I didnt think it was the first year of open apps. Thought that changed a few years ago (not sure). Seems like they look at high school achievement much more than test scores. As I recall the essays were kind of weird so I can see how it would trip up or save someone who just did them well.
Factors Considered in the Freshman Honors Application:
Application essays - extremely important
Weighted GPA from high school - very important
Rigor of high school record - very important
Extracurricular involvement - very important
Standardized test scores - important
Class rank - not considered
Alumni/ae relations in Honors/UF - not considered
Recommendations - not considered (do NOT send)
With the consideration factors listed above, it appears that the decisions are heavily weighted to the subjective approval of a peer who may or may not be 1 year older than the applicant. I’m not suggesting that these freshman honor students are incompetent or are being unfair, merely that this is a different audience to which these applicants have been taught to write.
Is this UF Honors program issue making anyone else reconsider attending UF? We would really like UF to be to right choice for our daughter for many reasons, however, this is only one issue making us question that. We were very unimpressed with the Preview Day we attended and the lack of direct information from UF regarding FIS is disconcerting. We were hoping to attend the Honors Day program to get a better feel for the university, but she was not accepted into the program. We are really uncertain about UF at this point because UF seems very apathetic towards the incoming freshmen. Is anyone else feeling this vibe or are we overreacting?
I honestly doubt that uf is any more or less apathetic to freshman than any other large school. That being said, my d is attending ucf in the fall. She was accepted into burnett, got a good merit scholarship and my s will be starting his second year. We are very happy with ucf’s program. I think the decision comes down to an overall “fit and feel” for the student. I wish you luck in this difficult decision and know that your d will do well wherever she attends.
Hello all. Just my perspective: I have a high achieving kid as well but the difference seems to be that she showed genuine interest in two of the UF programs that she took the time to personally contact and tour. She referred to those programs in her essays and described how she felt she would contribute to them as a future Gator. She also personally thanked the honors program for the visit and she thanked the two academic departments she visited in a follow up email and a personally written thank you note. Believe me, they have many, many students who use UF as a safety school and many of those kids are actually waiting to hear from the Ivy’s or service academies. They understand that the kids who really take the time and effort to visit the school and look closely at the programs they are interested in usually end up attending UF. My daughter visited UF a total of three times including Afternoon with Honors. We never toured in one of those mass visits and the only group tour she took was Afternoon with Honors. She also used social media to reach out to them showing her appreciation. Perfect ACT’s and GPA’s are impressive but they do not show who you really are. There are kids who get into honors ( this is coming from students we know from previous years) who never contribute at all. They usually drift away after freshman year when they have become involved in Greek life or some other activities. I think the new feel at UF honors now is that they are looking for leaders and contributors. I could be wrong…
@fbhsmom: McNair USC, Presidential FSU, GTech Honors, are all great choices; if you have the financial means, UVA is another great choice. While the UF decision is vexing, it won’t limit your daughter’s choices.
@MYOS1634 that is true. But she is a Gator in her heart so she is very upset. She doesn’t want to have to give up being a Gator to have an engaged experience. If she is going to just be a number she may as well go to Berkeley or Michigan since she is a business major. She will have some soul searching to do. UVA didn’t give her any money but she did get a small scholarship to Berkeley, about twice her bright futures. It just doesn’t make much of a dent in the 60k estimated COA lol.
At Umich, is she direct admit at Ross? If so, and you can afford it, that’s where I’d go if it’s cheaper than McIntyre (I don’t thinkt they “direct admit” freshmen but I may be wrong.)
UCB with its cuts (that will directly affect undergrad experience) is not a good deal at 60K OOS. Still is a great school instead for 13K tuition, but for OOS wait for grad school.
@saismom well you are lucky. My daughter also did Afternoon with honors and thanked them as well as had an extended conversation with them afterwards. She also did the Gator for a day program and the Warrington Ambassadors program thanking them both as well. In fact we had a separate visit to honors before the Afternoon with Honors day. I haven’t a clue what the issue was. As for accepting people who will be involved, the girl from her class they took isn’t involved at all on campus, no clubs or sports, or in any of the big community service groups around town so go figure. Is she suddenly going to turn over a new leaf? Her boyfriend is at UF so she is always there. Maybe he’s in honors lol. I agree that showing a specific interest can make a difference. Unfortunately, sometimes it doesn’t. If it all rides on a freshman or two reading your essay I am not sure there is a standard anymore. I just wonder about the math and science representation in honors going forward since most likely writing isn’t their biggest strength. Having to write a poem about describing a color to a blind person is not something my math loving husband would ever be able to do lol
@fbhsmom: have the GC call Honors and ask, outlining her stats and achievements, what factored into the decision which surprised everyone at school.
Be careful however about judging other kids’ achievements: many top achievers simply “fly under the radar”.
@fbhsmom I agree with @MYOS1634 . Someone should call Dr. Johnson or Dr. Law. They both seemed very helpful and I cannot imagine that they would not be willing to provide some explanation, or maybe there really was a mistake made.
No offense, but there seems to be quite a feeling of entitlement to some of these posts. As another post noted, many students fly under the radar. They have top scores, top grades etc., but generally are quiet, hard working kids. I also believe UF honors may have been looking for students who are more than stats…creativity and writing skills are used in all professions.
@ufmomfriend Yes, my daughter is considering UCF and FSU also. She has been admitted to their honor’s programs. We were very impressed with UCF’s Scholar’s Day. We thought the program was well organized and informative. The students were very enthusiastic, professional, and seemed to genuinely like their school. In contrast, UF’s Gator Day seemed haphazard, less informative with students who seemed more interested in visiting with each other than in promoting their school. We are going to FSU’s Preview Day on Friday.
Well, here’s my take. My son was in UF honors and while it is nice it is not necessary to be in honors to have a great UF experience. My thought is that there are just a huge number of incoming freshman with the stats that would have automatically received honors if the application had been from prior years. Everyone wants in and it just gets more competitive.
Being in honors at UF gives you a few perks like housing at Hume Hall (nice but not close to classes for many), early registration for some classes (but not necessarily for your major), and special advising (which is nice if you require it).
Many honor students come in with a lot of AP credit and get into their major’s requirements very early. By doing so they bypass the need for some of the courses and advising that UF honor students can receive. (Just a thought: maybe they are looking for students who can really benefit from the program?)
Being in the honor program does not keep you from graduating with honors. Anybody with the grades can do that. It is not dependent on being in a program.
UF is the top public university in the state. Everyone wants in. It has the research facilities, the internship pipelines, money. Even without a special honor’s program I would not turn down an acceptance from UF.
Bottom line: I would definitely call if I thought my kid should be in honors and got rejected. But I would not turn down UF if accepted.
Thank you to everyone who has provided such informative and encouraging advice. Going through the college application/acceptance process with my first child who is homeschooled (which means I am her GC too) has been at times overwhelming and at others bewildering. I appreciate the words of wisdom!