<p>My S is currently deciding between Lafayette College (Marquis Scholar) and Alabama (NMF package). He is planning to major in Mechanical Engineering and wants to be involved in research. He was impressed with what he saw at Alabama (campus, hospitality, facilities) during his honors college visit last month and he also came away with a positive experience at Lafayette during the Marquis Scholars day. He is a a bright, quiet kid, friendly but not outgoing, and does not follow any sports. Although both schools have a Greek presence, he does not want to join a frat and he is not keen on drinking. His pre-K to 12 years: small private schools with individualized attention. I’m wondering how kids like him have adjusted to Alabama, particularly OOS kids? Will he get lost in a large, public school like Alabama? We realize that the Honors College will make the place smaller for him but will it be small enough to allow for individual attention, if needed? This also goes for the College of Engineering. How large are the freshman lecture classes? Are the faculty accessible and truly concerned about the welfare of the students? These questions are difficult to assess during campus visits. Lafayette College,a small LAC with a solid engineering program, seems to be a better fit for him but Alabama, a larger school with good research opportunites and greater resources available, is more of the financial reality. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>Well, from my experience in the College of Engineering, the faculty are very accessible and do care about the success of their students. The college is still relatively small, which an enrollment about 2000 undergraduates. The freshman lecture sections are small, I’ve never seen one with more than 60. Keep in the mind, I’m talking about freshman lectures. Upper level courses usually have smaller sections of 20-30 students.</p>
<p>I have an engineering student and a mathematics student. Both know their profs quite well. I think the profs at UA seem very nice and accessible with the exception of one (that I know of…LOL…he’s just full of himself because his father was a bigwig in their shared field.) </p>
<p>As for “not following sports.” Don’t let that stop him from buying a student packet of football tickets. My older son is quiet, shy, and never followed sports - EVER. He’s the last person I would have thought would get into Bama Football. I was sooooooo wrong. We did get a set of football tickets his freshman year (thank God), and he went to the home games and fell in love with Crimson Tide football. He’s totally into it now. </p>
<p>So, the football tickets for students are $5 each, but are sold in sets. they sell out FAST and go on sale usually at the end of May. Don’t wait. Buy the moment they go on sale. The moment!</p>
<p>One of my son’s friends (she is a freshman like he is) is in the running for five different aerospace engineering internships this summer. Another mom whose son is a freshman majoring in aerospace engineering said he went to one of the career evenings, and he stands an excellent chance of securing an internship this summer with a helicopter business about an hour from his home (he’s from Pennsylvania). So the career opportunities are definitely there – and your son may not need to wait until he’s an upperclassman to secure those opportunities.</p>
<p>As for the chances to know one’s professors, my son missed Honors Day the other day – much to his disappointment – but he was off representing UA at a national tournament. He was able to e-mail each professor, set up times to meet with them and turn in any assignments he had finished. He’s met with several professors and all have been wonderful to deal with. Last weekend, his girlfriend and a friend were out and about in T-Town, and they ran into Dr. Sharpe, dean of the Honors College. Not only did he recognize them, but invited them to his home for Easter dinner since they were from out of state and would have nowhere to go. </p>
<p>We understand, too, about financial reality and being an OOS student. My son turned down the U. of Richmond and William & Mary (among others – we live in Virginia) for Alabama … and he does not regret that decision. He will graduate without debt … and that’s big since he plans to pursue his doctorate.</p>
<p>I was a little concerned that he would find the adjustment to living in the deep South a problem, but he really hasn’t. He always loved sweet tea, but still dislikes fried chicken. Wearing shorts to class in February is nice, especially when one’s hometown still had several inches of snow on the ground. He loved calling his friends at their Virginia schools and letting them know the temperature was in the 70s. Winning a national football title is really cool in one’s freshman year … and while he always liked football, well, he really likes it now. His biggest recommendation would be to have your son enrolled in Alabama Action or Outdoor Action. It is a great community service program that will give the OOS student an immediate group of friends (not to mention a chance to dine at some of T-Town’s popular restaurants the first week while on campus). One of his roommates did Alabama Action (he is from Alabama), while his girlfriend and her roommate did Alabama Action and Outdoor Action, respectively. </p>
<p>Hope that helps.</p>
<p>Besides the programs, you need to consider the differences between Easton, PA and Tuscaloosa, AL. I’m not sure where you live, but commuting home time/ease will differ from one to the other, as well as major climate differences. Also for future employment concerns, you might want to take into account the current economic realities of the Northeast vs. the South. </p>
<p>I’m a NJ native so I’m very familiar with Easton (hooray Crayola Factory 
but now live in TN and our D will be a freshman at UA come August.</p>
<p>I’m in agreement with the other posters. Overall, I love UA and consider myself very well-adjusted. I know people who came from very small high schools and they are also enjoying UA. If you want to get to know professors, go to office hours or send them an e-mail, they are very approachable. Come to think of it, many have offered to work with students outside of office hours and one even asked if anyone wanted to house-sit for him over the summer. As for internships and other opportunities, your son would have lots to choose from. For engineers and selected business majors, UA just expanded their already close relationship with Mercedes to include a program that pays for graduate school and guarantees a job in the end. I myself am in the running for an internship closer to my home near Seattle.</p>
