UTD or UH or Texas Tech?

DS has admission to all of these colleges for Mechanical Engineering. He has a $6000 scholarship at University of Houston and no scholarship yet at UTD or TT. Is there any compelling reason to still choose UTD/TT over UH? He is flexible to join any of these three, but as a parent, I need some help to figure out if there are any compelling reasons to pay the extra money to attend UTD/TT if that will secure his future. I am willing to pay the extra money if there are good reasons. I appreciate any help that you can provide.

Not that I know of. UH has a great engineering program, great facilities and now a very good football program if your son likes football.

Are you familiar with Houston, Dallas and Lubbock? Houston and Dallas are, of course, huge cities; Lubbock is a small city (I went to Tech years ago). Tech is the only one of these three that would be what you would consider a “traditional” college campus, i.e. students living on campus, all the “extracurricular” activities of a Big 12 school, etc. That being said, and even though I’m a Tech grad, Lubbock is very small-town compared to Houston and Dallas. UTD has on-campus housing, but it is a much smaller school and the campus (from what I recall) is very small and almost business-park-like. It doesn’t have the football team and other activities like Tech and UH. UH has had the reputation of being a commuter school with mostly kids from the Houston area who drive to campus but don’t live on campus. I think UH has tried the past few years to become a more traditional campus.

If you are familiar with the three cities, then you’re probably right to choose the scholarship at UH; if you aren’t familiar, then you should really try to visit because these are three really different schools.

Have you visited all three schools? Their setting are all very different.

UTD has really worked on building a residential community from what I’ve been told.

Look at 4-6 year graduation rates for these schools,. Another factor could be which schools accept any AP credit your son might have. And I would research the career centers. UTD and UH might offer more internships because of their locations in big cities.

I don’t t believe UTD has sent out AES scholarships yet. That may make a difference. Dorms are the best I have seen.

Thanks a lot for the information. I am yet to visit the schools and will be visiting in the next couple of weeks. I am familiar with Dallas and Houston, but have not been to Lubbock yet. I called UTD and they said that AES scholarships for students admitted before end of November was sent before Christmas. My son got his admission early November.

I would be hesitant wrt to UH unless you live in Houston and your child planned on commuting. It’s heavily commuter (over 80%) which means it’s harder to set up study groups, etc, and the atmosphere on campus is closer to what you’d find at a HS (go to class, take notes, go home).
On a college campus, students learn how to live on their own, they handle more complex social interactions, they manage their own space and time, in ways commuting doesn’t allow. In addition, a residential campus typically leads to more engaged students and it’s easier to organize study groups or take advantage of the myriad opportunities you’ll find on campus, especially in the evenings (and which you pay for, whether or not your child chooses to avail himself of these opportunities.) Joining clubs and participating in activities can also make the difference between a strong resume and a typical one, between finding an internship or not, etc. A study has shown that students who live on campus have better grades, are more involved, and have an overall more satisfying experience than students who don’t. If commuting is what you have to do (costs, family…) then it’s fine, but it’s not optimal in terms of adolescent growth.
Finally, there’s no need to decide right now. Wait for financial aid packages to arrive to see whether any other school is affordable. (Rule of thumb: cheapest is not always best - but debt should be limited to the federal loans no matter what.)
Of the three, I’d go with Texas Tech or, depending on major, UTDallas which has done a great job becoming more residential. Obviously it depends on your financial circumstances.

Lubbock is pretty dead, your son probably will not have much fun there.

UH is slowly building up it’s reputation and has recently become a Tier one research uni. UTDallas however is known for it’s rigorous coursework, if you care more about academics go to UTD. It’s pretty nerdy and geeky, not really a place if your son has an equal interest in the humanities. UH is really diverse and not stereotyped. HOWEVER, since he’s received a 6k scholarship, go to UH. I would say it’s a better place for internships since Houston is a huge, busy city.

I disagree that UH is difficult to set up study groups when you’re living on campus. Maybe the percentage of students living on campus is smaller than other colleges, but there are still 8000 students living on campus. UH also has dedicated honors college housing which is seems like your child may qualify for. I work in industry in the Houston area and know many good engineers from UH. I don’t think TT has any alumni advantage of UH and I don’t think I’ve ever met an engineering graduate from UTD. UT Austin and TAMU are a different story. I would definitely take the scholarship and go to UH.

jerzmaster, you realize that UTD was set up as a stem school for Texas Instruments, right? Until recently it was known as a commuter school for engineers and it’s only relatively recently it’s been trying to become less commuter-oriented and have a broader base of appeal. The McDermott Scholars program is terrific.
I agree that Honors Housing at UH would decrease the downsides.

