OOS UNT Fan Considering Attending...Questions

ascalice · April 18, 2017

Hello everyone! I am not sure if this is a good place to ask these questions, but if you can answer them, please answer. I am a high school student from New York who recently became a Mean Green fan. I would like to become a teacher in the Metroplex, and I think UNT may be my best option. UT Dallas doesn't seem as active as Denton and they don't have a football team, and SMU and TCU are way too expensive. In case you were wondering, I also did look at SUNY schools, but I do not want to have to go to 6 years of school, which the state of NY requires. Plus I think that a composite science certification from UNT will be better for job searching here in Texas. Anyways, here are my questions:

1. How are the on campus dorms? They seem nice, and I would like to at least live my freshman year on campus, if accepted. It doesn't seem UNT is a commuter school either, because a decent percentage of students do live on campus and Denton is a fun town.

2. How is on campus food? I would definately have to get the unlimited 7 day meal plan with Flex bucks if I attend here.

3. How are the education and science programs here in your opinion?

4. I did not see UNT on the list of colleges where students could get a discounted DART pass. I would definately like to be able to take DCTA and DART into Downtown Dallas. Does anyone know if the pass is discounted?

Thanks for the help!

Zeleny' Orel · April 18, 2017

1 hour ago, ascalice said:

Hello everyone! I am not sure if this is a good place to ask these questions, but if you can answer them, please answer. I am a high school student from New York who recently became a Mean Green fan. I would like to become a teacher in the Metroplex, and I think UNT may be my best option. UT Dallas doesn't seem as active as Denton and they don't have a football team, and SMU and TCU are way too expensive. In case you were wondering, I also did look at SUNY schools, but I do not want to have to go to 6 years of school, which the state of NY requires. Plus I think that a composite science certification from UNT will be better for job searching here in Texas. Anyways, here are my questions:

1. How are the on campus dorms? They seem nice, and I would like to at least live my freshman year on campus, if accepted. It doesn't seem UNT is a commuter school either, because a decent percentage of students do live on campus and Denton is a fun town.

2. How is on campus food? I would definately have to get the unlimited 7 day meal plan with Flex bucks if I attend here.

3. How are the education and science programs here in your opinion?

4. I did not see UNT on the list of colleges where students could get a discounted DART pass. I would definately like to be able to take DCTA and DART into Downtown Dallas. Does anyone know if the pass is discounted?

Thanks for the help!

I will let a current student or more recent alum answer your questions, but I am curious on how you became a Mean Green fan all the way in New York.

Stix · April 18, 2017

Greetings - I grew up in Stony Brook, and I still have family there.

If you plan to relocate to DFW, and not just go to school here, then it makes no sense to get a degree from a SUNY school. You might look into what the requirements are to get Texas residency to be able to get in-state tuition for the rest of your college career. Long ago, it was something like living here a year while taking 6 or less credits a semester; I don't know what the requirements are now.

As North Texas started in 1890 as a "Normal School", and has had an excellent College of Education ever since, it would be your best choice over the other schools in the DFW area. Of course, those of us on GoMeanGreen.com are going to be biased in favor of our alma mater no matter what. :)

Yes, current students and recent grads would give you better answers to your specific questions. And I too am curious on how you became a Mean Green fan all the way in New York - assuming you're not a jazz musician.

Edited April 18, 2017 by Stix

Tyler Maryak · April 18, 2017

1. I stayed at Mozart and my RA from there is now the Hall Director at the newest dorm, Rawlins Hall. I thought Mozart was nice, but Rawlins is out of this world. I'll hit you with the real-real too, though. There were rooms in some halls that weren't up to code. For instance, they had to remove counter-top stoves from Santa Fe rooms because there weren't adequate safety features. It's true that today's dorms are way nicer than in the old days, so UNT is having to do a lot of catch-up to get up to snuff, but if you get in early enough and get a hall like Rawlins then you'll love it.

2. The meal plan rocks if you eat in the dorms twice a day or so. Make it a thing to try the various cafeterias with your friends (UNT has 5 or 6, so there is tons of variety). Enjoy the hell outta Kerr's late night cafeteria for...whatever reason you're there late at night.

3. Literally all of my friends who got their teaching degree/cert from UNT are employed in ISDs they love. When you're a teacher, I'm not sure you can ask for much more than that. Science is hit-or-miss, from my experience/knowledge. If you want to be a teacher, though, then I think you'll be fine. P.S. definitely

4. IDK how much time you've spent in DFW, but public transportation around here sucks a big one compared to NY, DC, etc. It's getting better, particularly in Dallas, but I would be careful not to overestimate the value of a public transportation pass around here. Make friends with someone who has a car and their parent's credit card.

