I am a graduating senior in the class of 2016. I will graduate with my Highschool diploma, as well as my associates degree in general studies because of a program I entered in my junior year. I will be going into the university as a entering freshman, but will be considered a junior. Here is my academic information…
Highschool GPA: unweighted 3.779/4.0
Highschool rank: 11% (64/574)
SAT Score: 1380 (extremely low)
College transcript GPA: 3.795/4.0
Extracurriculars: VP history club, PTK mentor, Phi theta kappa(honor society), and debate team
Planned major if attend: English
I am not sure what are my chances because of my low SAT score. My back up plan is UT Dallas because I am automatically accepted (top 15%) . I really want to go to UT Austin, but unsure of my chances. Please be brutally honest. Thanks!
P.s: I attended college full time at my community college.
The 1380 is out of 2400 or 1600?
@gettingschooled, I’m assuming that since OP qualified the 1380 with the phrase “extremely low” that the 1380 is out of 2400 rather than 1600. In any event, even if the 1380 is only SAT Critical Reading and Math subscores, the College of Liberal Arts academic index formula includes the SAT Writing score, which if I recall correctly is weighed twice as heavily as the CR and Math subscores.
The 1380/2400. I was think that since the SAT’s are used to prove academic readiness for college, my college gpa can be a substitute. Do you think they will think of it in that way?
@fatherof2boys On CC you will see kids retaking SAT because they think a 2200 is low. You never know around here. Looks like you were right though.
If you are applying as a freshman applicant and not a transfer applicant, then they are going to look at your SAT in the AI formula. I think calling admissions is advised in uncommon cases like yours since it is unlikely you’ll find someone on CC who has the exact same experience. While someone may answer, you’ll get a faster answer by calling. Your guidance counselor may know something as well since she is familiar with your program.
I would find out if it is possible to apply as a transfer applicant using your college GPA.
@gettingschooled that’s so true, this is not necessarily a representative group.
I asked my college counselor and she says that in order to apply as a transfer student you must have a Highschool diploma. I inconviently won’t recieve mine until next year in June 2016. Transfer deadline is March 2016. Do you think if I don’t get accepted that I am better off attending ut Dallas for a semester then transferring to UT Austin?
Bummer about the transfer thing. Is this “early college high school”? I am not a big fan of early college high school and you might have given me another reason not to like it.
You will at least be offered CAP. UTA has the CAP program and I think you would make a great CAP student, except CAP is really cumbersome for students with a lot of college credit.
UTD is a great school and its reputation is building. Transferring to UT with as much credit as you will have is an uphill battle. You’ll be transferring as almost a senior. UT requires a certain number of in residence hours to graduate and you’ll be trying to manage pre-reqs etc. If you are trying to graduate after that first year and a half then I vote no transfer. If you can afford to take two or more years in Austin, then I say give it a shot.
Good luck! You have accomplished a lot with a lot to be proud of. Don’t get into the mindset that there is only one school (path) for you. It doesn’t work that way in just about anything in the grown up world. Thank goodness for that.
So COLA takes into consideration your writing score on the SAT? Is that a major factor?
@texangirl505 The Academic Index SAT formula for COLA weights the writing score double the math and critical reading scores.
So how do I find out if I have a good chance with my writing score? Is there a formal i can use?
@texangirl505 here is the COLA AI SAT formula:
AI= -.285 + (SAT W * .002) + (SAT M * .001) + (HSR * .009) + (SAT CR * .001)
HSR is your high school rank (1-HSR/class size) x 100.
UT calculates an Academic Index (AI) and a Personal Achievement Index (PAI) to do their admission evaluation. Here is the link to the UT document that has the AI and PAI. It is on about page 34. https://www.utsystem.edu/sites/utsfiles/documents/institutions/best-practice-admissions-processes/ut-system-admissions-best-practices-2014-07.pdf
The AI formula will allow you to compute your predicated first year GPA. However, to determine how competitive an applicant you are for admission, you would need to know how your numbers compare to other applicants for the same major/college. Moreover, the AI formula is simply one part of the input. UT also evaluates the holistic factors in an applicants file as well such as students extra curricular activities in the recommended resume, writing samples and letter of recommendations to determine an applicants personal achievement index (PAI). The PAI (vertical axis) and AI (horizontal axis) are plotted on a matrix, and where you fall on that matrix in comparison to the other applicants determines whether you get admitted. Applicants in the upper left-hand corner of the matrix will have the strongest intersections of PAI and AI scores. However, unless you have data on the other applicants to compute their PAI and AI, you really can’t foreshadow if you will be admitted or not. The relevance of knowing the AI is that you can use that info to strategically prepare for the ACT or SAT exam by focusing on certain subscores, or determine which test format (ACT or SAT) makes you the most competitive applicant. Good luck with your application.
Thank you both!
Thanks you so much, I’ll just hope that I am at least considered for the CAP program.
@schoolismagical My understanding is that all Texas residents are offered CAP. The problem with CAP is that the classes required for CAP often overlap with AP or dual enrollment credit and you waste some credit you earned in high school.
http://www.utexas.edu/student/admissions/cap/2014-2015/uta.pdf
@gettingschooled I really didn’t know that cap was offered to Texas residents. Do they offer it based on a certain GPA, or rank, also is it automatic? And I guess I will have to consult with my counselor about my credits that will transfer.
“Applicants who are Texas residents are either admitted, “cascaded” to their second choice of major, offered Pathway to Admission through Co-Enrollment (PACE) or to the Coordinated Admission Program (CAP) at a UT System component school. Thus, Texas residents submitting a completed entering freshman application by published deadlines are never permanently denied admission to UT Austin. All non-residents compete with one another in accordance with the routine described above and are either admitted or denied.”
https://admissions.utexas.edu/enroll/cap/prospective-students
The Number of Course Credits You’ve Already Earned
The approved CAP course listings for each UT System school offer a large number of courses from which freshmen may choose. Most students find plenty of courses in which to enroll during their fall and spring semesters. However, students who have earned a number of AP or IB credits in high school may have difficulty finding courses from the approved CAP course lists. If, after reviewing the approved course listing, you find there are not enough available courses to complete the 30-hour requirement, then CAP is not the best option for you.
You would be better served attending college elsewhere as a regular freshman. After attaining 30 college credits, apply to transfer to UT Austin. By doing this, you lose the guarantee of admission that comes with CAP participation and so will have to compete for a space with the transfer applicant pool. However, this option will mean that your freshman year will be more academically challenging and productive.