Advantages & Disadvantages of Studying in El Paso

You think about studying in El Paso but want to get additional information on student life, living costs, housing, career prospects, safety, public infrastructure and much more before making your final decision in this regard?

Great! This article is exactly for you since I will show you the pros and cons of studying in El Paso in the following chapters.

Table of Contents

Study in El Paso – Overview

Number of Universities7 universities and colleges in the El Paso region, including 2 public colleges, 1 community college and 4 private colleges.
Quality of UniversitiesWhile quality of education is solid, you will still not find world-class universities in the El Paso region.
Networking OpportunitiesNetworking opportunities for students in El Paso are not as great as in many other big cities since there are not as many influential people living in this region.
Student LifeWhile you have many things to do as a student in El Paso, you will still not have the same exciting student life compared to people who study in San Francisco or other fancy places in the US.
International StudentsPretty limited number of international students in the El Paso region.
Career ProspectsStudents from University of El Paso don’t have the same great career prospects as graduates from top-tier schools.
NightlifeWhile you will find many decent bars in El Paso, you will still not be able to enjoy the same great nightlife compared to students in New York City or other more vibrant places.
Living CostsLiving costs in El Paso are relatively low and students therefore don’t have to deal with the same high financial pressure as students in more expensive regions.
HousingRents are still affordable for many students in El Paso and housing shortage is not a big problem yet so students often find a decent place to stay rather quickly.
Weather & ClimateStudents in El Paso can enjoy hot and sunny summers and relatively mild winters.
advantages and disadvantages of studying in el paso

Advantages of Studying in El Paso

  1. Students in El Paso don’t have to worry about high living costs
  2. Rents are still affordable for many students in El Paso
  3. Easy to find a decent place to live for students in El Paso
  4. People who study in El Paso don’t have to deal with high financial pressure
  5. El Paso is a pretty relaxed city
  6. People in El Paso are outgoing and friendly
  7. Easy to socialize for students in the El Paso region
  8. Decent bars in El Paso
  9. You can join student clubs in El Paso
  10. Extracurricular activities can make student life in El Paso more interesting
  11. Decent libraries to prepare for your exams
  12. You will find many student jobs in El Paso
  13. You will find many opportunities to work as an intern
  14. Many big corporations to work for after graduation
  15. Students in El Paso can enjoy great summers
  16. Mild winters are attractive to many students in El Paso
  17. Students in El Paso find most things they need close to their home
  18. Traffic jams are not a big problem in El Paso
  19. El Paso may be an underrated student city
  20. El Paso is a rather safe city

Students in El Paso don’t have to worry about high living costs

One advantage of studying in El Paso is that you will have relatively low living costs and while people who study in San José or other more expensive places have to spend lots of money on drinks and various things of daily life, you will be able to afford much more with the same budget as a student in El Paso since prices are lower on average.

Rents are still affordable for many students in El Paso

Not only living costs are reasonably low, but also rents are still affordable for most students in El Paso and this means that you will have to spend far less money on housing compared to students in Seattle or other more expensive regions where housing takes away much more of your budget.

Easy to find a decent place to live for students in El Paso

Since housing shortage is not a big problem in El Paso yet, many students also find a pretty decent and affordable place to live rather quickly while students in more popular regions where housing shortage is a much bigger problem often have to search for many months in this regard.

People who study in El Paso don’t have to deal with high financial pressure

Thanks to reasonably low living and housing costs, students in El Paso also have a rather relaxed time from a financial perspective and don’t have to worry about money as much as students in Austin or other more expensive regions.

El Paso is a pretty relaxed city

Another upside to studying in El Paso is that it is also a pretty relaxed city where people are usually less career-focused and will take more time to socialize and to help you out in case you need assistance in various parts of life.

People in El Paso are outgoing and friendly

You should also know that people in El Paso are friendly and outgoing and you can just have a great time in this region by meeting up with many like-minded people.

Easy to socialize for students in the El Paso region

Since people in El Paso are usually friendly, outgoing and tolerant, you can also make many new social connections and friends in this region rather quickly and will therefore never run out of company in this region.

