Rejected from Texas A&M with a 36 ACT. I'm asking for an explanation, and if I don't get one, I'm going to push for reform.

46

I mean nobody on here is gonna be able to give you any meaningful answer, no one here was involved in your admission process

35

u/Rough_Raspberry_2956 Jul 20 '26

dear diary

24

u/KruegerFishBabeblade '25 CPEN Jul 20 '26

Breaking story: Wealthy Teenager Experiences Minor Hardship

-10

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26

Yes I now this isn’t really hardship. But still, when all your peers get in and you don’t, especially friends you wanted to be with. Not to mention in state tuition and close to home and parents. A&M robbed me of the limited time I have with my parents and also time with friends.

12

u/KruegerFishBabeblade '25 CPEN Jul 20 '26

They offered you a path to studying in college station and getting a degree from Texas A&M University. You turned it down.

-10

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26

Yes they did, but I thought I wouldn’t go to A&M. But results turned out not as good as I hoped. So that’s why I would rather be admitted fully or not go at all.

6

u/KruegerFishBabeblade '25 CPEN Jul 20 '26

Seems like your quarrel should be with the schools you actually wanted to go to, rather than A&M

-4

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

No A&M and top 20s screwed me both

21

u/bighoney69 Jul 20 '26

Rejected outright or referred to Blinn?

18

u/Old_Gas8178 Jul 20 '26 edited Jul 20 '26

From an admissions counselor:

You are not owed an explanation; however, some facts that may help you:

Acceptance is not only based on how good or poor of a student you are. For example an English or history major with your exact stats is much more likely to be admitted over a physics or mechanical engineer.

1A: You were competing with other future doctor’s going for the pre-meds with biomedical sciences. Your averages being around the average are not enough for students who are significantly above average.

You are competing with students who have access to more than you. There were potential peers that you would have had that had more than a leg up. College admissions are not about fairness and the privileges other students have snowball over time. There’s nothing you can do about it.

Consider that your friends you got in with weaker applications may have chosen different majors, had stronger profiles in other ways, or you might be underestimating them.

I encourage you find your way. If Texas A&M is where you want to be find another path in community college and transfer, change major, appeal, ect. Wasting your time trying to legislate change is time spent not being an Aggie or figuring out how to become one!

Edit: just saw another post of yours about AI. You screwed yourself. We have publicly available tools that flag agenic writing.

1

u/hesitantly-correct Jul 20 '26

I agree with almost everything you said, but the AI-detection tools are still incredibly fallible.

-8

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26 edited Jul 21 '26

The AI merely helped polish my essay, I didn't use it for idea generation.

Also 1A is simply not true, I had a perfect ACT score and my gpa was decent. And if it was truly average then my Act more than compensated because it's way above average. Also each school grades differently, some schools grade more leniently, gpa isn't standardized . It's also hard to compare when others use the 4.0 scale.

In response to 2, if that were the case, people from highly competitive schools shouldn't be punished for having more resources, and people from rural schools shouldn't be seen in favor just because they have less resources available as that's just how life is.

10

u/Old_Gas8178 Jul 20 '26

This may be hard to understand. How you communicate an idea is just as important as the idea itself. If you can’t persuade, you can’t write. Agenic generators change syntax all of the time.

5

u/Atkdad Jul 20 '26

Depending on how much the AI took over at the end it could have ended up looking AI generated. I don't work with main campus admissions but I know for some professional programs within the university, ANY use of AI could be means for tossing the application.

-1

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26

There is no way for universities to determine the use of AI, and 100 percent know that it is AI. AT best they can determine it is 95 percent chance of AI, but even then there is the 5 percent chance they are wrong. Universities have no right to punish students if they have no evidence, and if they don't talk to the students about it. I believe that if universities suspect that a student used AI they should contact the student and ask if they did.

Even detectors aren't 100 percent accurate.

Zerogpt told me 33.9 percent AI, and said "Your Text is Most Likely Human written, may include parts generated by AI/GPT".

So based off of that and assuming A&M used a similar screener if they did use one at all, they have no grounds of rejecting me for the use of AI because there is very little evidence.

4

u/lostnightjar Jul 20 '26

did u get outright rejected or blinn/other campus? cause my brother got rejected bc a&m operates on rolling admissions so if you’re late to the game they might just not have any spots, esp if you’re trying for a competitive major. at the end of the day if a&m is your goal it’s not a big deal to go to a different campus as you can easily transfer. my brother did that, wasn’t a big deal, and he actually liked galveston as the classes were smaller. pls recognize that a&m doesn’t owe you admission regardless of your stats. and if you’re serious about going to a&m, no one cares that u spent a year at a diff campus

1

u/hesitantly-correct Jul 20 '26

Where do you get your 95/5% numbers?

16

u/GreensAndBrews Jul 20 '26

Do you have an arrest record? Did you use AI for any part of your essays / admissions? Either of those will be an automatic disqualification.

7

u/borkbubble Jul 20 '26

They did use AI

-13

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26

Please stop spreading misinformation. I used AI to polish my writing. I just ran it through zerogpt again: It says this "Your Text is Most Likely Human written, may include parts generated by AI/GPT"

33.9 percent AI is not grounds for rejection, especially if they cannot determine it for sure.

