Alabama

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just found out that our DCs stats would mean full tuition and admission to the honors program at U Alabama. I know some folks would look down on Alabama but free college is pretty appealing. (Can save the college funds for grad school) anyone have experience with Alabama.

My kid there is there on a full ride. By the end of this year kid will have studied abroad in 5 different countries...which the scholarship paid for (most of). Lots of very smart kids at Alabama. Great programs, extremely small classes in the upper levels (fewer than 20 students) taught by professors (not TAs). Plus some pretty impressive and difficult to get into programs like Randall Research Scholars. They also offer a very popular 5 year STEM + MBA degree. Can't beat a FREE top notch education. Roll tide.

This is great for your kid and it sounds like Alabama serves its high stats students well. But having upper-level classes taught by professors and not TAs is the norm everywhere. This is not something that Alabama can use as a selling point in comparison to other schools.

my UA kid had ALL her classes taught by professors.

my second kid at another school was forced into taking online classes and many of her classes were taught by TAs. being taught by TAs was also the norm 40 years ago at that school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My NMSF submitted his application last night!

Congrats!!! My NMF toured Alabama last and immediately chose it. Definitely encourage your kid visit and set up the Honors tour.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is the active DC area Facebook group? My DC is likely attending and would like to connect with other local parents.

There are two I would suggest.

Nova to Bama
University of Alabama Parents in DC, MD & VA

[Anonymous]

We stopped in Tuscaloosa a few weeks ago on a road trip (and non football weekend) and, damn, that campus is gorgeous. I know why DMV kids go there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We stopped in Tuscaloosa a few weeks ago on a road trip (and non football weekend) and, damn, that campus is gorgeous. I know why DMV kids go there.

The campus is stunning!

Alabama is a solid choice and offers very strong scholarship packages to high stats kids. These students would do well almost anywhere and so they take the free ride and pocket the savings.

I simply don’t understand the hate. While it might not be right for you it’s absolutely great for others. Live and let live.

Roll Tide 🐘

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The poverty rate is higher in most major northern cities than Alabama. Yeah the state has problems, but so does the north. One problem they don't seem to have is providing affordable quality higher education. If you get into an Ivy, sure it opens doors. But most kids aren't getting into Harvard or Yale. I doubt graduating with massive debt from a NYU or GWU puts you in a better position than a degree from Alabama. Those are good schools, but unless you have endless money to burn, one needs to take a serious look at a place like Alabama. College is what you make of it, and it sure sounds like a high-achieving students can have a great experience there that will prepare them for the future without killing themself with loans. Florida used to have a similar reputation as Alabama and now its one of the top public universities in the nation.

I don't know the answer...but if you look at just salary data of Alabama on the WSJ ranking it's ranked 380 (it's even lower than Alabama Huntsville on this metric) vs. 90 for GW. NYU actually rates very low as well (310), so you are likely correct on that one.

Ga Tech as one example is #5...it would seem that it's almost a no brainer to even pay full freight for Ga Tech OOS (which is cheap for OOS at like $50k) vs. Alabama if you plan to go into the workforce after graduation, but Penn, CMU, Babson are all top 10 and would be worth the price as well as just some examples.

This might be true but if you look at the fact base it quickly becomes clear that is more to the story. I expect a good percentage of the Alabama kids to stay in Alabama where the cost of living is significantly lower than NY, DMV, Silicon Valley, etc. Alabama does have a great honors program but it also serves non-honors Alabama state students who are looking to move into local jobs. That is not remotely the same as CMU which is $90k/year and most of the kids are from wealthy already well connected families and all of them are pursing majors that are higher paying. Nobody is studying special education at CMU.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The poverty rate is higher in most major northern cities than Alabama. Yeah the state has problems, but so does the north. One problem they don't seem to have is providing affordable quality higher education. If you get into an Ivy, sure it opens doors. But most kids aren't getting into Harvard or Yale. I doubt graduating with massive debt from a NYU or GWU puts you in a better position than a degree from Alabama. Those are good schools, but unless you have endless money to burn, one needs to take a serious look at a place like Alabama. College is what you make of it, and it sure sounds like a high-achieving students can have a great experience there that will prepare them for the future without killing themself with loans. Florida used to have a similar reputation as Alabama and now its one of the top public universities in the nation.

I don't know the answer...but if you look at just salary data of Alabama on the WSJ ranking it's ranked 380 (it's even lower than Alabama Huntsville on this metric) vs. 90 for GW. NYU actually rates very low as well (310), so you are likely correct on that one.

Ga Tech as one example is #5...it would seem that it's almost a no brainer to even pay full freight for Ga Tech OOS (which is cheap for OOS at like $50k) vs. Alabama if you plan to go into the workforce after graduation, but Penn, CMU, Babson are all top 10 and would be worth the price as well as just some examples.

This might be true but if you look at the fact base it quickly becomes clear that is more to the story. I expect a good percentage of the Alabama kids to stay in Alabama where the cost of living is significantly lower than NY, DMV, Silicon Valley, etc. Alabama does have a great honors program but it also serves non-honors Alabama state students who are looking to move into local jobs. That is not remotely the same as CMU which is $90k/year and most of the kids are from wealthy already well connected families and all of them are pursing majors that are higher paying. Nobody is studying special education at CMU.

