Plan II will have all our admission notification out in the US mail system almost two weeks earlier than we have ever managed before. All letters will go into the US mail system, via the UT campus mail system, on Friday, February 25, 2011. Applicants who have not already heard from Plan II Honors should expect to receive their notification by March 2, 2011.
I would like to take the chance to, once again, thank all our applicants for your interest in the Plan II Honors Program at The University of Texas at Austin and for your hard work on the application itself.
We are very fortunate that Plan II Honors receives so very many applications from so very many highly qualified students. But that also means that we must offer the wait list, or simply turn away, a significant number of extremely attractive applicants each year.
We know that many, if not most, of the applicants we deny, could perform quite well in the Program. And we know those same students would very often bring a lot of heart and soul TO the Program. Given the room, Plan II would be happy to invite more applicants into the program. But increasing the size of Plan II to admit all the strong applicants who apply would change Plan II in ways that would, essentially, kill the program.
For those applicants who are not admitted into Plan II, please remember that a student at UT Austin does not have to be in the Plan II Honors program to enjoy learning communities, have small class experiences or take advantage of many of the wonderful resources that make UT a great university. At UT Austin, the opportunities are almost endless: great advising, top faculty with a myriad of specializations, interesting curricula and programs, amazing support services where community and collegiality are always available.
Take the time to investigate a few of the following. Exploring the bounty that is UT Austin is one of the joys of being a student here:
Disciplinary Honors Tracks:
Any major in the College of Liberal Arts (CoLA) offers the opportunity to pursue honors within the discipline (see CoLA majors, I encourage students to first research the disciplinary honors tracks in the College of Liberal Arts (CoLA) departments. .
These disciplinary honors tracks usually require one to three additional seminar courses, usually some kind of advanced junior or senior honors seminar(s) and a required thesis. These honors tracks are coordinated through the departments and are not stand-alone programs or majors, as is Plan II Honors. So, if there is a specific major in which you’re interested, this could very well be the best route. With the exception of the Plan II Honors major and the Humanities major (which requires an application), all the majors in the College of Liberal Arts are open and accessible. See: Departmental Honors
Any student with a major in the College of Liberal Arts, can with the appropriate GPA and other departmental requirements seek disciplinary honors.

If the interdisciplinary nature of Plan II was the real draw, then there are lots of programs and majors available that are interdisciplinary.
Interdisciplinary major opportunities in Liberal Arts:
If you were specifically seeking the interdisciplinary benefits of the Plan II Honors major, there are a great number of similar opportunities. Some majors, by their very nature, are interdisciplinary (something like Plan II Honors’ core curriculum) and, depending on your interests, might be great choices to pursue. However, I have to honestly state right up front, that Plan II is the only major specifically designed to incorporate the arts, social sciences, fine arts and sciences. Most other honors programs and even other interdisciplinary programs still focus on one area. The Dean’s Scholars program has a core curriculum, interdisciplinary science honors program; Business Honors is interdisciplinary in business fields, etc.
Here is a partial list to consider:
The Humanities major, which fits well with with Bridging Disciplines, pre-med, and pre-law programs, offers students the opportunity to fashion his or her own course of study as a major around a research interest for the B.A. “Each course in the individual program of study must clearly contribute to a coherent major with a focus on a particular theme, idea, or question. As the model plans in this brochure show, that interdisciplinary subject may be as specific as Health Care Policy, or as comprehensive as Philosophy, Politics, and Economics.” The Humanities major provides a great deal of flexibility and personalization, usually at an honors level, with a required thesis.
The Humanities major is by application only and requires 30 hours in residence and a 3.5 gpa.
Details online: http://www.utexas.edu/cola/progs/humanities/. Schedule an appointment with the Humanities advisor, Linda Mayhew, by calling 471-3458.
As part of the Humanities major, you will:
• Join a close-knit community in Liberal Arts Honors
• Receive individualized advising
• Work closely with faculty members
• Write an honors thesis
International Relations & Global Studies
Latin American Studies
American Studies
European Studies
Women's and Gender Studies
Russian, East European & Eurasian Studies
.....this is not an exhaustive list by any means. There are lots of interdisciplinary opportunities in the College of Liberal Arts.

Other University-wide programs one might investigate include:
First Year Interest Groups (FIGS): provide first-semester students with a small community of 25 students who share thematic or academic interests and share two to four of the first semester classes. The FIGS have special staff advising and peer mentors to guide first-year students. This program was created with the Plan II Honors students’ first-year experience as the model.
FIGs give students who are not in an honors program a similar first-semester experience.
The Thomas Jefferson Center for the Study of Core Texts and Ideas is another terrific option. This is a fairly new program that is receiving RAVE reviews. The Center offers the Program in Core Texts and Ideas, which provides an integrated path through UT's core curriculum based on a study of the great books for students in all colleges. In collaboration with the Liberal Arts Honors Humanities Program, the Center offers an interdisciplinary major in the great books. This certificate program could be combined with any major. For instance, one might combine a double-major in English and History and still incorporate the Core Texts and ideas program.
EUREKA (enhancing undergraduate research experience, knowledge and access) Participation in undergraduate research can benefit you educationally, professionally, and personally. The University of Texas at Austin serves Texas and the nation as one of the most highly rated public research universities in the United States. Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin are leaders in a variety of fields—from nanotechnology to musical composition to child welfare—that touch our daily lives and shape our future. As an undergraduate at UT Austin, in any major, you can become a part of this exciting community of discovery, creativity, and innovation.
UT Austin offers a really neat program (one of my favorites) through the School of Undergraduate Studies, which can enhance even an honors track in any College of Liberal Arts majors or interdisciplinary studies. The Bridging Disciplines Programs offer ten interdisciplinary areas of study. Those topics include a concentrations such as Human Rights & Social Justice; International Studies; Social Entrepreneurship & Non-profits; Social Inequality, Health & Policy; and Ethics & Leadership.
The School of Undergraduate Studies also offers a Strategic Advising Center that is extremely useful in helping freshman and sophomore students develop educational plans and goals. The advising includes major exploration assistance to undecided and transitional students at the university. A great new tool UGS offers is Wayfinder.
There is a program called Business Foundations Program that gives you (as the name indicates) the FOUNDATIONS of business, without having to gain admission to the McCombs School of Business. It’s a certificate program (rather than a major or degree). You do not have to be admitted to the McCombs School to pursue the BFP certification. The program may be combined with any major/college.
Business Foundations is one of the best opportunities available at the University—especially for a Liberal Arts student. Combining the BFP certificate could actually make you more employable and perhaps a little more flexible.
There is also a plan to complete the entire (excluding the pre-requisite classes) Business Foundations Program in one summer. I think this would be a grueling summer, but a great way to complete a very valuable component.
Finally (and please remember that this is NOT an exhaustive list) there is the Junior Fellows program. Junior Fellows are involved in undergraduate, independent research projects. They meet to discuss research, present their projects, participate in field trips and attend presentations and lectures given by scholars on and off campus. Many of the Junior Fellows are Plan II students and students in the CoLA disciplinary honors programs however Junior Fellows is open to all students on campus—in any major or college.
They are all excellent programs and most have some degree of flexibility that could make them, perhaps, even better fits for a student interested in a program such as Plan II Honors.
Good luck to all!
