<p>Visiting the UA.edu, I checked out the factbook, and saw that the ACT average for entering freshman has increased every year for about the last ten years, but there is no data for Fall of 08. Does anyone know the Avg. ACT score for UA’s Fall of 08 freshmen class? The average GPA for that same Fall class would be great too. Thanks.</p>
<p>About a 24 but people get in scores in the teens. This is based on my personal experience. I am not applying to UA but I live in Alabama. Trust me! I’m a reliable source! All of my friends are going to UA! ;)</p>
<p>What is the source for your data? That number seems improbable given that UA’s selectivity (see decreasing acceptance rates) has increased greatly since it last had an average ACT score of 24. I don’t doubt that some students with scores lower than 20 do get admitted, however, UA rejected 40% of its applicants for last Fall Semester, so not everyone gets admitted. How is it that UA has this reputation among AU people for open admissions, when UA has a lower acceptance rate than AU?</p>
<p>Data from the website [Undergraduate</a> Education Scorecard](<a href=“http://main.uab.edu/show.asp?durki=64783]Undergraduate”>http://main.uab.edu/show.asp?durki=64783) shows it to be approximately 24</p>
<p>That link is to the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s site, not the University of Alabama’s site (main campus in Tuscaloosa). UA’s avg. ACT for Fall 2007 was 24.5, not 24, as it was at UAB.</p>
<p>Lol. I would NOT say that UA was a “selective school”. The majority of the applicantions they receive are from much students with VERY low ACT scores. Almost everyone in my school applies to UA but only say 40% have a score above a 24. UA is a great school but they don’t usually receive applications with “top” stats. Don’t misunderstand me though- I think Alabama is a great school. It’s just the truth. There are exceptions ,of course. : ]</p>
<p>So UA doesn’t get too many applications from top notch students eh? Well, then why does UA have more than twice as many National Merit Scholars as Auburn? Last Fall, UA enrolled well over 1,000 freshman (about one fifth the entire freshman class) with 4.0 GPA’s and 20% of the entire freshman class was enrolled in the Honor’s Program, which requires an ACT score of at least 28. You can go to UA’s website for confirmtion of these facts.</p>
<p>our valedictorian and salutatorian are both going to Auburn, and of course they both have a 36 ACT…interesting contrast to the previously mentioned facts haha</p>
<p>and your point is? I never said Auburn wasn’t attracting top students as well.</p>
<p>Lol. Whatever you say. All I can tell you is how folks in ALABAMA see UA. The only evidence I have is that I know for a fact that LOADS of people use UA as a safety. I have NEVER known ANYONE within my 17 years of living in Alabama to have a decent ACT score (24ish) and decent grades (B-C) to get rejected from UA. One of our students went to UA last year with a 20 and ranked 50 out of 112. No EC’s except cheerleading and drinking. This is a common occurence.</p>
<p>Yeah UA’s reputation in Alabama is so bad that UA enrolls by far more National Merit Scholars than any other school in the state. Auburn gets its share, but it is less than half of the numbers UA enrolls. </p>
<p>Fleura, </p>
<p>Why do you feel the need to nock UA? No one has said that UA is a very selective university, but it is more selective than you think. Again, it rejected 40 % of its applicants last Fall. In contrast, AU rejected only 29%. That is not proof of anything, except to point out that many are not accepted to UA, and according to UA’s President, it will become harder to gain admission to UA now that the goal of 28,000 enrollment draws near.</p>
<p>Atlanta68 - you mentioned the Auburn comparison first so you have to expect that there will be some flack. Let’s not make this another UA v AU thread.</p>
<p>It is a fact tha Bama has more NMS scholars. It is also a fact that UA has the money to pay for these scholars and Auburn doesn’t. Giving great scholarships will get more high achieving students to your campus, that is common sense. It is also a way to pad the average score for incoming freshman to make up for all of the low scoring kids. There isn’t anything wrong with this, a school has to start raising it’s standard somewhere. It really gets on my nerves how people pick and choose statistics to throw around that support their biased viewpoint. There is a reason that there are so many NMS kids going to Bama and it isn’t because it is an amazingly superior school. It’s because it is a great school that is offering amazing incentives to go there. Kudos to them, their plan is working.</p>
<p>Thanks for the reply. I only mentioned Auburn when someone went off topic and decided to knock UA. I only mentioned Auburn for comparison purposes. I have always thought that Auburn is a good school and know that it gets its share of the top students. While UA has slightly more of the top notch students, such as the National Merit Scholars, AU’s student body probably has a slightly higher percentage of top students. This is possible because as of last Fall, UA had almost 1,200 more freshmen than AU. </p>
<p>However, I disagree that UA only has more National Merit Scholars because it has the money and AU does not. After several years of lagging behing UA in the scholarship offerings, Auburn now has great scholarships too, and in another thread, dont remember which, it was pointed out that AU also offers scholarships designed to attract National Merit Scholars too. For whatever reason, the great majority of the National Merit Scholars are choosing UA over Auburn. However, from what I have read, AU probably had a slightly higher percentage of top notch students (ACTs 28 and over) in its freshman class of last Fall. </p>
<p>As a UA alum, I am glad to read that UA will soon raise its standards given that it has almost reached the target goal of 28,000 students. If UA had more state funding, it would have already been able to become even more selective. But the increased number of students, hence greater income from tuition, is helping UA financially big time as it seeks to become a major research university.</p>
<p>Excuse me. Nobody was “knocking UA”. Someone said something about UA having higher scores than Auburn, and it popped into my mind about my school’s senior class.
