Texas State Univ. vs. UTSA? Which is better? (Austin: 2013, lawyers)

[texan55]

Texas state is definitely a party school. It's great, send her there she'll enjoy it.

[the minx]

I went to Texas State a few years ago. I also started a master's program there. It is NOT the party school people make it out to be. Every school has parties, TxSt is no different, but it is not the Animal House of state universities.

I loved the campus and the people were really friendly. If they offered the program I am currently in, I would have earned my grad degree there.

[Jbow32]

UTSA probably has a better long term outlook if she wants equity in her degree in the years to come. Tx State is a great party school and if she enjoys a great party she can get a good degree and alot of late-night memories.

[Bo]

Originally Posted by txstate

UTSA is a nice commuter school way out there on 1604

...and downtown. It has two campuses.

[ardamir]

Graduated from Texas State and am currently enrolled at UTSA.

If I had to compare the two, I would select Texas State but it comes down to what your kids wants to major in. UTSA has a much much stronger biology program whereas Texas State has a stronger liberal arts school.

[The Black Irish]

Even though I am drunk right now I'd go with TX State. I went there and graduated awhile back. Received a great education and met some great folks. And the bars are now open until 2 AM! But it is not a party school FYI.....wait yes it is. Hell, any college is a party school.

[herfyjo]

I think it's safe to say that any school is a party school. Kids are at frat parties, house parties, clubs and sneaking stuff in dorms. It happens now and it happened when I went to school (a looong time ago). But in between the partying there is usually some classroom time and occasional studying.

Do either of the schools have a large number of huge classes with hundreds of students? Are there a lot of TA's teaching? Does either school appeal to employers more on a resume? Etc, etc, etc. Thanks!

[The Black Irish]

Agreed. I partied but never missed a class While I was in San Marcos my biggest class was about 250-300 students. But the enrollment has increased since early 2000. My degree was in Liberal Arts and I never had a TA teaching, ever. It was always the professors. Sidenote-Herbert's Taco Hut is the best Mexican food I have ever had on a college budget.

[L210]

For the kind of degrees your daughter is looking at, she'll probably only get employment with the government and the government is not as picky when it comes to schools attended. The government is even accepting of online, for-profit schools. They kind of have to be accepting of all schools because the USDOE is responsible for recognizing the accreditors that accredit these schools. Actually, all law enforcement jobs are with the government. If she wants to get into intelligence, a military or civilian government job will probably be her only way to a security clearance because private companies find it too expensive to sponsor. International relations, political science, security studies, language, and regional studies are the preferred degrees for intelligence, not CJ. Once she gets a clearance and experience, government contractors really won't care where she went to school.

State and local law enforcement definitely do not care where you went to school. Most state and local LE agencies only require an associate's degree or less anyway. The FBI is currently not seeking criminal justice degrees, so anyone with one will be dumped into the "diversified" category with all of the other majors they aren't seeking. You'll still have a slim chance of getting hired, but you won't be competitive like the computer science, business, and law majors. Other federal LE agencies do have a preference for criminal justice degrees, though.

Other than the government, pretty much only non-profit organizations and insurance companies seek out criminal justice majors. Sometimes private security companies have management openings asking for CJ degrees, but those are hard to come by. An international relations degree is pretty much the same. It really only applies to government work, but NGOs and international businesses are possible options.

[westhou]

Originally Posted by herfyjo

To L210 - Never heard of the security majors but I will talk to her about it. Sounds like it's in the same general field she's looking at. One of her other interests is foreign languages which she feels would fit well with any of these major choices. She has taken three languages in school and does well. She is going to choose one to focus on in college as a minor.

We just visited Texas State and found it to be a lovely campus. They have some solid programs for freshmen including the residential college. It seemed pretty self-contained and did give that traditional college feel. We are trying to plan a trip to UTSA soon. She is not sure about SHSU because although she knows they have a great program, everyone tells her it's mostly a commuter school.

Thank you to everyone who has replied. It is very helpful!

It's odd you see SHSU as a commuter school but not UTSA. I'd imagine more people in San Antonio would commute to UTSA which is in San Antonio compared to people commuting from Houston all the way up to SHSU in Huntsville.