I’m sure that can be true at UT also, but I think since she is in for BHP, it won’t be as difficult for her. I believe BHP has their own counselors and priority. That was the case when I was BHP a million years ago. And the main reason she will decline UCLA is because they don’t have undergraduate business and she already has 3 great business offers. When she was applying, she was not sure if she’d get any of the ones she has received so far. We went through admissions last year with my son who is a current freshman in college and it took much longer for him to get a solid offer that he was happy about, so we thought it could be more of the same this year.
I go to So Cal often enough (extended family there). Keep in mind that CA has had the most draconian lockdowns during Covid. Lots of school districts have stayed closed for over a year now. They even closed beaches for various amounts of time. If there is one single Covid-variant that gets loose this summer, I am sure CA will be the first state to completely lockdown again. That would mean zero chance to attend Univ. classes in person. Looks like there’s yet another petition for governor recall. Perhaps if the governor gets ousted later this year, the lockdown pattern could change.
UCLA is in a nicer part of LA a little closer to the coast/beaches. Just be aware that if you had even one ounce of hesitation about the urban vibe of UT or Austin, it is nothing compared to the extreme heavy traffic, urban ghetto-grunge, and homeless camps of downtown LA.
I understand the allure of CA though. You can hit the beaches daily, and coastal life is nice. (The beaches further south in OC that back to the cliffs/bluffs are prettier!) The mountains are a short drive away. In some months, you can surf and snow ski in the same day. Not sure what your career plans are. There’s lots of good job opps and companies based in CA, but do realize between high cost of living and high taxes plus college debt, you could be in debt for a long time. Millions of successful people live/work there despite the negatives though.
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Agree, but the other posters did not indicate that they are in honors so will not have priority and may have difficulty finding classes at U T
Biochemistry!
Do you want to be a physician? If so, that’s expensive. Consider staying instate to save some money for Med school. On the other hand, there will be a ton of UT folks applying to Texas Med schools. You will be more unique if applying from another school. Med schools want to take people from multiple schools and coming from UCLA will be a relief after seeing so many UT apps.
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My kids all LOVED UCLA when we visited. Beautiful campus! My son was waitlisted there last year (engineering). But I agree with your assessment of the California restrictions. It makes it more of a risk for possibly less normalcy. My twins are searching for as much normalcy as possible. My freshman son (UMich) has had a less than ideal freshman year, and they have seen that every step of the way, so they are factoring that into their decision making. Again, the decision is easy for my one kid who got into UCLA yesterday because there is no undergraduate business school there. It would have been a great back up if she hadn’t gotten her preferred major at one of the business schools she applied to. Hopefully some other kid who really wants UCLA will get it when she declines her offer soon.
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Not in BHP especially because you get priority enrollment.
UCLA also has HUGE classes. My girls looked both specifically looked here and went through the whole admissions sessions and tours etc and this was something that UCLA made a point of letting them know. They did this right after their USC session and it was a huge difference and big turn off. They wound up not applying even though it was a gorgeous campus.
Also, BHP is still the same as when you went. They have 2 advisors specific to BHP and they’re great. They get priority registration after the first time registering in summer, and the more AP credits she has, that also bumps her up. Mine this past semester actually wound up registering ahead of some juniors even. Never had a problem getting in a class except I think she was w/l for a class this fall when sizes were smaller than normal due to that one being a hybrid but it was set up as a swap anyway so she was taking something else she needed instead. It worked out great regardless. BHP classes which I’m not sure if was the same when you went, are set in stone what you have to take through first semester sophomore year, and then there is some flexibility for some classes after that. 2/3 she’s taking this semester are set in stone, but she’s taking Finance now when she could have taken it anytime now or later.
For others in this thread planning on UT, her friends not in honors, have not really had problems getting classes either. So people should not be scared about that. There are some super popular UGS classes that people don’t get because those are small, but generally speaking students get what they want.
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Since there are some students on here deciding b/t UCLA and UT, thought I would paste info to this CNN article as well. The VC CEO is optimistic about continued innovation and opps out of the Bay Area/Silicon Valley (technically San Francisco area) but even more optimistic about Austin innovation:
Good article from a Venture Capital CEO was published on CNN online last Sat. He says a lot of good things about the start-up/entrepreneurship opportunities across multi-disciplinary industries and fields of study along with access to intellectual resources/expertise in Austin. (He makes it sound like the start-up community is emerging in Austin when really Austin has been a hot location for start-ups for decades though.) It only reinforces the idea that there could be even greater cutting-edge internship and research opps for UT students.
Looks like I’m not allowed to post a link to the article. You can google search “CNN Business VC Jim Breyer” if you want to read it.
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Well there goes that. D21 will not be going to UT Austin, the financials aid is all loans, not even an OOS waiver. I didn’t expect it to be great, but it’s just not affordable when she has other good options with good merit and need based aid.
Sorry it isn’t going to work out. They don’t give OOS waivers with the exception of students who earn merit scholarships. They are not generous with merit either or financial aid but in good news it’s easy to get residency after sophomore year but it takes some work to get it.
That’s true, I don’t understand why they call “awards” to loans. For me loans are loans.
Right? One of my other kids (not UT) though she was being given a 5500 scholarship because it said “award”. I knew then we were going to get nothing once UT came out and that was right but what a dumb way to describe it. Telling a student they can take 5500 in loans is no “award”.
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wooo guess who no longer can go to ut (including CBHP) with zero aid! 64k is wild!
I’m so sorry. I know how excited you are about CBHP. That’s insanely high.
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If you (the student) were equally interested in attending UT and living/exploring the city of Austin, you could consider doing an internship or co-op (extended internship) in Austin sometime during your college years. Apartment rent in Austin is on the pricier side but is likely cheaper in the summer. The cool nightlife places are in the city, unrelated to the university, so the live-music clubs/bars have talented bands/musicians playing all summer just like they do any other time of year. It might even be more fun when you’re 21 bc you won’t be restricted to just the clubs that allow ages 18+ in. You’ll have more time to enjoy the outdoor nature parks in and around Austin as well as the performing arts shows, etc. Just an idea! Congrats on CBHP though. It’s a highly-selective program.
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How difficult is it to change from ECE to CS at Austin?
Hello future Longhorns! I am writing to see if anyone has any concerns/ dissatisfaction with the fact that Freshmen orientation this year will be online for fall 2021. As of March 29, every adult in the state of Texas is eligible to receive a Covid vaccine. We are from Houston and finding it readily available. The Governor announced the availability for all adults to receive the vaccine subsequent to Jay Hartzel’s announcement that orientation would be virtual. I am curious if anyone else would be interested in joining me to see if UT is willing to hold some sessions virtual (for those who prefer) and some sessions in person for those who are vaccinated. Does anyone have any idea where I would start with contacting the school??
I know that some colleges (Rutgers comes to mind) are starting to strongly recommend that students have vaccine prior to attending school. I think it is only a matter of time before other universities follow suit.
Hard. I know someone who tried to transfer to CS from Aerospace and no dice. It’s near impossible to transfer into engineering or into CS. You can try but don’t expect it.
I wish you all the best but I think it’s a done deal a this point. The plans have been made and I don’t think they are likely to change them. As a parent of a current UT second year, online learning has not been great. I would prefer the you and all the students get to attend class in person and get the real university experience rather than the Zoom University experience.
I was hoping for in-person orientation also for my incoming Freshman. It sucks but not as much as another semester of online classes. I am so ready for normal.
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