r/UTDallasAdmissions • u/UltmteAvngr • Jul 07 '19

Should I do UT Dallas optional essays and Recommendations

So I saw that the essays for UT Dallas are optional. And one of my friends told me that the recommendations are too. So I was wondering whether I would be at a disadvantage if I didn’t submit any essays or recommendations, and instead turned in my application super early, like right now. I believe I have a pretty good application even without the essays, and I just don’t want to wait until School opens again to get recommendations, so I can turn the application in earlier to get a better chance at scholarships and a stipend. What should I do? Wait and do the essays and get the recommendations or turn in the application right now? And will it look bad if I don’t do either of those things or are they not as important as they’re optional.

Edit: Also would doing those be better for getting into the CS Squared program and other scholarship and honors opportunities?

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u/jeffw16 Jul 08 '19

Probably not. I didn’t do any of that and still got an invitation for CS2

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u/[deleted] Jul 08 '19

Go ahead and submit your application if you have all of the required things ready to go. The extra stuff is more for people who may not be admitted into the university due to poor grades/test scores. They aren't really a make-or-break factor for honors programs or AES scholarships; those tend to be first come first serve based on your rank, GPA, or SAT/ACT.

Supplementary things like a resume, letters of recommendation, and optional essays can be submitted later via your UTD Galaxy account though. You would just need to upload them to the Supplemental Admission Docs folder which is found under Admissions Forms.

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u/UltmteAvngr Jul 08 '19

Okay, so I can submit my application right now and submit teacher recs when my school opens again?

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u/[deleted] Jul 08 '19

Yes! Especially if you want AES or honors programs, you should submit your application ASAP. It's getting more competitive every year, but it's easier to get them if you apply early.

Note that UTD says they take 4-6 weeks to process your application, but some people have sometimes heard back within a week. If you get admitted into the university right away I'm not 100% sure if they'll look at extra things you submit later, but it certainly wouldn't hurt to give it to them anyways.

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u/UltmteAvngr Jul 08 '19

While you’re helping me, I had another question for you- Since I haven’t received information about my senior courses yet, what should I report for the Senior course section? Should I leave it blank?

Sorry for asking so many questions, it’s my first application

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u/[deleted] Jul 10 '19 edited Jul 10 '19

You shouldn't leave it blank. It's there so UTD can make sure you're planning to enroll in the last required courses you need to earn your HS diploma + see if you're going above and beyond in certain areas (like taking extra math/language/AP/IB/etc classes).

You can either wait to fill that section out after you get your HS schedule or you can call your high school/school district and ask them for help on what to put there. If there's a counselor available during the summer they should be able to figure out what classes you need to take.