I interviewed on Thursday PM, and just got my Finalist acceptance as an e-mail this morning but I have not received my letter yet, I am just so relieved to know I am a Finalist!!
does anyone know how they pick academic elite? and how many fellows finalists are typically national merit?
Dare I ask when?
Letters sent Wednesday the 9th for Fellows Notification.
*Info relayed to me by a friend.
My DD will be applying to UFE. This thread kinda died 
I was hoping to read about those who made it past the in person interview and are now in the program. Anyone??
Sending you a PM, @pink316, with the name of a parent who may be able to answer your questions.
That’s okay, @LucieTheLakie, I don’t mind being outed as the parent of a University Fellow! 
What do you want to know @pink316?
Thanks dodgersmom and congratulations! I’m not sure what to ask! Anything helpful in the process toward getting in is so much appreciated!! My DD has the grade requirement, so no worries there, but her EC’s in the area of community service are not as vast as I worry UFE may want to see. We had a private meeting with our area recruiter from Bama who, after talking with DD, said she would be an excellent candidate. That being said, she could have been “simply recruiting”. I really liked her, so I hope she was being real. Any insight on how much is “too little” to even apply? That may be a strange question, but one I must ask. DD has a very busy schedule, as most of these high-achiever’s do, and she is active in many things, not all of them are “community service”. I think she would be an excellent candidate, because in college she will actually have LESS to do then now…if that makes sense, and can actually do some community involvement activities. No, I’m not crazy…she is kid #4 out of 5, three of which are college graduates, so I am realistic about her time element. None of her older brothers went to UA, so this is a different path. Thank you for stepping forward!
If your regional recruiter thought she’d be a good candidate for UFE, then she probably would be. She should go for it - and not second-guess whether or not she has enough of this or enough of that in her resume. Knowing why she wants to do it is probably the most important thing.
The application itself is not particularly daunting. There were two essays when my son applied, in addition to the Honors College essay. No minimum word count, due in early December. The essays are read (and scored) by current Fellows over Winter Break. Depending on the student, the more challenging part of the application process may be the phone interview - also conducted by several current Fellows. If your student makes it as far as the on-campus interview process, the only thing I can say is to take it seriously . . . no playing on your cell phone (or similar nonsense).
As for what it takes to make the cut, I can’t really tell you. Your student needs to just be herself, and present herself honestly.
Good to know about the application. She doesn’t mind writing essays, thank goodness! Her biggest problem with them, though, is usually a “minimum” word count! :)) Interviews by current Fellows…hmmm…that is interesting. It does, however, make sense. If it is a tight-knit group, they would want some say in who joins the group.
Curious: does the entire 4-yr worth of UFE students do things together, or does each year of UFEs stick together, separate from other years?
Each “cohort”(year’s group) does things together . . . but there are also activities in which all four years participate together. One of the activities that all Fellows participate in is admissions - so far as I know, all current Fellows are invited to review written applications and to participate in the phone interviews. And I believe that all current Fellows are involved in the weekend’s activities during the on-campus interviews.
I’m not sure how much information is posted about the Fellows program on the Honors College website, but one of the activities that the Fellows participate in with their individual cohort is the freshman year “Black Belt Experience,” when they spend three weeks participating in service projects and other activities in Marion, AL. Another is the junior year Spring Break trip to Cuba. Each of the four years they spend in UFE has a different focus, and the Black Belt and Cuba trips reflect the focus for that year.
if you applied for UFE in hopes of receiving an academic elite scholarship and then you are chosen for UFE but do not get the scholarship, can you decline to be in UFE?
A UFE offer is a huge honor (and commitment) and should not be taken lightly.
I believe you can decline UFE if it is offered to you. (Although, I don’t know what the procedure is if you are already admitted and if there are deadlines.) I don’t know if you can ‘drop-out’ of UFE once you have started in it.
If funding was your sole reason for applying for the UFE, I would respectfully suggest you rescind your application to UFE now, to save the committee their time and effort (and possible embarrassment).
If you truly cannot afford to attend UA without additional financial help, then you should talk with someone (someone else can chime in about who is the appropriate person/department), once the UFE offer is extended to you.
Good luck with your decisions.
Its not that I would want to “drop out” of UFE. If I decide that I am definitely going to UA and I was offered a spot in UFE I would take it. I was more trying to ask if you are committed to UA if you recieve a UFE offer. If a scholarship didn’t come along with it I may just choose to go to a different school that did offer a scholarship + stipend, if that’s allowed. I’m just trying to put myself in the best financial situation possible. Thank you for your help and information!