Any advice for hs freshman interested in UT honors programs?

Colleges and Universities A-Z The University of Texas at Austin
1

<p>My son (DS) is a high school freshman who is already thinking that he will apply to honors programs at UT when he is a senior (he has given me the task of coming on CC, claiming he is too busy). DS is a top student, ranked 1/300+ after one semester (just one semester, though DS has been a top student with the same kids since 5th grade), with a decent PSAT (144/160), and with high ambitions. </p>

<p>Apart from GPA, rank, and test scores, DS wonders what a student should do to improve chances of acceptance to Dean's Scholars, Turing Scholars, Engineering Honors, or Plan II? DS is particularly interested in the importance of:
(1) the AMC tests -- DS is a strong math student and has competed in UIL and TMSCA, but knows that many elite schools look to the AMC10, AMC12, and AIME tests;
(2) research experience;
(3) athletics -- DS plays tennis and is somewhat good at it, but would rather drop it for more academic pursuits; and
(4) charity/volunteering work -- DS knows that many elite schools and programs put some emphasis on this.</p>

<p>Please don't say "He should just do what comes naturally." What comes naturally to him is to form goals, usually ambitious ones, and then do all he can to attain those goals. So finding out what he needs for acceptance and then doing that IS what comes naturally to him.</p>

<p>Thanks for any input.</p>

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<p>Your son is a smarty–he definitely needs to know what he should have to get “in” to a UT honors program. </p>

<p>It depends on the honors program, so I will tell you about our Business Honors Program, with which I am most familiar.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>McCombs usually “auto-admits” the Top 2% of Texas’s students. If DS goes to a ranking school, he should aim to stay between the top 2% if he plans to apply to the business school. If he does not go to a ranking school, then he should make very high grades. BHP does a holistic review process, and can pull students who may have a UT derived rank below 2% into the honors program if they show very high grades at a non-ranking school.</p></li>
<li><p>Nail the SAT. The average BHP student got a 1466 on their Math and Verbal sections of their SAT for the incoming Fall 2010 class–and that’s an average. A lot of BHP students are 1500+ on their M+V combined scores.</p></li>
<li><p>DS should get involved, and not only involved, but show a lot of depth as well as initiative. BHP reviewers love students who have done things like Boy Scouts/Girl Scouts, Karate, or any activity that requires a long-term commitment by the student in order to achieve rank. BHP reviewers also really like leadership positions. BHP students are not only academically gifted, they have to be able to lead groups to be effective in the program. Leadership is a huge factor for admission. Many BHP students held down 5 leadership positions in their High School career. Many of them are also involved in Speech and Debate/Forensics.</p></li>
<li><p>Learn to write a good resume. There’s nothing worse when reading a resume than trying to weed out where the leadership is, where the volunteer work is, etc. BHP provides a sample resume on their website, which is a good model to use. They also notice, however, if a student created their own template that is easy to read. I would also discourage DS from putting a picture on his resume. </p></li>
<li><p>BHP glances at AP tests, but puts more weight on what’s on the students actual transcript. Even if DS is ranked #1, the evaluators look directly at the transcript–especially Math classes.</p></li>
<li><p>When he’s using the apply texas application (this is far away for him, I know) tell him not to blow off his essays. Honors programs at UT read them closely, and when a student writes “I’m top 8%” as a response to his/her essay, this will almost certainly result in a denial. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>I hope this answers your questions, at least from the Business Honors perspective. If I missed anything, someone else can add :)</p>

<p>Good luck to DS!</p>

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<p>AustinAreaDad…</p>

<p>Where to start…To me, the first place to start would be to find out what your son feels he would like to study in college. What is attractive to the Honors Admins on your list, is very different for all the programs. I guess some would say a science/math kids is a science/math kids so what does it matter which program? It matters because each program has a different set of criteria; so to say do XYZ, is not prudent because not all programs require it or would even find it attractive. </p>

<p>From personal experience, I have a kid who was excepted into Plan II for fall 2011. What makes her a good fit for Plan II? Her stats are just like every other high achieving CC kid. In the top 1% of her highly regarded Texas public school, crazy high GPA, 16 AP classes, mostly 5’s with a splash of 4’s here and there, senior class load of AP Cal BC (she took AB last year…just how our school system does it), AP Stats, AP Lit, AP Macro, AP Gov, AP Chem, AP Physics C. Her lowest unweighted grade is a 97. She is pulling straight 100’s in more than half her classes. ** But this in no way makes her special, different or ideal. ** I believe where a candidate makes their mark is in what they do in the 16 hours they are not in school. For my daughter that is music. Marching Band, Concert Band, Symphony Orchestra, Local Private Orchestra, District, Regional and Area Musician, Plays in the Pit with our HS’s Musical Production each year. She has held leadership positions in her musical endeavors over the last few years. She faithfully works at the local hospital 8 hours a week (on Sundays…her only “free” day) But I assure you she does this because she loves it. She loves the NICU babies, the ER group…everything. It is the highlight of her week. And they love her back :). </p>