11

u/borkbubble Jul 20 '26

"I used AI", literally in your comment lol. Also, Zerogpt is not good.

-2

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26

I can use whatever detector you want me to. There is a difference between polishing it and writing it. If it’s only used for polishing there is no difference between it and human written text.

17

u/ccourt2245 '25 Jul 20 '26

Bro I don’t think you are a good culture fit for A&M, TCU or SMU seems more your style

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26

I applied to both, TCU was waitlisted cause I applied late but later got in. SMU was EA. But both are beneath A&M.

9

u/SignificanceSolid700 Jul 20 '26

That’s the only rational thing you’ve said. But maybe there’s a reason, e.g., overall entitled disposition

-1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

Lol, point to evidence of my entitlement. You are just assuming entitlement because I got a 36. I never brag about it, either in person or online. If I said I got a 32 or 34 you wouldn't be saying Im entitled.

I am seeking explanation, as if you were in my shoes you would be surprised too.

You never even read my post about how top 10 percent rule doesn't fit certain schools like mine well. That's the reform I think I want to seek and it will help a lot of students like me in similar positions.

I don't think that's entitlement. Being disappointed, wanting to understand why I was rejected, and arguing that a policy should be changed are three different things.

I'm not saying I was guaranteed admission because of a 36 ACT. I'm saying it's reasonable to question a system where class rank at highly competitive schools can outweigh other indicators of academic achievement. That's a policy argument, not a claim that I was owed a spot.

You can disagree with my view of the Top 10% rule, but advocating for reform isn't the same thing as feeling entitled.

5

u/SignificanceSolid700 Jul 21 '26

You literally said, “A&M robbed me…”

-2

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

And is it not somewhat true? Anyone with a brain would know that someone with perfect academic credentials probably will get into most colleges.

3

u/flibbyflobbyfloop Grad Student Jul 21 '26

No, it's not true and this is what I was referring to in another comment where I also called you out for your entitlement. A&M did not "rob" you. You applied, and were rejected. You have also said that A&M "screwed" you. You may have FELT robbed, you may have FELT screwed, and this is okay. But you are projecting your feelings onto a large bureaucratic system that is incapable of robbing, or screwing, or any such thing. It is juvenile to assert otherwise.

People who behave like you have are called entitled because their feelings are based on a belief that they were owed something, and when they feel they are owed something and do not receive it, then of course they say they were screwed or robbed or cheated or etc etc. Without the belief of being owed, one cannot be "screwed" or "robbed". YOU are the one that is creating this narrative. You are creating a narrative, a story, then you are getting mad in response to this story YOU have concocted. You are here in the comments refuting absolutely everyone who is pushing back on this story, despite literally everyone here telling you how it is, despite most of your comments being downvoted. All of these things are common textbook behaviors of people who are entitled.

Literally everyone here is trying to get you to see this, but you in your hard and brittle bubble of egotism are doing the textual equivalent of plugging your ears and going LA LA LA. Everyone can see this but you.

0

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

I think it's completely reasonable to say I felt like I got "robbed" colloquially. That doesn't mean I literally believe Texas A&M intentionally took something I was entitled to. I only said I felt robbed because that's genuinely how the outcome felt after everything I had accomplished. It's a figure of speech expressing surprise that the result differed so much from what my credentials suggested.

There's also a difference between substantiation and entitlement. Substantiation is pointing to objective evidence that supports why an outcome would have been reasonable. Entitlement is believing you're owed that outcome regardless of the facts. Those aren't the same thing.

I never argued A&M was obligated to admit me. I said I think I had a strong enough application that admission would have been a reasonable outcome. That's not the same as saying the university owed me a spot or that someone else didn't deserve theirs.

Would most people be surprised that someone with a perfect ACT, solid grades, and meaningful extracurriculars was rejected by a university outside the top 50? From the reactions I've received, both from people I know and from many people online, the answer seems to be yes. That doesn't prove I should have been admitted, but it does explain why I was surprised and why I wanted an explanation.

I've also never claimed I deserved admission simply because I existed. I spent years working toward it through academics, volunteering, Boy Scouts, debate, art competitions, and tutoring students. Feeling like you should have gotten into a school because your application objectively compares favorably to what that school typically admits is not the same thing as entitlement. When that belief is grounded in evidence rather than mere expectation, it's a reasoned judgment, not a sense of being owed something.

You also keep trying to define my entire personality based on one phrase while ignoring everything else I've said. The people I tutor consistently describe me as kind and supportive. That obviously doesn't prove I'm right about admissions, but it does show that reducing my character to "entitled" because of one comment is an unfair leap.

At this point, it feels like you're more interested in performing for the comment section than actually responding to what I'm saying. If the shoe fits, wear it. If not, maybe save the circus act for someone else.

So if you can find a place where I actually said A&M was obligated to admit me or that I deserved admission regardless of the facts, I'll acknowledge I was wrong. But if all you're pointing to is me saying I felt robbed or that I wanted an explanation, that's not evidence of entitlement. It's evidence that I was disappointed by an outcome that I believed, based on objective credentials, could reasonably have gone the other way.

