<p>My first choice major is biology and my second choice major is biomedical engineering. I REALLY want to get into either the Dean's Scholars (way competitive) or the Engineering Honors Program. If I get accepted into bio but rejected from the Dean's Scholars, is there anyway I sorta change into engineering and see if I could get accepted into the EHP?</p>
<p>Maybe this will make my situation clearer. Here's what I want in order of importance:
1. Accepted into Bio, w/ Dean's Scholars.
2. Accepted into Engineering, w/ Engineering honors program.
3. Accepted into Engineering only.
4. Accepted into Bio only.</p>
<p>If you want Engineering, apply Engineering. It’s way more selective than Natural Sciences.
If you apply Nat Sci first choice, it’s an easier admit but by the time DS notifications come
out Engineering may be full.</p>
<p>i had the same issue with liberal arts and buisness(i Wanted to double major in psycha and buisness and do lah honors)-i knew lah was easier to get into but mccombs was impposible to transfer into, so i decided to change my major to buisness and then 2nd choice to psychology. apply to the most selective school, that way if you change your mind you can transfer easily. sadly, i probaly not going to get into lah now since they want your liberal arts major as your first choice, and bhp is impossibly hard to get into…but hey we will see</p>
<p>When do honors program acceptances come out? If I submitted everything early, will they tell me the results when they give me the general admissions acceptance?</p>
<p>@idftalk: general admissions and honors program admissions are totally separate. Most people get their admission to UT weeks or months before they get their honors program acceptance. I was admitted to UT about a week after submitting my application, but was only admitted to Plan II honors a little under two months after submitting the honors app. I was admitted to Engineering honors a little over two months after submitting the honors app (I got an e-mail telling me I’d been accepted for Engineering Honors, and they’d send a physical letter in January. Plan II only sent the physical letter.)</p>
<p>liu02bhs, why wouldn’t you choose bio?
heinochus, how were you able to get accepted into both EH and Plan II? I thought one was College of Liberal Arts and one was Cockrell? Also, did the UT status check tell you that you’ve been accepted? Well, congrats anyway!</p>
<p>Also, I haven’t been receiving ANY emails from UT Austin. I did give them my email address, and I have checked that it is right. I didn’t even get an email telling me that I’ve been accepted into the school even though the status check was affirmative. :S… and it’s been a month now… I’ve even gotten acceptance through snail mail. UGH… you have no idea how badly I want to get accepted into the honors program.</p>
<p>The thing is, I have no idea how I compare to other students applying to DS. All I know is that it’s really competitive. SO … I’m waiting for a rejection letter. I don’t want to get my hopes up too high. :S</p>
<p>UT Status Check will only tell you about your acceptance into UT, not honors program. i.e. when I was accepted into Engineering, a message appeared on my Status Check along the lines of “Congratulations! You have gained admission into UT Austin’s Cockrell School of Engineering - Biomedical Engineering.” All the Honors Programs, I think, send notification through snail mail or e-mail. None do it on the Status check afaik.</p>
<p>There is a Plan II + Engineering Honors Dual-major program, so I’m shooting for that.</p>
<p>you cna apply for honors in your second and first choice major. @heinochus- when did you apply for honors? i applied for lah and bhp in the mid nov when do you think i should hear back?</p>
<p>Mid to late October. I don’t really know much about how LAH and BHP work so I can’t say when you’d hear back. From what I’ve read BHP fills up the first 75% of admitted people by rank (so they take all the valedictorians first, than all the salutatorians, etc.) and then fill the next 25% with a more holistic criteria (but this may just be hearsay for all I know).</p>
<p>@ldftalk
I took some bio classes while I was at UT, it does not seem very challenging, it was much easier than my high school biology. So I wouldn’t get a Biology degree alone, because I think your options will be very limited if you do not get into med school. On the other hand, I do know people (DSer) who do a biology BA degree, because it’s easy and help boost their GPA for med school. However, he was a very strong student and expected a high MCAT score. I also know tons of pre-med over-estimating s/he ability and go for an easy major, get dinged from med school, and are now 1) jobless, 2) going back to grad school to figure out what s/he wants to do.
