My son recently received a letter inviting him to apply for the Blount Undergraduate Initiative program. He plans to major in journalism and we like the idea of a liberal arts education at an institution like Alabama. Does anyone have any information to offer about the program and whether journalism would be a good fit with this program?
My D also received the letter and is planning to apply. She constantly changes her mind about majors but is currently thinking of English and is also thinking about law school in the future. We don’t know much more about it than what is on the website but it seems like a good opportunity for more humanities focused kids. She also likes the fact that they all live together in the same dorm. It is unlikely that she will get into honors housing because she isn’t committing early so this looks like a good alternative.
If you use the search engine in the UA forums you’ll find quite a few threads about it. This article may offer some information too: http://www.cw.ua.edu/article/2014/11/blount-director-discusses-application-process
Although my son isn’t in the Inititiatve, he did live in the Blount Living Learning Community last year and made a ton of friends there. It’s a much smaller dormitory than most on campus and very much has the feel of a liberal arts community.
LucieTheLakie, thanks so much! I’ve read those threads and they were very informative. By the way, how was your son able to live in Blount? My son would like to be roommates with someone who may not apply for the program.
@Justathought1, last year (2014-15), there was a floor of Blount used to house “Honors overflow” students. Several honors engineers were housed there. Not sure about this year, but it’s an option for honors students, I believe. Perhaps @UAHousing can offer some more up-to-date information.
The article says that the program has a 65% retention rate. Does that mean the 35% drop out before the year end? Something doesn’t seem right about that number.
Keep in mind that the Blount Initiative is an academic minor, so the retention rate might reflect how many students actually graduate with the minor listed as part of their degree. That’s just my guess.
Blount will continue to be a location for students in Honors College to select to live, so yes, students who are in Honors but not in the Blount Initiative can live in the residence hall.
Hope this helps!
Janine
Thank you, Janine!
Is anyone interviewing on Friday?
D was invited but we can’t visit again. She will be doing her interview by phone.
My son is interviewing.
I was very impressed with the Blount Undergraduate Initiative Program after attending their information session on Friday.
My daughter had her phone interview this week. She was very happy with how it went and I think this is pushed Alabama up to the top of her list again.
I called UA Housing this morning and asked what happens if she gets into Blount but doesn’t commit to UA until later in February. They told me that she would be guaranteed a place in Blount Hall but that the room would be assigned by housing.
That’s definitely a perk to being in the program.
@me29034, your student can still request another Blount student as a roommate though, even though they won’t go through online room selection.
If she finds another Blount student that she would want to live with, just make sure they’re confirmed roommates so that we see that we we go to make Blount LLC housing assignments.
Hope this helps,
Janine
My son was accepted into the program. He received his letter today.