Honors college

Anyone receive an acceptance to the honors college? Their website says they notify by mail on one page – and by both email and mail on another page. Thanks!

My son is still waiting as well. I think by the sound of it, they will announce on Jan. 31st. I was hoping it would be earlier :).

I received my honors college acceptance today.

My DD was informed today that she was denied honors college. SAT 1530, Unweighted GPA 4.0, Weighted GPA 4.6. This will eliminate TCU from consideration. She was accepted into the SMU honors program and SMU offered significantly more merit.

I also have a 1530 SAT, 4.0 GPA unweighted, and stellar extracurriculars and recommendations. I must say I am rather confused and disillusioned by TCU’s decision to reject me from the Honors College. I’ve already been accepted to my EA backup schools of significantly better rank than TCU and have received far more merit aid and honors opportunities from those institutions. TCU is officially off my radar, though I am curious as to what criteria disqualified me. I am well above the Honors College’s average stats.

@BIZP2424: huge congrats to you. You have something very special that they are looking for. @octrojan and @Mahavidya: same boat for me. TCU seems to have radically different criteria for their top scholarship and honors program than other comparable schools. That certainly is their perogative but it is curious.

I guess none of you have asked your admissions counselor for feedback? It is very intriguing. My freshman daughter is part of the TCU Honors college and really enjoys it. She too, received much more merit at SMU, but SMU costs much more so the net cost was about the same between the two schools. I would ask. You have nothing to lose.

For some reason, my DD was already beginning to lose interest in TCU. I’ve been trying to talk it up, but this doesn’t help my case. Curiously, her SMU merit offer has made it the most affordable choice of the schools that she is considering, including TCU.

@planolaxguy Thank you! I’m really not sure how they decide to make honors admission offers. You guys all seem to be very qualified. I had a 34 ACT and 4.0 unweighted GPA. Sorry for the disappointment, but I’m sure you’ll find great opportunities at other schools.

I know it’s personal preference, but I encourage you to choose a school based on the best fit for the student, rather than focus on Honors College enrollment. When the schools are academically rigorous, even outside the Honors program, it’s important to look at Department curriculum, opportunities and social fit.

I most agree. Rigor is relative. As an OOS student, one of the few things we have to go off of to evaluate rigor is the freshman profile (SAT, GPA), as the rigor should be aligned to the students. TCU’s SAT score middle 50% is 1150 to 1340. I’m guessing my DD’s SAT is 90+ percentile. The honor college is a different matter. I’m not complaining, as the criteria is their own business, but it did send a message to my DD. She knows her stats and those of the school.

Stats by major can vary widely too.

Social fit is important too. They will be there for 4 years. I know lots of kids at both schools and SMU & TCU are different. It should also depend on the intended major. That factor helped make our choice.

I spoke with a counselor at TCU. 1,400 students applied for Honors College, and TCU extended invitations to 550 of them. Their historical yield for the Honor College is ~50% which is exactly what they are targeting: 275 students. On May 1, if less than 275 students have accepted, then they’ll invite students from among the HC applicant pool who have enrolled at TCU. So if you applied to HC and didn’t get in … but you’re still planning to attend TCU … then you may want to let your AO that you would like to be considered if any spots open up. [And of course you can apply for HC again after first semester as long as you have at least a 3.50 GPA in 12+ credits in the first semester]. Good luck to all.

Congrats and luck to all. TCU seems like a school on the move up, and one that is drawing from an ever more national applicant pool. Not for us. Moving on. . . .

And agreed, SMU is significantly more generous with merit offers.

This was not for the Honors College, but our experience with the two schools for regular admission was the exact opposite in terms of merit scholarship money, our DD got a substantial offer from TCU but nothing from SMU. It really is so unpredictable and subjective.

I was accepted into the TCU Honors College

SAT: 1350
GPA: 3.96

However, I have astounding Extracurriculars and wrote superb essays. I’m surprised to see the stats of some of those who were denied. Shows how arbitrary it is.

Don’t give up on TCU just because you didn’t get admitted to the Honors College. I have two daughters at TCU. One got in Honors (she’s a Chancellors Scholar); the other didn’t (she’s a Deans Scholar). However, the second daughter did well first semester and got accepted to Honors over Christmas break. Ironically, my Chancellors Scholar isn’t finishing the Honors Program as she finds the Nursing Program plenty challenging and doesn’t want to add to her course load. TCU is a great school - challenging academics, small classes, great sports, very welcoming atmosphere, etc. You don’t have to be in the Honors Program to get a lot out of TCU. Go Frogs!