<p>I write today to ask for advice and help on how to appeal to the University of Texas at Austin. I have a GPA of 4.31, and a colleague of mine got in over me. This colleague is African American and she has no extracurricular activities with a lower gpa than I have. I am a captain of both the varsity lacrosse and field hockey teams at my school, I am the operations officer (3rd in command) in my schools award winning NJROTC Battalion, and I have moved up to the top 8% of my class since the last marking period. My sister goes to UT and I am the "new and improved" version of her (her words). My family is already selling our house in Virginia to move to Texas and I have no idea what to do now that I have received word that I was denied admissions. I received an ROTC scholarship that I was planning on transferring to UT, like what my sister did 2 years ago. Any advice or tips for a desperate young lady wishing to go back to the perfect school for her in her home state?</p>
<p>First, you can do the hard work by Googling, which will probably take you to this site: [Application</a> Appeals Process | Be a Longhorn](<a href=“http://bealonghorn.utexas.edu/appeals]Application”>http://bealonghorn.utexas.edu/appeals)</p>
<p>Then you can start researching other schools in TX that you can get into and consider transferring. </p>
<p>Your sense of entitlement and trying to belittle a “colleague” because they were accepted over you is despicable.</p>
<p>I truly did not mean to offend anyone, I am just in bewilderment of the whole application process and how colleges seem to preach that they do not discriminate. I planned on going to UT at Austin because I have researched schools that have Arabic in Texas, which I intend to major in to assist me when serving in the Army. I cannot transfer because I took a scholarship and can assign it to one school.</p>
<p>Transfer of rotc scholarship is not that easy, so you need to think about that also. Which is more important to you? </p>
<p>Sent from my DROID RAZR using CC</p>
<p>Unfortunately plans get broken, file your appeal and see where that gets you. You may luck out and some students may not accept their offers of admission, possibly freeing up a spot for you.</p>
<p>As far as learning Arabic goes, that major would probably benefit you in the Army seeing as how we seem to have our sights set on Iran at any given time, however, Urdu, Pashton, or Farsi may benefit you as well, particularly since we are still in Afghanistan and because Pakistan is also one of our favorite military topics.</p>
<p>You should also research what type of officer positions in the Army will send you to the Defense Language Institute in Monterrey, California. I imagine if you go in as a 35A (Intelligence Officer) that you could probably find a way to get the Army to foot the bill to send you to DLI for a year while you can learn Arabic/Chinese/Farsi/etc. and chill on the beach at the expense of the DoD. </p>
<p>I’m a former Sergeant in the Army with a tour to Afghanistan in my record, so I do know a thing or to to help you out on that road.</p>
<p>Thank you, I appreciate the advice. I have looked into Farsi, but it seems that it isn’t as common as a major as Arabic is. I do plan on taking the Intelligence route, to prepare me for my long term career in government. I know it sounds crazy, and I may have extreme ambitions, but I feel like it’s the only life I can live and be satisfied. I haven’t heard back from UVA or Georgetown, but as the date draws near, I am realizing that Texas is my life. I would very much like to be back with my sister in the weird city of Austin purely because it’s who I am. I didn’t mean to sound disrespectful early, I’m just very emotional about UT. If I’m not on the wait list, will I still have a shot at getting one of those vacant slots?</p>
<p>kolper,</p>
<p>The only people that can really answer your questions are the Admissions personnel. Like VAMom said, you will have to make some tough decisions regarding your scholarship and what your plans on. </p>
<p>Think of it this way, the Army, by design, will continuously break your plans and put you outside of your comfort zone. You will be an officer, so not only will you have to figure things like this out for yourself, but for your subordinates as well. Take the optimistic approach and start getting the loose-ends tied up in your backup plans in case UT-Austin doesn’t work out well for you.</p>
<p>Out of curiosity…why not West Point or The Citadel?</p>
<p>I guess I wasn’t revealed to those schools before I carried out my application process. My SNSI encouraged me towards Georgetown and I naturally wanted to go back to Texas. I guess it’s too late for me to look back on it. I have plans laid out, but I feel as though I can still fight for the original one and if I fail, I’ll follow another plan. I am getting more comfortable with the thought of taking an alternative route. I just feel pressured with my own standards for my future.</p>
<p>Are you an international student? Your word usage is not spot on American diologue? Anyway, why the race card? Your friend pushed the right buttons and got selected. Good for her. BTW complaining that someone was unfairly selected is not an appropriate basis for appeal.</p>
<p>kolper, perhaps UT already had all the lady lacrosse and hockey players they needed. Perhaps UT had seats in AA Studies department / major and your colleague expressed an interest in it that you did not. Perhaps she had higher AP scores than you. Who knows? So, go ahead and appeal but I do not see why they would reverse their decision.</p>
<p>Unless you were applying to the same school as your colleague, you can’t compare your scores to hers. UT doesn’t do their admissions the way Texas A&m does theirs. At Texas A&M you can still be admitted even if not into your first or second choice major. Maybe the major you selected was more competitive than the major your colleague selected? Although it is certainly no secret that UT’s holistic review takes many things into consideration including race. Also in order to appeal you must have some new information that wasn’t included in the original application. Not sure they will care that class rank has changed as a senior. They look at class rank from end of junior year. Anyway good luck to you!</p>
<p>Why not Texas A&M? Its a good school with a strong military/ROTC presence? I am not sure what your major will be, but certainly in engineering A&M is strong.</p>
<p>I know this may sound harsh, but you sound like a very bratty, and very entitled person.
