Last year we had our own room at the Embassy Suites. 1 king bed and a pullout couch.
@TXRunningMom Last year, we got a detailed schedule and interview times when we arrived. Interviews are scheduled throughout Friday & Saturday and will overlap day time events. They just catchup with the group when they finish. Kids who flew in seemed to have the earlier slots. Good luck to all those interviewing!! I’m so nervous for all of them! I know they are all great kids with amazing resumes!!
@2019odyssey I would probably stay away from leggings. They would be too casual. I have a boy, but if I remember correctly, last year, the girls wore slacks or skirts/dresses. Even during the day. But, I also don’t remember a scheduled campus tour. That was a suggestion for what to do during “free time”, something they didn’t really have. Another suggestion, for those unfamiliar with A&M. Buy your souvenirs and t-shirts etc at The Warehouse, rather than on campus. Worth the Uber ride! They have a huge selection & are much more reasonably priced!!
When they do have “free time” encourage them to stay out of the room! They need to hang out in the lobby with the other scholars! Someone should bring a deck of cards, LCR or something else that a big group can play. They committee is always watching and you can’t be seen if you’re in the hotel room.
@2aggies , thanks so much for your input on the schedule, leggings, and The Warehouse, especially! I wondered about how they were fitting all those interviews in on Thursday but it does make more sense that it is spread out. It also makes sense why they are there for three days now! I’m curious about your thoughts on if our students receive a Brockman offer. It has been awhile since I read through last year’s thread, but it seems like I remember that kids only had like 48 hours to accept or reject the offer. That seemed like a very fast turn around to me. Was there a reason? Was it because the interviews were so late in the spring and decisions needed to made be quickly? I’m sure many of these kids have offers from other arenas in the works to consider and may not have heard yet by February 15th (which is when the letter said they would be notified).
@TXRunningMom you’re welcome! When we left Saturday afternoon, they told the kids they would notify them by e-mail on Tuesday. My son got his shortly after 8:00 am and did have to decide by Thursday. I also assume it was because of the lateness. He responded that day, before we even had a chance to discuss it! That being said, we cancelled his Terry interview, which was scheduled for the next week. We really started to hear from other scholarships in April. I’d imagine this years kids have already filled out many applications. At the time, we only knew for sure about $48,000 he had gotten from A&M. After accepting the Brockman, he was chosen for a $96,000 scholarship that we turned down. I suppose we could have turned down the Brockman after the fact and taken the $96,000. There was no mention of a penalty for doing so, but it would have gone unrewarded. It, along with all the others he received would have equaled the amount of the Brockman. He had to make many phone calls to politely decline awarded scholarships. My reason for mentioning all of this is at times I stress a lot over the 3.5 GPA. He is doing well so far, but had we gone with something else, it may have had a lower GPA requirement and been less stressful to maintain. But, it might not have covered a study abroad or the masters in business. I prayed a lot before & now, I just have to trust that this is the path God chose for him! Not sure that helps!!
@2aggies, how would you suggest boys dress during the day for the weekend? Also, how much free time did the kids have last year? I really didn’t expect them to have any free time at all. I know I mentioned lunch, but have now filled my lunch times with campus tours. However, Thursday and Friday evening when the kids are at dinner would be a great time for me to meet with any other parents.
@albmom My son wore khakis with a button down shirt and a sports coat during the day. I don’t think the coat is necessary. Many only wore jackets to dinner. He would be fine with just a button down or a polo style shirt. He also wore the same thing to his interview and dinner. Just changed shirts and added a tie. He didn’t own a suit at the time, but most boys wore suits to dinner. They don’t have much free time during the day, but did have some in the evening. The dinners ran a little late, but the kids stayed up till 11:00 or so. Parents however have nothing but free time. Might be fun to get a group campus tour together. The stadium tour is good. Several of us met up for dinner. The Embassy Suites has a nice eating area and lounge. That’s where I met the other moms & dads. I’d recommend Ozona’s for a group or just a few. Nice atmosphere with a variety of food. Might check out the Messina Hoff Winery, if you wanted to do something off campus. I haven’t been personally, but I hear it’s nice. I do enjoy their wine!
I am one of the candidates for the Brockman scholarship. My mom wants to socialize with others (otherwise she won’t have much to do). Where should she go if she wishes to encounter parents of other Brockman scholars? She will not be staying at the same hotel as myself (either the George or Cavalier).
Perhaps we should try to meet up for dinner the first night - Thursday. Something close to where the kids will be - the Canteen at the Calvary?
I’m in for dinner Thursday night… the Canteen sounds great. Does anyone have an opinion about renting a car vs. Uber while I’m there? Just wondering if parking is easy and inexpensive around town?
You’ll have to pay a meter if you aren’t staying at Cavalry Court - that whole development there is parking by meters only.
What about parking around town and on campus? Is it expensive?
In my experience, parking around town is pretty easy. It’s basically like driving around the suburbs. All the restaurants and shopping areas have their own parking. All that I know of are free, except for some brand new developments along University that have metered parking. Maybe others know more detail than this. As far as parking on campus, there are several garages with visitor parking where you can pay by the hour. I don’t think it’s unreasonably expensive.
@2aggies I’m trying to figure out my agenda for next weekend. Do you happen to have last year’s agenda? Will we see the kids at all from 9-5? Also, what do THEY do all day?? Do they get to meet with professors and see facilities or is it more like interactive activities to see how they engage with others? I’m just curious how they’ll keep them busy for two solid days. Also, who runs the show - is it TAMU employees, alum, Brockman employees?? 100 kids is a lot to evaluate in a group setting.
@2019odyssey I do still have the agenda. They toured the Bush Library, but no other campus tours. Mostly they have different guest speaker, CEO’s of some companies, President Young, the dean of the business school, etc. They only met Mr Brockman briefly, on the 1st night, but he didn’t stay to talk to them individually. My son met him in the fall. He is a very introverted man and is soft spoken. He said he had to listen very closely to hear him. The exact opposite of the kind of students they seem to be looking for. It looks like they had 1-2hrs in the afternoon for free time, before dinner, and the schedule says 9:30pm free time, but it was later when they got back. There were members from the A&M Foundation and the Brockman Foundation facilitating the weekend, but the final decision came from the Brockman Foundation, all the interviewers were from the Brockman Foundation. It was over after lunch on Saturday, we had a 2:00 flight. Some kids were still doing their interviews, but I think it was kids who lived close enough to drive. I assume you aren’t leaving until Sunday. I’m pretty sure my son said the current scholars are meeting the kids and having dinner with them on Saturday. Hopefully they will be able to give your kids some insight into how it all works. They won’t be able to answer many questions about the study abroad part. They have a meeting scheduled to go over that in a few weeks. I’m anxious to hear how it’s all going to work!
@2aggies thank you so much for the insight! Hmmm…looks like I need to bring a good book or find some excursions! I bet your son is excited about the study abroad part!! I’m excited! Thanks again! Just wasn’t sure what to expect - can’t wait to see the agenda.
Okay, anyone who wants to connect. Let’s say 7:00 pm at the Canteen at the Cavalry Hotel on Thursday evening. I can make a reservation if I know how many are coming?? If you don’t see this until late just come on down and we’ll squeeze you in. I’ll tell the hostess/host that we are the “Brockman” Party so you can find us.
You can add me to the reservation - sounds fun. Thanks!
I will meet you Thursday at 7:00 p.m. as well! Thank you!