<p>You can apply to both Dean Scholars and Plan II. There are about 20 kids a year that do both programs. They work very well together. The FRI comes after acceptance. Most DS always do FRI, but not always. It is personal choice.</p>
<p>GOOD to hear these.</p>
<p>Sorry, Foshan, I don’t know enough about the College of Creative Study at UCSB to compare it to other programs. A good resource might be the UCSB forum (look under Colleges > C > UCSB). </p>
<p>About UT honors, I’m sure you understand the concept, but just to be clear, although your son may apply to as many honor programs as he likes (and can stand writing unique essays for!), honors admission is “icing on the cake.” He must first qualify for “regular” admission to UT. Every applicant lists a first and second choice of major. They are considered for their first choice; if denied, they are considered for their second choice; if denied, the process ends for international applicants. </p>
<p>If the Plan II and/or Dean’s Scholars web sites have piqued your son’s interest, he should dig into the admissions site [Be</a> a Longhorn | Information for Prospective Students | University of Texas at Austin](<a href=“http://bealonghorn.utexas.edu%5DBe”>http://bealonghorn.utexas.edu) to get a handle on the logistics of the admission process from beginning to end. </p>
<p>As you’ve discovered, it’s a little confusing at first, but it will begin to make sense. Like most things, the devil’s in the details–your son is so lucky you’re helping him figure out the different admission schemes. You practically need to flow chart it depending on your personal variables! For example, UT deadlines. Even though December 1 is plastered all over the web site as UT’s application deadline, you’ll discover that some honors programs, including Plan II but not Dean’s Scholars, have an October 15 priority deadline. Also, it’s easy to miss the technical two-step requiring honors applicants to submit their “regular” app before December 1: the online application program ApplyTexas will not make the honors portion of the application available until after you’ve submitted a complete “regular” app (they say it can take up to 24 hours to process). </p>
<p>Anyway…best wishes! And the UT forum is very active. If your son decides to apply, it’s a great place for support.</p>
<p>OP- remember that at most US colleges a student is admitted to the school as a whole, regardless of intended major. Many/most students will be undecided or change their major. A good physics undergrad program can be found at many hundreds of schools. You will find students in top physics grad programs from many different schools. Also consider the programs related to physics as he may decide one of them, such as an engineering field, math or computer science suits him best after he takes some college classes.</p>
<p>Your son will be taking most of his classes outside of physics so you should pay attention to the whole package. First look at schools that not only are academically in his range (his stats are very good, btw) but intrigue him overall. College is so much more than the 120-160 credits taken over 4 or more years. Consider the ethnic makeup of the schools- is it important to him/you that there is a strong international Chinese organization or presence, or would being in a totally different cultural environment be of more benefit? Weather can make a difference. Some dislike the rainy climate of Seattle, others the heat of Texas or the snow and cold elsewhere. Some schools offer many courses not found at every college. Large schools may offer him a chance to pursue Chinese cultural studies from a different viewpoint or learn a viewpoint about cultures he wouldn’t learn in China.</p>
<p>Quarter system versus semester system is another factor. Living conditions matter. He is likely to get “Chinese” food everywhere but different places will offer different regional cooking- perhaps matching that of home. You and he may want to make a list of everything you can think of related to his attending school in the US. Different college websites will help your awareness of what is involved. Notice what they emphasize to make them stand out from other schools.</p>
<p>Ask your son what he wants out of college besides the academic study of physics. Get his input. It is his life and he should be doing the college search. Encourage him to research schools in the top 50 or so to see what is the same about each one and what is different. He will need to decide if large or small, public or private, N-S-E-W part of the US, etc appeal most to him.</p>
<p>Please broaden your research beyond the physics major. Look for schools that seem to be a good overall fit and then see if their physics and related subjects offer what he wants. Also note it is all about your son’s fit, not what you as parents want for him. His voice needs to be heard, he will be the one living here.</p>
<p>TXArtemis, thank you for your comments about UT, your remind of deadline is very important! We may make a big mistake without your notice.</p>
<p>wis75, we will take your words as a top guidance in our choosing of school. You just spread out the parent’s concern to the children’s healthy growth. My son just came back from US last night, and it is the right time for him to read you message carefully. Surely he will take his job from now on, even though we will keep giving him suggestions.Your advice is highly appreciated!</p>
<p>Happy to hear your son is being involved- some parents want to do all of the choosing for their children. He may even want to add UW-Madison to his list of schools to consider (I’m biased towards this school and it does have Honors Physics, Math and Chemistry sequences for freshmen).</p>
<p>I used to think UW-Madison is very similar to UIUC, no matter the size, the location, the USNEWS ranking and Physics ranking, but it is colder than UIUC. Since you are biased towards this school, could you please show me more interesting things? especially while comparing with UIUC.</p>