<p>I am strongly considering public school for next year, so i can qualify for the 7% (may decrease later) auto admit. </p>
<p>I know I've asked this before, but i have different questions.</p>
<p>1) Can I get in if I'm not in the top 7%? No AP classes, average EC's, but high gpa. BUT also somewhat high SAT/ ACT scores like at least 1950-2000, and an ACT to match. - this question refers to if I were to stay in my small private school where I would be in the top 50% because of my class size.</p>
<p>2) Let's say I go to public school, should I take AP or IB? IB is higher and so the students who take IB are already at the top, correct? (Assuming their grades are high) So that means if I want to compete at their level, I should as well be apart of the IB program? Instead of taking ap? And if I want to be the top 7% then I really have no "choice" but to be apart of IB, since the students who are already the top are in IB. But just for knowledge, any idea if UT austin prefers IB/ AP more?</p>
<p>3) How do you actually get "involved" with the IB program? Is there a test you need to pass? Certain grade you need to have? Or is it free to anyone who wants to be apart of it? Also, once you are in IB can you pick what classes you want to be IB - or do you have no choice and ALL of your classes are IB? And if that is the case, that means you can't have both AP and IB, right? </p>
<p>4) Honestly speaking, how possible does it seem for me to excel in the IB/ AP world? I'm an average student - never taken any advanced classes before (pre-ap but my school is a joke, so just average - if that) VS the hardworking students who have been IB/ in AP classes classes since sophomore year? I am willing to work hard, but I am just wondering how possible does it seem for me to do well? (The hard working people at the public school are hard working people, a couple people that I know of have went to Ivy schools - on the site it lists the top 10 graduates so that's how I know and ALL of them were IB students)</p>
<p>Can you get in without being in the top 7%? Yes. Is it easy? No. </p>
<p>For UT GPA does not matter. What matters is class rank, class rigor and test scores. IB is tough. Are you up for it? Our school won’t let you get into IB after freshman year. Check with your school.</p>
<p>Being an average student with a 1950 SAT would make it very difficult to get into UT if you are not top 7%.</p>
<p>You need to figure out how the public school calculates rank to know whether you have any chance of graduating in the top 7%. How would the grades you already have from private school factor in? Would they be considered as normal classes or would they be given honors weighting? If your private school grades would transfer in without honors, there is probably no chance you’d make top 7% by graduation because other students who have been in thye public system all along likely have honors level courses and AP/IB courses starting from their first year of HS curriculum (some possibly even from in 8th grade). Catching up to their weighted GPAs at this point might be mathematically impossible.</p>
<p>If you are transferring from a private to public high school, you probably don’t stand any chance of being in top 7% at a good public school. </p>
<p>It all depends on how they convert your private school classes. It is not relevant to Texas schools whether you do IB, AP, go to a very tough school etc since the auto admission is based on rank for most part.</p>
<p>High scores like 33 or 2200 might give a good shot at the holistic process at UT. 2000 works if you are closer to 7% rather than 15%.</p>
<p>thanks for the replies, sorry it took so long to reply. I really haven’t realized that at all and I am so grateful to realize that it might actually be impossible no matter how hard i try.</p>
<p>but, don’t GPA’s start over from scratch every new year? so why would it matter if i’ve never taken advanced classes or not before? I mean getting in is a different story, but lets say I did. How would I have no chance if everyone’s GPA is clean and we’re all starting off fresh for the new school year? Where would I need to “catch up”? </p>
<p>Alsoooo, on a totally different note - what matters most? Your rank the end of junior or senior year? I asked my friend when people normally apply to college and she told me fall of senior year - so if that is the case then does my actual rank and everything in SENIOR year count? </p>
<p>Also, if I am in the top 7% then does my SAT/ ACT scores matter? I mean is there a catch? As long as I’m in the top 7% and have a certain SAT/ ACT score then I am automatically admitted? Or is it JUST as long as I am in the top 7%? And is it possible to get denied even though I am in the top 7%?</p>
<ol>
<li>UT is going to look at students’ ranks in the end of 11th grade, sometimes the very beginning of 12th grade, depends on the public school’s policy (graduating class is usually smaller because some students don’t pass tests, so in this case scenario rank usually drops).</li>
</ol>
<p>2.Public schools rank students using weighted CUMULATIVE GPA (it means using all high school years), policy is different in different schools, sometimes regular/honors/AP classes are on 4/5/6 grading scale, sometimes on 4/4.2/4.5. If all you classes in private school are regular and you transfer, you are in HUGE disadvantage. </p>
<p>3.No, you cannot bump up GPA one full point in one year, it is pretty simple math actually.
If you are a junior next year your grades would contribute to only 1/3 of your cumulative GPA, if you are a senior next year, your grades will not matter, you already have your GPA.
Only if you are a future sophomore you stand some chance. In academically strong schools admission to preAP/preIB and AP/IB classes is usually competitive, and it is possible that they not only have prerequisites but are actually all full right now.
You can always choose some academically non-challenging public school of course and shine there as a star, ONLY if you have time to shine (depends in what grade you are in).</p>
<p>I would suggest to stay in you current school. In this case UT Austin will be the ONLY challenging school, you’ll get in to all other public universities in Texas.</p>
<p>I am going to be a junior, unfortunately. MY current GPA is 3.7 but it will drop if I transfer to a public school (not sure by how much, but eh I’m guessing it will drop down to 3.4 or something)
I was in pre ap classes the last school year, so yeah i don’t know if that counts since it’s “pre” but yeah. </p>
<p>And really? Because of my small school size and all I mean the only college I think I would actually get into is UT arlington which isn’t a BAD school but I mean ehhh, you know.
