Just an update for those waiting to hear about freshman admissions. Five weeks ago kid was offered TEAM and Waitlist. We selected both and waited . . . today he was granted full admissions to his second major choice (Geosciences; first choice was Agriculture). So keep the faith. We had about given up after seeing some being admitted in top 50% with lower GPA. SAT/ACT scores were not submitted, top 25% (actually higher but not top 10%), competitive GPA, and school/community activities. I was hoping for TEAM but not upset at all. Hang in there if you are still waiting . . . .
Freshman Admissions
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139 Replies |
Last: 1 yr ago by wxmanX
Thanks for sharing. Daughter applied in early Aug and we have heard nothing… emails to local admissions coordinators, etc, no response - nothing from A&M.
She has classmates ranked well behind her that did not submit test scores, taking easier HS classes, applied to the same major, and they have heard back on gateway / Team Blinn. The process doesn't make logical sense.
Our family has always been actively involved with the school, donated considerably, our kids grew up spending a lot of our family time in Aggieland. The admissions process over the past six months has me questioning the "Aggie network" and our "unique" culture / tradition.
UT, Baylor, and every other school has done a far superior job in communicating and and letting us know proactively the status of her application. The A&M experience has been the worst and it's not even close …
5K post here. Ha!
She has classmates ranked well behind her that did not submit test scores, taking easier HS classes, applied to the same major, and they have heard back on gateway / Team Blinn. The process doesn't make logical sense.
Our family has always been actively involved with the school, donated considerably, our kids grew up spending a lot of our family time in Aggieland. The admissions process over the past six months has me questioning the "Aggie network" and our "unique" culture / tradition.
UT, Baylor, and every other school has done a far superior job in communicating and and letting us know proactively the status of her application. The A&M experience has been the worst and it's not even close …
5K post here. Ha!
We are in the same boat with my son, and I could not agree more. Severely disappointed with A&M in this process.
We have had the exact same experience. It has been awful. Submitted application in mid August. We did notice Howdy was different yesterday and AIS had changed to second major and said application complete and under review which was odd because for 5 weeks it had first major and waitlist and TEAM . I swear we checked a hundred times a day. While we are happy we think the process has issues. Seeing some students admitted below mine was confusing and made absolutely no sense. To this day we have not received an email from A&M letting us know of application status.
Heard nothing
UT accepted my kid.
UT accepted my kid.
wxmanX said:
Heard nothing
UT accepted my kid.
Something is extremely broken w/ A&M …..
I think there are just so many applicants, and there are so many bright kids out there that want to be Aggies.
I get it. It's supply and demand. Just unfortunate after so many years of supporting the school thinking my son would one day follow me, to watch him walk away disappointed. It is what it is. We'll turn our attention elsewhere.
We were in the same situation as op. My daughter got her application in relatively early and then sat back for months witnessing peers with lesser objective qualifications being accepted. Then, in February, A&M offers her the opportunity to ask to be considered for a wait list position or the Blinn Team program, advising her that neither is guaranteed. She selected both, but the communication about these options made it seem pretty clear she would not be fully admitted in the ordinary course. Frankly, she was hurt and insulted, and so was I. She then visited OU, which offered her scholarship money. She loved the campus. Then earlier this week, A&M tells her she is fully admitted. Now, she is very conflicted about where she will go. I feel A&M completely mishandled this. And now, because of that, I may have to drive six freaking hours to Oklahoma to see her.
wxmanX said:
I think there are just so many applicants, and there are so many bright kids out there that want to be Aggies.
But why admit people who are not as qualified based on grades / class rank, community service, leadership , extra curricular, etc? How are they making decisions? It's not logical.
They call it "holistic ". Whatever that means.
Did I understand the OP correctly that his kid got in for geoscience, but not ag? I would have thought ag would be the easier path.
You read that correctly. We were surprised too.
We haven't heard anything. I mean I check, but nothing has changed.
At least with other schools we got an answer within a month or two. One said nope.
At least with other schools we got an answer within a month or two. One said nope.
Buck Turgidson said:
Did I understand the OP correctly that his kid got in for geoscience, but not ag? I would have thought ag would be the easier path.
Geoscience is a less popular major.
Daughter got the PSA offer today for Engr. She's bummed knowing other applicants got into A&M with less credentials. Will focus on the positives and she will learn from it.
