Getting into UT 40 years ago and prior was easier than falling off a log, especially if you checked a handful of the right social boxes. When the top 10%, now 6% or whatever, rule kicked in sometime in the 90s it got even easier for a stretch. I'm not sure when the turn to exclusivity began, but there aren't many posters here who experience it firsthand, although there are certainly some who have seen their kids go through it. This is the case for most schools perceived as prestigious, frankly. Getting into an Ivy League was not exactly a monumental feat back in 1985. Starting from its early days, Harvard Law would auto-admit any applicant from a state without an accredited law school, which is why you will find assloads of Harvard lawyers over the age of fifty in places like New Mexico, Montana, etc. Obtaining a higher education at a top-tier school used to be more a matter of want-to than anything else. Now it's a fucking death match that parents engage in with other parents on behalf of their kids, and taking state schools like UT and turning them into exclusive ivy-league-esque institutions is hurting way more than it's helping.
The State of Texas has limited opportunities for students to receive a quality education at a state university, which is a shame for all of us. Most of this stems from our fractured system, the hoarding of resources in two (but mostly one) of those systems, and a general brain drain in leadership in this state. The current state of politics, combined with the lack of educational opportunities, will drive this place further and further into the mud. Young, intelligent women, in particular, are leaving in droves. This fake bullshit tech-bro school isn't going to change that. The tech industry, and the financial industry that props it up, are the number one enemy of the future of this country, and Texas is hell-bent on being the tip of the downward spiraling spear.