<p>I was wondering which school I would mesh with the best. I'm pretty friendly and like to have fun, and I want to meet lots of different people. I'm a diverse person, and I love trying new things. The country part of the south always appealed to me a lot(swimming in lakes, pick-up trucks,etc), and I really want to experience that. The southern prep/country club part has always been unappealing to me. I love music and concerts, specifically rock,punk, and country. I'm athletic and like doing things outdoors. I also really like clothes and shopping. I'm pretty independent, and I like the excitement of the city. Sorry this is so long haha.</p>
<p>I don’t know much about Bama or SC, but UT is known as being good for meeting different/diverse people, trying new things, its music scene (Austin), and athletics. I have no idea how the shopping is in Austin. Hope this helps a little bit.</p>
<p>Yeah it does thank you :)</p>
<p>Where are you from? UT is the most expensive if you are not instate.</p>
<p>Pennsylvania. And yeah that’s the only con about UT for me. I’d need at least some scholarship money</p>
<p>Austin is no country scene if that’s what you’re expecting. The UT campus is in the middle of Austin which is very much a city scene. While there are places to eat and shop that have live music playing, you will have to take a bus to get to Lake Austin to do any sort of kayaking or such. UT is a stone’s throw away from downtown as well, so it’s not a typical Southern-feeling campus. It is also a very liberal college in relation to other southern colleges.</p>
<p>UT has not scholarships to boast of in or out of state. If you can get a scholarship, then they remove the OOS portion of it but I understand there are very few given.</p>
<p>I currently attend UT, and I grew up in AL so I can help you with those. I don’t know anything about SC. UT in my opinion is not very country at all. Austin definitely has a city vibe and doesn’t seem very country to me. That doesn’t mean you won’t be able to find like-minded people. There are lots of outdoor activities in Austin though.
Alabama is much more country and you will definitely have no problem finding pick-up truck culture there. From what I’ve heard, they are much more generous with scholarships there. I think the fraternities and sororities can be a little preppy, but I’m not entirely sure on that. U of A is in Tuscaloosa which is a typical college town, and there is not a big city vibe there so you might like that.
Hope that helped!</p>
<p>I grew up in Alabama and have lived in Austin for a long time. Austin is not at all country. Alabama is and probably South Carolina.</p>
<p>South Carolinian here!</p>
<p>Since nobody else seems to know, USC is a pretty good school. It’s in one of the largest cities in the state (which doesn’t mean much considering the size of Columbia). The school is in the middle of downtown and the students are relatively country. The urban setting of the school separates it a lot from other schools that would be out in the country, but you’ll still find a somewhat large number of ‘Southerners’. I can’t speak for UT or Bama, but USC is considered one of the best, commonly attended schools in our state. Along with Clemson, a lot of bright students tend to go there. </p>
<p>The environment is definitely urban, but Columbia is not overwhelmingly large or full of people. </p>
<p>Best of luck with your choice.</p>
<p>Ok you guys all helped since I haven’t gotten the chance to visit anywhere but UT, so thank you very much!! :)</p>
<p>Parent of a freshman attending U of South Carolina in Columbia, with home state in Florida…he turned down FSU and UF and absolutely loves it, but he is a Music major which is its own special enclave in some ways. In general the answer is, it depends. If you have a solid idea of what you want to do/major in, that’s a huge help because you can look at each school’s programs in depth - sure rankings are part of the mix, but also look at the school’s level of commitment to that major (are the resources state-of-the-art, etc), what other students say about it, and where graduates end up. For example SC has an outstanding business and nursing program, but others might stronger in engineering or agriculture. If you’re undecided, it’s best to visit each campus and get the “vibe” directly…</p>
<p>I want to major in marketing, but for USC I decided to apply for the international business program because that’s what it’s known for. I got accepted into IB and into their honors. For UA I got into honors, and I’m still waiting to hear from UT. UT is by far #1 academically, then USC is probably second and UA last. I know business is important at all three, probably more so at UT and USC.</p>
<p>Hopefully I can help out a little! Well my two choices are either UT or Bama. I live in Texas so I have instate tuition at UT and then at bama I have a full tuition scholarship from my ACT score. I visited both campuses and love them both. UT is much more diverse, only like 50% white I think, and has a much more liberal feel to it. Academics are better at UT and I feel there is a lot more to do in Austin than in Tuscaloosa. The campus at UT was really nice I thought, but it didnt have much empty grass. When I visited the University of Alabama I loved it. It was such a beautiful campus with a lot of green areas. Also, bama has a lot of really new buildings. The older ones are nice also. The campus is bigger at Bama and more spread out. Another thing the really impressed me was the greek housing at Alabama. Sorority houses were right next to the football stadium and fraternity houses were right on campus also. There were many new fraternity and sorority houses and they were all so huge and nice. Bama definitely has a more southern feel than UT, something that I really liked so you should definitely visit it!! Sorry that was so long haha but hopefully it was helpful! I’m with you on deciding on a college…Good Luck!</p>
<p>Thank you so much Cd1994, that was really helpful 
UT does seem like it would be a better fit for me because it’s such a diverse and interesting place, but like you said, there’s just this feeling that Bama gives you. I really do want to experience that southern feel too that you talked about since I’ve lived on the East Coast my entire life. I’m planning on visiting UA soon, so hopefully that will help me decide! Arg this is hard. Thank you so much again!</p>
<p>Austin has an amazing music scene, if you’re looking for that! There’s so many different people and you’re bound to find someone you mesh with What major are you looking in to?</p>
<p>If you go to Austin, expect it to take time to find your niche. There are bound to be people like you at the school, but with 8000+ per class, there is no real way to find them.</p>
<p>@natalie9494 The music scene is one of the biggest draws for me! I love the vibe of Austin & its music scene, and how carefree and lively it is! I want to major in marketing, but since McCombs is hard to get into for an out-of-state student, I chose public relations as my second choice. I actually liked the communications school better than McCombs when I visited anyway, but I know marketing is the more practical major, especially with the cost of attending UT</p>
<p>@sunshine341 have you heard from UT yet? My son is from iOS and got accepted to Advertising program on jan 29. He also got accepted to UA Honors with scholarship but UT has such a better reputation academically that I think he will choose UT. Good luck.</p>
<p>Yeah I found out I got into McCombs at the end of January! I’m just waiting to hear back on scholarships & aid, since I know I’m definitely not going there if I have to pay $50,000 plus airfare every semester</p>