The cost of living argument doesn't hold water. There are plenty of schools like University of Missouri (200) or Iowa State (141) as just two examples, that again rank far higher on the salary metric and these schools have higher acceptance rates than even University of Alabama and those kids also stay local.

The top schools satisfy all satisfy Need-based financial aid obligations and usually have a higher percentage of kids on total aid (Need-based plus merit...very few at these schools receive merit) with much higher aid amounts such that their net cost is lower than the average Alabama kid receiving aid.

BTW, this entire thread is basically about UMC kids picking Alabama because it's free even though they are UMC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The future of US education is in the south. No one wants to put up with bad weather and constant protests.

Globally, the future of the world is in the north, as climate change makes the south unlivable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The future of US education is in the south. No one wants to put up with bad weather and constant protests.

Globally, the future of the world is in the north, as climate change makes the south unlivable.

More accurately and more immediately, the future of the world is non-coastal.

If we’re factoring in global warming effects, the schools to avoid are in NYC, Boston, DC, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just couldn’t in good conscience send my DD to Alabama. I’m sure the actual university is fine, but politically and socially I just couldn’t do it. They have a near total abortion ban; one of the strictest in the nation. They are also one of the most religious states in the nation, with 58% of the population attending church regularly. They also rank very high on poverty, low on public education and have very little racial diversity. Thankfully we can pay for college (and grad school.)

We’ve gone round and round about this on this site, but there are socially conservative regions with racists all over the US, some associated with elite northeastern universities (heard a couple of alarming stories about Williams).

The South has its own distinct culture and your DS may or may not relate to it, and it is worth noting that he would encounter a lot more black people there. People on the West Coast and in the Northeast are good at pretending they aren’t racist while avoiding the fewer blacks who live there.

So visit and draw your own conclusions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a friend who intentionally chose Alabama because she wanted independence from her parents. She moved from Europe and her family was horrified. So it does have some purpose for some. It’s cultural, it’s right for some but not universally appealing.
The point is that OP is wondering how to convince son and spouse to consider Alabama option. If son isn’t interested, it’s an uphill battle… I’m sure you can find a good scholarship for a more appropriate school (for him) like GWU or similar up here.

One way to convince the son is to visit and see the girls of U Alabama. Then take a drive to the Alabama beaches as well as Pensacola Florida panhandle beaches.

Meet other honors college students.

Either he will like what he sees and experiences or he'll know to move on.

Small point, but I was bothered by the constant Roll Tide greeting.

Those beaches are 4.5 hours away. By that measure, go to Auburn which is an hour closer, or go to Tulane which is 1.5 hours closer. (and you pass a dozen other beaches on the way)..or go to Miami or Pepperdine or UCLA or a college which is right at the beach.

Yes, I know, but are those universities offering full tuition scholarships ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The poverty rate is higher in most major northern cities than Alabama. Yeah the state has problems, but so does the north. One problem they don't seem to have is providing affordable quality higher education. If you get into an Ivy, sure it opens doors. But most kids aren't getting into Harvard or Yale. I doubt graduating with massive debt from a NYU or GWU puts you in a better position than a degree from Alabama. Those are good schools, but unless you have endless money to burn, one needs to take a serious look at a place like Alabama. College is what you make of it, and it sure sounds like a high-achieving students can have a great experience there that will prepare them for the future without killing themself with loans. Florida used to have a similar reputation as Alabama and now its one of the top public universities in the nation.

I don't know the answer...but if you look at just salary data of Alabama on the WSJ ranking it's ranked 380 (it's even lower than Alabama Huntsville on this metric) vs. 90 for GW. NYU actually rates very low as well (310), so you are likely correct on that one.

Ga Tech as one example is #5...it would seem that it's almost a no brainer to even pay full freight for Ga Tech OOS (which is cheap for OOS at like $50k) vs. Alabama if you plan to go into the workforce after graduation, but Penn, CMU, Babson are all top 10 and would be worth the price as well as just some examples.

This seems to be a proxy measure that favors STEM schools with a regional salary bias for employment (many Alabama graduates outside of STEM will work there to remain close to family).

NYU has a small percentage of STEM students and educates a lot of artists. Go figure.

Not sure I would rely on this or at least would adjust for bias.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:UNC started becoming popular OOS, UGA having it's OOS moment, now AL for OOS. Some mention TN OOS. U Louisville OOS. What's next, Ole Miss for those from DMV?

I can think of 4 kids at top DMV private schools who want Ole Miss as first choice. And that’s just those who come to mind immediately.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just couldn’t in good conscience send my DD to Alabama. I’m sure the actual university is fine, but politically and socially I just couldn’t do it. They have a near total abortion ban; one of the strictest in the nation. They are also one of the most religious states in the nation, with 58% of the population attending church regularly. They also rank very high on poverty, low on public education and have very little racial diversity. Thankfully we can pay for college (and grad school.)

Wow. I just cannot imagine your mindset as a mother.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UNC started becoming popular OOS, UGA having it's OOS moment, now AL for OOS. Some mention TN OOS. U Louisville OOS. What's next, Ole Miss for those from DMV?

I can think of 4 kids at top DMV private schools who want Ole Miss as first choice. And that’s just those who come to mind immediately.

Ole Miss is an interesting school. Really nice college town (Oxford, Mississippi). Whenever someone brags about going to Oxford for college, I always think of Ole Miss first.