<p>Okay, thank you so much for your input!!</p>
<p>Lizardly,</p>
<p>I agree. I always thought business should be left for the graduate level, but then again, here I am studying it. In this case, I think econ being overshadowed by McCombs is just a result of the environment. At schools where economics is very well regarded (Harvard, Northwestern, Chicago, etc.), there is no undergraduate business school. When there is one, usually that takes precedence over econ.</p>
<p>There is an economics honors program at UT. You apply for it after meeting certain requirements. Here’s a link for more info: </p>
<p>[UT</a> College of Liberal Arts](<a href=“Economics | Liberal Arts | UT - Austin”>Economics | Liberal Arts | UT - Austin)</p>
<p>There is a lot of choices within McCombs, but an overwhelming number of students choose to pursue Finance or Accounting (MPA). Those are the de-facto majors and a lot of students go to them for the marketability and job prospects. The kids are definitely bright students, but a lot of them seem to have the same goals in terms of majors and careers.</p>
<p>If I can give your son some advice, it’s just to focus on maximizing his education, not his academics. It took me a year to find out that most of the important learning you do in college is outside of the classroom, and for the learning that you do in the classroom, it’s about what you learn, not what you can get on a test. Cramming to memorize for a few hours then shedding all the knowledge should be left in high school. The most important thing I think college is for (despite what my parents say) is to find out what you really want to do in you life after you graduate. It takes much more than studying and attending class to learn that.</p>
<p>Lizardly</p>
<p>All available Honors
[UT</a> College of Liberal Arts](<a href=“http://www.utexas.edu/cola/student-affairs/Programs/Honors.php#LAHonors]UT”>http://www.utexas.edu/cola/student-affairs/Programs/Honors.php#LAHonors)</p>
<p>Interesting. Thanks. So it sounds like for Economics and some other Liberal Arts majors you go to class, show you are capable, then apply for the honors program, in contrast to say Computer Science in which you get chosen for honors when you apply to the college.</p>
<p>I’ve been a lifetime Longhorn from the state of NY. I’m currently a junior in HS and will be applying to UT Austin as an undecided. My goal is to become a business major and I was curious is it hard to internally be accepted? If I don’t get into UT Austin, would my best bet be to go to Austin Community College and transfer in as undecided or to the school of business? Thanks for any answers.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Not exactly. There are two COLA Honors programs for freshmen
Plan I (called Freshman Honors)
and
Plan II (a major itself that can be combined with any major in any college within UT)</p>
<p>Also, Honors programs when you show that you are capable, then apply, exist in many colleges , not only COLA</p>
<p>kfc530,</p>
<p>For internal transfers from within UT into McCombs, it’s difficult, but nowhere near as hard as kids will tell you. A lot of kids who want into McCombs from other colleges at UT will say “oh it’s impossible, I need a 4.0 with a ton of extracurriculars”, but only a few will actually put in the work to get there. It’s very possible. You need around a 3.6 and a decent freshman year in terms of achievement and you’ll be fine.</p>
<p>No, your best bet will be to attend another school that you love and can see yourself graduating from, and then trying to transfer. You don’t want to be stuck in ACC if for some reason you don’t make it to UT/McCombs. Go to a comparable school and excel, then transfer in. Who knows, you might even like that school more than UT. But go someplace that challenges you and expands your horizons, it’ll increase your chances of getting in and probably make you a better person.</p>
<p>Since I’m an out of state student, what are my chances of getting an out of state fee waiver or any sort of scholarship? I have a 2090 SAT, expected IB diploma candidate, and good extracurricular activities. I just got my acceptance letter two days ago. Also, when should I expect an interview (or should I even expect one) into the BHP?</p>
<p>lovelylistener,</p>
<p>I’m not positive what your chances are for an OOS scholarship. I have an OOS tuition wavier but they nominated me immediately (it was included with my terms of acceptance, I didn’t apply or anything). Contact financial aid, but most of the time they’ll just direct you to loans instead of scholarships.</p>
<p>I was never considered for BHP, so I can’t really help you for that either. They should let you know when they wish to interview you though. I would assume it’s sometime over the summer based on what they said last time I was on that application website but it’s been a while!</p>
<p>I don’t have a problem with McComb’s basic advice about going to a “comparable school,” but ACC is not a bad option for some. ACC is one of the largest input sources for UT students, transferring about 400-450 students a year to UT. Also, ACC transfers outperform most other classifications, including returning UT students, once they get to UT. Plus, I had some friends who transferred to some highly rated schools. Not HYS but Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, etc. Also, if you’re into it, ACC students can pledge UT frats/ sororities.</p>
<p>Here’s my suppporting data.
