Reviewed on Jul 18, 2025(Enrolled 2022)
What Students Say
Likes
- Diverse Student Community: University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) has large international population, especially at Master's 'level. This makes transition to new country easier for new students and to feel at home.
- Career Services: UTD has a top notch career center which helps everyone in job search and resources needed for it. UTD's job fairs and alumni network are strong and active in helping students secure their prospective career goals. I got lot of help from career center.
- Scholarship and Assistantship Opportunities: There are merit scholarships, research assistantships, teaching assistantships which can ease burden on tuition cost.
Dislikes
- Food and Dining: Somedays the food in dining hall is not that good. But not terrible. It is decent enough. I would like to see it improve a bit.
- Weak Sports Culture: I felt the sports culture needs to improve and create more events and be accessible to many. Minimal sports culture leads to fewer ways to bond.
- Quality of Professors and Course Materials: While most are good, I felt some are outdated and disengaged. I see this as a field for improvement to compete with world class institutions.
Course Curriculum
8
- The course curriculum was flexible and different slots across days were available to choose the subject. I would not say it was very difficult but a few courses were challenging. Few very theoretical but most were a mix of both theoretical and practical.
- The positive aspect is the course is flexible and I was able to design it according to my career aspirations. Only 3 subjects were mandatory and the other 9 were electives. I could choose those 9 from almost 36 subjects across different departments. Negative aspect is that few courses are good only when taken under a few top-rated professors. so those classes fill up as soon as they are open and not everyone can take it. so without options, students must take it under other professors who might not be at the same level as well-reputed ones.
- The classes can be chosen by the student according to their preference. Typically each class is around 3 hrs and a student can choose 3-4 classes per week spread across the week. The timings range from morning at 9 am to night at 10pm. so the student can take multiple classes on the same day and attend them from morning till night or choose only 1 class per day and attend it during a favoured time slot. typically I had 2 days of classes each week (max of 2 classes per day).
- Average number of students in my class was 35 - 40. some classes had 60 students as well. some had below 30.
- 80-85% of students enrolled in my course were Indians.
Admission Experience
- I applied to a total of 11 universities.
- I got admission letters from 9 universities: Here is the list:
- University of Texas at Dallas (UTD): Admitted (selected this)
- University of Texas at Arlington (UTA): Admitted
- University of North Texas (UNT): Admitted
- Cleveland State University: Admitted
- Northeastern University, Boston (NEU): Admitted
- PACE University, New York: Admitted (offered scholarship)
- University of North Carolina Charlotte: Admitted
- University of Colorado Denver: Admitted
- University of New Haven, Connecticut: Admitted
- I got rejected from 2 universities. They are:
- New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT): Rejected
- University of South Florida (USF): Rejected
- I am not sure why I got a rejection from NJIT. It was a safe university for me and many with my profile got admitted. I got admitted to universities much better than NJIT. So I do not have a particular reason nor did I receive any feedback from the university.
- I believe USF was an ambitious university for my profile. Just applied to try out my luck. It is well ranked and I felt I missed out due to the good, talented pool of candidates.
- I chose the University of Texas at Dallas for these reasons:
- Firstly, the program I was in (Information Technology and Management) was under the business school. I wanted to shift my career to the management side of work and felt an MS from business school was the right decision.
- Secondly, The program was designed to be flexible and easy for students to select their own specialisation and subjects they were interested in. Lot of options for courses for each semester, with one mandatory course out of 12. So I liked the option of choosing more electives and tailoring my MS according to my career aspirations.
- Thirdly, I wanted a place that does not have harsh winters. So, Texas, with a large Indian community and nice warm weather, was also a point I considered before accepting the admission.
- Admission Process:
- Simple and detailed application that needs to be filled with basic details of myself, my educational background and work experience. Degree certificate and transcript are required.
- Resume is needed as part of the application.
- GRE scores and English proficiency (TOEFL/IELTS) are required during application
- Personal Statement (similar to an SOP) document is needed as part of the application. This outlined my academic interests and future aspirations.
- 2 Letters of Recommendation required. I got it from HOD and Teacher from my bachelor's.
- If they need any more information, they will contact you. Also, I applied for a merit scholarship.
- They processed the application and mailed me an admission letter.