<p>I too really understand the importance of finances, which should be a good thing as it’s one of my majors. I applied to colleges with financial aid/scholarships in mind and was extremely delighted when UA ended up being the cheapest option as it was my top choice. It seems that your son likes Lafayette better, but that could just be because he is not used to the size of UA.</p>
<p>Socially, there is always something to do and oftentimes, I want to do more things than I have time for. I have never been that much of a sports fan and had zero intention of considering Greek Life. Then again, I wasn’t expecting to attend Alabama either. I’ve been to every home game and love the experience of Alabama Football games and those of other sports too. I’m still a GDI, but I recognize that Greek Life can be a great experience of for many people. Contrary to the beliefs of some, many college students do not drink. Wherever he ends up attending, your son will find people with similar interests and do stuff with them, most likely things that don’t involve alcohol. Then again, I know people who don’t drink but still go to parties where alcohol is present (they make good designated drivers). Additionally, there are a lot of quiet kids at UA, especially in honors, I’d put myself in that category. That doesn’t mean that we don’t like to have fun, we just know when we need our to work or just need quiet.</p>
<p>momreads’s son and his friends as good examples of how to make the most of your UA experience. I know them personally and they are great people. UA is attracting many of the country’s best and brightest students.</p>
<p>I do like living in Alabama even though this winter was not the best weather-wise. The people are very friendly, the food plentiful (I’m not a fan of fried chicken , but I like ribs, okra, chicken fried steak, and cornbread, among other southern foods), pretty good weather, and the wonderful campus experience and campus vibe that says anything is possible if you put your mind to it. I’m proud to be part of the UA family.</p>
<p>SEA_tide, has the UA recruiting office put you on the payroll yet? You are amazing.</p>
<p>Where can we find info about the newly expanded Mercedes program you referenced above? My son is a business major (this week ).</p>
<p>Thank you for the compliment. I’ve applied for programs with admissions or the honors college, but none has become a reality. :(</p>
<p>Details for the Mercedes program I mentioned are at <a href=“http://coop.eng.ua.edu/Mercedes%20Benz%20Application%20Packet.pdf[/url]”>http://coop.eng.ua.edu/Mercedes%20Benz%20Application%20Packet.pdf</a> . The co-op website itself is [Cooperative</a> Education Program - The University of Alabama](<a href=“http://coop.eng.ua.edu/top.htm]Cooperative”>http://coop.eng.ua.edu/top.htm) .</p>
<p>feenotype: It’s reassuring to learn that the class sizes are not as big as I expected. The freshman lecture size of 60 is reasonable for a large school.</p>
<p>mom2c: Thanks for the heads-up about the football ticket sets. I would consider it a huge accomplishment for Alabama if my son becomes a football convert! </p>
<p>momreads: The number of internship options and possible offers, particularly for freshman, speaks well of Alabama students. The OOS summer internship options seem promising, particularly if my S would happen to find one closer to home. I like the anecdote about Dean Sharpe inviting your son and his girlfriend to his home for Easter dinner: that speaks volumes about the personalized attention I was asking about in my post. I also appreciate your addressing the cultural difference of the deep South. It helps in his transition that southern culture is genteel, friendly, and hospitable. In addition, the financial aspect is a factor because he does plan on getting a doctorate, a heavy expense assuming no graduate assistantship. Thus we are grateful for this gift that Alabama is giving our family. The Outdoor Action is a good idea for forming initial friendships.</p>
<p>RobD: Easton would be an easier commute compared to Alabama from Western PA although we have family in NJ too. Climate differences are not too much of an issue for S but the current regional economic situation is certainly an important factor.</p>
<p>Sea_tide: Your student perspective is invaluable. Reassuring to know that kids from small high schools have found their niche in Alabama and are enjoying the school. I also appreciate your insight on the social scene at the school. We had heard about the big Greek presence at Alabama and my S was not thrilled about it. However, it looks like the campus is diverse enough that there are other kids with his interests and his personality (quiet and studious) that he should be able to feel comfortable with initially. I’m sure that once he becomes more comfortable with his adjustment, he will also benefit from being around others who are not like him. </p>
<p>I truly appreciate the honesty and generosity of everyone’s input. This has got to be the most active college site on CC! With the tremendous amount of information and support from this thread, it is becoming more difficult for me to be impartial in letting my son decide between the two schools. My original question about the faculty’s concern and accessibility for the students has been unanimously answered by all posters. In addition, it does seem that other kids with my son’s personality and/or OOS small-school background thrive in Alabama (and the deep South) and are pleased with their college experiences. Financially, Alabama is a no-brainer. As a plus, the internship, job, and graduate school prospects seem promising. And lastly, this Alabama football is indeed legendary. If it is enough to convert non-sports fans, then there is hope for my S. Will seriously look into getting those set of tickets!</p>
<p>Sea_tide: Thanks for the kind words about my son and his friends. Next year, you will be residing in the same dorm (I believe). I’ll have them invite you for dinner, since they love cooking.</p>
<p>Sophocles: I just took a look at Southwest & the flights between Pittsburgh & Birmingham look reasonable. There seems to be 1 flight a day where there is a stop but not a plane change.</p>
<p>Thanks, RobD. In fact, my S flew down for honors visit on Southwest. Had the best fare at that time.</p>