The Truth About UT-Austin Admissions: Holistic Review Demystified

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Explore how UT-Austin’s holistic admissions process really works—beyond the brochures. This article breaks down UT’s Personal Achievement Index system and exposes the flaws of holistic review, including inconsistency, reviewer bias, and inequity. Learn why even the most qualified applicants face unpredictable results.

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I'm Kevin Martin, and I'm not your typical college admissions consultant. I'm a former UT Austin Admissions Officer, and I provide expert, insider guidance for competitive UT Austin and top US university applications. I specialize in helping high-achieving students craft powerful essays, make their application stand out, and strategically navigate the complex admissions process.

Explore more insider strategies and resources:
Find more guides & insights on my blog: https://www.texadmissions.com/blog
My Book "Your Ticket to the Forty Acres": https://a.co/d/hNDnHuL
My Book "Surviving the College Admissions Madness": https://a.co/d/74u0OjX

0:00 | Introducing UT's holistic review
0:44 | Personal Achievement and Academic Index scores
2:20 | Humans read all applications
3:00 | Admissions criteria overview
4:20 | The grading scale doesn't matter
5:20 | Holistic review is BS
7:50 | Big data cannot reliably select talent
8:40 | Unfairness, inconsistency, and bias
9:57 | Lenient, strict, and unpredictable human reviewers
10:35 | Non-admissions outside readers
11:13 | Your app is skimmed, errors
12:10 | Penalty against late bloomers
12:50 | Holistic review corrupts society, privileges the elite