run over. For dinner, if you’re wanting really really nice, there’s the Republic Steakhouse on University. They just reopened in a beautiful stand alone building. So nice with a great bar. This is our go to fancy place and you will spend money! Also pricey but really good is Ronins in downtown Bryan (not far). Downtown Bryan also has some great options for more casual fare and not too crowded. 3rd and Main (comfort food), Proudest Monkey (street tacos/burgers/truffle fries to die for), All the Kingsmen (BBQ on the pricey side of BBQ), Several authentic mexican restaurants downtown, Cafe Capri (Italian), There’s also an Irish Pub connected to a German restaurant called Brauhaus I think and Mo’s for irish. OOOH and there’s Maddens which is semi pricey but yummy food. Again, all of these are downtown Bryan which is a great place to putter around in the shops/bars/restaurants. Even has a renovated old timey theater that shows classics from all genres.
If you want something closer to campus, check out Century Square (Hop Doddys, Porters steak house, Piadas, Zoes Kitchen, Canteen, Poppy’s, Blaze Pizza, Sweet Paris-Crepery, old timey candy shop, icecream place).
So those are two destinations. Both have wonderful food options that are unique to Cstat/Bryan and then chain eateries. You won’t starve here or go thirsty!
Thanks @AggieMomhelp! We do have First Watch here as well in the Dallas area. Lots of good choices for eats I see…getting excited for this weekend! I’m sure I’ll have a lot to report back on Monday lol ?
@Mathcat you will not be missing out! You’re in great shape. Campus will be crazy crowded.
We attended Aggie Info Day in November (which is a much smalller scale version).
You’ll be better off coming another day-perhaps use one of his designated college absences-and making appts with specific departments.
Thanks @52AG82 . You put my mind at ease that it would be okay to not attend. This afternoon though my son told me that he wants to go after all! I completely expect it to be crazy crowded as you described but being that we are only just over two hours away, it is worth it for even the nugget that might create a feeling of “I’m glad I went.”
@aeroengmom wow! That’s a full day! I’m impressed by his planning skills!
We did Aggie Info Day in November, so we’re just driving in for tour of Mays and Panhellenic Preview 1-4:00.
I will say, you won’t be able to see the 3 sets of dorms, starting tour at 3:00. We did Northside & Southside/Commons tour in November. No way to do both in 30 minutes, and you’ll have to drive to White Creek. Dorm tours were very informative, and if he’s wanting to live on campus, you need to allow more time to tour. Southside/Commons tour is next to Corps quadrant, if you’re in that area. We ate at Commons, then toured after lunch.
Good luck!
We got here at 7:00pm…had dinner, now hanging out at the nephews apartment playing board games. We’re not going to try cram in too much, I’m going to let my son guide the day and take charge.
We had a fabulous day in CSTAT today despite the cruddy weather!! Parking situation bad at all, we easily found the Central Campus parking garage. First stop was the College of Liberal Arts Building where we popped in to say hello to a family friend’s son who is an International Affairs major and was working the info table. My son also spoke to some Econ advisors about general info and how he can pair an Econ degree with Urban Planning. Next we made our way to the Arch buildings for the session on Urban Planning. We spent a great deal of time afterwards having a good one on one convo with the Dept Head. He gave my some some good guidance and options within this degree plan. After leaving the Arch building we met up with my nephew and his older sister who came down from Houston to hang with us well (She’s a final year med student at Baylor College of Medicine and did her undergrad at UT Austin so a lot of passive aggressive shade from her end lol!!!)…our tribe then headed over to Hullabaloo to to the Northside dorm tours. My son liked the space of the modular dorm rooms. By now hunger was setting in and the rain was steady so we decided to head off campus for a sit down lunch. After lunch my husband headed back to our hotel to get on a conference call for work and the kids + niece/nephew + nephew’s friend and I all went to the new H-E-B lol because I’ve never been to one ??..it lives up to hype! Next stop was The Wearhouse to get some Aggie Swag and a gift for a neighbor who is feeding our cat while we’re away. We were all pretty tired by now so I headed back to our hotel, while my boys hung out with niece, nephew and his friend who were going to take them back to campus for some more touring.
We are planning to visit the Bush Presidential Library tomorrow before heading back to Dallas.
My husband and I were pleased with what we saw and the advisors we talked to. Eveyone is just so nice at A&M! My son is pretty resolute with A&M being his top choice. We’ll start touring other Texas schools later in his Junior year, but I’m pretty sure more trips to CSTAT will take place once he solidifies his plans for major/minor. He’s definitely applying for Camp Arch this summer, specifically for the Landcape Architecture & Urban Planning track.
I’ve learned so much here on CC about the admissions process that we didn’t really feel the need to sit in on those sessions.
