Issue 7 of 11 | June 1, 2024 | |
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Hello Longhorn Family!
We hope you are excited and ready to join us on to the Forty Acres for Family Orientation, if you have not already! Your family will be experiencing a day's worth of information and be able to see first-hand your student's future home-away-from-home. Your Family Orientation program aligns with the Day 1 of first-year students' three-day New Student Orientation.
Through Family Orientation, you will also be able to experience and learn about some of our Longhorn traditions, which is the heart and soul of the UT spirit. Our traditions help strengthen the Longhorn community and keep us connected. In this issue of Next Steps, we will be focusing on some of the University's most beloved traditions.
As you prepare for your student's arrival to the Forty Acres, it's important to know the services that the University has in place to ensure your student's well-being. Understanding these services will help you feel comfortable that they are in good hands and that the University has their best interest in mind. In our next issue we will be spotlighting HealthyHorns and your Longhorn's well-being.
Hook 'em!
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Did you know?
The amount of tuition due and the payment due date is on the bottom of your student’s My Tuition Bill.
REMINDER: If you reach out on your student's behalf, you must copy your student and include the student’s EID and FERPA password on all emails to the Texas One Stop office. If your student has not yet set up a FERPA password, please contact Texas One Stop for more information on this necessary step.
Tuition for Summer Semester 2024
Registration for the second summer session begins Wednesday, July 12.
Tuition payments for undergraduate students registering on or after Friday, July 12 will be due no later than p.m. CT, Thursday, July 18.
Payment for classes added to the second summer session and all Add Bills will be due no later than 5 p.m. CT, Thursday, July 18.
Tuition for Fall Semester 2024
Tuition notices will be distributed electronically Tuesday, July 30 to the email address listed in student records. Undergraduate tuition is due no later than 5 p.m. CT Thursday, August 15. Don't worry, you'll receive more reminders of this deadline in your July eNewsletter.
New Financial Aid Portal:
My Financial Aid, a new student financial aid portal, is now live! This new and improved portal replaces The University of Texas at Austin’s Check Aid Status Here (CASH) and will be used to review, accept and manage your financial aid offers for Fall 2024 and onwards.
Once awards become available, students will be able to see all types of aid they qualify for based on their FAFSA, as well as any State or Institutional Aid they may have been awarded. Information will be updated as it becomes available, so check back often if you need assistance.
The My Financial Aid Portal can be accessed here.
Special Circumstance Appeals
If changes in your or your family’s lives have impacted you financially, you may be eligible to submit a special circumstance appeal to The Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid. On exception, The Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid will review and consider changes to a student’s available aid based on the information provided. Financial Aid appeals are found on the Texas One Stop website at onestop.utexas.edu/forms.
Attending Family Orientation?
Join Texas One Stop for A Longhorn’s Guide to Financial Aid. In this presentation, you will learn to define and identify types of financial aid, outline the qualifications for financial aid, explain what happens after the financial aid application process, and describe how to accept your aid and how to submit any necessary documents.
Dates, times and locations can be found in the Orientation App.
Texas One Stop is located on the ground floor of the UT Tower. Staff will be available during normal business hours for one-on-one support. onestop.utexas.edu/visit/
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University Housing and Dining (UHD) | |
Action Items:
June 3: LLC Room Assignments
If your student was accepted to an LLC, the housing team will begin assigning their room based on their preferences.
June 3: Honors Housing Room Selection
Room assignment and selection begins for students who indicated their interest in living in the Honors Quad (Andrews, Blanton, Carothers and Littlefield). If your student indicated interest in female-only housing in Littlefield, the housing team will assign their room at this time. If your student indicated interest in the other three halls, they will self-select their room at the timeslot emailed to them by the housing team. Once Honors Housing room selection ends, all spaces remaining in the Quad become available options for students participating in general room selection.
June 10: General Room Selection
Room selection for our on-campus residence halls and Dobie Twenty21 begins. Please encourage your student to check their email to confirm their room selection timeslot. During their timeslot, students will explore available options and place themselves in a room. If your student is paired with a roommate, the roommate with the earliest timeslot can assign both students to a room based on available space. Students who miss their room selection timeslot will be assigned by the housing team based on their housing and roommate preferences.