Decent bars in El Paso

While nightlife in El Paso is not as great as in many other big cities in the US, you will still find some decent bars and clubs where you can meet up with your favorite people and will also have some opportunities to party until the early morning.

You can join student clubs in El Paso

Another benefit of studying in El Paso is that you can also join many student clubs and organizations where you can meet up with like-minded people of your age and can also share useful advice and tips and tricks on how to make student life in El Paso much better.

Extracurricular activities can make student life in El Paso more interesting

If you are not fully satisfied with just studying and getting your degree, you may also want to join extracurricular activities so you can engage in social projects and can do good for many people and can stay motivated with studying in El Paso in the long run.

Decent libraries to prepare for your exams

El Paso also has many decent libraries and other quiet spaces where you can sit down and prepare for your exams in an efficient manner without getting distracted by loud noises or annoying people so you can study in the best possible manner and can get really good grades.

You will find many student jobs in El Paso

There are also many student jobs from which you can make additional money on the side in the El Paso region so you can finance your degree to a certain extent which can also give you a pretty good feeling and may lower overall financial pressure a bit.

You will find many opportunities to work as an intern

Not only will you find many student jobs in the El Paso region, but you will also find many opportunities to work as an intern and through doing those internships, you can get in touch with many important people in the corporate world and may already have a foot in the door when it comes to applying for jobs later on.

Many big corporations to work for after graduation

There are also many decent jobs for graduates in the El Paso area and you may therefore have better career options compared to people studying in smaller towns where there are not many big corporations to work for.

Students in El Paso can enjoy great summers

Studying in El Paso also makes quite a lot of sense for you in case you love the heat since you will be able to enjoy hot weather and many hours of sun during summer and this gives you the opportunity to spend lots of time outdoors.

Mild winters are attractive to many students in El Paso

Not only summers are great, but also mild winters are pretty attractive to many students in El Paso and while students in Philadelphia often have to deal with cold weather, you don’t have to worry about cold climatic conditions in El Paso most of the time.

Students in El Paso find most things they need close to their home

Thanks to decent public infrastructure, students in El Paso usually find most things they need for daily life pretty close to their homes and can therefore really focus on their studies and use their time in a pretty efficient manner.

Traffic jams are not a big problem in El Paso

You should also know that traffic is not a big problem in El Paso yet and this makes it easy for you to get around as a student and you also don’t have to waste as much time in traffic jams as students in more crowded cities.

El Paso may be an underrated student city

Since living and housing costs are rather low while students in El Paso still find everything they need to study in an efficient manner, El Paso can be considered an underrated student town where you can really get a decent return on your educational investment.

El Paso is a rather safe city

Compared to many other big cities in the US, El Paso is also a pretty safe place and most students feel pretty safe and comfortable in their neighborhoods.

As you can see, there are many reasons for studying in El Paso.

Yet, there are also some drawbacks of studying in El Paso that I want to address in the following so you will be better able to decide whether you still want to study in El Paso or rather want to study in a different region instead.

Disadvantages of Studying in El Paso

  1. Overall quality of education in El Paso is not really great
  2. You may have worse career prospects compared to graduates from elite schools
  3. El Paso may be too hot for many students
  4. You can’t enjoy the beach in El Paso
  5. Not many great guest professors in El Paso
  6. El Paso is not the most exciting student town
  7. Hard to build a strong business network in El Paso
  8. Relatively high unemployment rate in El Paso
  9. Student jobs in El Paso often don’t pay great money
  10. You may have to spend lots of money on tuition
  11. Your peers may not understand your decision of studying in El Paso
  12. El Paso is not the most popular city for international students

Overall quality of education in El Paso is not really great

One downside to studying in El Paso is that you will have a really hard time finding world-class education in this region and if you want to get the best education possible, studying in El Paso may not be the greatest of all ideas and you may be better off studying at Harvard or other top-tier schools instead.

