I am currently a freshman here at the greatest university in the world, Texas A&M! I thought I should create a thread for people to ask questions about TAMU or about college life in general. Considering that I am a freshman, I may not know every little thing about the university, but I would be glad to help anyone with anything in regards to college (admissions questions, campus life, college life, academics, etc.). The purpose of this is to get answers from someone who has just recently gone through the process of applying to, being accepted, and beginning this new part of life (may provide a better perspective on things because I’m a student).
Just a little bit about me–
Like I said, I am a freshman here at Texas A&M and am currently studying engineering. I do plan to go into biomedical engineering and eventually into the field of medicine. I am thoroughly involved in the university through a couple of organizations including FREE [a specific FLO(Freshman Leadership Organization) for engineering, but I can provide more information on what a FLO is later] and the Aggie Pre-Med Society. If you have any questions about freshman engineering, then I can answer your questions because I am going through that process right now and I will eventually have to apply to my specific department with ETAM (Entry-to-a-major). I do live on campus so I can provide some answers in regards to that and what living on campus is like. Now, Texas A&M was not my first choice as to what college I was going to attend. I had original intentions of going to the University of Texas (yes, I know, I should’ve said t.u., I said their name so people wouldn’t be confused). I was stuck on where to attend school, but once I made my first visit to Aggieland, I knew this was the place for me. There truly is no other place better than Texas A&M, you have to experience it to believe it!
Enough about me, this is about you and the beginning of a new journey. Please do not hesitate to ask questions in this thread as I will try my best to answer your questions promptly and accurately. This is all because Aggies help other Aggies, former students, current students or future students. I want you all to make the best decision for your future and I would be glad to give you more information from a student’s perspective on life here at Texas A&M University.
What advice do you have for selecting dorm preferences? Can you recommend a dorm that has a good location (near freshman level courses and good dining hall) that isn’t too rowdy. Don’t know if it is true but I have heard that Walton is kind of rowdy. A co-ed dorm is preferred. Planning to study agriculture.
In terms of selecting preferences, I suggest that you try to find a dorm relatively close to your classes and necessary resources. I personally recommend staying in Hullabaloo because of how relatively new it is and its location is perfect as you are on the northside of campus by Sbisa dining hall, Northgate, and several academic buildings. Yes, it is true, Walton is crazy! People who stay there are called the Walton Warriors and they can seem crazy at times. If you planning to study agriculture then you can expect a mix of classes, with some being on main campus and some being on west campus. I am staying in the new White Creek apartments on west campus, but all my classes are at the far opposite corner of campus. I also recommend White Creek because of everything that comes with the apartments. The only drawback is the location but I would rather give up location to have my own bedroom, bathroom, washer/dryer, and a full kitchen. When it comes to selecting a place to live, you should consider where your classes are and what kind of amenities and resources you want to have available.
The dorms on campus are primarily located in two areas, Northside and Southside. Both have there own respective dining halls and are located within a respectable proximity from where your classes are. The Commons, located on Southside, are currently being renovated and so are the Corps dorms meaning that Southside is pretty much a big construction zone. You will find out that TAMU is pretty much always under construction and you can find it frustrating at times.
My advice would be to choose a dorm based on where your classes are and what resources you want to have available. You can pull up a campus map and get a better understanding of where the dorms are located and where certain buildings are and make your decision based on location.
@TAMUaggie2019 , my son got accepted to Mays Business School. He has also applied to Business Honors, we’ll know if he is accepted by February. I heard that Honors students should stay in honors housing if accepted. We’re not sure if he’ll be attending TAMU yet, but is there a way to pay a housing deposit for just in case. Also, do you know/recommend where he should stay for easy access to business school?
I was in the exact position as your son except I was going to study engineering. If he is still unsure of where he is going to school, then still pay the housing deposit. A&M has limited room for on campus housing and gives priority to freshman. If you pay the housing deposit and submit housing application within 30 days of being admitted then you are guaranteed a spot to live on campus.
The business school is located on West campus, and as a freshman I believe you only have one, maybe two, classes on west campus in the Wehner building(home to Mays Business School). Because of that, my recommendation is to stay on main campus as the majority of your classes freshman year will be on main campus. Not only that, but you will be much closer to Evans library, dining halls, MSC, and other resources. In terms of the easiest access, There are not any dorms relatively close to the business school except for the White Creek apartments which are about a 7 minute walk from Mays.
The transportation system here and the buses can get you anywhere and they regularly scheduled stops about every 7 minutes from every location. All of my classes are such a long distance from where I’m living on campus and I have become reliant on buses getting me to class. Because of the reliability of transportation services, my personal opinion is that you can live anywhere on campus and not have to worry about getting somewhere.
In terms of honors housing, I may not be the best resource for that. All I can tell you is that it may be beneficial to your son because he will be living with other students under the same classification. I know a couple of people who are current business honors students and they are not staying in the honors dorms. To me, I think it’s a personal preference of whether or not you want to live there. Definitely try and contact someone about the honors dorms so you can get more information about them.
Since your son has already been admitted then go ahead and apply for housing and pay the housing deposit. Make sure you do this within 30 days of your son’s acceptance. Doing this will make sure that your son has a guaranteed spot on campus next year.