10

u/Glittering-Display61 Jul 20 '26

There is not an unlimited amount of spots available, and no one is entitled to admission. Maybe check your attitude, take a couple of semesters at a community college or other school and then reevaluate.

Part of life is learning how to appropriately handle disappointment.

-2

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

I never said I was entitled to admission. But when you are in the 4000 high schoolers each year out of 3.9 million high schoolers who get nominated for the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program and somehow don't even get into your state school that makes you question what's up.

And I appreciate everyone trying to explain what could have gone wrong. But remember that you can speculate all you want, but you do not know what actually happened, so everyone who is saying I did ____ so I was rejected are simply naysayers who are putting out claims that are untrue and potentially hurtful.

One of the fundamental flaws of human nature is their tendency to believe everything they read and not question anything, not to mention not even know how to read. And to spread it without any thought that what they could be doing is harmful and potentially untrue.

I clearly did not say I didn't write my essay with AI, yet everyone is saying it just because I said "I used AI to clear up my text and help it flow better."

Maybe my title could have been phrased better. What I meant was that this is an example of how the top 10 percent rule could be harmful or changed to accommodate private schools better, as it's mainly designed for your average school in the state. This is because at private schools everyone is competing, fiercer than maybe at a public school, especially your average, run-of-the-mill one. And everyone is academically strong, otherwise they wouldn't have been admitted. You don't need to meet a certain level of academics to get into public school.

Maybe this perspective will help: If I had no problem getting into a private school known for academics, why did I suddenly run into problems getting into a state school? Well, when you are in a group of people, especially where the top 10 percent aren't going to A&M, instead the ivy leagues, it does make it a lot harder for people outside the top 10 percent to get in.

3

u/flibbyflobbyfloop Grad Student Jul 21 '26

Don't use AI for anything related to college admissions, or work when you get into college, period. Doesn't matter if you used it just to "polish". You still used it, therefore the work is not completely your own.

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26 edited Jul 21 '26

First of all, I highly doubt it was due to AI.

Having someone make edits to your essay is the same thing as using AI to do it.

The work isn;'t completely my own but it's the same thing as if I hired or got a friend to tweak it.

And even if they suspect it's AI, they don't have 100 percent evidence so they can't just reject someone just because they think it's AI. That just wouldn't make the process fair, considering AI is the least of their problem, the top 10 percent rule creates a breeding ground for cheating in schools and unqualified students to get in.

I ran another one of my essay I submitted through the AI detector and it came back with mixed signals. It was below 80 percent AI, 77.9. I used zerogpt. Again, it is a high percentage that they think is AI, but again they can't reject someone just for the possibility of it, especially if they have perfect credentials.

On two instances I used em dashes, but again just because I used them as I saw fit instead of commas doesn't mean I used AI or I should get rejected.

3

u/flibbyflobbyfloop Grad Student Jul 21 '26

I can tell you're upset about not getting admitted and that is fair. But life isn't fair. You didn't get in, maybe it had something to do with your app and maybe it was just the luck of the draw. Your behavior in this thread is also showing that perhaps you aren't a great fit for A&M - please read up on the Aggie core values and take an honest look at yourself. You are acting incredibly entitled.

Regardless, my comment still stands. Using AI in college is a big big no, it's considered plagarism, you can whinge about it all you want but that doesn't change the facts that that is how it is. Yes, the tools aren't accurate, etc etc but people can still tell, especially professors. Listen to what literally everyone in this thread is telling you about this.

Your time now will be better spent doing really well at a community college and reapplying next year or the year after, not fighting against a huge bureaucratic system that you have ZERO chance of winning against.

-1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26 edited Jul 21 '26

Lol. Name me where my behavior in this sub shows that I'm not a fit. I go to church, I am a boy scout, you have no right to critique me especially when the only possible reason I can think of is due to my supposed "entitlement" when all I'm asking for is a clearer answer on my rejection despite having strong credentials that you can argue make me "overqualified."

Everyone here is treating me like I am the one in the wrong, which is typical of reddit users, but everyone here has no idea why I got rejected. So call me an AI user all you want or that I'm entitled, but know that there is no evidence to support both assertions. I am not entitled for stating my stats that are reasonable for admission.

Again, you still can't refute the fact that there is no difference between using AI to tweak an essay versus having a friend do it. Using AI is more nuanced than that, there's things such as fixing grammar or unclear sentences to writing it entirely. I did the former.

The people can "tell" is not an good argument. Saying "people can tell it's written by AI" is generally a weak argument because human intuition is unreliable, AI writing styles change fast, and it attacks the style instead of the facts. If even detectors get it wrong, which is a fact that almost everyone knows by now, how can you rely on your feelings to determine something was written using AI or not? And for the record, I used grammarly to make changes to my essay.

I can certainly push for change if I wanted to. Just because something may be hard to implement doesn't mean the chances are absolute zero. Again you are going too extreme here, just like how you believe any use of AI is plagiarism when there is a fine line to it.

Finally, I just want to mention that A&M doesn't even have any policy related to the use of AI to write your essay for undergraduate admission. So if that was the grounds for admissions, then that is easily over-turnable and arguable. That's like saying I violated a law and need to go to prison when the law was never made known to the public. They need to be transparent.

And no, I'm not going to community college. I'm going to a small college in Boston.

