We went to three universities over four days. University of Texas at Austin was first (we were there specifically to look at the Cockrell Engineering School, which is number 5 in the nation.) If you are considering some South Texas Colleges and are looking for a university to go with a kid who has passions for activism, this is a great school to consider. If you have a kid that is used to more structure and has a deep urge to serve their country in a first responder (or faith) position, this might not be your school.
There are many notable points that stood out: They compost their paper towels (I thought that was pretty neat.) They have the option for trash as "recycling" or "landfill" (Which I thought was a good idea for kids to think about. Exactly where is your empty water bottle going?) and we experienced our first "inclusive" bathroom, for any student in need of the facilities. This campus spans 40 acres. There is a ROTC program and a veterans office (if you have served and are using your GI bill.) There are scooters owned by the campus, to get around on instead of busses. You can get around to wherever you need to, without a car. However, we found the campus kind of sterile. And although we met some great people (including an admin on the dean's floor and the Veteran's administrator, where we got some great information), and in the moment we thought we really liked it (until we went to some other universities.) Because of the liberal lean of both the campus and the surrounding city, it ended up being removed from our potential school list. It just wasn't a good fit for us. This was a hard realization for me because: my late, best friend from my childhood, went here. I know she was rooting for this university. Sorry, Pepper. You are still my favorite person ever, but we aren't going to be fellow Longhorns.
Yes. It's THAT tower.
The next college we visited was Baylor University, in Waco. Holy Mackerel! Do they have a beautiful campus! This is a private Christian university where the yearly cost is about $45,000. Over twice as much as the state colleges. We'd definitely need some scholarships lined up for this school. But the plethora of churches on campus, the relaxed campus vibe and the amazing amount of tech in their library, was more our style. My grandfather did some graduate work at this campus in the 60's. It was fun to see my mom recognize the buildings and take a trip down memory lane. She was about ten when: she, her parents and two of her brothers, lived in the married student housing. (I have a son who is interested in ministry, so this was a much better fit.)
They raised over a billion dollars last year from alumni and have added a lot of new scholarships.
I think this is the most beautiful campus I've ever been on.
The last college that we visited was Texas A&M at College Station. Another beautiful, ginormous campus, but this one was more dynamic and spirit led, with their: twelfth man, student body identity. During football games the students are required to wear a uniform and there is no sitting during the game. They also lock arms and sway to the "war song" which was penned by a college student in WWI, while he was pinned down in foxholes. He recorded the song in snippets on the backs of letters from home. This school was 100 years old in the 1970's. This was also originally a military college. You are required to remove your hat inside buildings. They have a strong ROTC program and almost everything on campus was pro military. The ROTC program had their own building instead of a small office in the parking garage (That's where Baylor's is.) For my kids, who are right leaning and from a very structured life experience, this school had a very different and more welcoming feel than UT had. A&M has a super cohesive student body identity, even with 70,000 students. I am also very well versed with their agriculture department. If you haven't noticed: I get most of my local info on gardening from TAMU (they run all of the Texas county extension offices.) I've even had questions (that I'd sent to my local extension office) taken up the ladder, to university professors, because the question was complex. I was really impressed with that. BTW this was a beautiful area surrounding the school, too. I might retire here. Much wetter than San Antonio, with beautiful pastures of lush grass. It looks like the perfect place to garden. It reminded me of the prairie states (but hotter!)
So, both my boys are in agreement on the universities they are interested in, and in the same order: Air Force Academy is number one. Then comes Baylor. Then A&M.
If you have a student entering their senior year, don't skip the campus tours of universities they are interested in. We were quite surprised at our reaction to each campus we visited. Crazy amount of walking and sketchy hotels, but definitely worth the trip!
Meet you out on the college campus, for a tour.
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