Welcome to the forum!
She mentioned that she was interested in barrel racing.
A barrel, or a roping, or a pleasure, etc are specific use saddles although many riders use them for different things. A barrel saddle is made to secure the rider better then a roping saddle would since that is necessary to the sport.
The thing I would say is that a saddle needs to fit the horse it will be used for as well as the rider. For that reason, and since you don't own a horse, I would wait until you own one before getting a saddle. You may find one that fits the lesson horses that you ride but does not work for the horse you end up with and you end up having to sell the saddle and looking for another one.
In all cases, as barrelracing said, don't buy a cheap one, it's better to buy a well made used one. Cheap saddles have cheap trees and bad leather. They are not, under any situation, starter saddles (as they are advertised). They have a tendency of hurting a horse and the trees are terrible. Too many riders think that they will work since they will only use the saddle just to learn in. Big mistake and you end up with a poor saddle that no one wants if you try to sell it.
