Texas A&M University - Inside Scoop

School Slang

• Boot Chaser - A girl who has the hots for a Corps guy.
• Get off the field - What you’ll yell if someone, other than the football players and the band, walks on Kyle field.
• Get off the grass - What you’ll hear if you walk on the MSC grass.
• Get off the wood - What you’ll hear when you sing the fight song. It means get off the benches that you’re standing on during football games.
• Howdy - Hello.

• Mugging - What you do when the lights go out on Kyle Field, otherwise known as kissing.
• Non-Reg - Someone not in the Corps.
• Reg - Someone in the Corps of Cadets.
• Rev - Reveille, the mascot Border Collie.
• Scho-Pro - Short for Scholastic Probation.

• Sweet E’s - Sweet Eugene’s, a popular coffee hangout.
• T.U. - Our rival school, the University of Texas.
• The Batt - The Battalion, the student newspaper.
• Two Percenter - Students who don’t participate in A&M traditions.
• Uncover - Take off your hat.

Things I Wish I Knew Before Coming To School

• Don’t park under trees. There is a disgustingly large bird population.
• If you’re driving to class, leave at least one hour early to get parking.
• Join an organization to make the school feel smaller.

• Many departments don't give students options on who they prefer as a professor.
• No one carries her purse to class.

• Only join one or two organizations. It’s not like high school, where you can do everything and still make good grades.
• Remember to bring a Scantron to class on test days.

Tips to Succeed

• Check out the professors before you register for classes.
• Have frequent meetings with your advisor regarding your academic plan.

• Have frequent meetings with your professors so you can get good recommendations on your resume.

• Take “Succeeding in College” your first semester.

Urban Legends

• Our mascot attends class with the Corps guy that keeps her, and it’s been said that if Reveille barks during your class, then class is dismissed.

Traditions

• 12th Man - Students stand at every football game in honor of E. King Gill, who was called out of the stands to play for the Aggies in 1922. Since most of the team was injured, Gill suited up and stood ready to play for the rest of the game if his team needed him. Although he never played, students now stand for the entire game to show that the 11 men on the gridiron can call on them any time for help.
• Aggie Ring - When you have completed 96 credit hours, you get to order your ring, which is the same for every graduate, except for the class year. Since everyone gets the same ring design year after year, this creates a historical bond between Aggies. In the end, this makes A&M graduates unmistakably recognizable to one another.
• Boot Dance - The college version of Junior Prom

• Every time the Aggies score, you score - At a football game, if the team scores a point, you kiss your date.
• Midnight Yell - At midnight before every home football game, Aggies gather at Kyle Field for yell practice. Bring a date, because when the lights go out, you kiss.
• Muster - Every April 21st, Muster brings Aggies together worldwide to honor the passing of Aggies that year and celebrate their memory. Candles are lit in their honor, and a roll-call is spoken with their comrade answering “here” in their place.

• Ring Dance - The college version of Senior Prom
• Silver Taps - If an A&M student dies, a tribute is held in the Academic Plaza on the first Tuesday of the month. A ceremonial march-in by the Ross Volunteers is followed by a 21-gun salute and the playing of taps three times from the dome of the Academic Building, facing to the north, the south, and the west. It is not played to the east, because the sun will never rise on that Aggie again.