<p>sorry 5 minutes away</p>
<p>Academically on a par with Trinity, and Catholic, check out Santa Clara University. It’s a bit bigger (~5,000 undergrads), has a broad core curriculum, not surrounded by skyscrapers but has walkable shops and across the street, a CalTrain to San Francisco, for diversion.</p>
<p>I am currently a student at Trinity U and I love it there! Restaurants are a few blocks away on Broadway and St. Mary’s. You’ll probably want to drive to the places there but if you are feeling like walking it is doable. Trinity is surrounded by a really nice neighborhood on all sides except on the East side where 281 is located. Right next to 281 is Brackenridge Park, nice little park where the San Antonio zoo is located. Downtown is just a bus ride away, and although not many Trinity students take the bus, I’ve taken it numerous times and it is always on schedule and a nice ride. </p>
<p>Trinity is a LAC so you’ll have to take numerous courses outside your major. Here is a link to general info about the common curriculum
[THE</a> COMMON CURRICULUM at TRINITY UNIVERSITY](<a href=“http://www.trinity.edu/departments/admissions/mz3/curriculum.shtml]THE”>http://www.trinity.edu/departments/admissions/mz3/curriculum.shtml)</p>
<p>Link to a list of the full courses offered as part of the common curriculum
<a href=“http://iraa.trinity.edu/iraa/Documents/regr_docs/FL2009%20NEW%20CC%20-%20FINAL.pdf[/url]”>http://iraa.trinity.edu/iraa/Documents/regr_docs/FL2009%20NEW%20CC%20-%20FINAL.pdf</a></p>
<p>I haven’t finished taking the common curriculum but I think it is a very integral part of the Trinity education. You can take courses completely unrelated to your major but still enjoy them. I personally really enjoyed my first year seminar. You don’t have to declare your major until second semester of sophomore year so you can really explore what you like and what you are good at. It is easy to do a double major or major and a minor. I am planning to double major and maybe even do a minor in a language. </p>
<p>There are several Christian organization and specifically a Catholic Student Group. There is mass offered on Sundays at 8pm in the Parker Chapel. There is even a christian sorority.</p>
<p>If you have any questions just contact me and/or post in the Trinity University forum.</p>
<p>Just forgot to say, most people at Trinity do get some form of money. So don’t just look at the sticker price.</p>
<p>Hi pinnacle,</p>
<p>I’ve been considering Trinity but I was wondering how hard the academics are? (I want to do a lot in college like clubs & sports & have a social life) Do a lot of people do double major? Are profs very caring and supportive? I’m OOS btw and may only get to visit once or twice. Oh and is a car necessary?</p>
<p>The academics are on par with other top liberal arts college. Talking to peers, most that could easily get A’s in high school, were “surprised” that they actually had to study to get good grades. How much work you get also depends on your major (engineering and premed are especially hard). Yeah there are a lot of clubs, although Trinity claims to have 130 clubs, some of those are inactive. I’ve heard there are actually 80 clubs which are really active. Otherwise you can start your own club with funding from Campus and Community Involvement. There are a few club sports but what most people do is intramurals with their friends. If by social life you mean parties, almost all open parties are on fall semester and are quiet enjoyable 
. Greeks have a presence on campus but it isn’t like there is tension, and again you can go to open parties even if you are a GDI. </p>
<p>Yeah a lot of people do double major. You need 124 credit hours at least to graduate (assuming you are not premed, music, or engineering), the common curriculum is like 45 hours (don’t quote me on this). Many majors, especially if you only want the general major, as opposed to a concentration, require only 30 hours. Sometimes you can even get common curriculum credit for your major. So for example if you want to major in General Economics you have to take intro to macro and intro to micro, which both classes apply to your major and to the common curriculum. If you do Business Administration with a concentration in Finance many classes overlap with Economics. </p>
<p>Yeah professors are caring for the most part. Even in big classes (say 40 people) I’m really surprised that the professor know my name even though I haven’t really participated that much. Some professors even give you their home phone number on the syllabus. They provide office hours like everyone else and some even encourage you to go to their office even if it is not on official office hours. </p>
<p>I’m not sure what your experience is but in high school I gave a lot of importance to teacher interaction. I was kind of a superstar in high school, always answering questions and caring for the material. I was also very active outside of class. Teachers noticed it and we often talked after class. However, at Trinity I guess I’m “just average” since a lot of people are really smart. So it is not like a professor will “notice” (as in you are something special) you unless you are really smart or you are always talking to him or her after class or in office hours. It all depends on your major and whether it is lower division or upper division class. If you are a classics major in an upper division class you’ll probably have like 7 people in your class, so the professor will know everything good and bad. If you’ve slacked off and haven’t read he’ll notice for example. If you are in a common curriculum class with 50 people it is a different story. </p>
<p>I do have to note that most professors (90% maybe), do take attendance everyday and this affects either your participation grade or whether you continue in the course. I had a professor that if you missed three classes you couldn’t continue the course. Even in big classes with 50 people chances a re the professor will call everyone’s name or pass out a sign sheet. Everyone will tell you not to miss class and I think it makes it easier just go to class than to try to review what you saw in class for twice the time it takes to go to class. </p>
<p>Yeah a car is necessary but chances are a friend of yours has a car. The bus system kinda sucks (unless you are going to downtown, in which case it is like 65 cents to go from Trinity to downtown and back). I don’t have a car and I didn’t want to bother my friends too much so I sometimes took the bus to go to some places nearby like Northstar Mall. Freshmen are allowed to have cars on campus by the way.</p>
<p>Pinnacle, thanks for your replies. I’ll let my daughter read them and I think we’ll be swinging by there this weekend if we get the chance. Sounds like the type of place she’d like. </p>
<p>John.</p>
<p>We were looking for safeties when we came across Trinity 4 years ago (Can’t believe she just graduated.) Went for Accepted Students’ Weekend, and really liked it! She didn’t want a big school, “Don’t make me go to UT, Mom!” Also checked out Austin College. Both were wonderful, and if D hadn’t been accepted with way more $ elsewhere, I think it would have been Trinity.</p>
<p>Yea, she’s pretty much a “don’t make me go to UT or A&M type too.” The super competitive enviroments make her sick. My son on the other hand will probably be burnt orange in 4 years… ;)</p>
<p>John.</p>