Texas A&M is a special place. There is a reason that even after we leave this school, we are still so proud to wear our ring and brag about our alma mater. The rings we wear represent the hard work we put in to get them and the core values we practiced as we did it. They hold significant value not only to us but to everyone who sees us wearing it so proudly. The Aggie values that we all uphold set us apart and make our community something special.

The Aggie Core Values are a set of six values that were set in place many years ago yet still hold true and have the same great importance at Texas A&M. The core values make me proud to wear my college t-shirts and drive around with the Texas A&M logo on my car. These values are not just printed on a paper and taken lightly; they are brought to life on campus and even after graduation by current and former students.

Excellence

As Aggies, we strive to be excellent in academics, sports, involvement and even in our everyday tasks. We are a competitive university, and we are all determined by nature. We motivate each other to be successful by participating in academic competitions on campus, intramurals and honor societies. There are tons of our peers who are mentors, teaching assistants and tutors to help push their fellow classmates to do their best and strive for excellence.

Integrity

Honesty and integrity are taken very seriously at Texas A&M. I believe this core value to be a baseline for all of the others. Without integrity, you would not be loyal nor a great leader nor have true respect. Aggies are expected to be honest and genuine people because “Aggies do not lie, cheat or steal.” It’s something to think about every time we take an exam but also apply in life outside of academics. The Aggie Honor Code is an important aspect of our college and holds us accountable to do our own work. When we graduate and have Texas A&M on our diploma, people understand that we did all of that by ourselves and worked extremely hard to get an education here.

Leadership

On campus, we have tons of opportunities to exemplify our leadership skills. One way to lead is by joining student government or Student Engineers’ Council, for example, and representing your peers in a large-scale manner. While these are amazing things to do, leadership is also shown in small ways everywhere you look. When you help someone find their class building, when you hold the door open for someone  or when you are doing the right thing — these are all moments of leadership and allowing someone to follow your example.

Loyalty

Aggies are as loyal as they get. We are loyal to our family and show this by participating in monthly Silver Taps to commemorate one passing away. We also show our loyalty to any Aggie that passed away within that year through Muster. These events are unique to Texas A&M and carry a bit of positivity that you won’t be forgotten. You are an Aggie forever and your life will be celebrated. Aggies are also loyal in supporting all the sports teams and networking in the work field. We have each other’s back, and we’re always happy to help a fellow Ag out!

Respect

Loyalty and respect go hand in hand. Muster and Silver Taps are both examples of ways we show respect as well. There are physical actions we take to show respect in the MSC such as not walking on the grass and taking our hats off before we enter. The MSC is a memorial center that is respected and honored. Aggies also try to avoid stepping on the seal placed on Military Walk. We show our respect by walking around and preserving it!

Selfless Service

Selfless service is a large part of our university, and the many organizations on campus help bring tons of opportunities for service to the community. We like to give back to our community and the residents of Bryan/College Station by doing Give Back and The Big Event that allow us to do yard work and say thank you! The service events put on by the organizations often support local charities, camps for children, national research and more! A few examples are Fall Fest supporting Read by Third, Aggie Tutors for tutoring underprivileged kids in hopes of inspiring them to seek a college degree, Watermelon Bash for Camp Kesem, and Queso for a Cause supporting breast cancer.

These six values are the building blocks of Texas A&M. They hold us accountable to be the best versions of ourselves and hold fast to the reputation of this well-respected university.