<p>We are planning on being at at least one home game…not parents weekend though…too crazy and DH says that the game is a no brainer and not enough “fun” to watch…curently looking at Mizzous schedule to see what we can fit in. I will most definitely buy you a drink (or two…) and even a bite to eat…my treat! Roll Tide!!!</p>
<p>Oh forgot to add if asaunmom is in town she (and husband) are invited as well…M I Z-----</p>
<p>Why? M2CK - Simple as that.</p>
<p>My son is only in 10th grade and already I’m hooked on UA due to M2CK.</p>
<p>I helped my neice wade through the admissions process. I’ve become very familiar with merit/FA. Though my son will follow his cousin and apply to private schools, I can’t afford any without merit and FA combos. I thought that only left state schools or comuting to a Philly school. Neither my son nor I wish to live together through the college years - HS years are tough enough for us.</p>
<p>In PA we have state schools and state affiliate (Penn St, Pitt, Temple are all affiliates). Our true state schools are good for education majors and business majors, but not much else. They do not even have engineering. Penn St is expensive and very difficult to secure housing, particularly sophmore year. Pitt is a fine school, but I’d like my son to have a choice. And he’d really prefer warmer weather. Temple - he’d commute. </p>
<p>So, in our house UA hasn’t won yet, but I can tell you it has become a big motivator to prep for standardized tests and get a “guaranteed” merit. The early rolling admission notifications are a high priority for my son, too. Even if he doesn’t score high enough for a full tuition, the other merit offers, dorms like palaces, and weather have UA high on the list.</p>
<p>And we are NOT a football family. The big time sports are in the con column for my kid, but the pro column outweighs this sole con.</p>
<p>From OHIO:</p>
<p>Alabama ranks at the top on my daughter’s list for these reasons:
*Number one - vibe/southern hospitality (which you DON’T get in Ohio)
Second - warm weather
Third - Capstone nursing building is new and state of the art
Fourth - Amazing guaranteed scholarships/honors program</p>
<p>And some other considerations: Football!!!, amazing rec center, dance team, great dorms, greek life, and more!</p>
<p>Roll Tide!!</p>
<p>I first found out about Alabama because a rep attended a college fair at my school and told me about the scholarships and honors program. At that time I only qualified for 2/3 tuition, but that was enough to get my interest. (I eventually reached the full tuition level.) After that I did research, on this site and elsewhere, and heard nothing but great things about Alabama. At that point I was set on going to a school with huge sports and great school spirit, and I knew no school could beat UA in that department.</p>
<p>I applied in July and was accepted in August. Since then, I’ve changed my mind a hundred times, between wanting to go there to wanting to go to a small, private school. Overall, the big things that influenced my decision were: 1) Scholarship, 2) Honors program, 3) Suites/dorms/facilities, 4) People I’ve met, especially my suitemates, 5) Sports, 6) Weather.</p>
<p>The schools I’ve chosen UA over are:
Boston College
Indiana ($9k per year)
Penn State
Iowa
South Carolina
Wisconsin - Madison
Clemson
Waitlists at Emory and WUSTL</p>
<p>For us, we researched schools that had “favorable” leanings as far as merit aid was concerned, and since my D is high achieving, NMF, etc. we received the letter that exposed us to the potential of UA. So UA was on the radar merely due to the package that they purported to offer … knowing nothing else about the school. We’ve visited 8 or 9 schools in total, but in November we embarked on a SE trek, and decided to visit UA during that leg which also included Clemson, Wake Forest, UNC, Duke and William and Mary. At the end of THAT trip, UA had already elevated itself to the top of my D’s list (and ours). Jami did a wonderful job putting together the day for us and having my D meet with Mrs. Batson, Dr. Morgan and many others. We were VERY impressed with the individual nature of our attention</p>
<p>My D applied for both UFE and CBHP programs on the basis of that visit alone, and was ultimately fortunate to have been named into the CBHP program.</p>
<p>As the end of March approached, we were only waiting on her sentimental #1 which was Rice … my Mom lives in Houston (we’re from Illinois) and she loved it there too. She also, really like William and Mary, but in the end, UA won out.</p>
<p>Here’s what she turned down to attend UA:</p>
<p>Rice (accepted, no merit)
Vanderbuilt (accepted, no merit)
William and Mary (accepted, no merit)
Tulane (accepted, Presidential offered)
Clemson (accepted, Calhoun Honors, with merit)
University of Denver (accepted, Chancellor’s scholarship)
Washington University St. Louis (Waitlisted)
Wake Forest (withdrew application, D hated it during the visit)
UNC (Did not apply … she was not wowed … seemed too big for her)
Duke (Did not apply … we wanted her to, but she decided she had enough)</p>
<p>So, ROLL TIDE!!!</p>
<p>The way it all shakes out, one can never tell, right? We cannot be happier and prouder of her decision. The financial package did weigh on the decision, but given everything else, and the entire decision process, I can tell you that it was NOT the only or even the most important factor.</p>
<p>^^^ And just adding. My D had been VERY adamant at the beginning on a few things: 1) No “pretentious” schools (her words) from the NE (no ivies whatsoever), 2) she thought she wanted small to medium size (15K or less students), 3) no campuses that could be characterized as City Campuses, and 4) finally, NO schools from Illinois! Well, as you know, when you factor out the entire NE, you getting rid of like 2000 or the 3000 Universities. :-)</p>
