<p>sdskyle - You may already be doing this, but be sure to apply to the Honors College at Texas Tech. The Honors College has approximately 1,000 students and has a heavy liberal arts orientation. My son just finished his freshman year in the Honors College and is also a poly sci major. He had a superb experience in his first year with several interdisciplinary classes of 20-25 students in Humnaities, astronomy, and history. Tech is very committed to having a high quality honors college environment which includes (unlike most Honors Programs) faculty members whose only appointment is in the Honors College; a new classic liberal arts degree only offered in the Honors College; plus the usual goodies of an Honors dorm (Gordon Hall); early registration, etc. Also, the caliber of the Honors College entrance class is quite high with many vals/saluts and average SATs of 1330-1350 (in 2003 the SAT average was 1347). Finally, the First Year Experience classes for the freshmen give an excellent introduction to the Honors College environment. Take a look at the Tech Honors College website and the wide variety of FYE classes (including one taught by Dean Bell) and you will see what I mean.</p>
<p>If you are too late in applying as a freshman, you just need a 3.4 at Tech to then apply (I believe) after your first semester. From what I can tell, the Honors College advising is also excellent. If you are considering Tech, give the Honors College a serious look.</p>