OP: what are the net costs at each?

MYOS1634: The yearly instate cost is around $23,000 at UTD as well as UH. Have a couple of questions for you as he is my first son and I am learning:

  1. Could you explain in detail about your rule of thumb?
  2. He is going to apply to Honors. Chances are 50/50. What is the advantage of honors housing?

Also, my main focus is to select a college that will give him the best chance of landing a job after he finishes his undergrad. If going to any of the three colleges have a significantly better chance of securing a good job (assuming he does well in college which I confident), then I am willing to spend the extra bucks irrespective of the scholarship.

You guys are so helpful. Thanks a bunch!

The college doesn’t lead to a job per se. What matters is 1° college resources and 2° opportunities offered.
Being in the Honors college means immediate access to all opportunities, priority access to professors/classes, etc. It makes a huge difference if the Honors college is good (which is why I spoke of UTD, because their Honors College is very good). Honors Housing ensures that all students are in college to learn and succeed, whereas in typical dorms you will find freshmen running wild. If he can’t get Honors dorm he should request either a Quiet Floor (to ensure no one will blare music at 1 am on the day before he has an exam) or a Substance-free/Healthy floor (to ensure a certain level of concentration.)
A residential campus will have 90%+ students on campus. It means programming, conferences, speakers, film series, all kinds of things that matter to growing up,developing taste, becoming “educated”. These elements are essential parts of college and more than once will make a difference in someone’s life, during an interview, etc. It also means more cohesion through common experiences, better alumni networks, etc. Students aren’t just going to class, taking notes, going home - like an extension of high school. Their college has its own culture and participates in their growth. That’s why TAMU and UT students are so rabid about their respective universities :D.
When 80% students commute, it’s harder to set up study groups because the kids in your class aren’t there, they’re “home”. It doesn’t mean the school is bad. Honors Housing seeks to offset this by placing all the students together, creating the bonding experience I spoke of.
I would recommend your son ask admissions if he can do an overnight - spending a night in a freshman dorm, hanging out with current students, eating in the cafeteria, reading the student paper (to get an idea of how articulate the students are, what ideas agitate campus, what is going on in terms of activities/performances/lectures/films…), and attending three classes: a “regular” gen ed class, a freshman honors class, and a class in a subject he’s interested in. (For instance, a premed would attend a random large lecture class, the Honors Freshman English class, and a Calculus 1 class.) Contact Honors and see if they can schedule a tour for you. Do this at all three universities. Compare impressions about classes, tour, student behavior, preparation; facilities, including in the area of interest and the career center; writing center/math center (hours, tutors, process) and other resources on campus; conversations (a good question to ask around campus: what do you typically do on Wednesdays?.. if the answer is “party”, bad news.)
All three universities are pretty different. All could potentially offer excellent opportunities, but they would all offer very different experiences. A “good fit” makes it easier to succeed.

Thank you. It really helped get a good perspective.

Son got Merit to UTD— would like to hear about your experience at UTD

@brr77777 what school is your son currently attending?

My best friend goes to UH, and I hear horror stories, She grew up in DFW like me, and cannot get used to the difference between Dallas and Houston. Dallas is a clean, relatively safe city, with tons of opportunities. Meanwhile, she is constantly terrified for her life in Houston. She tells me that she tries not to leave campus at night since there are men right outside who harass students and people get mugged quite often on the streets. Houston is definitely not as safe or as nice as Dallas. Furthermore, the dorms at UTD are amazing, like wow. Also, UTD sends out scholarship info a little bit later, but they are known for giving out copious amounts of money. So unless your son wants an internship with NASA or another Houston based company, I would say go with UTD.

UTD is too expensive … it’s the most expensive public school in Texas. UTD is a good school but I feel people on CC over exaggerate how good it is. And yes UTD dorms are very nice but you’re paying a lot for them. And UTD isn’t even in Dallas, it’s in a far north suburb.

UH is more cost efficient, offers all the great amenities of a major city (centrally located), and is a quality school on the rise.

Also look into UT Arlington and its honors college benefits

Out of all of these schools, Texas Tech will offer the most traditional college experience. Lubbock is not exactly the most amazing town on the planet but it is a college town and lots of kids embrace a very typical college experience there with football, campus clubs, etc. It is not a commuter school.

I have no experience with U of H and really none with UTD. I’ve heard UTD is really trying to fix their commuter school image but don’t really know what that looks like. UT Arlington will be a mix of traditional and commuter school image but they too have done a LOT to fix the commuter issue. There is a heavy international presence which some students are looking for. They give amazing merit. We know lots of students going there for almost free.

Do you know how all of these schools admit students to their specific engineering major? That should factor into the final decision as well.