This is my first post on CC and I’d like to thank all of the people on the board for their generous, knowledgeable contributions. I have been reading CC for the last several months and the information here is invaluable. Thank you.
I attend a non-ranking high school in Idaho with a 3.95/4.0, ACT 33. I have applied to the College of Engineering and hope to study Civil Engineering if admitted. I just submitted my application after writing Essays A, B, C, along with the engineering essay but have not yet completed the Scholarship Application. The Scholarship Application asks if I am a National Merit Scholar and it gives me the choices of Commended, Semifinalist, or None. I won’t know if I am a Semifinalist, of course, until August/September. My selection index was one point higher than last year’s Semifinalist cutoff in Idaho, but with the Commended cutoff rising two points this year, I’m not feeling terribly optimistic.
Here’s my question: Should I go ahead and fill out the Scholarship Application without knowing my National Merit status? Is there an advantage to getting the scholarship application in as early as possible? Or should I wait and see what happens with National Merit and even admission?
One additional question I forgot to ask.
On the Office of Admissions page it says, “If your school does not rank, a school profile from the high school must be provided along with your transcript and Texas A&M will assign a class rank based on reported GPA.”
Is there any way of knowing what rank they will assign for a 3.95?
The reason they ask for a “school profile” is that will contain information about what a 3.95 means at your school – whether a lot of people have higher GPAs or whether that is among the top. There is no way to know what rank they will assign without knowing their formula, how many students there are in your class (grade), and where 3.95 fits among those peers. For example, let’s assume they discover that 3.95 is within the top 10% of student GPAs, and there are 100 students that will graduate with you, then they may assign you a rank of 10 or some number between 1 and 10. You might ask your school if they know what your rank is, or what percentile it is, or at least ask for a copy of the “school profile” so you can see what the university admissions will receive.
The scholarship description and instructions should give you an indication on whether there is any advantage in applying early or not – including whether applications will even be reviewed before the deadline or not. However, since the application asks for your NMF standing, and all universities/scholarship entities know that NMF standing won’t be released until the fall, it appears that they are not really expecting any applications before that time, or perhaps they will accept updates to the application at that time. You cannot just guess though about your status. I suggest you contact the university and ask questions if you need to.
It seems what you are really trying to get a grip on is your chances of actually getting admission and a scholarship. That is a good thing. There are many universities that have substantial guaranteed scholarships for National Merit Finalists who choose them and fulfill their application and renewal requirements. One of those is in your state – University of Idaho, which also has engineering degrees. In fact, U of Idaho offers a full ride including tuition, room and board for NMFs, which is the best deal of any university in the country. I strongly suggest you include that university on your application as a financial safety since it looks like you may become a National Merit Semifinalist then Finalist. Other universities that have offered large scholarships for NMFs include Washington State, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Michigan State, and U of Oklahoma, although offerings may vary from year to year.
@DaGator
Then go and apply in August/September, if you are going for engineering, as long as you apply before early deadline (October 15th I believe) you are golden. Applying right now gives you no advantages compared to those applying late September/early October (since it is still early admission category), especially since you are applying for engineering (holistic review).
A person who applies today vs a person who applies October 14th will have the same review for engineering and receive their notifications at the same time. Of course, if you apply now, you will receive early notice of admission to A&M, but you will still have to wait until December for engineering admission.
I agree, I would wait. Being a National Merit Semifinalist will be a huge advantage, worth waiting to put down. A&M is very generous with NMF. You should also look into the Craig and Galen Brown Scholarship. My son will start this fall with it, it is an amazing opportunity. I don’t remember if there was a separate application for it initially or if kids get referred to it but defined worth checking out if you get to NMSF. Congrats!
How is the housing application now affected with engineering major being holistic? If @DaGator is an academic admit to the university, will he/she find out their acceptance to the university right away, as the other auto/academic admits do, so he/she can apply for housing to ensure priority? Then, wait to find out their acceptance to major at a later date?
If an auto/academic admit engineering major wanted the LLC, I could see where the apply date would not matter so much but if they wanted a modular dorm or hullabaloo, then that housing application date is going to mean a lot.
@Thelma2 and @DaGator My son was an academic admit to the University and was able to register for NSC and housing. His University acceptance letter came within a few weeks of submitting the application, which was Early Action. The engineering acceptance came a couple of weeks after that, but I do know some who were still waiting for that engineering acceptance January and February. It was recommended that he apply for housing quickly in order to get higher priority on housing, although he later chose the ECOS LLC, which wasn’t quite as stressful to get a space in. So I definitely say not to delay once that acceptance letter comes in, especially if not going into an LLC, like Thelma2 said. I hope that answers the question and that my memory is serving me correctly. I’ve had vacation brain, and I’m getting back into my “maroon brain”. 