<a href=“Academic Performance of 2-Year College Transfer Students ... - Data Not Found”>http://www.txhighereddata.org/reports/performance/ctctransfer/inst.cfm?inst=003658&report_type=4&report_yr=2011</a></p>
<p>After one year, approx. 65% of ACC to UT transfers have UT GPAs exceeding 3.0, and one third have GPAs exceeding 3.5.</p>
<p>Hi! I have a few questions about McCombs.</p>
<p>I have auto-admission and have been accepted to McCombs. I have also received my Plan II Honors acceptance letter (still waiting on BHP since I applied very close to the deadline).</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I’m interested in international business, but I was thinking of doing Accounting + International Relations as either a double degree or a major/minor. Is this a good idea?</p></li>
<li><p>Is Plan II worth it? I’ve seen people say that if you plan to double degree with Plan II (Plan II + Business degree) it will take 5-6 years… I’m also not big on writing, which is supposedly a big factor of Plan II. However, what draws me in is the small sized classes and opportunities to get to know your professors, both in Plan II and BHP. But since I’m pretty certain I won’t be accepted to BHP (mid-2100 SAT, 35 ACT, 5% of class), Plan II seems to be the only other alternative. In regular McCombs, do you find it difficult to get to know professors or obtain internship/job opportunities?</p></li>
<li><p>I estimate I will have 60-70 hours of transferable credit already completed (AP tests, college classes, etc.) by the end of senior year. Is it a good/reasonable idea to graduate early by a year or so even if I plan on spending a semester abroad and partaking in summer internships and such? When do you usually get the opportunity to first speak with your academic adviser to figure out a graduation plan?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Sorry if these questions are too specific or don’t fall exactly under McComb’s-related, but any insight/advice is appreciated! Thanks so much!</p>
<p>Redwing54,</p>
<p>ACC is a fine choice for anyone, but the the other user said he had a desire to transfer into UT. If for some reason he wasn’t able to transfer in, I would assume he wants a bachelor’s over an associate’s degree, and would transfer out of ACC regardless. Attending a similar 4-year school to UT such as Michigan, Virginia, UNC, all those are excellent schools just as good if not better than UT which would give him/her a great chance to transfer in, and if not, will still give him a stellar education.</p>
<p>Also, kfc, look into the UT CAP program. I don’t know the exact details but it involves you attending a UT satellite school (such as UTA, UTSA) and transferring in, guaranteed, if you meet the requirements. I know a few kids who have entered into McCombs through that, so that’s definitely something you should check out.</p>
<p>yiitong,</p>
<p>1) Only you can tell if it’s a good idea. I’m not going to give you the cliche “do what makes you passionate” talk, but rather think about what you want to do post-graduation and decide what track will help you get there. International Business is not very well represented at McCombs at all, I’ve only met 1 IB major, and she was double majoring in something else. Also look at the salary page on the McCombs site. International Business pulls in a significantly lower salary than MIS, Finance, supply chain, etc. on average. Money should not be your deciding factor, but it should be something you’re aware of.</p>
<p>As for accounting, almost everyone who wants to graduate with an accounting degree from UT will do the integrated MPA program (5 years, will give you a BBA and an MPA and prepare you for the CPA exam). It’s a very good program, and will practically guarantee you a job post graduation. The Big 4 accounting firms love it as well. My accounting professor this semester said something like ~90% (a very high #) of MPA students about to graduate already had jobs lined up.</p>
<p>2) Again, you have to decide if Plan II is worth it for YOU. Don’t listen to other kids who will praise it or shoot it down. If you feel like the benefits you’ll get from it will help you in your life, then go for it. Think about everything - the extra graduation time, the required classes, the prestige, the small classes - is it something you want/need?</p>
<p>I don’t know about small class sizes, but you will always have a chance to know your professors if you make an effort, even if you aren’t in a special program like Plan II or BHP. In fact, think of it as a challenge - if your professor knows you personally out of a huge class of 400 students, what does that say about you? Fighting to get on your radar as a “regular” student will help you a lot certainly. With smaller classes, your professors are practically forced to get to know you out of closeness, but in a huge class (of which there aren’t that many), you have to develop the interpersonal skills to leave an impact. Jobs/Internships will come down to you, not your major. I’ve interviewed kids before, and the ones who impressed me weren’t the ones with ridiculous GPAs (seeing as everyone had a 3.75+, it wasn’t that impressive) or the triple majors, the ones who stuck out were the ones who were pleasant, comfortable and articulate.</p>
<p>3) You can certainly graduate a year early. It would definitely save you the money. I was also considering graduating a year early, but I decided against it as I wish to spend some more time here at UT for personal reasons. Just make sure you hit all the graduation requirements and have your work/industry experience sorted out so you don’t panic as you near graduation. I think the first time I spoke to an advisor was during orientation, but if you want to get some knowledge now, shoot the undergrad program office an email and email an academic advisor. Let them know your situation and they’ll be glad to help you out.</p>
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