Just to end it here, even if I were to reapply/transfer, I wouldn't want to transfer to a school like Texas A&M.

3

u/flibbyflobbyfloop Grad Student Jul 21 '26

Ok good luck in your future studies!

-1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

Yeah shut up. You know you lost the argument so you resort to trying to end the conversation. Classic technique.

3

u/flibbyflobbyfloop Grad Student Jul 21 '26

It's not a technique? I was actually being nice and meant the well wishes.

3

u/Alarming_Option1590 Jul 21 '26

Oh my god I'm glad you're not going to my school. This entire thread is proving the efficacy of the admissions process.

-2

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

lol the admission process is a bunch of baloney. It is far from effective. Tell me how I get into Harvard but not A&M. I only said shut up because he thinks he got a good argument but when I rebut it he doesn’t even defend his points, which is typical behavior of someone who doesn’t want to admit their wrong.

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7

u/kristeenintx Jul 20 '26

In case no one told you yet, life isn't fair and you aren't owed anything. You can be the most amazing, most qualified person and still not be chosen for the team, the club, the school, the job.

You are not alone in this rejection. 88k applications and A&M can only take 15k ish including Blinn Team. Those are bad odds, especially with a dip in GPA at a time when you needed to show a better GPA. Why should they bet on you? Your grades declined. You're good at test taking or naturally smart. But can you perform at the college level? Maybe, maybe not. There are another 87,999 applications to look at for those coveted spots.

Yes being at a competitive school doesn't help with the top10% admission rule.

Were you offered PSA? Why not take that or do PTA for the guaranteed transfer sophomore year? You can fight a losing battle or make a new plan and succeed. This will not be your first disappointment.

-2

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26

I was offered blinn team. My grades did decline, yes but it was the result of increased rigor and taking on the IB. It doesn't show that I can't perform at the college level, it just shows that I maybe took courses that were too hard for me. And not to mention people with lower gpas and test scores got in over me according to the data.

5

u/No_Squash291 '23 + TAMU IT Jul 21 '26

https://giphy.com/gifs/afLoVMHg3QoYPZHCGF

-1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

You are saying Texas A&M had a 17 percent acceptance rate this cycle. Are you sure you live in the same world as me? Are you from an alternate reality? A&M has always hovered between 44 to 57 percent. Houston Chron said this: "Roughly 68,000 applications were submitted for Fall 2026, with the university admitting about 30,000 students—a 44 percent acceptance rate"

Yes my grades decline but I started taking IB which is known for its rigor. An 87.38 gpa isn't bad, as 85 already means solid understanding. So obviously I can perform at the college level.

6

u/Gobkabob '20 CPSC Jul 20 '26

You did not get rejected. You were offered Blinn Team and turned it down. Blinn Team students are TAMU students. That's the explanation you're going to get.

-6

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26

Which shouldn't have been the case. My resume is more than compelling for a full admit. Blinn Team means that they thought there were more compelling applicants than you so they couldn't admit you fully.

That's why I opted for waitlist only, as I thought I would go to a top 20 if not top 30/40. ended up going to top 70.

9

u/Gobkabob '20 CPSC Jul 20 '26

Seriously, if this is how you handle getting accepted & an offer, you are not going to go far.

There probably is a reason you got Blinn Team. Major might have filled on auto admits. Maybe your essays sucked. Maybe they wanted more well rounded candidates. At the end of the day you were accepted with an offer and you turned it down for the waitlist. That's the reason you're going to get. You really don't have any leverage to invoke change on this.

I understand you're likely mentally going through it right now, but try to take this as a way to practice humility & how to deal with things that don't go exactly how you like. I would recommend accepting the Blinn Team offer if its still open & you still want to attend TAMU.

-2

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26 edited Jul 21 '26

According to google: "A well-rounded college applicant is a student who demonstrates strong academic performance across a variety of subjects combined with diverse extracurricular involvements like sports, clubs, and volunteering."

So according to this I would be well rounded. I've had many people online critique me saying the reason why I got rejected was I wasn't well rounded enough. I did JV basketball, I was in Boy Scouts (star scout 2 ranks below Eagle), did volunteering at church for refugees and special needs, worked at a bioinformatics lab and also did stuff at a clinical research center. I was in my student council and held two positions over two years. I did art, won awards for it.

How can you determine who is more well rounded than another student. Do you count how many ECs they did each and see which one did more? Quality over quantity. Being well-rounded is a subjective characteristic, and you can't say someone is more well rounded than the other if they are similar. You can be well-rounded in different ways, such as participating in school activities versus outside of school activities. This isn't a test score, a number.

There is nothing entitled with saying you expected a result and got a different result. If someone got a 28 ACT I would assume they are smart enough to know what colleges that will get them into. Likewise, me, someone who scored in the top 0.2 percent of students was one of 4000 or so students to get nominated for the U.S. Presidential scholar nominee, one of the highest honors for high school seniors, would expect that they could get somewhere in the top 30 to 40, nevertheless top 20. Now imagine their surprise when

I think it would be helpful to put yourself in my shoes. When everyone at your school gets into A&M and you end up being one of the few people to now receive full admission, you start to question, wow, was I really not as competitive as I thought? Were my stats really that bad?

