<p>That's kind of scary that such a huge admissions factor can be determined by something you do when you're 12...</p>
<p>Yeah, it is kind of scary. I chose to take the accelerated classes because I was bored. I had just moved from Ohio, knew nothing about top ten percent rule or anything like that. My school ranks by weighted GPA, so it's kind of hard for someone to get ranked highly if they don't take honors or AP courses. I'm not ranked number one, because Math isn't my passion, so I didn't choose to accelerate myself by two years back in middle school (I only decided to accelerate by one year). Most of the people didn't listen to the teachers back in middle school about how the class was going to affect their rank, so most of the people blew off the courses and did bad in them. These classes will show up on their high school transcript.</p>
<p>OU is a great choice. :o)</p>
<p>I got a low B in Algebra in Middle School, because people were always telling me only what you do in HS counts, so I mainly just slept and studied an hour before each test. Little did I know at 13 that it'd be on my transcript.</p>
<p>Vyse - Another possible alternative to consider is the Honors College at Texas Tech. Tech's Honors College has approximately 1,000 students. My son is a sophomore in the Honors College and he has had a very positive experience there. As at other universities/colleges with Honors programs, the Honors students also get first crack at everything. Tech's Honors College also has: A general liberal arts bachelors degree only for honors students; faculty whose only appointment is in the honors college (one of only four in the country); special admissions criteria to Tech's medical school and law school; and other goodies.</p>
<p>The Honors College Admissions Committee considers the "whole person" and not just the numerics of SAT scores and grades (this was my son's experience). Versus being one of tens of thousands of the undergraduate masses at UT or A&M, you could be one of 1,000 who gets the specialized treatment at Tech.</p>
<p>Vyse - If smaller universities are to your liking, you may also consider Trinity University in San Antonio (Senator John Cornyn's alma mater) which gives merit aid to large numbers of students. Trinity with about 2500 students is consistently ranked number one in US News' universities offering masters' degrees in the western U.S. (including numerous West Coast universities).</p>
<p>Also, University of Tulsa has roughly 2700 undergraduates, excellent merit aid, and an internationally renowned English department (with extensive collections of James Joyce' materials, for instance).</p>
<p>Throw in Southwestern University in Georgetown and Austin College in Sherman as first rank liberal arts colleges that offer significant merit aid. Southwestern also has an excellent merit aid calculator on their website. Nearby worth consideration is also Hendrix College outside Little Rock, Arkansas. Hendrix is on par with Southwestern and Austin College and offers merit aid to a large percentage of its students. See US News listing of the colleges offering the most merit aid by percentage of students and you will see Trinity University, Hendrix, and University of Tulsa among them.</p>
<p>Another excellent liberal arts college that draws many students from Texas is Rhodes College in Memphis. Rhodes offers excellent merit aid (another one high on the US News list of providing merit aid) and has a growing reputation for academic prowess both in the South and nationally. It has a handsome campus in a fine residential neighborhood in the city.</p>
<p>The top 10% rule was NOT initiated by UT - it was enacted by the Texas legislature. UT CANNOT change this rule - only the legislature can. And they are out of session until 2007. If you have a problem with the 10% rule, tell your state representative and senator.</p>
<p>lonestar-thanks for the helpful suggestions, I'll have to look into those schools. How does your son like Lubbock?</p>
<p>firefly-Does UT really have no say about such a major aspect of their own admissions? I heard last year that they were going to allow the people who get in via the 10% rule automatically compose 50% of the entrants by going down the line, letting in everyone in the top 1%, top 2%, etc, then make everyone else be in competion with the non top 10% people. I guess that never got passed though.</p>
<p>Vyse - Before our first visit to Texas Tech in the fall of his senior year, my son said "no way" was he going to go to college in that hick town of Lubbock. We live in a large Dallas suburb with the usual diversions of malls, movies, and restaurants. The Tech campus itself is very appealing and well laid-out with, for example, the largest sports and recreation center of any Texas university. So the campus was a winner, but Lubbock?? As a city of 200,000 Lubbock is the hub of the surrounding region for over 100 miles. Thus it has the mall, restaurants, shops, movie theatres, and residential areas that befit an urban regional center. Lubbock reminded my son of our home town. It wasn't "love at first sight", but he definitely felt Lubbock could be "liveable". Second, the "hick" town of Lubbock was a major draw for big rock groups and other performers. When we were there for our first visit, "Metallica" was advertised as coming to appear in Tech's new basketball arena, the United Spirit Arena. Several times I reminded him that hick towns don't get major entertainment groups coming through. He could not disagree. </p>
<p>No tumbleweeds or cactus around the city of Lubbock either. What surprised me when we first drove into town was that the city is surrounded by fertile (and flat) cotton farm lands for dozens of miles. This also reminded us of the plains of North Texas.</p>
<p>Throw in competitive sports teams at Tech in football (Coach Mike Leach) and basketball (Bobby Knight) along with the excellent academics in the Honors College and my son is quite happy.</p>
<p>Of course, you would need to make a visit to Tech to make up your own mind about its possibilities for you. </p>
<p>Go ahead and apply to UT-Austin, A&M, OU, and Tech's Honors College. If you are accepted to each one and decision time comes, I would bet that the draw of being a name and not a number would affect you the same way as it did my son. By the way, also look at the "Living" section of this past Sunday's Dallas Morning News (8-21) and the lead article on home schooled kids going to college. Featured is a boy young man from Grapevine with very high SAT scores, Eagle scout, etc. who is going to Tech's Honors College. This is another example of the Honor's College Admissions Committee evaluating the whole person.</p>
<p>Vyse - I repeat - UT has NO say in changing the top 10% rule. UT is a public university and the state legislature has the authority to make policy for the state institutions. There was some talk of the state legislature reviewing/changing it when they were in session this year, but it didn't happen. The top 10% rule stands for at least another two years. Mind you, the rule is very popular with inner city and rural districts.</p>
<p>lonestar-Thanks for the advice again. Class size is one of the aspects I like about Baylor over UT. I'll apply to TT honors and make my visits when decision time comes.</p>
<p>ffscout-ok, I get the rule now. I'm sure it is popular in inner city districts, but thats not a good reason for it to stand. Even if UT were to pretend that DISD schools were actually challenging, they should be allowed to turn down an applicant for a sub 1150 score alone.</p>