The University of Texas - Arlington

Date: Sep 30 2015
Major: Aerospace Engineering (This Major's Salary over time)
Okay, I would like to preface this review by acknowledging my own responsibility in the decision to attend UTA. I went there because of the financial aspects. I had many other options, but in the end I got cheap. I choose to go there, I paid nothing for it, and had great internships at nearby companies. The saying

you get what you pay for

does apply here absolutely. The place is a cesspool. Of course there are some great departments, like Aerospace for example.

With that out of the way I have to emphasize just how bad most things are. Most of your core classes are filled to the brim with people who will attend briefly and drop. Signing up for classes is a downright rat race. Ironically the race to register is really unnecessary since most students won't survive to take mid terms. The professors/lecturers for most core classes absolutely do not want to be there with some exceptions. I would've taken these classes at a nearby community college if they weren't already paid for. These classes seem vindictive in nature. I remember taking an intro to History class that required 4 textbooks. The amount of reading was out of sync with reality. These intro classes seemed overall a way to eliminate students while siphoning their funds. I did not fall victim, but it was a significant waste of time that detracted from my major studies.

As far as the students go, well… Do not come here expecting to live the college lifestyle, because it is simply not possible. Sure there are some attractive students, but they are jaded. I don't blame them either, I became jaded myself. I dated a biology major briefly, and she was so upset over her classes that she actually went into a full blown depression. Cute girl, but the establishment ruined her. Really the reason I am taking the time to write this is to stop people from making the mistakes I did. I became complacent, and did things the easy way. In the end I was deprived a college experience.

Also the counselors and administrative faculty, I can't stress this enough. The mass majority of them are unprofessional. They even hassled me about CLEP tests. They behaved as if I was doing something dishonest by trying to achieve college credit via testing. I eventually found a nice adviser and stuck with her, but without her I might have simply given up. Though I personally didn't have any transfer credits, I've heard second hand that it's an absolute nightmare.

Parking; Yes, what you've read is true. It's a total mess, and your car will likely be dinged to hell. I even purchased myself a beater for the sole purpose of commuting here.

Positives: I have to give credit where credit is due. The speaker series is great. You get free admission as a student, or at least you used to if things have changed. I took full advantage of this, and it was definitely worth my while.

Bottom line is, if you can afford to go somewhere else do so. I'm attending a Masters program elsewhere and it's a night and day difference. Also I by no means want this to be a blanket statement about UTA. There are quality people there, but they are vastly outnumbered by less than mediocre employees who appear to be simply cashing a check.