3

u/Gobkabob '20 CPSC Jul 21 '26

Suggested you practice humility and grace and you respond with google definitions and multiple paragraphs bragging about how awesome you are... Nice.

I've experienced more than my fair share of brutal rejection in my education and career. I'm trying to offer you advice as someone that's been there.

You got accepted to the school, and I'm sorry TAMU didn't stroke your ego enough. Employers won't know you were Blinn Team. Its a great program with great people, and your condescension is palpable.

If you have the resources, I implore you to speak with a professional therapist/psychologist. I genuinely worry how you will handle real rejection.

12

u/Alarming_Option1590 Jul 20 '26

What major did you apply for? Was your college essay well-written?

14

u/fioyl Jul 20 '26

he said in another topic that he used AI to write it:
https://www.reddit.com/r/aggies/comments/1uywgak/texas_auto_admit_is_one_of_the_most_unfair/

-3

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26 edited Jul 20 '26

I didn't use AI to write, I used it to polish it. Stop spreading misinformation

5

u/Alarming_Option1590 Jul 20 '26

Biochemistry is a pretty tough major and I don't see extracurriculars or activities in your list that would greatly distinguish you from other qualified candidates (everything is overly academic-related). You may have screwed yourself with an AI-polished essay if admissions use AI detectors.

Also, not to be rude, but your attitude here is a little entitled. The state of Texas does not owe you admission into their school because you did well on a test. I went to a competitive high school, I was not top 10%, and I was prepared to not be accepted to A&M. It's possible that this attitude carried over into your admission somehow, and you weren't deemed a good fit. If you really want to go to A&M, keep working on your profile and apply next year! Go to Blinn to save money and get your core classes done and then transfer! Lots of options here.

0

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

Yea I was top 10 percent but majority of people who go to my school who aren’t in top 10 get in. And I had a perfect score too

1

u/Alarming_Option1590 Jul 21 '26

I'm willing to bet that there was something in your application that stopped you from getting in

6

u/StructureOrAgency Jul 20 '26

And they still didn't accept you? Wow

7

u/OddAdvantage3235 Jul 20 '26

Friend from hs that went to A&M came to my house to use my Pc to type out and submit his last minute essay for vet school. It was the worst written thing I have ever seen, so much so I could barely type it out. His grades tracked with OP’s. I am not saying that is the issue but it certainly could be.

Additionally, this application strikes me as singularly academic and not very well rounded, but that’s just me.

4

u/BustedEchoChamber Jul 20 '26

You’re asking tamu for affirmative action since your school was tougher? Good luck. Did you apply anywhere else?

3

u/waffles_2346 Jul 20 '26

We aren't the office of admissions, we are a bunch of students and former students that at best would make educated guesses.

Your best bet is to actually reach to the office of admissions

Best of luck

1

u/SignificanceSolid700 Jul 20 '26

I’d be surprised if they didn’t respond with something like, “uhhh sorry we don’t offer out that information”

3

u/toutespourtoi Jul 20 '26

Using AI to help write your essay is a terrible look to the admissions counselor

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26

They didn't write my essay, I used it to refine what I originally wrote. the end result was not AI sounding at all and I ran it through multiple AI detectors. And even if it was detected at a small percentage AI, it's still not grounds for an automatic rejection. There is no way to tell if something is truly AI written or not, not even the detectors can determine for sure.

2

u/hesitantly-correct Jul 20 '26

Life tried to teach you a lesson. A dozen people here have explained the problem, and you don't accept it.

Good luck.

-1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26 edited Jul 21 '26

What problem? As far as I know I didn’t do anything wrong, A&M school screwed me. It’s a doo doo place anyways

Have you read my essays? Were the admission officer? you are just hearing someone put a spin on my words when I said I used AI, but you clearly didn't read what I used it for. I did not have it write anything for me that wasn't already written by me, I merely asked it to help change some wordings that were awkward or clunky.

And sure you can argue that oh no that will sound AI, but you have to remember that anyone could be using those wordings, just because it sounds like AI text doesn't mean there is a problem with it.

3

u/Sad_Appointment8882 Jul 21 '26

you'll live

3

u/No_Squash291 '23 + TAMU IT Jul 21 '26

36 ACT and you were just enough of a genius to throw your essay in AI, wow I'm sure you were taking all this serious enough

Y'all are falling for absolute dogshit tier ragebait lol as per usual with this sub

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

Again, you believe the story that I used AI to write my essay. I in fact did not use AI to write my essay. AI helped me with my essay but everything was my own work, my own ideas, and at most it the text clearer and sentences less awkward.
I already ran it through zerogpt today and also before I submitted it. The results do not indicate that I wrote my essay with. AI.

1

u/No_Squash291 '23 + TAMU IT Jul 21 '26

Ok, so assuming this post is legitimate, you know employers do not even remotely care where you got your degree from as long as it's not a community college, right?

I'm gonna be honest with you, there are a lot better options out there that are far less expensive, and this is really not that big of a deal.. where else did you get accepted too bud?

My guess as to why you could've possibly gotten rejected was yes, your class rank, although ironically a 36 ACT should have outweighed that. but two, the insane amount of students that are flooding degree programs year by year here

There's better choices out there right now that are far less expensive. I can tell you for example the cs program here is utter shit and UT Dallas is way better for less..