Yeah, this year, if your academic transcripts, essays, and test scores are not in order, then the admission decisions have largely become a crap shoot.
Ours is in order.
Nothing.
Nothing.
I would highly recommend doing geosciences in the future.
World is dire need of rare earth minerals, Lithium, Nickel, etc.
Add meteorology too, wind, solar.
World is dire need of rare earth minerals, Lithium, Nickel, etc.
Add meteorology too, wind, solar.
wxmanX said:
Ours is in order.
Nothing.
Same
Most of my clients are predominantly from the BCS area, but I do help a decent number outside of this region every year. Also, I have discussed A&M admissions with other IEC's and below are some of our observations.
Overall, for folks like myself, this year has been one of the most frustrating years I have encountered in my 10 years of helping students apply to Texas A&M. Honestly, Texas A&M needs to move away from rolling admissions, and adopt a Early Action and Regular Decision period. We're the only university of our size that conducts admissions like this.
This current process severely limits any applicant chances for admission into Mays Business or the College of Architecture if they take their SAT or ACT in their senior year. By the time the scores are out and sent to the university for review, several acceptance letters have already gone out.
I feel for the many parents and students that are out there and the frustration they are experiencing with this process. I recently had two students who were finally admitted last week to Texas A&M. Other schools, including UT - Austin for one of them, were long admitted to their other options and have been "wooed" by these other schools for months. Ultimately, they felt rejected from TAMU and have since mentally moved on from their love of Texas A&M.
Just know that there are many other viable options outside of Texas A&M, and that several of these colleges, will happily give you some nice scholarships dollars to consider them.
- Test scores matter. Shoot for the minimum average of about 1250 if you want it to be helpful, but strive for a 1350+. Start NOW if you are junior with your test prep and achieve your desired SAT or ACT before the start of your senior year. If you have to earn your score in the fall semester, then you may miss out on some of the more desirable majors.
- Grades - Be Strategic: This is where we're noticing some conflicting trends. Here locally, I've had several students who are firmly outside the top 25% receive full admission into Texas A&M. However, those outside of B/CS, students are experiencing a much more difficult time although they are firmly in the top 20% of their class with several AP Courses on their transcripts. If you are outside of the B/CS area, strive to maximize your GPA with rigor in the appropriate subjects for your student. Take your AP exams, scoring 4 or 5s where you can to further bolster your transcript and testing profile.
- Compelling Essays: Make sure your student's essays are unique to the reader and tell a story about their personal growth and development. Have your student focus on key qualities and characteristics that demonstrate their growth through challenging/difficult moments. Also, encourage your students to try/experiment with different activities that are off the beaten path. These always make for interesting experiences to write about.
Overall, for folks like myself, this year has been one of the most frustrating years I have encountered in my 10 years of helping students apply to Texas A&M. Honestly, Texas A&M needs to move away from rolling admissions, and adopt a Early Action and Regular Decision period. We're the only university of our size that conducts admissions like this.
This current process severely limits any applicant chances for admission into Mays Business or the College of Architecture if they take their SAT or ACT in their senior year. By the time the scores are out and sent to the university for review, several acceptance letters have already gone out.
I feel for the many parents and students that are out there and the frustration they are experiencing with this process. I recently had two students who were finally admitted last week to Texas A&M. Other schools, including UT - Austin for one of them, were long admitted to their other options and have been "wooed" by these other schools for months. Ultimately, they felt rejected from TAMU and have since mentally moved on from their love of Texas A&M.
Just know that there are many other viable options outside of Texas A&M, and that several of these colleges, will happily give you some nice scholarships dollars to consider them.
double b said:
Most of my clients are predominantly from the BCS area, but I do help a decent number outside of this region every year. Also, I have discussed A&M admissions with other IEC's and below are some of our observations.
- Test scores matter. Shoot for the minimum average of about 1250 if you want it to be helpful, but strive for a 1350+. Start NOW if you are junior with your test prep and achieve your desired SAT or ACT before the start of your senior year. If you have to earn your score in the fall semester, then you may miss out on some of the more desirable majors.
- Grades - Be Strategic: This is where we're noticing some conflicting trends. Here locally, I've had several students who are firmly outside the top 25% receive full admission into Texas A&M. However, those outside of B/CS, we're noticing are experiencing a much more difficult time although they are firmly in the top 20% of their class with several AP Courses on their transcripts. If you are outside of the B/CS area, strive to maximize your GPA with rigor in the appropriate subjects for your student. Take your AP exams, scoring 4 or 5s where you can to further bolster your transcript and testing profile.
