University of Texas (Austin): iPhone Applications and Admission Deadlines

Free Advice Friday!

High School Seniors: If you are planning on applying to University of Texas - Austin for the Fall 2010 class, you have 1 month left to get your transcript, resume, essays (2), optional recommendation letters, high school profile, test scores, and your overall application into the admissions office. DECEMBER 15, 2009 DEADLINE

Starting with 2009 applicants,* The University of Texas at Austin implemented some changes to its summer/fall deadlines for freshman admission. Here are the expected deadline shifts for the next couple of years:

Applicants to Summer/Fall 2010

» December 15, 2009

Applicants to Summer/Fall 2011

» December 1, 2010

* The summer/fall 2009 application deadline was January 15, 2009.
The deadline changes are planned to allow the Office of Admissions to make admission decisions earlier in the spring of an applicant’s senior year. The February 1 deadline, which had been in place for years, often meant that applicants had to wait for their admission decisions until late March or even April 1. Earlier decisions will mean that students are able to begin their post-admission, enrollment planning earlier.

Remember also that UT does not combine test score sittings. They look at your overall BEST test session for the ACT or SAT. They do not require SAT II scores. You can look at the college board site to see which other schools on your list look at the overall best test date and do not combine test score sittings.

You can view score-use practices by college/university by visiting College Board's College Search website. Select an institute of interest, and then go to the SAT®, AP®, CLEP® icon (under each institution) for score-use practice information.

Additionally, you can download the SAT Score-Use Practices List (.pdf/1.8MB), which provides an alphabetical listing of score-use practices of colleges and scholarship programs which have submitted score-use practices as of July 2009.

5 Virtually FREE iPhone Applications for College Students at the University of  Texas - Austin

If you are fortunate enough to secure a spot at the University of Texas - Austin, here are some iPhone applications that will make your life easier and more fun as you adapt to college life.

#1 HookEm (FREE)
University of Texas fans will get the latest information, news, and scores on football, men’s and women’s basketball, and baseball with this app. It also includes chants such as, "Play Texas Fight", "The Eyes of Texas", and "The Yellow Rose of Texas".

#2 University of Texas Directory  ($.99)
The Texas Directory application provides a seamless way to find your friends and contacts at the University of Texas at Austin. With this application, you can search for any student or faculty member at UT by name, phone number, office location or email.

#3 University of Texas Blackboard (FREE)
This app offers students, faculty, and campus personnel a variety of features including the ability to use an interactive campus map, browse the university’s catalog, and watch campus related content on YouTube and iTunes.

#4 Austin Traffic ($4.99)
Want to find out what the commute will be like for school? The traffic app for Austin gives you real time traffic reporting in the Austin, TX area. Use this app to help decide if you want to blow off class for the day or hang out a little longer at happy hour before returning back to your apartment. If you are stuck in an unexpected traffic jam, it's easy to launch and quickly see if there is an accident or traffic jam ahead.

#5 CraigsPro: Craigslist (Austin) (FREE)  
Use this app to search for jobs in Austin, post or search the classifieds, browse concerts and events,  or get used furniture for your new apartment or dorm room. You can bookmark your favorite searches, email listing to friends and call numbers directly from listings. You can view pictures enlarged to get a better idea of what you are actually negotiating for.

AUTHOR INFO: Suggestions by April Lentini from San Antonio Apartment Guide and Lauren Kahn of Lone Star Ed Consulting.

Information and Links provided below from "College Times"
Related posts:

1. 10 Best iPhone Apps for Science Majors
2. 15 Best iPhone Apps for English Majors
3. 100 Free Tools for Your College Planning & Prep
4. 25 Essential Web Tools for Incoming College Freshmen
5. The Princeton Review Reveals Top 5 Luxury College Dorms

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It is not too late to jump start your college planning process. The information was provided by Lauren Kahn, CEO of Lone Star Ed Consulting. If you would like more information about Lone Star Ed Consulting's college planning services, please e-mail Lauren Kahn or call her at 512-294-6608. You can also view LSEDC's brochure here.

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Common App Makes Accommodations to Deal with Score Choice™ issues

Common App Makes Accommodations to Deal with Score Choice™ issues 

In response to a few glitches in the system, the members of the Board of Directors of the Common Application have agreed to adopt a “temporary” policy to deal with problems arising from implementation of SAT Score Choice™. The New York Times and Inside Higher Ed are reporting that students will now be allowed to skip—without penalty—questions requesting test dates and scores. While colleges generally evaluate students based on official scores received from standardized test organizations, the Common App asks students to self-report SAT's and/or ACT's so admissions officers can have the information to begin processing applications. Evidently, students are delaying submitting materials—official test score reports and applications—in order to evaluate their options under the new reporting program. Many are waiting to complete all testing before deciding which scores to send. For students applying Early Decision or Early Action with November 1st submission deadlines, this is highly problematic, but can easily be addressed if colleges provide clear guidance to students on their websites or send e-mails to prospective applicants. Colleges should address their recommended Score Choice™ policies on their College Facebook pages as well. The more consistent information through multiple channels is provided, the more likely students are to abide by the school's policies. 

