Brownsville or Houston for a DWF UT Student? (San Antonio, Austin: sales, apartments)

[SouthernLady]

I will be attending The University of Texas School of Public Health (Masters) next spring2008 semester. Trying to decide which campus to choose. Am currently living in Orange County, CA, but am originally from Mississippi (so I know all about the skeeters, fire ants, humidity, and hurricanes).

The Houston campus is the main campus so it would probably be better than the Brownsville or San Antonio campus which are regional campuses.

UT-Houston School of Public Health (UTHSPH)

Brownsville Regional Campus
San Antonio Regional Campus
Austin Regional Campus
El Paso Regional Campus (some classes via TV)

I have been strongly considering Houston, but am sick of trying to figure out where I should live that is safe and the driving is not too bad. I used to live in Jackson, MS, where the crime is high and really do not want to go back into a high crime area. Of course, living in SoCal I am sick of the traffic. The traffic is so bad here, I don't even feel like going anywhere, so it would be nice to get away from that. I live 40 miles from downtown LA and have been there once since it takes like 2 hours to get there...

Anyhoo, I noticed that apartments are really cheap in Brownsville. Can I really expect to get a 1 br for 425 in a safe area (realizing I will prob be living closer to McAllen)? I am not doing the roommate thing again. Is food and gas cheaper there also? Electricity?

I have seen the posts that say Brownsville is not as desirable, but I would enjoy being around a more tropical area, the birding would be nice, and the beaches look wonderful (the beaches in SoCal are pretty but the water is too cold year round and the waves are too strong to actually ever get in the water).

I really need to live on the cheap, but wonder if the difference in the two cities (Houston and Brownsville) would be worth it. I am a massage therapist and can always work occasionally to make a little money, so maybe Houston would be worth it on that point, but if I can get by with just my student loans that would be nice.

I am a 41 y/o female, so I just want to relax and concentrate on my studies without having to worry about crime and bad traffic, etc.

Anyhoo, would appreciate anyone's input on this subject and to throw out some ideas for me.

[crbcrbrgv]

The potential culture shock alone makes the decision easy. Go to Houston. I live here and am originally from Chicago. I love it. I have also lived in the Brownsville area. Things are indeed cheaper in Brownsville, however if you are not accepting of a culture that is neither American or Mexican you may find yourself wishing you lived elsewhere rather quickly. There are plenty of safe areas in Houston and the Houston forum is a great place to start. And there is tons to do. There is a zoo, the beach and that's about it in Brownsville.

[RGV]

Hi SL,

If you find living by someone like me, a hispanic, a culture shock and undesireable, as we hear over and over again in other posts, than go to Houston.

However, I think Brownsville's a perfectly good place to live. I live in Houston now because that's where my job is. But I would move back to B'ville in a second if I could. Find a good neighberhood and you'll do fine.

There are plenty of things to do. There's lots of fishing and bird watching. Brownsville has a very nice city park just across from Glady's Porter Zoo which has local/community plays, the park also has a children's museum. And of course there's the Zoo itself.

South Padre Island in my opinion is the best beach in Texas. There's plenty of shopping in Brownsville, and McAllen's just 50 minutes away which has all the shopping you'll ever need. There's a very nice Simon Property Outlet Mall in Mercedes which is approximately 35 minutes from Brownsville which is actually expanding because of the high demand. Some like to go to the markets in Matamoros and Progreso, Mx.

There's also a schlitterbahn water park on SPI.

Corpus is just two hours to the North and they have a very nice aquarium and you can visit the aircraft carrier Lexington.

But, like I said before, if Hispanics like me make you cringe (like it seems to do to some others here) than probably Houston would be better. But remember there are some parts of Houston that look just like the poorest areas of the RGV, and they tend to be bigger and more violent.

Also, I've never felt that I have had to watch my back in Brownsville; but in Houston, you better know where you are, because some areas that don't look that bad can be gang infested, and these guys don't take prisoners.
There are one or two murders here every day if not more.

Good Luck and Adios (oops, that's Spanish, I think I just irritated some posters).

[loves2read]

First of all I have heard/read that rents in Brownsville are NOT cheap--housing market is one of the hottest in the country eventhough prices are low compared to other areas because of cheap land and labor--but that will change as the market intensifies (if it continues) and high home prices are usually reflected in high rents--it just may take a year to catch up...Personally I love San Antonio--grew up close to there and have a sister who lives there still--it is a vibrant, interesting city with many cultural opportunities, great restaurants, a fairly liveable city (although some people definitely would not agree) and it has from what I know a very viable health industry so that you probably could find employment there after graduation if you wanted...but that being said...

I think you need to look more closely at the reps of the different schools you might choose from--pick the campus that has the best teachers in your respective field--what aspect/specialization are you planning to focus on--which campus has the best funding/research/well-known voices in that area--which one offers the best connections for finding a job after graduation---has the most active alumni assoc which is very helpful in outreach/job search

research those factors before you worry about drive time and apartments....the decision will affect how your early entry into your profession goes and very likely your long-term prospects as well....you can make do with a environment that is maybe not exactly what you want I would think if you knew that the end result would guarantee a significant payoff...

if you choose a branch because of its location and come to find out that it is considered the runt of the litter so to speak, anyone in your field who is hiring will know that probably as well--and if you and someone from a higher-regarded branch (even someone with credentials that are not as good as yours) compete for a job--you are likely to lose out to someone from a school with a better rep---

that happens all the time with MA grads from other fields when their colleges that are not as well known or well-regarded in their fields of study---they might be great workers, intelligent, and have great potential but sad to say that is not everything a recruiter is looking for...

