People of El Paso (fit in, transfer to, school)

[ernieb]

I am considering attending UTEP, how would you describe the environment of the university? Are the people in and around the school friendly or do you think being a caucasian minority might make for an unpleasnat expierence in that part of Texas. Please help, thanks!

[Muhnay]

Originally Posted by ernieb

I am considering attending UTEP, how would you describe the environment of the university? Are the people in and around the school friendly or do you think being a caucasian minority might make for an unpleasnat expierence in that part of Texas. Please help, thanks!

check some of the other post here, this has been covered in great detail in this area. I think you'll get the answers your after with just a bit of research in this forum area. good luck.

[malamute]

Maybe it depends on what courses you're taking but there are even hispanics who are going to NMSU because they don't feel they fit with the very Mexican environment of UTEP. Many classes are in Spanish and even the ones that are supposed to be in English will switch over to Spanish.

I wouldn't go out of my way to go to UTEP -- but if you're already in the area and it's the closest commute then it might be okay.

[malamute]

Originally Posted by ernieb

I am considering attending UTEP

I like El Paso --- so don't get me wrong -- but the culture is quite different -- and you have to be aware of that aspect. It isn't that it's unfriendly but people from other places don't always fit in or feel they fit in.

The weather is always great. You can't beat the turquoise sky in summer. Sometimes there's a feel of living in a much smaller town in part because you're the minority. It can be interesting if you've never been a minority to suddenly feel what that's like. Not really an outcast but not really a part of the bigger group.

[malamute]

A former co-worker of mine who actually is half hispanic but American in culture and appearance found it interesting after leaving town because she said for the first time in her life she wasn't called an "anglo" all the time.

She said she never really noticed that until she left -- she had never been aware that she was always an "anglo" or called a guera (blond) by those assuming she wasn't hispanic because she didn't speak Spanish and was fair. She says she won't be coming back because she preferred not feeling like a minority and having the constant reminders she wasn't Mexican enough -- yet others who speak no Spanish don't really find this a problem.

[ernieb]

Originally Posted by malamute

Maybe it depends on what courses you're taking but there are even hispanics who are going to NMSU because they don't feel they fit with the very Mexican environment of UTEP. Many classes are in Spanish and even the ones that are supposed to be in English will switch over to Spanish.

I wouldn't go out of my way to go to UTEP -- but if you're already in the area and it's the closest commute then it might be okay.

So lets say I register for a class in accounting which should obviously be taught in english, is the teacher going to all of a sudden start teaching in spanish for the whole semester? Because i dont speak a lick of spanish and that will be a major problem if these classes are all being taught in spanish lol

[Muhnay]

It has happened.

[malamute]

Originally Posted by ernieb

So lets say I register for a class in accounting which should obviously be taught in english, is the teacher going to all of a sudden start teaching in spanish for the whole semester? Because i dont speak a lick of spanish and that will be a major problem if these classes are all being taught in spanish lol

I know of English speaking hispanics who even speak some Spanish but not much who switched over to NMSU for that reason. They would sign up for a class in English, they said the same course would be offered in Spanish but the Mexicans from Juarez will sign up for courses taught in English because apparently it looks better on paper to take those, then because most the class understands better in Spanish the instructor would switch over to that. And even it the lectures continue in English, the questions and answers are done in Spanish which can be less helpful to those who would like to hear those in English.

Depending on your reasons for wanting UTEP, it's just something to consider. If I was choosing, I'd at least pick a location which gave me the option to transfer to the other. It's not too bad of a commute.

And again -- a lot depends on the individual and what they want. Some people are perfectly happy going to UTEP and don't mind the language thing. You can get by in English and if you don't mind the fact that most conversations are going to be in Spanish then it's okay.

[holmes]

I attended UTEP for two years a while back and I never encountered any class being taught in spanish or having the professor address the students in spanish. I doubt things have changed that drastically since then..

[lipbalm]

Depends on what type of degree you are looking for. I have a degree in Engineering from UTEP and it has served me, and all of my friends form school very well. The vast majority of my graduating class are very succesfull in their careers right now working for major corporations throughout the country.