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Room Swap
After the room selection process concludes, any student with a room assignment has the option to swap rooms through the housing portal’s room swap page. Your student will be able to search for available rooms and switch through July 31. If your student cannot select their first-choice room during their room selection timeslot, encourage them to periodically check room availability through July 31. Roommates who wish to move together during the room swap time frame must both select the same room to move to.
Starting August 1, students will gain access to the room change request form in the housing portal. UHD will work through requests in the order they’re received. Room changes are facilitated based on availability and may not be immediate. Please be patient as we work to accommodate your students’ requests.
Mooov-In 2024
It’s never too early to start preparing for Mooov-In, our annual check-in event for students moving to campus. From packing to parking, we’re sure you have a lot of questions, and we’re here to help. Visit our Mooov-In Guide page to learn more about details for this year’s process, and look through past years’ Spotlight features about Mooov-In for general tips to ensure a smooth experience upon your student’s arrival to the Forty Acres. Keep an eye on our website throughout the summer for updates to the Mooov-In Guide page and new spotlight features communicating important information to know.
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The Texas Parents Ambassadors Council is a Community in Action
In the last issue, you learned how the Texas Parents Association (TXP) is more than a “college PTA.” While the two are very different concepts, one of the similarities between the two is both thrive with the support of dedicated volunteers.
If you enjoyed PTA service, consider self-nominating for the Texas Parents Ambassadors Council 2024-2026 term. During orientation, you will have the opportunity to meet members of the Ambassadors Council as one of their volunteer responsibilities is engaging with incoming parents and families at Family Orientation.
As parents of currently enrolled Longhorns, their duties at Family Orientation cover a wide spectrum of service. First and foremost, they are there to genuinely welcome you to the Longhorn Family. Many council members identify their interaction with Ambassadors Council members at their own Family Orientations as the catalyst to their Council involvement.
In addition to extending a warm welcome, the Ambassadors Council will be on hand to answer questions from a Longhorn parent lens, offer insights and experiences and join in the celebration of your Longhorn’s accomplishment of being accepted to UT. You will see them in bright yellow shirts, with Texas Parents name tags and big smiles. They’ll serve on choice session panels, help with supporting membership sign-ups and encourage many to consider serving on the Council themselves. We look forward to introducing you to this great group of dedicated volunteers.
Learn more here and submit a self-nomination for the 2024-2026 term.
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If your Longhorn plans to live off campus, they can visit Off-Campus Living Resources for information on safety resources, transportation services, emergency preparedness, and more. Your student can also explore the Off-Campus Housing Marketplace website to search for housing options near campus, find roommates, or list a sublease.
Commuter Meal Plans
Students who live off campus can purchase a Commuter Meal Plan to use in campus dining halls, restaurants, coffee shops, and convenience stores. Each plan offers different amounts of meal swipes and Dine In Dollars to cater to individual needs. Visit housing.utexas.edu to explore meal plan options available to your student.
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Camp Texas
Each year the Texas Exes, UT's official alumni association, transforms the lives of students through experiences like Camp Texas that foster connections with other students, professors, administrators and UT traditions. Camp Texas is a separate program from your student's orientation session.
Outstanding counselors provide peer-to-peer guidance that works. The data shows that Camp Texas attendees are more successful at UT. On average, they have higher GPAs and a higher four-year graduation rate than those who didn’t attend.
Have your student join Texas Exes this summer at this optional, overnight, off-campus experience to get a head start on life at UT. Learn more texasexes.org.
Camp Texas Sessions Still Available:
Session 1: August 4-6
Session 2: August 6-8
Session 3: August 8-10
Session 4: August 10-12
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Game Ticket Option for Students
The Big Ticket is the all-in-one ticket package providing students access to all Texas Athletics regular season home events and is just $200 for the 2024-25 academic year (no processing fee). Your student will receive emails from Texas Athletics with additional purchase information in the summer. The Big Ticket includes access to all home regular season ticket events: Football, Volleyball, Men's Basketball, Women's Basketball, Baseball, Softball and Texas Relays. Postseason and neutral-site events are not included. For more information, visit TexasSports.com/BigTicket. The priority deadline is Friday, July 19.
