Friend of mine at work has a daughter that is going to tu next year and she was just announced as the salutatorian at her high school in Texas. I told him I thought that meant free college for her but I'm reading conflicting things online.

Just curious because my daughter is a freshman but she may challenge for one of the top 2 spots at her school in 4 years.... So it would be good to know.

Has something changed or is it just for the valedictorian?

AND they get free extra ketchups at McDonalds without having to ask.

haha no

Valedictorians and it's for the 1st year only. Still a good GREAT deal, especially when combined with the scholastic scholarships.

But wouldn't go to t.u.

disregard

According to Grok:

In Texas, valedictorians of accredited high schools are eligible for a tuition exemption during their first year of college, covering both fall and spring semesters. This exemption is a part of the Highest Ranking Graduate (HRG) program, ensuring that the highest-achieving graduates are able to attend college without tuition costs for their first year.

Here's a more detailed breakdown:

Eligibility:

• Valedictorian Status: The student must have been recognized as the valedictorian (highest ranking graduate) of their accredited Texas high school.
• Tuition Exemption: The exemption applies to tuition during the first two regular semesters (fall and spring) following graduation.
  
• Within two years: The exemption must be used within two years of high school graduation.
  
• Texas Public College: The exemption is valid for Texas public colleges and universities.
  
• Required Documentation: Students need to present the official Texas Education Agency (TEA) tuition waiver to their chosen college.
  

How it works:

[ol]

1. High School Provides Waiver:
The high school provides the valedictorian with a tuition waiver document from the TEA.

2. Present Waiver to College:
The student presents the waiver to the Texas public college or university they plan to attend.

3. Exemption Applied:
The college's financial aid office will apply the exemption to the student's tuition account.

[/ol]

Ooof....

And yes, she chose tu over A&M. A&M offered her no money and tu offered her $2k. It's a brutal landscape out there unless you are poor.

FDXAg said:

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Ooof....

And yes, she chose tu over A&M. A&M offered her no money and tu offered her $2k. It's a brutal landscape out there unless you are poor.

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It would take a hell of a lot more than $2k to send my kid to the liberal commune known as Austin.

FDXAg said:

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Ooof....

And yes, she chose tu over A&M. A&M offered her no money and tu offered her $2k. It's a brutal landscape out there unless you are poor.

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Well, she would get half her senior ring paid for.

so there's that.

zephyr88 said:

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FDXAg said:

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Ooof....

And yes, she chose tu over A&M. A&M offered her no money and tu offered her $2k. It's a brutal landscape out there unless you are poor.

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It would take a hell of a lot more than $2k to send my kid to the liberal commune known as Austin.

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Absolutely. Plus they are a very conservative family so I don't see her liking it there at all. I couldn't believe that was the decision. I think they were upset that A&M offered nothing that they jumped the gun

FDXAg said:

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zephyr88 said:

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FDXAg said:

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Ooof....

And yes, she chose tu over A&M. A&M offered her no money and tu offered her $2k. It's a brutal landscape out there unless you are poor.

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It would take a hell of a lot more than $2k to send my kid to the liberal commune known as Austin.

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Absolutely. Plus they are a very conservative family so I don't see her liking it there at all. I couldn't believe that was the decision. I think they were upset that A&M offered nothing that they jumped the gun

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Societal issue... everyone wants something for nothing.

Hope she enjoys Austin, some people do... mostly green and purple haired people.

Gnome Sayin said:

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AND they get free extra ketchups at McDonalds without having to ask.

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and a free tootsie roll pop even if there's no indian shooting a star on the wrapper.

fc2112 said:

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FDXAg said:

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Ooof....

And yes, she chose tu over A&M. A&M offered her no money and tu offered her $2k. It's a brutal landscape out there unless you are poor.

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Well, she would get half her senior ring paid for.

so there's that.

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They pay 3/4 of salutatorian's rings.

$2k is what made the decision for them? Been out of college for a while, but I bet that doesn't get you a whole lot these days.

$2k will be ate up in the rent difference between cs and Atx.

I was salutatorian. No specific benefit, but I ended up getting enough scholarships to atm to cover about 50% of the cost with hunting around and applying for every little opportunity. Would always amaze me how few people would apply for a $1k scholarship bc you had to write a half a page essay.