I’m of the opinion that I go to school to learn and be challenged. I rather take a lower GPA than be bored. Plus, if you don’t get accepted to med school as engineer, you can always get a job. Plus, engineering isn’t as hard as everyone puts it out to be. If you are good at math and logic, you’ll breeze through it.</p>
<p>@liu02bhs
I am currently a freshman Chemical Engineering major and your conclusion that “Engineering isnt as hard as everyone puts it out to be” is totally a false claim. Engineering, at UT which is a ranked 6th in the nation according to US Newsweek, is a rigorous programs and requires alot of time/dedication. I jumped in taking around 17 hours and ended up with a 3.2-3.3 GPA for my first semester (I took CH 301, PHY 303K , PHY 103M, GE 308K, M 408D, PHL 305). Theirs alot of BS classes such as Humanities electives etc. that engineers dont need and wont be interested in (TRUST ME I sat through religion philosophy and half the engineers who were in that class were either sleeping or playing FarmVille). I highly suggest the OP to take the Engineering with Honors program. It might seem rigorous and demanding, but it will pay off in the end. Honors kids get special classes that have around ~35 kids in them but the professor usually curves more harshly. One big plus for Engineering honors students is that they have better housing in special honors dorms which brings about a close knit feelings, which you will later appreciate once your in a dorm (IE. Jester, San Jac, Moore-Hill, Simkins,etc.) and realize how distant off some of your neighbors are.</p>
<p>How often do people pick an engineering major but do pre-med or pre-pharmacy or pre-something… Do yall know of anyone who does that?</p>
<p>I don’t want an easy major. I don’t want to be stuck in a class that does nothing and filled with students that don’t care. And I certainly do not want be a jobless person with no future and have to go back to school after I graduate. -_-</p>
<p>I picked biology major and I’ve already gotten accepted a long time ago. Now I don’t know what to do… Let’s just say I switched to chemical engineering (basically a major change). Will they still seriously consider me for engineering honors? I’m so worried that I might be ruining my life with a poor decision i made in high school. I’m so frustrated you have no idea.</p>
<p>Alot of Engineering majors are Pre-Med/Pre-Vet/Pre-Law/Pre-Dent because most of the Pre-Med and Engineering courses overlap, thus making it easier to finish in 4 years rather than 5 or 6. If your trying to transfer now to Engineering, It’s probably too late especially for Honors (I dont know when the Honors deadline was, probably early this year). If you want to transfer once your in UT, you must maintain , I think, a 3.7 GPA in order to transfer (which is easy for Biology majors).</p>
<p>by “a lot” do you mean 80% of engineering majors do that or 50% or 10%?</p>
<p>For first years at UT Austin… most people have the same courses right? Can anyone who has had the experience testify for/against this (how much is similar between an engineering major and a biology major)? So if I decided a major but then I want to change after the first year… I should be able to change w/o too much stress…right?</p>
<p>This is slightly off topic: if I don’t get into Pharmacy School or Med School, what can I really do with a biology major? Because, well, I’ve done some research but I don’t think I have the right idea. What about a Chemistry major? Can I get a job as a chemical engineer right after college if I was a Chemistry major?</p>
<p>ldftalk - The classes first years at UT take vary. There are intro classes that freshman take for most engineering majors that are required to progress into the rest of the curriculum. So if you transfer into engineering after a semester or two, you will be behind your classmates. Keep in mind though, if you’re coming in with very little AP credit, there are a lot of general breadth requirements you need to fulfill, and doing it your first semester is an excellent alternative to jumping right into engineering classes.</p>
<p>As far as the question on biology… there’s a lot you can do with any degree. You can go into grad school and research, go to medical school, work in industry in a field related to bio, work in a field completely unrelated to bio, start your own business, the possibilities are endless. You should spend some time learning what these post-graduate opportunities are really like so you can figure out what you want. The best time to do that is during your undergrad education. Participate in research, if you’re looking into natural sciences, try to do the Freshman Research Initiative. Get an internship and see if industry life is for you. Start your own company, be an entrepreneur. Communicate with other people who have more experience than you. There’s so many people and opportunities available at UT, you just need to put yourself out there and show people you’re interested.</p>
<p>EDIT: About the Freshman Research Initiative, if you end up in DS, you’re basically in it.</p>
<p>@iambored10
My statement on my perceived difficult of engineering is my opinion only, YMMV. My first year, I took 17 and 19 hours of engineering basic sequence classes (honors when available), and I came out with 4.0.
I agree with you that the true value of Engineering Honors is in: 1) the smaller class size and better prof for the 1st year classes (as there are no honors classes beyond the basic requirements); 2) the tight-knit community and the atmosphere at the Honors Quad. Besides that, the benefits are limited, as Engineering Honor Council activities are far and few in between.</p>
<p>@ldftalk
FY students do not take the same classes, it all depends on the major. For example, science and engineering majors have different CH301 (chemistry) classes. Liberal Arts and Science have different liberal arts requirements (I think). Even though science and liberal arts are state required classes. You may take the conservative route and take the more difficult option, but I’m not sure if you will be allowed to do so, or if the credit can be transfered.</p>
<p>I don’t think you can get a job as a Chem E with a Chemistry degree. You will probably work for the same company (in petroleum or pharma), but you will work in a different capacity.</p>
I’m so worried that I might be ruining my life with a poor decision i made in high school.