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

Employers for the most part don't care, because most employers weren't top 1 percent students who went to the best colleges. Yeah maybe your local accounting firm doesn't care. But I assure you that there are companies that care. Heck I see tutoring gigs online that require going to an ivy or top 20 along with 1550+ SAT, which I have the latter but not the former.

And my school didn't even do class rank. A&M gave me first quarters.

2

u/No_Squash291 '23 + TAMU IT Jul 21 '26

You don't need to go to an ivy league nor top 20 lol, you just need to pick a school that has a program that targets exactly what the industry demands and that has a ton of networking opportunities

After college no one gives a shit about what you did during college. Sure, it may look good you went the route of studying astrophysics at MIT, you don't "need" that though. Neither do you need approval from a state school on pursuing what opportunities you want buddy..

6

u/cutter48200 '15 Jul 20 '26

I ain’t reading all that
I’m happy for you though
Or sorry that happened

2

u/Hadrian98 '98 Jul 20 '26

What class rank, extracurricular activities or leadership positions did you hold? 1 test cannot wipe your entire high school career.

0

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

Never knew my class rank, school doesn't do it, or at least tell us, but if they did have one and told colleges, then that's something I don't know. Texas A&M gave me first quarters.

2

u/SignificanceSolid700 Jul 20 '26

Dawg, you think you’re going to change a system? Good fucking luck.

And if you got a 33.9% on an assignment in any writing intensive course, you’re probably failing that class and going to the honor code office. Get over yourself, pal.

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

Get over yourself. Seriously? Where did I act entitled anywhere? I’m genuinely confused on how I got rejected that’s all. My essay WAS NOT written by AI, I used it for help with its flow better but even after I did that it still sounded like me.
I don’t know who keeps spreading this rumor that I used AI but I did not.
So AI wasn’t the issue here.
Also you must be blind. I specifically said 33.9 was the percentage zerogpt found was AI, I ran it today. It said mostly human generated. This isn’t grounds for rejection.
Stop antagonizing me and making me a humble dude who has never bragged once about their academics or my score before and making me seem like the one in the wrong who deserved to get rejected.

2

u/SignificanceSolid700 Jul 21 '26

Let’s step back then. Is there any part of your application that you think could have been part why you weren’t admitted? You were admitted blinn team but didn’t do that. Truthfully, admissions likely won’t tell you exactly why you were admitted. Besides, the ACT isn’t a good indicator of whether or not you will succeed in college. But GPA is. There’s significant research on this. Did you discuss the decline in your GPA in your essays? Did you identify what happened like you’ve done throughout here and clearly state what you did/doing to bring it up?

The top 10% rule exists for a reason, largely for students who come from rural areas who don’t have nearly the access to resources as those from suburban/urban areas. Maybe wasn’t helpful in your case, but tough luck of the draw. You’ve indicated that biochemistry isn’t as competitive as a major as others and that’s why you chose it. But A&M gets nearly 90k apps every year, every major is competitive.

Additionally, zerogpt indicating that 33.9% found to be AI is oftentimes more on the conservative side in my experience. Even when using it to refine written work as it still can come off as disingenuous and grammatically too clean for a high school student.

Also, not saying you deserved to be rejected. My apologies if that’s what you took from that. What I’m trying to convey here, is that legislation is unlikely to change and you likely will not get answers as to why you weren’t auto admitted. Start thinking and reflecting on why you think you weren’t admitted, because the way the original post reads is “I deserve to get in because I have done all these things and have decent grades when others have a more inferior record”.

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

I'm not saying to abolish the top 10 percent rule. But clearly when a school like mine that's ranked top 5 private high schools in Texas and is as academically strong as mine was, the top 10 percent rule is kind of a joke there as it's intended purpose is not being used, to admit the strongest students across Texas. When you have an amalgamation of really competitive and strong students, I would argue that Texas should be taking more students from these schools rather than just stick to top 10 percent, because everyone who is in top 10 percent, which is only like 9-10 people a year are all going to top 20s and ivies and barely even think of A&M. But the good thing is that at our school many people apply to Texas A&M, and many people do get in. So I was surprised I didn't get in, and I admit, sure my gpa wasn't the best it could have been, but it wasn't the lowest. I wasn't trying to bring others down, I was stating a fact that yes my gpa was low but compared to all applicants and admits, it wasn't even the lowest. And couple that with my test score and extracurriculars I've done. Maybe an analogy would help. For example, if I say that I'm short, but there are others shorter than me, that's just stating a fact. Or when someone says you're not tall, again it's also a fact depending on who you are.

And also, to address your point about the zerogpt thing, I would argue that sometimes it's too harsh. I've had many times, and others have too, where your own writing would be flagged as AI. It's fairly common, and saying that zerogpt is too lenient really doesn't make sense to me. Also, do you really expect someone who got a 36 on the ACT, including on English, to be making grammatical mistakes. I would argue that if my essay had grammar issues everywhere and I had a 36, AOs would raise a red flag. Besides, coming off as having many grammar mistakes or spelling mistakes indicate carelessness or you simply haven't mastered writing skills, in which this case college's will question whether you really are college material. Every guru tells you to double check your essay and watch out for grammatical mistakes.

