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Regina Nishiyama

Dr. Loren Higbee

English 1301

3 October 2021

The Same but Different

Texas A&M has eleven sister colleges; each branch has unique qualities while still

having similarities that tie them back to the original one located in College Station. Anyone

interested in learning about any of these branches can look at the school's website, and future

college students can see just how different each of these schools are. The websites of these

schools advertise distinct points to enhance their differences and appeal to the different types of

prospective students. Texas A&M, Texas A&M Corpus Christi, and Texas A&M International

University each advertise various aspects of their resources, environment, and community to

attract students looking for the perfect college.

TAMU's website for prospective students greets them by telling them why they should

pick TAMU. They highlight the concentrations they are known for by saying, "Maybe you've

wanted to be a veterinarian since you got your first dog, or your childhood Legos have inspired

you to be an architect. Whether you want to explore the stars and the outer corners of the

universe, find a cure for a disease threatening mankind, or bring your digital art to life at a major

animation studio, you can make it happen at Texas A&M" ("Why Texas A&M?"). Out of the

three schools, TAMU is funded by the most sponsors and grants, which allows them to offer all

these studies and more. According to U.S. News and World Report, TAMU is one of the top ten

universities with the most significant endowments, having $12,720,529,611 in endowments

alone ("10 Universities with the Biggest Endowments"). TAMU can offer 144 different majors
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due in part because of this money. Unlike the other two schools, which offer a select amount of

majors, this school can appeal to future vet students or architects, or even animation majors

because of their economic status; because the other two schools have a stricter budget, they are

not able to highlight how many courses they offer like TAMU is able to do on their website.

TAMUCC's website welcomes visitors with a picture of their campus that says "welcome

to the island" and emphasizes that it is "the only university in the nation located on its own

island" ("Welcome to the Island"). Clearly, they try to hook future students by seeming exotic

and fun because they are located on a beach with many bays and natural wetlands nearby.

According to Niche, out of 1,419, TAMUCC is ranked 159th "Best College Campuses in

America" ("2022 Best College Campuses in America"). TAMU's environment is that of a city;

the entire location is made to be a city for college students, hence the name "college station."

TAMIU's environment is in the south Texas region, so it is very desert-like and almost like a

ranch. The other two schools mentioned do not have such a unique environment, so it would not

make sense for them to advertise it as the first thing on their website. TAMUCC's school website

also gives readers a look into the different areas of study they offer. Marine biology, biological

and biomedical sciences are just a few of the concentrations the website provides. The website

makes it a point to remind prospective students that "the university's unique research institutes

allows students to explore the issues facing The Gulf of Mexico" ("Be a Part of Something

Bigger"). This appeals to future marine biologists because they can study aquatic life while

sticking close to the campus. According to Best College Reviews, these criteria put TAMUCC

first on the list among the 50 Best Colleges by the Sea ("The 50 Best Colleges By The Sea"). The

campus placement is a recurring topic on their website because they have marine life close to

them, so it makes more sense to offer concentrations in this field. The other school would not be
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fit to provide oceanic courses because they are nowhere near the coast. Overall, TAMUCC can

use its location to its advantage and advertise an exotic site and marine studies to outshine the

other two schools.

The TAMIU website greets visitors by informing readers that they are "givers" because

they are "ranked 1st in State and 2nd in Nation for Lowest Student Debt" ("We are Givers").

They imply that TAMIU values affordable education by emphasizing that most students will

graduate with little to no debt. They do this because TAMIU is located in a predominantly

Hispanic area, where people typically think higher education is out of reach for them financially.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, in 2019, Hispanics made up the

second-lowest enrollment rate with only 36% ("College Enrollment Rates"). Hence, they use

evidence to show lower-income students that an education is possible at TAMIU. Because the

communities of the other two schools do not particularly look at money as their first issue when

applying to school, they have less of a reason to advertise this as a priority on their website.

55.2% of TAMU's population is white students, so affordability and enrollment rates are not an

issue since they have a 41% enrollment rate ("College Enrollment Rates"). TAMUCC does not

have to worry about reaching out to the Hispanic community around them because their city is

predominantly white; as of 2021, their population is made up of 89.59% of white people ("World

Population Review"). TAMIU's Hispanic community is why the school tries to stay as affordable

as possible; they promote affordability and little debt to try and get the Hispanic community to

strengthen their enrollment numbers.

Even though all these schools belong to the same name, they each have different qualities

that they feature on their website to bring in more students. TAMU can showcase its wide variety

of majors due to the funding and available resources. Unlike the other two schools, TAMU can
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offer majors ranging from veterinary studies to animation and graphic design work. Because

TAMUCC is located along the coastline, they can push for marine-related majors and attract

students through the beauty of the campus's environment, unlike the other two schools. TAMIU,

on the other hand, shines its light on the affordability of the school; because of the concentration

of Hispanics in the area, TAMIU makes it a point to reach out to those in their community and

help them attain an education.

All in all, TAMU, TAMUCC, and TAMIU put their best foot forward through their

websites. These schools use their resources, environment, and community to get prospective

students to apply at their schools. TAMU uses its array of majors, TAMUCC uses its beautiful

location, and TAMIU uses its economical prices to catch the eye of prospective students. They

each are able to use the qualities that pertain to them specifically to stand out from their sister

schools and attract students looking for the most suitable education. The aforementioned is an

excellent example of how different communities are able to manipulate the same genre to appeal

to the uniqueness of their community and an important reminder that you can be conventional

while still being eccentric.

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Work Cited

“10 Universities with the Biggest Endowments | the Short ...” U.S. News, Josh Moody, 21

Sept. 2021, https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/the-short-list-

college/articles/10-universities-with-the-biggest-endowments.

“2022 Best College Campuses in America.” Niche,

https://www.niche.com/colleges/search/best-college-campuses/.

“The 50 Best Colleges by the Sea: Bestcollegereviews.” Best College Reviews, 27 Apr.

2021, https://www.bestcollegereviews.org/colleges-by-the-sea/.

College Enrollment Rates - National Center for Education ...

https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/pdf/coe_cpb.pdf.

“Corpus Christi, Texas Population 2021.” Corpus Christi, Texas Population 2021

(Demographics, Maps, Graphs), https://worldpopulationreview.com/us-cities/corpus-

christi-tx-population.

“Future Students - Texas A&M University, College Station, TX.” Texas A&M University,

College Station, TX, https://www.tamu.edu/future-students/index.html.

“History of the University - Texas A&M University, College Station, TX.” Texas A&M

University, College Station, TX, https://www.tamu.edu/about/history.html.

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King, Rory. “Texas A&M International University.” A White Block Letter U with a Banner

across the Front Reading 'The International' in Uppercase Lettering.,

https://www.tamiu.edu/.

“Welcome Home.” Welcome Home | Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi,

https://tamucc.edu/.