- After accepting it, we need to request an I-20 with a financial affidavit.
- After the I-20 is issued and Visa process is done, I registered for International Student Orientation.
- Also, before landing in the USA, I had to complete pre-arrival modules (4 modules), which had all the basic details that I had to know before joining the university.
- Eligibility Criteria:
- GRE is optional for my program but advised to submit if taken. I got 296 in total (Verbal-144, Quantitative-152) and submitted it during the application.
- An English Proficiency exam is required. I got 8 in IELTS and submitted it during the application. Minimum of 6.5 in IELTS and 80 in TOEFL was required for my program.
- Overall the admission process was simple, straightforward, and easy to complete. If any clarifications were required, I contacted the university and got all queries cleared in a timely manner. I did not face any difficulties or challenges during the application process. I got an admit around 2 months from application. I advise applying early to increase chances of admission with a scholarship.
- I applied to the FALL 2022 intake. During Covid, I explored the option of higher studies and took the GRE and IELTS in the last quarter of 2021. I was working during that time. My interest in project management grew during work and explored courses that might help me build a career in the project management domain. So, I decided to apply for the Fall 2022 intake. I took 6 months to prepare for GRE, IELTS and draft all documents required for application process (SOP, Letter of recommendation, Resume etc)
- I received an admission letter after around 2 months of application. I do not remember the exact day when I applied but approximately I applied around the 1st week of JAN 2022.
Faculty
6
- Typically 40:1 is the faculty-to-student ratio. It is decent but top-rated faculty are less so; sometimes the quality of education might not be so great. But for interaction, it is a good number and a lot of time to interact with faculty. Each has specific office hours as well to clear any doubts.
- Teaching methods vary according to professors. The content is designed for students who are new to the topic as well. Curriculum might be improved but overall it is decent enough to secure a job in the field. Most use modern technology screens during classes and most of the exams are taken digitally.
Campus Life
8
- UTD is present only at Richardson, TX. It is one of the reputed universities under the University of Texas chain.
- UTD has all the modern facilities like 3 floor library, collaborative study spaces, Comet Cupboard for free groceries, Comet Closet for free professional attire, Cricket Ground, Base ball field, Many Tennis courts, Many Basket ball Courts, Football fields, Volley ball courts, 2 Big dining halls, more than 20+ food courts and major food chain outlets, Health center with all modern equipment, Tech store, Marketplace, Gaming wall, Swimming pools, Gyms, Indoor courts, Pool tables, Table tennis rooms, Indoor games etc
- Since the Indian population is more UTD hosts all major Indian festivals and events. Interdepartment extracurricular competitions occur. For each year there is a freshers party and bash. Lots of clubs for both academic and extracurricular activities. UTD also has a lot of charity clubs that help international students in all ways possible.
- Lot of sport events occur, ranging from individual sports to team sports. Fun games and activities occur every week, organised by different departments. Big Cultural event occur every year where famous personalities grace the occasion. There is a movie theatre where screening happens regularly. More than 40 student organisations are present, ranging from social to academic departments.
Part Time Jobs
- TA is very competitive and has limited availability for graduate programs under the business school at UTD. You need to have a 4.0 GPA to have a chance of getting shortlisted. Everyone can apply and if selected, they allot you to any professor. Most of the time professors choose the student whom they want to be their TA. Most cases the student who has a secure TA under a particular professor stays until he/she graduates. So professors do not choose different TAs each semester. I don't know much about RA since I was not part of any research department.
- Pay varies and is typically between $20 and $30 per hour for graduate students
- Other on-campus jobs include employee at food court, food chains, dining services (waiter, cooking, cleaning, etc.), on-campus housing receptionist, a few positions in offices of each department, library assistants, virtual tour guide, custodians at facilities, front desk assistant, ISSO office assistant, advising office assistant, parking lot staff, Tech bar staff, Proctor at exam centre, student union workers, student patrol, etc. Hourly wages range from $8 to $20 per hour.
- The maximum allowed hours for part-time is 20 hrs per week.
- It is very difficult to get part-time jobs since the population of international students is large. referrals from students who are already working help you get an interview to have a chance. To get jobs at departments and offices, you need to be lucky and apply as early as possible.