[RGV]

L2R, now that was one of the most intelligent responses I've seen on this forum.

There was no bad talking of the people of any of the communities. Just intelligent facts and information that would allow someone to make a good choice.

Bravo, we need more posts like yours.

[crbcrbrgv]

RGV, I'm just a city boy, that's my main bias. And after living in the Valley 5 years and studying abroad in Queretaro I guess I have never found the Valley culture to my liking. It isn't really American and it really isn't Mexican. It is what it is. And if Hispanics made me cringe, I certainly wouldn't have married one (although I know my silly Anglo ways make her cringe from time to time I guess I just don't want to be lumped with some other Valley bashers in these forums (you know who they are) as I am a person who does see a lot of potential there yet sees a lot of stuff that happens as an outsider that is rather undesirable. And I have a huge bias towards the city life. I made it for 6 years in the Valley and got sick of the corruption, but maybe that's what I got for living in the Mid-Valley.

[RGV]

I hear ya.

I've also heard that Edcouch just went bankrupt and had to fire all city employees except for two police. Since you're living in the mid-valley, what's the story there, corruption, no sales tax comming in?

[doss1]

Originally Posted by RGV

Hi SL,

If you find living by someone like me, a hispanic, a culture shock and undesireable, as we hear over and over again in other posts, than go to Houston.

Now, now RGV, we got to be honest here. Listen, Brownsville is 95-96% hispanic--this makes one ethnic group nearly dominant. Sure, you can find nearly all caucasian in places like Fargo, etc, but even those places do not have such a high percentage of one ethnic group in the range that Brownsville does. To the majority of people that are non-hispanic, this presents a problem because IT IS a major culture difference than what they are used to. I think it's best to let people know this before they move down here for the first time. Most of Brownsville's hard working families are poor and this is a big reason why Brownsville is the poorest city in the nation and has several problems in the way the city handles itself in local politics that is quite bizarre for a town of its size.

With that said, we can make some good arguments that Brownsville has good quality of life for people of all races and that the locals are friendly and that there is some good shopping.

We can't say that every single town in America is perfect. Brownsville is definitely not one of them. Is it getting better? I don't know.

[lizziebeth]

Originally Posted by loves2read

First of all I have heard/read that rents in Brownsville are NOT cheap--housing market is one of the hottest in the country eventhough prices are low compared to other areas because of cheap land and labor--but that will change as the market intensifies (if it continues) and high home prices are usually reflected in high rents--it just may take a year to catch up...Personally I love San Antonio--grew up close to there and have a sister who lives there still--it is a vibrant, interesting city with many cultural opportunities, great restaurants, a fairly liveable city (although some people definitely would not agree) and it has from what I know a very viable health industry so that you probably could find employment there after graduation if you wanted...but that being said...

I think you need to look more closely at the reps of the different schools you might choose from--pick the campus that has the best teachers in your respective field--what aspect/specialization are you planning to focus on--which campus has the best funding/research/well-known voices in that area--which one offers the best connections for finding a job after graduation---has the most active alumni assoc which is very helpful in outreach/job search

research those factors before you worry about drive time and apartments....the decision will affect how your early entry into your profession goes and very likely your long-term prospects as well....you can make do with a environment that is maybe not exactly what you want I would think if you knew that the end result would guarantee a significant payoff...

if you choose a branch because of its location and come to find out that it is considered the runt of the litter so to speak, anyone in your field who is hiring will know that probably as well--and if you and someone from a higher-regarded branch (even someone with credentials that are not as good as yours) compete for a job--you are likely to lose out to someone from a school with a better rep---

that happens all the time with MA grads from other fields when their colleges that are not as well known or well-regarded in their fields of study---they might be great workers, intelligent, and have great potential but sad to say that is not everything a recruiter is looking for...

As a recruiter, I totally agree with this posting. I assume you're going back to school to leave with a job that makes your education worthwhile. You want to be where employers recruit. That may in Brownsville, I don't know... Even if you don't want to stay in Houston or San Antonio, I just think you may have better luck in those cities. I think there are reasonably priced apartments that are safe in both of those cities. There are numerous schools in both cities. Those students live somewhere and they probably want shorts commutes and safe lodging too.

It's great that Brownsville is close to the beach but how often will you be there? In Houston, you're relatively close to Galveston. Galveston, IMHO, doesn't have as nice of a beach as South Padre Island but it definitely suffices for those who like to look out at open water every now and again. It's great that Brownsville has a zoo but how often would you go there? Same with Schlitterbahn. As a 43 year old, I can say that water parks just don't thrill me like they did when I was in high school and went as often as I could.

If you think you'd want to stay in the Valley after graduation, that's a good place to network. However, if you're not sure you want to stay there, you may want to be in a city with larger alumni groups and, therefore, more people to network with. Plus, school reputation does count for fields that aren't skill-based in nature at least for a first job. I'll hire a medical professional from pretty much any school because they must be licensed so I know they've met a certain standard by the state licensure board. For less skill based degrees like mine in HR and yours in Public Health, it's not as cut and dry so just having the degree isn't enough.

In the bigger cities, there should be more opportunities for internships which you'll probably want given your field. Not to say there aren't any opportunities in Brownsville and it only takes one opportunity to succeed, but there are more fish in the sea in the other areas you're considering.

Ask to speak with a few graduates of each program. Where are they working? How did they find their job? Would they do anything differently? Any surprises?

Good luck!

[crbcrbrgv]

I just moved from the Mid-Valley back to Houston. The main issue is educational apathy. For some reason, school isn't so important to people there.