Other than that, I hope you come to North Texas and love it! You get out of the college experience what you put into it. Hopefully we'll be putting a football (and other sports) product on the field that you'll enjoy watching. We look forward to having you and Go Mean Green!

Rudy · April 19, 2017

I stayed in Kerr from 1997-2000. I enjoyed it, but I've heard different reviews recently. The "commuter school" moniker is false. Most of the students live in dorms, or in apartments within walking distance of campus. I'm not sure if DART gives discounts for students, but I think monthly passes are around $25. If you plan to ride a lot, it's worth it. Downtown Dallas is alright. You can right to the door of the AAC for Mavs and Stars games. You can also ride into Deep Ellum. I'm afraid The West End has died and won't be coming back. The dorm food used to be good, it still may be. I miss those square cheese pizzas. Don't forget to venture to Whataburger for late night foodie calls. NT has a good education department. I got my degree in Kinesiology. I think NT has a good science department. There used to be an instructor that was supposedly a rockstar in the field. I think his name was Gil-King. I know he thought his shit didn't stink.

Edited April 19, 2017 by Rudy

TheTastyGreek · April 19, 2017

Building on what Stix said, enrolling as a resident vs. a non-resident will save you about half or more of the potential cost for tuition and fees.

Here's a link to UNT's official site that talks about residency: http://registrar.unt.edu/transcripts-and-records/residency-information

...and here's a brief summary from another school's site that lays out what it takes:

Quote

A citizen, national or a permanent resident of the United States, who is independent 18 years of age or over and who has lived in Texas for 12 consecutive months and has been gainfully employed within the state prior to enrollment in an institution of higher education is entitled to be classified as a resident of Texas. As an independent student, your parents should not claim you on their federal income tax return for tax purposes for the previous year and the current year.

It can be a lot for a fresh high school graduate to move across the country to an unfamiliar place, work, and make a healthy and happy go of things without the structure and support of a traditional college experience right away. But, if you think you're up to it, you can save yourself a substantial amount of money.

Specifically, I'd suggest spending a year with a part time job and as many credit hours as you think you can handle at one of the DCCCD campuses. All of them should have clear transfer policies established with UNT, and an advisor on either the UNT or DCCCD end can give you a very clear plan for what will transfer without hassle, saving you even more money on your ultimate degree cost.

If you're comfortable with public transport, every campus in the DCCCD system is served by DART bus. North Lake in Irving actually has a dedicated DART rail stop, so you could find somewhere to live on the Orange Line and just rail over directly every time you have class. If you can do at least two courses per semester, you should be eligible for a DART GoPass, which means you ride for free.

DCCCD main page: https://www.dcccd.edu/Pages/default.aspx

DART GoPass page: https://www.dcccd.edu/services/OnlineServices/Discounts/Pages/DARTGoPass.aspx

DCCCD tuition calculator: https://www.dcccd.edu/pc/Cost/Tuition/Pages/TuitionCalc.aspx#in-county

UNT tuition calculator: http://studentaccounting.unt.edu/traditional-tuition-plan-calculator

Just to put a number on it, if you average 15 hours a semester... The difference in tuition and fees between being a Texas resident and a non-resident at UNT is a little over $10,000 per year. And a full year (to establish residency) with you taking courses at a DCCCD campus would save around $8-9k in tuition and fees compared to what the year would cost you at UNT, even as a Texas resident.

So, if you can make it work for a year and a day, you should be able to save enough to buy a decent used car and get yourself around Denton after establishing residency and enrolling at UNT. And you'd have a good chunk of your basic courses out of the way at a radically reduced rate.

Hope this helps.

ascalice · April 19, 2017

Thanks for the help everyone! I found out about UNT just through research. I originally really wanted to attend the University of Texas or Texas A&M. One thing about those two, is that they are expensive and are not the most generous universities with scholarships. And let's be honest, I am really not going into a field where the college matters. If I were majoring in accounting or finance, then maybe the extra $$ for UT would have been worth it if I was even accepted into McCombs School of Business. So I looked around Texas, and found many good colleges in Texas. Like a previous poster said, it would be worthless to get my tracking certification in New York, then come down to live and work here in Dallas. I looked around Texas, and I am also looking into other Texas publics, specifically Texas State in San Marcos and University of Houston. But of those, I think UNT is my favorite.

This summer, I am going to fly down into DFW and not only take an official tour of UNT, but also tour UT, A&M, TX State, and UH. I think UNT is my top choice, but I just want to see if I really enjoy it or not before applying this fall.

I visited Ohio State a few weeks ago, but while it was a very good school, Ohio just seemed like a very boring place outside of Columbus.