Salutatorian but no academic scholarships from A&M? She must suck at test taking.

My daughter is the Salutatorian out of over 1000 kids at her school and got a 1560 on the SAT with an 800 on math and A&M didn't give her any money for that. A&M and t.u. offer very little money for great academics.

zephyr88 said:

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FDXAg said:

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Ooof....

And yes, she chose tu over A&M. A&M offered her no money and tu offered her $2k. It's a brutal landscape out there unless you are poor.

---

It would take a hell of a lot more than $2k to send my kid to the liberal commune known as Austin.

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I have a friend who, along with her husband, graduated from tu. We have been talking a lot because she wants her boys (senior and junior in HS) to go to A&M; senior was accepted already. She said there is no scholarship or major out there that would warrant them letting their kids go to tu because of how "liberal and distasteful", in her words, the school has become.

years ago they did get free tuition. I think that's changed.

I thought that back in the day (Fall '79 is when I got to Aggieland), that the valedictory scholarship was a 4 year ride.

My 1st semester, the entire fee slip was right at $1300.00. Tuition, fees, room (corps dorm), and 7 day meal plan. My last semester was only $1500. Tuition was $4/hour, but the fees were more than tuition. If you lived off campus and no meal plan, the whole fee slip was about $300/semester.

My youngest graduates in August, and it costs us about $24k/year. $6k/semester fee slip, and about $1,000/month for apartment, lights, food, etc. It was brutal when we had two kids at A&M at the same time, for 2 years.

I feel your pain. We had one in undergrad at A&M and one in law school at TT.

ag97tx said:

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My daughter is the Salutatorian out of over 1000 kids at her school and got a 1560 on the SAT with an 800 on math and A&M didn't give her any money for that. A&M and t.u. offer very little money for great academics.

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1000 kids at her school or in her class? You sure she APPLIED for the scholarships on time with complete applications? That should've qualified for at least Lechner and probably Presidents Endowed Scholarships. She also should've gotten money from the A&M Foundation and matched with a scholarship or 2 through national merit.

FDXAg said:

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zephyr88 said:

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FDXAg said:

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Ooof....

And yes, she chose tu over A&M. A&M offered her no money and tu offered her $2k. It's a brutal landscape out there unless you are poor.

---

It would take a hell of a lot more than $2k to send my kid to the liberal commune known as Austin.

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Absolutely. Plus they are a very conservative family so I don't see her liking it there at all. I couldn't believe that was the decision. I think they were upset that A&M offered nothing that they jumped the gun

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Aggie Moms
Local A&M clubs
Department Scholarships

The AFS and Foundation raise a lot of money. Apply for everything. If you spend 40 hours applying and get $3,000 that is a good ROI.

LupinusTexensis said:

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$2k will be ate up in the rent difference between cs and Atx.

I was salutatorian. No specific benefit, but I ended up getting enough scholarships to atm to cover about 50% of the cost with hunting around and applying for every little opportunity. Would always amaze me how few people would apply for a $1k scholarship bc you had to write a half a page essay.

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That always shocked me. I was basically told to apply to every scholarship I found, regardless of if they "restrictions" or not. I got quite a few one-off $500 scholarships that helped pay for books and food for a semester. Also got some much larger ones that helped pay for school.

She has over 1000 kids in her senior class. She did fill in the scholarship information with her application for A&M. However, on her PSAT she missed the National Merit index score by 1 point for Texas.

She was offered money at other schools but not A&M or t.u. and A&M is where she wants to go and where she belongs.

zephyr88 said:

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FDXAg said:

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zephyr88 said:

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FDXAg said:

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Ooof....

And yes, she chose tu over A&M. A&M offered her no money and tu offered her $2k. It's a brutal landscape out there unless you are poor.

---

It would take a hell of a lot more than $2k to send my kid to the liberal commune known as Austin.

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Absolutely. Plus they are a very conservative family so I don't see her liking it there at all. I couldn't believe that was the decision. I think they were upset that A&M offered nothing that they jumped the gun

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Societal issue... everyone wants something for nothing.

Hope she enjoys Austin, some people do... mostly green and purple haired people.

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And gays