Son will be an international freshman in engineering with admits from both TTU and UT-Arl. Assuming he gets schol and the OOS Tuition adjustment in both places (he has already got that from TTU), which is a better choice?
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What’s important to your son? Are you able to visit the respective schools? For some perspective, my son considered both TTU & UT Dallas, was offered scholarships at both schools. We’re OOS, so paying in-state tuition made either school affordable… Some factors to consider: TTU - large residential campus in a small city in a rural area, Big 12 athletics. I would presume UTA is similar to UTD - more of a commuter college, suburb in a major metropolitan area, with a somewhat more diverse student population. Is access to “big city” amenities important? Lubbock is dry and dusty (no problem for him, as we’re from AZ). He chose TTU, the students and staff were very friendly and welcoming. He likes the campus feel, and doesn’t mind the relative “isolation” of Lubbock.
Thanks @ChurchillDad. Being an international admit, my son has no chance to visit the campus a priori, but nice to know your son chose TTU and likes the place. Your son is in engineering school too…?
@osmdad you’re welcome! Yes, he is enrolled in the Whitacre College of Engineering and Honors College. Enjoyed his first semester, ready to return for Spring.
@ChurchillDad Great … so your son is a senior freshman !! Maybe you can give us some idea about the housing scene at TTU !! Son hasn’t yet applied for housing, 'cos he’s waiting for a schol decision from TexasAM. But we see that most of the campus housing is with community bathrooms - something my son is pretty much queasy about. What is your son’s experience on this…? Also, has he been allotted his major already? Thanks in advance.
@osmdad, has your son applied to the Honors College? Honors offers academic and other benefits, among them housing in Murray and Gordon with semi-private bathrooms (as does Talkington Hall, which is hard for Freshman to get into). You can always check the “Room Availability Report” which is updated online to see if any rooms open up throughout the Spring and Summer due to cancellations.
As to your other question, students at Tech must complete the Foundational Engineering core curriculum (http://www.depts.ttu.edu/coe/publications/library/documents/admissions.pdf#page=2) before formal acceptance into their major. Hope all this helps, please feel free to ask more!
He hasn’t applied to Hons College so far @ChurchillDad … he missed the priority deadline and that seems to have put him off to some extent. But looks like the regular deadline is until Mar.1, so will check with him whether will be completing the application. Your son an hons student? Does he find it worth the while ?
PS: Just in… son got schol at UHouston with in-state tuit as well. So that sort of queers the pitch now? Any suggestions?
Yes, @osmdad, my son is in the Honors College. Several benefits - early class registration, honors sections of certain courses with smaller class size, scholarship opportunities, the housing as mentioned. Worth a look if he’s interested, visit the Honors College page of the site.
Coincidentally, my brother is a UH grad, but that of course was many years ago! So I imagine lots may have changed. At the time, it was more of a commuter campus. He received good education (was a Physics/Math major).
@osmdad You can’t just look at the academics, you have to look at quality of life which Texas Tech lacks in compared to UT Arlington. In my strong opinion, Lubbock is boring and dead. There’s not much to do outside of campus really that’s fun, engaging, and unique on a consistent basis.
Your son attending UT Arlington will give him that social outlet to grow and experience new things to make him that much more well rounded (being overly obsessed with academics makes for seriously socially awkward and overlooked people like you’ll see at UT Dallas). Arlington is right between Dallas and Forth Worth, two of the fastest growing cities in the nation with a plethora of things always going on, campus life in Arlington is wonderful and full of fun traditions. Also he’s more likely to land an awesome part-time job, internship, or full-time job in his field going to UTA since he’s so close to so many companies. College is not just about developing the mind academically, but also socially and culturally which is where Texas Tech fails and why it’s being out grown by UT Arlington.
Thanks for your feedback @NuScholar. Yes, I am aware UTArl’s strength lies in it’s engg program. A friend’s S graduated in CE last fall in 4 years flat and went to Yale for his MS and he also highly recommends UTARrl.
But again, as mentioned earlier, my S has got into UHouston too with schol and OOS tuit waiver… so what do you think of UHouston (main campus) relative to the other two schools TTU & UTArl, esp. considering you are probly right next door to UHouston !
@osmdad UH is a great option as well … a better debate to me is UH vs UT Arlington. But I would go with UT Arlington since UT Arlington is more friendly with the financial aid and the engineering school has a better reputation. UT Arlington Engineering School is now the 3rd largest in Texas and is fastly growing as a premier engineering school in the state.