What does the fact that your colleague who’s “African American with a lower GPA” have anything to do with anything?? Um, Abigail Fisher, much??
How do you know that he/she did not have to fight tooth and nail to have the GPA they had and wrote an amazing essay chronicling that struggle? How do you know that he/she didn’t have higher test scores than you do? Or an easier major? Or the admissions people simply liked her better than they did you??? It bothers me more than anything how people sit around and compare themselves to other people and think, “How did THEY get in and <em>I</em> didn’t??” That is so immature and so hateful. Instead of sitting around and complaining and how UT did not accept you, why don’t you sit and look at yourself and acknowledge the fact that you are not perfect and don’t deserve everything simply because YOU think you do. You are NOT on the Admissions Board at UT Austin, so you have no right to scrutinize and whine about the people who they admitted. </p>
<p>And this is coming from someone who was CAP’d. Yes, I know, it sucks when you find out at first and the first thing that will come into your head is, “WHY?” but if you sit around and complain and blame others “SHE/HE took MY spot”, it’s just going to make you crazy. Do yourself a favor and move on. Instead of pointing fingers, show some dignity and congratulate the girl for getting accepted. People get rejected from their “dream” schools all the time. Guess what? They end up transferring or simply move on. Take a page from their book and do the same. If your post is any indication of your maturity level, I can easily see why UT rejected you.</p>
<p>Oh and BTW, people need to STOP saying that minorities are getting accepted with less-than-stellar stats simply because they are minorities. I know plenty minorities (I go to a very competitive high school in Dallas) with amazing stats (leadership roles, excellent GPA, test scores, and just overall well-rounded people) who did not get into UT Austin. Why? No idea. But cut the idea that your colleague got in because she’s African American. That’s just petty finger-pointing. Evaluate, look at, and scrutinize yourself. Don’t put down others achievements just because you didn’t get what you want.</p>
<p>I don’t see how your colleague being African American is relevant to the situation. It sounds like you want an excuse to whine.</p>
<p>Also, how long was the appeals process supposed to take? Do they even read those things? I submitted it last Friday and it already got denied, ugh.</p>
<p>@megmayumi</p>
<p>if you don’t mind what major were you appealing for? and what did you do as “additional information” for the appeal committee? were you capped or… i’m thinking about appealing as well but i know it’s a long shot</p>
<p>@thereandnow</p>
<p>English! I didn’t think it was that competitive of a major. For my additional information for the appeal committee, I put in that I’m a National Merit Finalist now, I got a few awards from academic competitions, and grades in a couple of my classes went up. Oh yeah, and I was appealing the CAP.</p>
<p>@megmayumi</p>
<p>woww… that sounds tough! wouldnt you have found out if you were national merit junior year rather than this year? gahhh i’m nervous…probably a really long shot but owell. I’ll still try ><</p>
<p>Tests are taken in junior year. However, semifinalists are announced in Fall of senior year. Finalists in Spring of senior year.</p>
<p>@megmayumi</p>
<p>Did you send any documents in? I think if you send documents they will wait till they received your documents 21 days after before looking at your appeal. Maybe that’s why it was so fast?</p>