<p>My son has a killer scholarship (Academic Honors scholarship) offer to UT-Dallas that will make his total COA around $4k per year (worth $68k over four years). Award is based on his SAT 1510/2190 and National Hispanic Status.</p>
<p>Nothing had EVER shown up in his Howdy Portal even thru last weekend, although when he was auto-admitted to Aerospace Engineering in October his admission letter said that he would be getting a National Hispanic Award at $3500/year; it never showed up in the portal. In talking to the financial aid folks last week (wish I had picked up the phone sooner) I got the distinct sense that something was incomplete in his package (they sounded suprised when they brought up his file)</p>
<p>The encouraged me to send his offers from Auburn, Okie State and UT-Dallas (the best one).</p>
<p>Should I hope for the possibility that they may counter or has this ship sailed?</p>
<p>I think it really boils down to how tight your family is on finances and how much that extra scholarship money means to him. In-state tuition for A&M is still among the lowest in the country, and their Engineering program is consistently rated as one of the best. So, you’re going to pay a little bit more for the cost of college, but his degree is going to come from TAMU, not UT Dallas or Oklahoma State or Auburn, which, to be honest, makes a difference to employers. </p>
<p>Is there a reason not to wait for the final decision from A&M? The A&M alumni network in Texas is huge and influential. That would be a plus in your son’s favor the rest of his life. The kids I know at Texas A&M routinely tell stories of Hispanic friends with similar or lower SAT scores getting good scholarship offers, while they got nothing. It seems that the college is trying to become more diversified and this is one way to do it.</p>
<p>Wait as long as you can to see what TAMU offers. It is a superior school with a superior reputation for engineering. Send in a deposit to another school if you have to.</p>