- Compelling Essays: Make sure your student's essays are unique to the reader and tell a story about their personal growth and development. Have your student focus on key qualities and characteristics that demonstrate their growth through challenging/difficult moments. Also, encourage your students to try/experiment with different activities that are off the beaten path. These always make for interesting experiences to write about.
Overall, for folks like myself, this year has been one of the most frustrating years I have encountered in my 10 years of helping students apply to Texas A&M. Honestly, Texas A&M needs to move away from rolling admissions, and adopt a Early Action and Regular Decision period. We're the only university of our size that conducts admissions like this.
This current process severely limits any applicant chances for admission into Mays Business or the College of Architecture if they take their SAT or ACT in their senior year. By the time the scores are out and sent to the university for review, several acceptance letters have already gone out.
I feel for the many parents and students that are out there and the frustration they are experiencing with this process. I recently had two students who were finally admitted last week to Texas A&M. Other schools, including UT - Austin for one of them, were long admitted to their other options and have been "wooed" by these other schools for months. Ultimately, they felt rejected from TAMU and have since mentally moved on from their love of Texas A&M.
Just know that there are many other viable options outside of Texas A&M, and that several of these colleges, will happily give you some nice scholarships dollars to consider them.
Thanks for sharing this. This is the most informative update that I have seen since beginning this process.
All those my son got checks on.
No word.
He taking AP calc this year, as hard as engineering calc back in the day.
No word.
He taking AP calc this year, as hard as engineering calc back in the day.
I certainly understand the level of frustration you are experiencing, and my suggestions above are recommendations, not a guarantee for admission. Honestly there are no sure fire ways for admissions unless you're top ten percent, and anything else should be treated as a coin flip.wxmanX said:
All those my son got checks on.
No word.
He taking AP calc this year, as hard as engineering calc back in the day.
If you don't mind, I'd love to read your child's application and see which areas I believe that possibly lacking from the application. This type of information is always helpful to me as I work to better understand a school's patterns in their admission decisions.
Feel free to connect with via email, which you can find in my profile.
LeanderAg, where is your daughter going?
She received PSA last night, so Baylor.
Kids who are second quartile, well behind her, who could care less about A&M are in. She is crushed.
The timing of letting her know was the icing on the cake with this embarrassing process - spring break ruined.
Kids who are second quartile, well behind her, who could care less about A&M are in. She is crushed.
The timing of letting her know was the icing on the cake with this embarrassing process - spring break ruined.
My youngest received considerable financial assistance from most of the privates that put total cost almost equal to A&M. Ultimately chose SMU over Baylor (practically a coin flip).
Mine going to Texas.
But, waiting last minute to see if A&M somehow picks him up.
But, waiting last minute to see if A&M somehow picks him up.
wxmanX said:
Mine going to Texas.
But, waiting last minute to see if A&M somehow picks him up.
Congratulations. Great school.
Got PSA, whatever that means.
Same, just got it today. A&M San Antonio isn't offered, why?
PSA for my son so he won't be following in me and my wife's footsteps. Both sets of Aunts and Uncles and 4 older 1st cousins are Ags as well. Seeing kids who took the easy road and played the grades game and the real head scratcher of kids ranked far below him getting in has made me sick and embarrassed for the school.
A&M will never get another dime from me. Cancelled all of my recurring donations as of today.
A&M will never get another dime from me. Cancelled all of my recurring donations as of today.
Our whole family are Aggies.
Wife, me, her sis, my cousin, niece, nephews.
Wife, me, her sis, my cousin, niece, nephews.
FIDO*98* said:
PSA for my son so he won't be following in me and my wife's footsteps. Both sets of Aunts and Uncles and 4 older 1st cousins are Ags as well. Seeing kids who took the easy road and played the grades game and the real head scratcher of kids ranked far below him getting in has made me sick and embarrassed for the school.
A&M will never get another dime from me. Cancelled all of my recurring donations as of today.
Did the same - I'm done. Denying kids that are qualified and dream of being an Aggie for less qualified applicants is disgusting. A&M is no longer unique. It's a diploma mill.
Sic'em
30 ACT, 31 Science ACT, and can't get into geoscience at A&M.
BS.
BS.
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