You may have worse career prospects compared to graduates from elite schools

Since you will not find really good education in the El Paso region, you may also have worse career opportunities compared to graduates from top universities and not as many doors may open to you as a graduate from University of Texas, El Paso.

El Paso may be too hot for many students

You should also know that El Paso is a pretty hot place and if you can’t stand the heat, you will likely not get happy with student life in El Paso and may be better off studying in Columbus or other colder regions instead.

You can’t enjoy the beach in El Paso

Another disadvantage of studying in El Paso is that you will also not be able to enjoy the beach and while people studying in Los Angeles are able to go surfing on a regular basis, you may just not have the same opportunities as a student in El Paso.

Not many great guest professors in El Paso

While there are some decent guest professors, you will still not be able to attend lectures of as many great guest professors as it would be the case if you studied in more popular regions and this may make your student life in El Paso less interesting and you may also not get the same diversity in education as in many other places where you can get many different perspectives on a certain topic.

El Paso is not the most exciting student town

You should also know that El Paso is just not the most exciting student city and you will not have the same great nightlife and entertainment options as in many bigger cities in the US.

Hard to build a strong business network in El Paso

Another problem with studying in El Paso is that you will also not be able to build a really strong business network since many influential people just live in other more popular regions and it is therefore hard to get in touch with many important people in El Paso as a student.

Relatively high unemployment rate in El Paso

You should also know that El Paso is not the strongest economic region and high unemployment rates may make it harder for you to get a decent job after graduation compared to students in regions where unemployment is not a big deal.

Student jobs in El Paso often don’t pay great money

While there are many student jobs, many of those student jobs in El Paso still don’t pay great money and you will most likely not be able to finance your degree with your student job and may have to rely on other income sources instead.

You may have to spend lots of money on tuition

While living and housing costs are still reasonably low, tuition can be pretty high in the El Paso region and you may therefore have to spend lots of money on your education and should make sure that a degree from University of El Paso is really worth it to you to make this huge financial commitment.

Your peers may not understand your decision of studying in El Paso

Since El Paso is not the most popular place to study, your peers may also not understand your decision and you may have to explain yourself quite a lot in this regard.

El Paso is not the most popular city for international students

You should also know that El Paso is just not the most popular city among international students and if you want to meet many students from all over the world, you may be better off studying in Phoenix or other more popular places.

Top 10 Studying in El Paso Pros & Cons – Summary List

Studying in El Paso ProsStudying in El Paso Cons
Students in El Paso can benefit from rather low rentsEl Paso may be too hot for many students
Easy to find a place to stay rather quicklyHard to find really good colleges in El Paso
Living costs in El Paso are rather lowStudying in El Paso may not be great for your CV
Decent student clubs in El PasoLimited career prospects for students from El Paso
You will find many decent bars to hang out with other studentsEl Paso is not located at the coast
You can enjoy great weather in El PasoEl Paso is not the most exciting student town
El Paso may be an underrated student cityYou may have to justify studying in El Paso
Decent public infrastructure in El PasoMany student jobs in El Paso don’t pay great money
Easy to get around for students in El PasoTuition can be pretty high
Many libraries and other quiet places to study in El PasoHigh unemployment rate in El Paso
Advantages & Disadvantages of Studying in El Paso

Is El Paso A Good City For Students?

While El Paso can be a great place to study since living and housing costs are still affordable and you will find everything you need to study in an efficient manner, you should also know that it is hard to find really good education in this region and El Paso is just not the most popular student town in general.

Alternative Cities To Study

If you don’t want to study in El Paso anymore, you should also have a look at the following articles:

Advantages and disadvantages of studying in Oklahoma City

Advantages and disadvantages of studying in Nashville

Advantages and disadvantages of studying in Charlotte

Sources

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/elpasocountytexas

Own research.

About the author

This site is about living, moving and traveling to various parts of our fascinating planet.

My name is Andreas and when I was younger, I traveled the world and learned a lot about different cultures and countries.

Thus, I want to share my experiences with you so that you can benefit from them and avoid common mistakes in this regard.

In my articles, you will find everything you need to find the best location for a happy and successful life.

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