<p>Hi im transferring to one of these schools in the spring of 2013 and i cant make up my mind on which one. I currently live in college station and go to blinn cc and im majoring in poly sci. I like college station and tamu but i would prefer austin and i think that UT would have a better program for liberal arts. </p>
<p>Both are great schools and i really like the spirit of a&m but not the location but austin is farther away from home and i would have to get to know new friends. </p>
<p>I was wondering if anyone could get me any idea of what the community is like in austin and the overall feel of living there because i already know a&m is really tight but im alittle worried about the liberal arts program. </p>
<p>Well first thanks for the fast replies. I want to go into international relations and possibly go into a mpa program and learning another language is a possibly.</p>
<p>As an Aggie, I would recommend UT in this situation. A&M can stack up very well with almost any university in the country when it comes to Engineering/STEM/Business disciplines-but the humanities areas, generally, are stronger at UT. Plus, UT is in the capital of Texas, which is ideal for a Political Science major. And you like Austin more. Unless cost is a SIGNIFICANT factor, UT seems like the better choice for you.</p>
<p>You should really splurge and spend the time and money to visit Austin. Since you know TAMU well, you could make all the comparisons you need. </p>
<p>Fwiw, I would not pay much attention to the “rankings” of both schools for the specialty areas. Look at the post of Andy above mine. In the eyes of many, the strongest programs in Austin are exactly at McCombs and in the school of Engineering. On the other, I think that TAMU might be very good in Latin American studies, and hence in International Relations. </p>
<p>All in all, you should check the environment first, and then look at the different departments and the faculty that should or could teach you. UT has its share of lunatics, and if it is important to you, you might investigate the political climate and compare it to yours. UT and TAMU are not exactly the same in this regard. For a major in Political Sciences or Int Relations, the direction of the faculty might make your years pleasant or quite annoying. Since you mentioned grad school, I’d think that UT is a better choice at that level. </p>
<p>You have good choices, and cannot go wrong with either.</p>
<p>While i do like austin (because there is more to do) more the trouble ,i think, would be price of housing, the availability of housing on short notice(i move there some time in January) and the fact that i have only one friend that goes there. I guess my main issue is the feel and students and activities available in both towns. I like college station but i feel as if there is not too much exciting going on but maybe that’s because im not as involved with the main body of students on A&M and im not allowed to join any clubs since im at blinn</p>
<p>Xiggi, I agree that UT has better engineering and business schools than Tamu…I’m not arguing that.</p>
<p>The drop off between UT engineering and A&M engineering is much smaller ( almost negligible) than the drop off from humanities at UT to humanities at A&M. Most programs at UT are stronger than their counterparts at A&M, but that drop off is negligible with STEM and business programs ( not taking into account UT BHP, which arguably is as prestegious as an ivy degree when considering finance fields)</p>
<p>Btw, regardless of a schools general political leaning, professors in the humanities are almost ALWAYS going to be somewhat liberally leaning. Even at Tamu, in POLS classes</p>