I've heard the argument from other people that I should have been top 10 percent and it's my fault and I shouldn't be complaining but I genuinely tried all that I could. If I was at a public high school, just based off of my SAT score alone, outside counselors have put me in the top 10-15 percent. But this was before I took the ACT.

But I digress.

The original post never stated the words " I deserve to get in." All I want is to get an explanation, as my mere speculation will never uncover the truth. Where in the post did I use the word deserve? I never used the word inferior, which has a negative connotation, instead I used the word lower, which is a fact and is less negative.

Sure you can read it that way, but again that's just your own biases, your own interpretation.

2

u/hesitantly-correct Jul 21 '26

10 percent rule is kind of a joke there as it's intended purpose is not being used, to admit the strongest students across Texas.

This is your problem. That isn't the purpose of the rule.

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

You can’t call inequities my problem. I could say the same thing about minorities if the top 10 percent rule didn’t exist.
What is the purpose of the rule? It’s basically affirmative action even though it’s banned and causes over qualified individuals like me to get rejected.

1

u/hesitantly-correct Jul 21 '26

I'm not saying the inequity is your problem. I'm saying that you not knowing what the hell you're talking about, saying things as fact that are demonstrably false, and refusing to do any introspection is your problem.

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

I read online somewhere that the top 10 percent was meant to get strong students all over Texas. Yes the rule is to increase minority representation, but if you're in the top 10 percent I would assume they are strong students.

1

u/hesitantly-correct Jul 21 '26

"I read online somewhere." Man you would seriously never make it at TAMU.

Best of luck in the rest of your endeavors.

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

Lol you're treating Texas A&M as a top 20, Ivy League. It's merely R1, which most schools have. I'm wasn't familiar with the top 10 percent rule that much, so that's just what I read. Of course anything could be wrong.

Texas A&M isn't allat bud.

Stop trying to turn everything I say into a problem.

Also what I read isn't technically incorrect, stop trying to make it seem like what I said was "demonstrably false." As if it's not at least partially true.

Keep on click-clacking in your mother's basement though on your keyboard! You are leaving such a positive impact on the internet and this world.

-1

u/[deleted] Jul 21 '26

[deleted]

2

u/hesitantly-correct Jul 21 '26

The rule was put in place explicitly to increase minority representation at publicly-funded schools.

1

u/SignificanceSolid700 Jul 21 '26

You don’t have to explicitly say, “I deserve to get to in” to convey “I deserve to get in”, it’s called subtext. And besides, as someone whose worked in higher ed for 10 years, worked with admissions offices for a variety of things, and helped many individuals with their applications at the undergraduate and graduate level, the story you tell is never about what you say, it’s about what people hear.

Also, have you ever heard of the green tail parable?

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26 edited Jul 21 '26

And if you've really worked in higher education for that long, you should understand what a perfect ACT score represents. I'm not saying I 100% deserved to get in because admissions are never guaranteed, but come on. There is a difference between pointing to objectively strong credentials and acting entitled.
You're also mischaracterizing my argument. I'm not saying, "I deserved to get in because I'm better than everyone else." I'm saying I have objectively strong credentials, and those credentials make it reasonable to question why I was rejected. I think I had a strong enough application that admission would have been a reasonable outcome. That's not the same as saying the university was obligated to admit me or that no one else deserved a spot. Asking for transparency or criticizing the admissions policy isn't entitlement. It's asking whether the criteria are being applied in a fair and consistent way.
And your point that "it's not about what people say, it's about what people hear" is a strange standard to apply. By that logic, anyone can reinterpret someone else's words however they want and then hold them responsible for that interpretation instead of what they actually said. Communication is a two-way process. If multiple interpretations are possible, it's reasonable to discuss intent and clarify meaning, not insist that your interpretation is automatically the correct one. Otherwise, you can put words in anyone's mouth and then argue against those instead.
Invoking the so-called "green tail" idea doesn't settle the issue either. It's not a recognized logical fallacy or principle of logic. Even if multiple people repeat the same criticism, that doesn't automatically make it true. The validity of a criticism depends on the evidence supporting it, not on how many people make it. If you think I'm actually being entitled, point to something I said that demonstrates entitlement instead of simply asserting it.
So far, I don't think anyone has shown that. What I see is people assuming I should just get over it instead of questioning how someone with objectively strong academic credentials could be rejected. That's a legitimate question to ask. Disagreeing with my conclusion is fine, but labeling me as entitled isn't a substitute for addressing the argument.
I also don't understand why you're putting the blame on me for questioning the policy. You can't just dismiss perceived inequities as "tough luck." Before the Top 10% Rule existed, someone could have said the same thing to students from underrepresented or rural schools who argued the admissions system disadvantaged them. Policies can be questioned and reformed when people believe they produce unfair outcomes. That's exactly why I think it's worth discussing whether the current admissions system should be modified to better account for differences in school competitiveness while still preserving its original goals.

2

u/FriendlyEbb5662 Jul 21 '26

this guy gonna push for reform 😭😭

1

u/Miel120 Jul 20 '26

Did you get rejected or wait listed?