<p>This is not about a love fest for my daughter, but to show you the academic picture is an important, but small piece of the puzzle. Because she balances what she loves, with what she is expected (the classroom work) to do, she stands out. She demands excellence of herself in every situation. It is her pressuring herself, not her parents or her teachers. That can’t be taught. Because of that, her “awards” list is long, and she is as humble as it comes. But in regard to Plan II…IMO…she is in the program for a little bit listed above, but because she is an excellent writer. And she is an excellent writer because she LOVES to read. It is not uncommon for her to bang out a 500-600 page book a week on top of her school load. So there is that, in a not so small nut shell. She has also applied to DS, and we should be hearing from that program soon. Frankly, I don’t believe she will get that program, because it is my impression, they are searching for complete science/math junkies. She loves science and math, but does not compete in the subjects outside of the classroom. I will update this thread when we find out either way so that way you will know if a candidate like her is what they want. (because I certainly have not idea)</p>

<p>Now with all that said, what made her attractive to Plan II for entering class of 2011, may not be what is attractive next year. Plan II, especially, builds a class. They don’t want 150 science geeks with good writing skills. They want engineers, writers, debaters, fine arts kids, a math whiz here and there, etc. They want pre-meds that don’t want to have their heads in a science labs for four years, etc. They want pre-law kids who like to tinker in a science lab. They want kids who LOVE to learn. And durning application time…don’t neglect the essays! For Plan II they are critical and for all other HPs, they are most important!</p>

<p>Hope that helps!</p>

4

<p>Research experience or a obvious bent/interest in research and stregnths in independent thinking skills/self motivation are going to be looked for in a Natural Sciences honors program (Dean’s Scholars or Turing). </p>

<p>I’ve heard the Plan II program requires a LOT, LOT, LOT of writing. So, if your DS does not love to write, he should not apply to Plan II. My DS heard about the writing and said, “no way”.</p>

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<p>UTAustinR, thanks for the info. And DS does go to a high school that ranks. As for leadership, he is president of the Chess Club and of the Robotics team at his school, and he is just a freshman. He wants to start a Math Club next year. He may pursue student council positions later.</p>

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<p>eaglemom10 and collegeshopping,
Thanks for your replies. DS is a decent writer and attended a writing summer camp before, but his strongest subject is math and he has competed interscholastically in that and done well. As for his interests, DS switches back and forth from Math to CS to Economics to Computer Engineering to Aerospace Engineering … But he recognizes that all those have Applied Math in common and do not require that much writing, except possibly Economics. So Plan II is not at the top of his list (Dean’s Scholars is), but I believe it is compatible with almost any major.</p>

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<p>Plan II is certainly compatible, but you have to have “grab you by the throat” writing skills to get in the door. (those are the words of a Plan II tour person…lol)</p>

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<p>collegeshopping,
DS’s mom and I have told him to continue to work on his writing skills as much as his math, so that he could be strong in everything and have more opportunities open to him, but he seems to feel the need to settle what sort of student he is, and he is settling on “math-cs-science student” and is not putting in the work necessary to become an exceptional writer. So even though I push Plan II to him (I was CS at UT myself many years ago but had several close friends who were Plan II and I have a high opinion of it), it may be a losing battle.</p>

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<p>@AustinAreaDad: you only have a couple of years left to influence him at all and maybe none at this point. What is more important to him: sticking to plan A or being open to plan B? Good time to hear son’s thoughts on this.</p>

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<p>eaglemom, I think my ability to influence what subjects DS is interested in is waning, though he still trusts my judgment regarding what programs/schools could help him achieve the goals that he sets for himself. I am afraid the PSAT this year was a turning point, as he made a respectable 76 M and only 58 W (68 in CR). He knew the 58 was coming because he said he went far too slowly and ran out of time, but it still had an impact on his self image and his interests.</p>

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<p>@UTAustinR:<br>
What is considered a competitive ACT score? The website gives only SAT. I am not top 8%, but have over a 4.0 GPA and a 35 on ACT (36 in Math) and am hoping for BHP. Solid leadership and community service/awards. My school does not rank which makes the whole process pretty messy! I have tried to use the formula for non-ranking schools, but so much of it is subjective based on the adm staff opinion of my resume.</p>

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<p>@Tiger1992 The ACT score is pretty high–and they look at the math. With a 35 you are probably solid (especially with a 36 in math). They would balk at a math score lower than 30, but it wouldn’t kick a student completely out of the process. It is truly holistic. </p>

<p>Did you get an interview? </p>

<p>Like I said, they look at transcripts and not the derived rank that UT assigns, so as long as you have solid grades on your transcript, you should be fine.</p>

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<p>No interview yet. Was called about meeting with a BHP rep and visited with BHP on campus. Not sure how the timing works, even tho I’ve read several opinions on that. It doesn’t appear that many have been admitted to McCombs at all other than the top 2% auto admits. I guess they’re trying to be sure we can handle the stress of the business world by making us wait! I applied to other business schools (and got in) because I’m not top 8% and couldn’t risk not getting into a good school. I hope we hear soon.</p>