Texas Women’s Basketball Ticket Options for Parents and Families
After breaking several attendance records en route to the Elite Eight, season tickets for the 2024-25 Texas Women’s Basketball season are now on sale for new season ticket holders at $100 apiece. Beginning this year, all seating locations will be reserved seats. This is your golden opportunity to secure your spot to see the defending Big 12 Conference Champions at the finest arena in college basketball for the Longhorns’ first season in the Southeastern Conference! Tickets are available for purchase online at TexasSports.com/Tickets or you can call Texas Athletics at 512-471-3333 (Monday-Friday 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.).
Interested in tickets for Texas Athletics events in 2024-25?
Complete the Ticket Interest Form today to get notified when new ticket information is available!
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Sorority and Fraternity Life | |
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Sorority and Fraternity Life (SFL) is a unit within the Office of the Dean of Students that fosters responsible leadership and personal development among members of social sororities and fraternities. Through coaching and advisement, SFL creates leadership opportunities and developmental programming to enhance their educational and membership experiences.
The sorority and fraternity community is home to over 60 social sororities and fraternities and collectively represents 15% of the undergraduate population. Chapters are organized into one of five governing councils, or the Affiliate Leadership Circle. Councils include the Interfraternity Council (IFC), The National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC), The Texas Asian Pan-Hellenic Council (TAPC), The Latino Pan-Hellenic Council (LPHC), and The University Panhellenic Council (UPC).
Sororities and fraternities aim to promote leadership, academic success, to give back to the community, and strengthen a sense of belonging while building strong bonds of brotherhood and sisterhood. Joining any student organization is an important part of the college experience and membership in a sorority or fraternity can be one of the most transformative and supportive environments for students on campus.
While joining an organization is ideal and makes the large campus smaller, we know that group settings and student organizations can be a place where problematic behaviors creep in. Students should understand that behaviors like being required to stay at a chapter facility for long lengths of time, being prohibited from associating with any other group or individuals, having cell phones confiscated, being forced to consume food or alcohol, being required to participate in extreme physical tasks, and other similar behaviors constitute hazing. Families play an important role in setting up their student for positive, safe experiences by having conversations that dispel any traditional notion that hazing or high-risk drinking is normal. It is known that students are more likely to share a concerning experience with their friends or family outside of the university setting, therefore, it is important for their support network to be knowledgeable about the signs and resources available.
Sorority and Fraternity Life will be hosting a Choice Session at Family Orientation throughout the summer that highlights a general overview about UT Austin’s sorority and fraternity community. These sessions are a great time to interact with the staff and ask questions so that you can feel empowered to stay up to date on your student’s organization involvement. For more information about SFL, reporting and support options, please visit https://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/sfl.
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Traditions Corner
The Cactus Cafe is one of Austin's great acoustic music traditions. The Cactus is an intimate live music performance venue, and since the Cafe opened in February 1979, the Cactus has acquired a national reputation, showcasing the top local, regional, national and international acoustic music acts on the circuit. The Cactus Cafe is on Guadalupe Street across from the University Co-op and is located in the southwest corner of the Texas Union building.
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REMINDER: Register Now for Family Orientation at The University of Texas at Austin | |
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If you have already completed family orientation registration, your spot in the session is secure and you should receive a confirmation email. For additional information, please visit our website.
IMPORTANT REMINDER: student and family orientation programs are hosted separately and require separate registration systems.
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What to expect in the next issue of Next Steps
- Important reminders from Healthyhorns
- Helpful well-being information about pharmacy services and medical insurance
- How Texas Financial Wellness guides students towards financial literacy
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You can always review the full academic calendar to get more information on academic and tuition-related deadlines coming up.
2024-2025 Academic Calendar
registrar.utexas.edu/calendars/24-25
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