This thread is designed to be a starting point for admissions related questions. I have included several links to our admissions information as well as a few helpful threads I have created.

Admissions Questions
If you have questions about admission to Texas A&M please check out the FAQ website, provided below, or contact me. Feel free to PM me, call me, or e-mail me (please mention Texags in the e-mail as I have a rule set to sort for them) and I am always happy to help you out, I try to return all e-mails the same day I receive them, if not right after I get it. I would ask that if people post their questions on this thread that out of respect that other posters allow myself to post responses so that we can provide the most accurate info. I know that people here want to help but the admissions process is something that can change from year to year so in order for people to get the accurate information please allow me to answer the questions.

Admissions Chances

I see a lot of questions regarding what are a student’s chances at being admitted so I have decided to add this section in.
Freshmen
We cannot give a student what their chances are to be admitted to the university. This is due mainly to the fact that decisions are made based on the current applicant pool that is being put together throughout the process. In addition, with the sheer number of applicants (29,720 in 2010-2011 year) and the many factors (both academic and personal) we are not able to make predictions just like we are unable to narrow down to why a specific decision was made.
Transfer
For transfer decisions, since decisions are left up to the individual Colleges our office can never say for sure what a student’s chances However, since the process is based primarily on the students academics we are better able to offer chances for a student.
Graduate
Since the individual departments make all the decisions our office cannot offer any advice on the students chances. We recommend that all graduate students speak with their individual departments.


What we can do is assist a student with making their applications as competitive as possible. I recommend that you either contact any of our offices and we are always willing to assist a student with their applications.

Admissions Decisions
First off, I would like to address the regular posters here. I would just like to offer some advice to you when you see posts from people about their decisions. I know this is a public forum but speaking from experience try not to personally attack the posters who are venting about their decisions. The best thing to do is to offer them support and advice about the other options that A&M offers. The personal experiences that posters provide are the best information that anybody can provide to somebody dealing with a decision. Remember when replying to people that post their feeling about their decisions that they are just upset and are looking to vent.

Second, people that are upset about their decisions I would recommend that if you are looking to get more information on your decision contact our office. Our office has the people with the information and experience in this area and we have the correct information needed in answering the questions you may have.

Resources and Contact Info
TAMU FAQ Website (Aggie Answers):
tamuoar.custhelp.com
-Great Source for info

TAMU Admissions (Aggieland PSC):
(979) 458-0950
Jayson Naiser
jnaiser at tamu dot edu

Regional Prospective Student Centers(PSC)
http://admissions.tamu.edu/psc/

TAMU Admissions Website:
admissions.tamu.edu

TAMU Admissions Publications:
http://admissions.tamu.edu/publications.aspx

Transfer Admissions Information
http://admissions.tamu.edu/transfer/

Freshmen Admissions Information
http://admissions.tamu.edu/freshmen/

Graduate Admissions Information
http://admissions.tamu.edu/graduate/

Readmissions
http://admissions.tamu.edu/readmit/

Non-Degree Seeking
http://admissions.tamu.edu/nondegreeseeking/

Visiting Campus
http://admissions.tamu.edu/freshmen/visitUs/


[This message has been edited by TAMUAdmissions (edited 8/7/2012 4:15p).]

[This message has been edited by TexAgs staff (edited 8/7/2012 5:16p).]

Letters of Recommendation

I thought it would be helpful to my fellow Texags if I gave you the advice I give to review students about letters of recommendation. Remember these letters are not required in the freshmen admissions process but we highly recommend them for our review candidates.

Texas A&M will review two letters of recommendation for review candidates in the freshmen admissions process. We do not have a preference of who the letters are from, for example they do not have to be an Aggie or a school official. You will want to use general letter etiquette in getting the letter written. Family members are generally not recommended. What I recommend is that they come from people that know the student well and can speak to who the student is. I generally say that as a rule of thumb if the person needs a resume to write the letter then the person doesn’t know the student well enough. These letter, like all parts of the application, need to be able to provide us new information to who the student is at the core. With the number of applications we receive, 31,000 (2011), the letters need to help to set the student apart from all the other applicants. The deeper it digs into the student the more it can set them apart.

In addition, Texas A&M does not care if letters are sealed. One thing that we know that student do and don’t care if they do is read the letters that they are sending to us. If you choose to feel free to collect several letters of recommendation from people and pick the best two to send to us.

I also recommend to students that they sit down and actually work with the people writing your letters. If you are working with people you know, they should be more than willing help the student put in their best application. By doing this students can actually help in ensuring that we receive as much information as we can about who you are as a person while not having information repeated.

Essays
For the essays we want to get to know the student on a personal level so the main idea of each essay needs to be about the student. The topic that the student chooses to write about (person/issue) doesn't matter to the reviewers, they want to get to know the applicant. Students need to really dig deep into who they are at the core, because you need to try to separate yourself from the other 31,000+ applications that have provided three essays.

What we don't want to see are research papers or biographies. So, students should limit the information about the person/issue to a paragraph and the rest of essay should focus on the student. Students also want to be sure not to repeat information. Once you have told us something, it doesn't need to be reinforced or reiterated to us. You have 3 essays each a page to a page and a half so that will no way cover all there is to a student, so you need to use your space wisely.

In addition, what I suggest to students is that after they write the essays they should go back and highlight each sentence in which they talk about themselves. This will help the student ensure that they are giving us enough information about them.


Jayson Naiser '05
Admissions Counseling Advisor
Aggieland Prospective Student Center
jnaiser at tamu dot edu

Tel. 979.458.0950


[This message has been edited by TAMUAdmissions (edited 10/24/2012 2:51p).]

Good deal. You should get a moderator/forum admin to pin this to the top.

It'll help a lot of prospective students, current students, & parents.

GIG 'EM.





________ ________ ________ ________ ________ ________
"Where do you want your statue Dr. Gates?"
A&M Undergrad - Dec '09
A&M Master of Health Administration (MHA) - May '12

Just part of the way we work to reach students and parents. We also do work with them to keep it pinned.

Very much appreciated. Thank-you.