- Hourly wages range from $8 to $20 per hour depending on position. It is very difficult to get part-time jobs since the population of international students is large. referrals from students who are already working help you get an interview to have a chance. To get jobs at departments and offices, you need to be lucky and apply as early as possible. Usually we need to apply to open positions posted by departments in handshake portal. For dining services we need to attend interviews on specific days where they hire in mass but maybe the first 50 students get selected out of 500-700 students in the queue. There are job fairs yearly for on-campus jobs as well. Most office jobs require a formal application with a resume, transcript, cover letter and answers to position-specific questions. My suggestion is to start from the day you land and try to get referrals from students who are already working on campus.
Placement
6
- Currently, since the market is down and a recession is present, the percentage is around 40-50% to land a job within 6 months. It is difficult currently since most of the positions do not offer work visas. So companies are not willing to take students on OPT.
- Average salary upon graduation is typically 70-80k depending on role and candidate's experience.
- Best way to find a job is by securing an internship during a master's, which has a high chance of converting to full-time. Attending job fairs on campus and off campus and going to networking events works well and gives a chance to get referrals from employees in higher positions.
- There is no campus placement for graduate students. Most of the companies around the DFW area attend career fairs and collect resumes for desired roles.
- Copart, Toyota, AT&T, Amazon, Tesla, Microsoft, Lennox, CBRE, Infosys, TCS, Fidelity, Citi, American Express, Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, etc. are a few companies to which people have been placed.
Accommodation
Off Campus
8
- I joined few WhatsApp groups to find accommodation near campus
- Rent was approx. $600 since I opted for a gated community, which is much safer than other places. The kitchen will be equipped with a stove, oven, microwave, dishwasher, etc. The house will be air-conditioned and will have laundry machines as well. Most have garages and spaces to park your vehicle. Any repairs will be done by the leasing office staff of the particular community.
- Always finding accommodation in a new country is challenging. Finding roommates who match your character is the most difficult part. If you are on a budget, then finding a decent place with good reviews is time-consuming. overall if looked at the right places, then you will find a decent place.
- My recommendation for future students is to find places that are on the route of the college shuttle or public bus. so travel is not an issue. Find accommodation where grocery stores and necessary amenities are near so you can access them without a vehicle. I would suggest go for gated communities since strangers can enter the community easily and much safer.
- My accommodation was 10 mins away from campus. I usually took the UTD shuttle to travel to campus, which took 15-18 mins to reach campus by going around to pick up students. Most Indians stay in places near campus like estates of Frankford, Marquis at waterview, Ashwood, Estates of Richardson, Pearl at Frankford, MAA housing, etc., which are on the route of the UTD shuttle.
Exams
- For my course, the GRE was optional. But it is advised to submit a GRE score if you need a scholarship. The GRE is required to be eligible to apply for a scholarship at the graduate level at UTD. I took the GRE and submitted the score to UTD.
- English Proficiency exam is required to apply for UTD (IELTS/TOEFL). I took IELTS and submitted it to UTD.
- For the MS in Information Technology and Management program under UTD, the required documents to apply were: Resume, Personal Statement (SOP), LOR, Transcripts, Degree Certificate.
- There was no interview as part of the application process.
Fees
- Total Fee for me was approx. $67000.
- Breakdown:
- Tuition was around $56000.
- Every semester student insurance was about around $1350 (total 5400 approx.).
- Extra fee for management school was $4000 in total across 4 semesters.
- International service fee was $150 per semester ($600 for 4 semesters).
- Orientation fee was $50
- The fee is charged every semester. The total amount per semester depends on credits taken for that semester. So the amount is calculated according to credit taken.
- For me, It would cost $600 approx. per month. Rent - $470, Utilities - $50, other regular expenses - $60 to $70
Scholarship
- I did not receive any scholarship since I applied a bit late and my GRE score was not very high.
- Few received scholarships for the 1st year (Dean's Excellence Scholarship). For this, a GRE score is required and the higher the score, the more chance of getting this merit scholarship. It may be around $7500 for 2 semesters. Good GPA in undergrad also might help. Everyone who needs a scholarship must submit a separate application with an essay outlining why you think you qualify for a scholarship.
- Not sure about the average number of students who receive scholarships. Many smaller scholarships are also available, which can be applied for during a master's. The amount varies, starting from $1000.