Unfortunately, the guidance provided by the Common App on its website is not nearly as clear as what is being suggested by either news source. In fact, nowhere on the website is there any indication that students will be given a complete pass on the test section of the form. The only reference to the issue appears deep within the Common App Support Center and simply addresses the mechanics of submission:

“We recognize that you may find yourself in a position where some of your colleges require you to report your full testing history while others permit you to report your scores selectively or withhold them entirely. While the Tests section does not offer you the ability to differentiate your score reporting to reflect conflicting requirements, leaving this section blank or incomplete will not prevent you from submitting your application. Please understand, however, that colleges and universities may use the information provided in the Tests section to assist in the processing of an application before official results arrive…”

The Common App Board of Directors, representing all member institutions, seems aware of a need to communicate reassurance to students that they may skip these questions without being penalized in the application process—to hurry things along. In fact, they have been working directly with the College Board to find some resolution, according to Brian O’Reilly, President of the SAT. How this is being communicated to colleges and universities and what it means exactly remain to be seen. Common App officials suggest that the wording of the Board’s guidance was much more “nuanced” than what was announced, and it appears that further clarification may be in order.

 It should be noted that both the Common App and the Universal College App permit students to create alternate application forms and send specially-tailored test information to specific colleges or universities for SAT and ACT. Please note, however that any uploads students create to the common application, such as a personal essay or additional information, they will not be automatically transferred to the alternative word form.  The student will need to upload these into any alternate version of the application they are creating.  For those students understanding the requirements of the schools to which they are applying, this is a reasonable way to address the problem of differing score report policies. Although this was not the original intention of the function, it works for this purpose.

If you are a student that is confused about which test scores to submit to colleges that you are applying, I highly recommend that you e-mail the school's admissions officer or contact their general admissions office to clarify their test reporting requirements, including what to include on the test score section of the Common App. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of the student to conform to all score reporting policies. 

The information provided was written by Nancy Griesemer, College Explorations, and edited by Lauren Kahn, CEO of Lone Star Ed Consulting. If you would like more information about Lone Star Ed Consulting's college planning services, please e-mail Lauren Kahn or call her at 512-294-6608.

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Is Your SAT or ACT Score Good Enough?

When it comes to standardized test scores, “good” and “bad” are relative terms, depending on where you’re applying. Remember, the SAT is broken down into three parts; each with a maximum score of 800, amounting to a total possible score of 2400. The ACT is broken down into four core sections, plus a writing section. Colleges are most concerned about the ACT composite score. ACT score range is 1-36. When you are considering whether or not to take the SAT or ACT an additional time, you need to consider a variety of factors. You can see the SAT norms for all the schools on your current roster at the College View website, under the “Admissions” tab. There, you will find test score ranges (the mid 50 percent) and you can see if your 630 math score (example) falls within that range. For instance, if you look up “TCU,” you’ll find their middle range for math is 520-640. Therefore, your 630 would be considered a “very good” score there. On the other hand, if you look up Duke University, their median range is 680 – 790 for math. Therefore, your 630 in math is not considered a “good” score by Duke’s standards. It is ultimately up to you whether or not you take the SAT or ACT another time.

FREE TIP from Lone Star Ed Consulting (www.lonestar-edconsulting.com): Most colleges put more weight on test scores than their admission officials are willing to admit. However, don’t assess your admission chances strictly by the numbers. If your test results are below a college median, ask yourself if you have other traits that will be attractive to that school (e.g., Are you a recruited athlete? An underrepresented minority? Are you a 1st generation college applicant or have a very unusual background? Do you have any unique talents?) If you answered “No” to these questions with test results at the low end of the range as well, then your admission odds may not be that great. (Therefore, it is even more essential to have excellent essays and have them reviewed by an expert.) However, if you responded affirmatively, you may still be in the running, even when your SAT scores aren’t especially “good.”

If you're a senior, it is not too late to get crucial college admission guidance. If you are a junior, it is time to move forward with the college planning process. Contact Lone Star Ed Consulting at 512-294-6608 to speak with our lead educational consultant, Lauren Kahn. Ms. Kahn received her B.A. from Emory University (‘98) and her M.A. in Education and Human Development from George Washington University (’04). She is a member of both NACAC and IECA. She has guided dozens of students through the college application process and has students enrolled at Rice University, U of Texas (Austin), Middlebury College, Georgia Tech, and many other top 50 ranked public and private universities.
www.lonestar-edconsulting.com 

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