A lot of folks don't realize that the number of people who start college but never finish is VERY large. Anyone who puts in the time, effort, and work to graduate deserves a pat on the back.
UT may not be an Ivy League school but I've taught Ivy Leaguers (who traveled to UT for special courses/seminars) and so did my mentor who taught at the most prestigious Ivy and I can tell you from experience that kids at Ivies are on average no smarter than kids at schools like UT. What they have is years of prep starting in middle and sometimes elementary school to score high on the SAT and top of the line K-12 schools (IOW, every advantage) whereas those who attend UT have to fight tooth and nail, often just to play catch-up in college, but those who graduate are often just as good as those from any other school.
If there's one thing, I'd point out about UT students it's that far too many are ill-prepared in writing. I've seen too many brilliant minds who simply did not know how to properly write a paper.
So parents please take that to heart as our K-12 schools obsessed with teaching to standardized tests are failing at an EPIC level when it comes to preparing kids to write college papers which is a requirement in most classes. If you do nothing else, I beg you to make sure that your child can write a 5 page research paper (sources included) before they get to university even if you have to get a tutor. It is absolutely critical. And no, I'm not an English professor.
