Maybe a bad word choice…as the other poster said, some people love it and some people think Aggie Traditions are over the top and hate it.
3 Likes
Thanks 
Fish camp is like a huge pep rally. We are a conservative university or at least more than most, but when you drop your child off at the bus for camp, they’ll be met by crazy over the top looking students lol. They dye their hair. They get piercings. They dress in wild clothes. All this to pump up the kids and create energy. It is a great place for an OOS student to meet people before classes begin. It gives you a built in group that you may or may not stay friends with but you at least get people (the counselors) who will be your go to people when the semester begins. You can stay as involved with the group as you want.
My son was in the meh mentality. My nephew was a counselor for 3 years because he loved it so much.
As for cultish… we have a ton of traditions. It’s best to learn them early but not detrimental.
6 Likes
As an Aggie & an Aggie Parent, i don’t know where you heard that Fish Camp is mostly for girls. Half of the counselors are men, and when I attended last year (a family member was a namesake so I got to go as a guest), I didn’t notice a wide discrepancy between genders. I witnessed my D23 make friends and join her DG / Camp group chats and, when she got to campus, be invited to a lot of activities/ traditions by her counselors. Students usually go to their first football game with their DG/ Camps, the first Silver Taps, etc. For OOS students, I think there is usually a Fish Camp date right before classes start, so that those students can actually drop their stuff off in their dorm early, and go to Fish Camp (it’s a bus from campus).
Is it necessary? No, but it’s a tradition at A&M for over 60 years that gives freshmen their first entry into the university.
8 Likes
Thanks, @ChristiR93 and @LaFinalista this is great info. This is why we have this board for lost new Aggie parents like myself. Once I gather enough feedback I’ll let my son make his decision. He definitely doesn’t have the time to wade through these boards.
1 Like
We expected our introverted Class of 2026 Aggie son to be a 2%er (non-involved student), but he totally surprised us. He went to Fish Camp and really enjoyed himself. He still keeps in contact with his Camp Teal friends.
Check out youtube videos of TAMU Fish Camp to get an idea.
1 Like
I would love more info. How did they get the dual degree. My kid applied for biology in College Station. She would rather do marine biology buts wants the College Station experience. Did your relative do some semesters in Galveston and some in College Station?
1 Like
If your son is planning to get involved on campus and if school spirit is important to him; I’d highly recommend he attend Fish Camp.
By way of personal example, I decided at the last minute to attend A&M in 1990 b/c I got a scholarship. My mom was a Longhorn and I assumed I would be too, but we couldn’t pass up the cash. At orientation, I thought everyone was crazy and it was very cultish. I didn’t like it. Then…I went to Fish Camp and decided that if I was going to go to college at TAMU, I was going to make the most of it. Fish camp got me excited. I made friends and when school started, I knew the cheers, knew the traditions, etc. My experience was off to a great start.
30+ years later - I married an Aggie and we’ve had season tickets forever. My daughter is a Freshman at A&M, and my son is hopeful to attend in 2025. They’ve known the cheers, the songs, and the traditions since they were babies; nevertheless, I still think Fish Camp is valuable, even for them. But for kids who don’t know - even more so.
So, if your son is interested in the traditions, the sports, the community of Aggies, then he should definitely go. If he’s not interested in that stuff and cares only about school or work, etc. - then no biggie. And if he can’t squeeze it in b/c of a busy schedule - no worries. He can still learn all the things - it may just take a little more initiative.
5 Likes
It’s been a while, but basically, my relative did have to move to College Station for a semester (or 2? I don’t remember but I’m sure marine bio/ bims had quite a few overlapping courses). They were in the corps at Galveston, so that would have impacted their schedule and ability to move to CStat. If I were you, I would try to speak to people at Galveston - students and advisors. I know Galveston students can get College Station sports passes and the Galveston corps outfits go to College Station a lot for activities and events so there is as much back and forth as a student wants.
is it done after application is submitted?
How about sharing grad from SRAR. Is it also after application is submitted. We are using common app and are OOS. Apologies if question is too basic
2 Likes
Great response, thanks so much.
1 Like
Aafat, you can submit SAT and ACT scores whenever. My kid was auto-admit and definitely wanted to go to TAMU, so we reported SAT and ACT scores before the application period even started. TAMU will keep track of the scores and associate them with your kid’s application once they apply.
1 Like
Totally optional. If it sounds fun to your student go for it. If not skip it . Some like it, some don’t. Mine went. Pep rally environment. Group activities. She had some fun but that’s about it. She got along with people but didn’t make any friends. Some do. She’s an introvert. She tends to make friends connecting one on one over shared intellectual interests. It’s definitely the kind of thing that appeals to extraverts more- the group activities/bonding thing. I think it appeals more to certain personalities and less to others not based on gender, just personality. She returned with covid and exhausted. 
We are a 3 hour drive away. So it was totally doable and worth it for her. Probably wouldn’t have flown in for a separate trip for it.
1 Like
Applied Oct 7, got admitted on Oct 11 to general engineering (CS). Got no emails, just logged into Portal and saw the notice.
Thank you. Today we submitted SAT score. keeping fingers crossed
This seems too fast. is it because you are from Texas? I thought we have to wait until December to know about it.
1 Like
Yes, Texas. We were surprised too, but DS’s school friends also got admits pretty early.
Your case must be auto admit case I presume. Thank you for replying
1 Like
Yes, that’s right, auto admit.
1 Like
Hi - I am out of state and applied on Oct 15 to meet the EA deadline for engineering. I got access to the portal and application is showing as complete and under review. I then received 2 separate emails - one for university honors program asking me to apply and another one for the brown foundation honors program. Do we need to apply separately for this or are considered automatically for these honors program. I
1 Like