We put a deposit down for Hullabaloo even though my son is applying to several colleges. He wants to study computer science and it is close to the engineering building and the computer science building. Thanks for the information.
Thanks very much @TAMUaggie2019 and @helicopter8! We have no idea where he want to /will stay. Is it possible to submit a general housing application and then specify the specific hall later?
@Noviite Submit the general housing app now so you are guaranteed a spot on campus. You can change your specific hall preferences going up until March. That’s how it was for me
Unless things have changed, the honors dorms are for university honors only not BHP or any other college/department honors. BHP does not have any restrictions nor special housing. As far as selecting housing either northside or southside for most majors really isn’t that big of a deal – each has its perks and downsides. I had one on each side for their respective freshman years - neither had a roaring opinion regarding location - and by the time the housing list is created, you often do not have much control. My D and her friend both requested south (NOT as roommates), both got North & she got modular while her friend got balcony. He picked roommate over dorm, so they got balcony - actually loved it after the year was over. What does count: your price range. The rule is they will not assign you to a room above any price range you indicate on your preference - so Hullabaloo (the most expensive) if you can afford it, you should put it on your preference list then every dorm room by price becomes eligible for your student. Don’t stress over the form - nothing is THAT far from freshman classes IF you pick north or south. The white creek apartments were originally designed for upper classmen, but the numbers are such that freshman live there too.
How important is a new student conference if A&M isn’t my first choice? Should I still go through the process? I’d say I have a 50/50 chance to go to A&M because of my parent’s income we’re not sure if we can afford other schools. Thanks.
@txcompsci
Many important things happen at the new student conference(NSC), such as course registration and academic advising but you can find more about it online. I was in your shoes also except I was stuck on where to attend, UT or TAMU. I registered for my NSC in March despite being accepted back in the beginning of October. People say there is an advantage to going to earlier NSCs due to course registration advantages. However, this is not the case as for each NSC, spots are opened for each section of a certain course. This means that someone attending an NSC (and registering for classes) in early June can end up in the same section as someone who attended in August. As NSCs go by, seats are gradually opened in each section meaning there is no real advantage to going to an early one. I attended my NSC in the beginning of July and ended up getting the best professors.
Here’s my advice…take your time making your decision and do not rush through the process of selecting a school. By registering for your NSC, you are also accepting the offer of admission** By registering for your NSC, you are also accepting the offer of admission**
I said that twice because it is extremely important. Texas A&M makes you register for an NSC in order to accept the offer of admission. You have until May 1st, so take your time in making the decision that is best for you!
If you have already been accepted, make sure to submit the housing application and deposit to guarantee you have a spot on campus (you can read about this in my above posts or you can find out about it online).
@TAMUaggie2019 I think it is nice of you to volunteer and provide information… thanks.
My S is an international (Indian) admit to Engg and I have a few questions…
Howz the international scene at TAMU.. roughly what %age of the total.. how easy it is for them to settle down.
TAMU is one of his top choices but he hopes to get some form of schol.. at least $1k, so he qualifies for the OOS tuition adjustment. Are the schols plenty and easy to get?
Can intl students also apply for the corps? If so, do the corps scholarship also qualify for the OOS tution adjustment?
@woodlandsmom Did you put the $50 application fee plus the $300 deposit? I do not see an option for just the $50 application fee except for the deferred deposit upon approval. So, it looks like a full $350 is due to do the housing contract. Is this what you had to do? @TAMUaggie2019 My S is in the same boat as you were. He has applied to UT Mechanical Engineering but will not know anything until after December. Meanwhile, he was accepted today to TAMU General Engineering and plans to go Mechanical.
It is my understanding if we sign the housing contract today (or within 30 days but sooner is better than later) that we will have to pay the $350.
IF he is accepted to UT Engineering, do you know if $300 housing deposit is refundable if we cancel as soon as he is accepted?
It is my preference that he attend TAMU and I hope he falls in love with it and College Station. He loves the town of Austin but the campus was just so so for him. Austin is more his vibe type of town but I hope he can see that TAMU isn’t all cowboys and boots.
I put down the whole deposit and it let us select a dorm. The A&M deposit is refundable. After spending the day yesterday at Baylor, I think my son has made his decision to attend Baylor. My husband and I are Aggies but I think Baylor may be a better fit for him. I guess we did not brainwash them enough. They are all great schools (A&M, UT and Baylor). His application is still pending at UT but he told me yesterday after we left the scholars say event that Baylor is it for him.
As for the international scene at A&M, I know there are a large number of Indians there. Even back in the late 80’s we had a lot of international students. There is an Asian American Society club among others. In the engineering majors I know there are a larger number of international students. http://www.collegeportraits.org/TX/TAMU/characteristics
So I saw that for A&M engineering they REQUIRED you to buy one of the three chosen laptops on their websites.
OK Fair enough, they want people to have compatible devices that are also powerful enough to run CAD or whatever.
Now my question is do I really need one of their devices…My laptop is much more powerful then any of theirs in terms of processor, ram, hard drive, SSD, GPU. I also have Windows 7 and 10 (although im using 7 cause i prefer it). So why the F*** would i need to take 1500 bucks out of my pocket to buy one of their Sh**** devices?
They are all great schools (A&M, UT and Baylor). His application is still pending at UT but he told me yesterday after we left the scholars say event that Baylor is it for him.