I want to get into med school so I need a school with a strong premed program/ course, which I heard UT austin has, so. </p>
<p>I wish I would have known about this sooner… I would have been willing to work for it beginning of freshmen year if I would have KNOWN all this.</p>
<p>A lot of people do CAP if they don’t make the top 7%. All you need is 30 hours with a 3.2 GPA during your freshman year and not break any vital rules (plagiarism is a big offense in college fyi). Also, I strongly recommend against AP courses. They count in your college GPA if you transfer, but I don’t know if CAP is excluded. Transfer students with really good grades in college have their GPA dragged down because of AP courses they didn’t do well in during high school. You’re better off taking regular classes and focusing on getting high SAT scores. You used to be able to be auto admitted if your SAT scores were high enough, but it looks like that offer has stopped. But you can get in on academic achievement with high test scores. If you don’t get into UT Austin with your test scores, you may want to consider CAP. I’m in community college and worried about getting into UT Austin with a 3.6+ GPA.</p>
I’m curious about this statement. UT, for one, does not assign a grade to AP courses that a student has achieved credit in by passing the AP exam, whether they transfer to UT or are admitted out of high school.</p>
<p>
I think you have UT confused with another institution. UT has not auto admitted based on SAT/ACT scores since well before you were born. Also, AP courses typically give extra grade points for students compared to regular classes, which is what the OP needs to improve his GPA. So, AP courses are advantageous to take not only for college credit but from a GPA standpoint as well.</p>
<p>I don’t understand why you should settle on UT Arlington. You can apply everywhere. All you have to lose is your application fee.
I know only 2 states with automatic admission program - Texas and California. Students in the rest of USA all go through holistic review when they apply for college.</p>
<p>I see, well I am hoping to take AP classes at this public school (if I can get in) - something that is not offered at my private school in hopes of raising my gpa and taking advanced classes.
Also I have heard of CAP, and depending on what colleges I actually get accepted into - I may go with that.</p>
<p>Ya Ya, I never really thought of that, you are right. I guess I just don’t know any good colleges? I am not really for private schools since they are very expensive - which is another reason why I want to stay in state as well. Again, I am open to any good college that has a strong pre med course, which may be a variety of schools in texas I am not aware of yet. </p>
<p>And since this is kind of my last year not to mess anything up, I don’t want to risk going to public (totally new environment for me) and taking advanced classes (again, new) and absolutely failing and doing horribly. But I also don’t want to stay in my current high school where I limit myself to regular classes and only be in the top 50% if I am number one. Although going to the private school will give me TONS of extra free time to focus on the SAT/ ACT - which I think is helpful.</p>
<p>So each school has it’s advantages and disadvantages, I am still just wondering WHICH school will help me get into a good college more.</p>
<p>Many colleges can provide a good stepping stone to med school. Going to a highly selective and highly ranked college isn’t necessarily your best option. The most important factor in med school admissions is your undergraduate GPA. You may be better able to achieve a high GPA at an undergraduate school where admissions isn’t as competitive. I’d suggest staying put for this year, studying hard for your SAT/ACTs and doing thorough research about the colleges you can afford that are within the geographical distance where you feel comfortable. Austin College comes to mind as an example of a school with a great record of med school admissions that could end up being comparably priced for you to a public school because it offers many good merit scholarships.</p>
<p>Lisiatc - I live very close to that college, I am in fact located near the DFW area.
My parents don’t really like that college that much, is the problem, and I’m not sure if I do either. </p>
<p>I agree that it may not be my best option to go to ut austin which is a competitive high ranked college, but it just seems like a really good school and I think going there would be great.
There is also TAMu, any thoughts on this school? Does it have a good pre-med program?
No matter what school I go to, I will definitely study for my SAT/ ACT - staying at my private school would mean having extra time however (and also, getting a good grade at this school is extremely easy so I wouldn’t have to stress too much on my grades)
Geographically, I don’t care where the college is. I would like it to be far away from home, but I don’t really care. </p>
<p>As for tuition, I think 17-20k is where it starts to get a bit too pricey, my current tuition (well last year) was around 12k and paying a bit more for college isn’t a huge deal, but you know we aren’t millionaires. </p>
<p>I know if I stay in my private school I can maintain a somewhat high gpa as well as be involved in a couple ec’s, but I’m just really worried about rank/ percentile. That’s pretty much the only thing turning me away from private.</p>
<p>Also, my teacher said that valedictorians get automatically admitted to public colleges, which I’m pretty sure is false. She said her son got accepted in texas A&M but wasn’t sure if it was because he was valedictorian or met the SAT/ ACT score automatic admission requirements but she said either one will get you in. (and he graduated from my private school - yes, the very tiny one)</p>
<p>I was wondering I have a 3.7 gpa 25 act what schools can I get into top8% texas resident what texas schools can I get into in texas tamu I am also black from Africa if that helps ut Austin or Texas tech
Ec
NSHSS
Nhs
Anime club
President volunteer service award letter from Obama 135.6 hrs
BPA first in regionals state 14th in nationals
160hrs this year volunteering
Academic decathlon
Student council
All ap this year and honors except normal debate class
National forensics league
Please chance me ill chance back</p>