every single time i post something, i get attacked
and I’m sick of it!!!
everyone on the UA forum is soooo rude
we’re all supposed to be sharing our mind and all, and i’m being perfectly friendly so you guys can either shut up or go find something else to do
For your information, I love Alabama, and that’s where I am going next year.
I was simply pointing out the irony based on preceding statements
Get a life!!!</p>
<p>Ok, everyone take a deep breath and chill…</p>
<p>Auburn has money for NMS aid, but UA has one of the largest endowments in the country. It dwarfs AU and many other schools. AU just can’t compete in terms of aid. Both schools are suffering as a result of reduced state funding and I think it has been harder on AU because it’s coffers aren’t as full. What is the point of arguing this? I have never met anyone other than alum’s and parents who argue over the importance of having NMS at a school. It’s like a playground fight between kindergartners…“My school has more NMS than yours, nanny nanny boo boo.” And yes, UA does indeed offer more scholarships that are more lucrative than Auburn, plus they are actively making a huge effort to recruit these kids from accross the nation and that takes some dough. So why are so many choosing UA? Because it is a great school offering amazing packages and actively pursuing these kids. The only thing that says about AU is that maybe they should consider doing the same thing instead of being so passive…</p>
<p>Oregano, </p>
<p>Fleura went off the subject of this thread first, and interjected a negative opinion of UA commonly spouted by AU’s supporters and alumni. This thread was created so I could find out UA’s avg. ACT for Fall 2008. For some reason, UA’s website is always a year and sometimes more behind in posting the freshman data. I only offered AU as a comparison, cause I agree it is a good school, and I know that many top students go there. I was only pointing out that anecdotal stories about a friend here or a girl there who scored a 20 and was still admitted to UA do not reveal the full story.</p>
<p>Oregano, </p>
<p>Also, I never said UA had “higher scores” than AU. I only pointed out that UA has many more NM Scholars. Actually, if you read what I posted, you will see that I admitted that AU has a higher percentage of students who have an ACT score above of 28 and above, though UA still has higher numbers of those students given it’s much larger freshmen class size in Fall 08. Not sure what I said that you view as rude.</p>
<p>Boomu, </p>
<p>UA has a large endowment relative to the SEC, but it does not have one of the largest in the country. Harvard, for example, has billions of dollars in its endowment. UA and AU’s endowments differ by a couple of hundred million at the most. And recently, AU completed an endowment campaign, raising over $600 million, the largest amount ever raised by an institution in Alabama.</p>
<p>
[quote=]
As a reply to those of you who think Bama ‘blows Auburn out of the water’ in regards to National Merit Finalist scholarships, you should all do your homework.</p>
<p>Auburn offers:
Presidential Scholarship which includes Full Tuition & Fees, $1500 technology stipend, automatic admission into the honors college, and a $4,000 enrichment experience stipend.
On-Campus housing allowance valued at $4,400 per year for four years.
University Stipend varying between $1,000-$2,000 per year for four years (depends on financial need.)</p>
<p>Alabama offers:
Value of tuition in-state or out-of-state for 4 years (same as AU)
4 years of on-campus housing at regular room rate* (same ass AU, maybe a little below)
$1,000 per year University National Merit/Achievement Scholarship for 4 years (Same to Less than AU)
One time allowance of $2,000 for use in summer research or international study (Less than AU)
Laptop computer (Same as AU unless they give cheap dell’s, then AU students get more value)</p>
<p>Please enlighten me as to how Bama offers a better scholarship deal.
I just want to give a reminder that before you post, you really should do your homework. People look on here for assistance, it’s best if what they’re reading is true.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Someone posted this on the Auburn subforum, and I don’t think it matters if Alabama has a bigger endowment if they both give the same amount of $. </p>
<p>I don’t have a dog in this fight, I’m considering both schools, but I do like 'Bama a little more.</p>
<p>Coollege, </p>
<p>You present information which should stop the Auburn folks from insisting that UA has more N.M. Scholars simply because of a larger endowment. As I said before, this thread is not about comparing UA to AU. I only compared the two because someone felt the need to question the selectivity of UA. </p>
<p>For whatever reason, N.M. Scholars are drawn to UA at a much higher rate, though in fairness, we are only talking about around 80 at UA and 30 at AU. Overall, UA has a slightly higher number of students scoring a 28 or above on the ACT or the SAT equivalent for the ACT. AU has a slightly higher percentage of students who score 28 or above.</p>