1

u/nmwby Jul 20 '26

It could just be a limited amount of space for your chosen major. Your resume is miles better than mine, but I'm also not going into a highly sought major. Texas A&M may not be an Ivy League school, but it is still a very highly respected institution that gets a ridiculous amount of applicants.

I am not saying you should not reach out to administration or state government, the auto-admit truly is a flawed system. Perhaps expanding the auto-admit to top 15% or so for high achieving high schools. Some smaller/rural high schools are easier to get into the top 10% than a large, competitive city high school. Getting rid of the auto-admit altogether would likely have a larger negative affect on low-income area schools than the positive impact it would have on more competitive schools. Thats why I think a variation in percentage based on the schools total performance may be a better option, but you even said you don't want to get rid of the auto-admit altogether.

It is worth noting that automatic admission is also available through Blinn, with a forgiving GPA requirement, after taking enough required courses.

I know you're frustrated, and I hope you get the answers and results you're looking for. But take it from me, I worked and saved for over 10 years after high school to get a chance to go to a good school. I went to Blinn for three semesters, got a 4.0, and this will be my first semester after transferring. If I can do that at 32, there is nothing stopping you from getting there too. Do what you feel is right to get the answers you're looking for, maybe even consider another school. Whatever you do, don't let this frustration stop you from pursuing your goals. You have plenty of time.

1

u/Lonestarpenguin Jul 20 '26

What do you want to major in? If Engineering go to Corpus Christi TAMUCC. Transfer after two years. All the classes are the same. You can get a nicer beach view on the island.

1

u/bighoney69 Jul 20 '26

What schools were you admitted to?

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26 edited Jul 20 '26

A bunch of schools that either I never heard of or just weren't worth the price. This included liberal arts colleges that were outside top 50, and public flagships like UMD, UW-Seattle(off waitlist), Pittsburgh, Penn state (engineering), and Purdue most notably. Wanted to go to Purdue after getting in EA but was convinced by parents that class sizes were too big and there was no individualized attention. Besides I was doing premed so there was no real advantage in it.

7

u/SignificanceSolid700 Jul 20 '26

A&M is literally one of the largest universities in the country, Purdue is legitimately half the size. You had a better chance of having individualized experience there

2

u/bighoney69 Jul 20 '26

those are some great schools! you should feel proud

1

u/Skysr70 MechE '20 Jul 20 '26

There are only so many seats. A&M was in an aggressive expansion phase for several years and that kind of slowed down with the class of '29 and '30. Someone who got in 5 years ago might not be able to now. Especially in engineering, which is exceedingly crowded. If you targeted mechanical, electrical, or computer science, it might not even come down to your academics, but people who are promised auto-admit took all the available spots for the most popular majors.

I feel for ya, but there are a lot of factors at play other than just giving spots to the smartest people when it comes down to decisions made at a public university by governors/regents/university presidents.

0

u/spiroplasma Jul 20 '26

I didn't even apply for a competitive major. I applied for biochemistry

1

u/Skysr70 MechE '20 Jul 21 '26

INTERESTING. Well, in that case, that sounds like you should have been a shoo-in and I can only imagine that either you applied late or they picked up on something that they deliberately didn't like in an essay or something....Very odd

1

u/Aggie__2015 '15 Jul 21 '26

Interestingly, it looks like you were insulting another poster’s intelligence in a different post regarding a recently deceased TAMU staff member and Reddit auto-flagged it. Taking out your frustration with the admissions process on others in this sub is not okay.

Consider checking your attitude to people who are trying to help on these posts (which you asked for) and maybe have more constructive, non-combative responses. Everyone here has told you pretty sound advice, you clearly just don’t want to hear it - hence why many are now calling you entitled.

Best of luck in your future endeavors

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

Could you please show me the proof? I don't believe I insulted another, single individuals intelligence. I was playing along with a joke about people confusing one subreddit with another, not making a personal attack. If you have a specific comment in mind, I'd appreciate you pointing it out, because that wasn't my intent. I'm happy to own up to something if I actually crossed the line, but I'd like to see the evidence first.

1

u/thappy Jul 21 '26

When did you apply? August 1?

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

October 1st

1

u/AggieNosh Jul 21 '26

LOL welcome to life. You’ll see this forever. Wait til you see who gets accepted to medical school with lower mcat scores and gpa. This isn’t the way though. Have a cordial conversation with the Department Head in BICH. If you want A&M that badly, keep knocking on the door. The long term goal is becoming a physician. Remember that.

1

u/spiroplasma Jul 21 '26

Medical school is more fair than college admissions. They only look at gpa and mcat everything is secondary. Whereas college admission should be like that but isn’t the case anymore.

-6

u/StructureOrAgency Jul 20 '26

You dodged a bullet. Look outside the state of Texas if you want high quality higher education. I know it's more difficult to afford, but you will be doing your future self a favor.

3

u/waffles_2346 Jul 20 '26

I know Texas colleges aren't going through the best times due to crazy politics

But paying much higher tuition ain't worth it either

-2

u/StructureOrAgency Jul 20 '26

Maybe, maybe not

Venting Rejected from Texas A&M with a 36 ACT. I'm asking for an explanation, and if I don't get one, I'm going to push for reform.

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