Anybody familiar with what kind of qualifications A&M is looking for in an Engineering Honors applicant? Minimum GPA or SAT? Are extracurriculars important? Do they have set standards at all, or do they tool you around like many selective universities that just tell you to apply and "they'll let you know"?

Worked for TAMU Honors program from 2006 - 2010 and read several of these applications. They are mainly looking for the following:

• Geniune curiosity: Students who demonstrate a love for learning and have taken efforts to learn material beyond the curriculum presented to them.
• Creative writers. Normally, their essay questions are kind of off the wall, so they appreciate a student who can provide a fresh take on their prompt.
• Interdisciplinary Learning: Problems are not solved in a vacuum or the silo of an academic discipline. They appreciate students who can see the benefits of both the Arts and the Sciences.

There are two different programs - the regular honors program that includes people from a variety of majors, and the separate engineering honors program. Which were you working with?

BTW, you are auto admitted to engineering honors if you are a national merit semifinalist, so I assume they must care about your SAT score too. Any idea what kind of test scores these kids are getting?

I worked with University Honors Programs, and you're absolutely right about the importance of having strong SAT scores. For the Engineering Honors program, they typically inquire about standard requirements, but one of the essay prompts specifically addresses research experience. It's beneficial for students to pursue opportunities that include this type of experience. There are also several virtual programs available that can help students gain entry-level research experience.

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oh come on.... it's a joke, it's a joke!

1. GPA DOESN'T MATTER FOR ANYTHING!!! Every school calculates it differently. 7.0 at one school might be the same as 4.0 at another. Only class rank matters and what school you went to.

2. SAT MATH is very important. They want 800 or close to it.

3. For extracurriculars, they want you to show that you didn't just participate, but that you competed/won against a lot of others. UIL Math/Science/Number Sense success goes a long way. 5s on all the math and science AP tests is good. All state or area band/orchestra in 6A is really good. 6A district championship in basketball/baseball/track where you beat hundreds of kids in a district can be more prestigious than a 1A state championship where you only beat 100 other competitors. National Spelling Bee, Geography Bee, Science fair is great.

I Can't comment on research because I didn't have any connections, and got in w/o it and without national merit.