<p>As Nick Saban said in that video I posted on another thread…“this is one of the hottest schools to go to in this country because of all the enhancements…” </p>
<p>m2ck, what thread did you post that video? I remember reading the quote, but I don’ t remember seeing the video?</p>
<p>Here’s the post…
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/12347550-post1.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/12347550-post1.html</a></p>
<p>Here’s the link to the video…</p>
<p>[St</a>. Francis of Assisi University Parish](<a href=“http://layingacornerstone.com/sabans.html]St”>http://layingacornerstone.com/sabans.html) Scroll down to the second video on this page.</p>
<p>Our search started in D’s sophomore year in high school. We sat her down and had a frank discussion on colleges (right after her school emphasized starting early). All she said was that she did not care where she went as long as she felt comfortable on campus, that she could graduate with little or no debt and that we would incur little or no debt (love that kid!!).</p>
<p>D and I worked as a team. I work on a mutual fund website so I have periods of down time that I can search. She would tell me of various universities that interested her and I would research them. I would give her the info I found (good and bad). I also would search for ones that I thought she might like. The list was constantly updated. During this time, I found CC and it helped tremendously. D narrowed her search down to 6. </p>
<p>Spousal unit really wanted her to attend UT Austin (we both went to school there). FA package was laughable (loans only!!!) Around this time is when UA came on our radar. We flew up to attend a University Day in Feb 2010. The day we flew in it was pouring down rain, 35 degrees and 30 mph winds. We managed to arrange a meeting with Dr Sharpe late in the day prior to University Day. We figured we would get around 15 minutes. It lasted close to two hours. We ran into Dr Halli as we were waiting, met Jami, got a tour of the computer lab, met with Dr Sharpe and then ran into Dr Halli again! Everyone was so nice. D moved UA up to top 3 on her list. </p>
<p>In Nov 2010, we went back to ‘make sure’ as D made UA #1. D again met with Dr Sharpe, met Dr Morgan, sat in on a class, met Dr Caldwell (who knew he was a Green Day fan?) and met multiple students in both Fellows and CBHP. </p>
<p>Like Dad2ILD said, the FA package did help, but D said she felt like this was the place for her. Her friends have given her a hard time about it but she just laughs at them and says ‘if you only knew what I knew’. </p>
<p>I have met some wonderful people myself both on this forum and at UA. I hope I can be of help to future students and parents like others have been to me. </p>
<p>ROLL TIDE!!</p>
<p>Bama was on the loooong list of schools that fit D’s original criteria. But it wasn’t on the list of 12 schools that we began visiting (none of which were in our home state of Texas) and thought she would apply.</p>
<p>After we visited the 12 schools her criteria had become better defined – College Town, School Spirit, Traditional Greek Life, Great Academics, Community Service Opportunities, Mentoring by Faculty. About that same time she began to get info about Alabama’s NMF scholarship and similar offers from a couple of other schools. UA and one other school (not Auburn – haha) seemed to fit the social requirements but we weren’t sure about the academics so we decided to visit both.</p>
<p>We visited the other school on a Friday and quickly realized it wasn’t what she was looking for. The Honors College was very disjointed and unorganized. As we were walking out, as an afterthought, they mentioned that they were implementing additional fees for honors courses. We then flew to Alabama on Sunday for meetings we had Monday. She fell in love with the campus and the people she met, but she was still very skeptical. Her itinerary included meetings with Dr. Morgan and Dr. Witt – both of whom were very impressive. The Honors College was very organized and the Ambassadors were great! All of our questions about academics were answered and our concerns put to rest. Bama became a contender and Fellows became a goal.</p>
<p>Ultimately she applied to 8 schools and was accepted by all. Some offered significant merit aid, others not a dime! She was accepted to the Fellows program and it has been a wonderful experience for her. However, I think she would have chosen Alabama even without that opportunity. Roll Tide!</p>
<p>aphimommy: The Arkansas game on Sept 24th and the LSU game on Nov 5th look to be your best bets. Mizzou is on the road both of those weekends. </p>
<p>LSU game is without a doubt the best home game on the schedule and their corndog smelling fans are fun to tailgate with. The weather should be perfect that time of year as well. Ticket prices won’t be pretty though.</p>
<p>Arkansas will be a solid game and tickets should be easier to acquire and much more reasonable in price than they will be for LSU. Weather will probably still be on the hot side but not too bad. </p>
<p>Alabama - Tennessee is one of the oldest and fiercest rivalries in college football. But the pumpkins are going to suck this year (and coming years) and Mizzou has a home game that day. This should be a game you try to get to in 2013 though.</p>
<p>Thanks for the info…We were thinking about the Arkansas game actually…although DH would like the LSU game would be good as well (I forwarded him this and he just emailed me right back). We have a very good friend who is UA Law School faculty and he has generously offered us his tix for when ever we want to come…in return we have to give him our tix when he returns to watch MU (he taught there when DH attended law school there). DH just messaged me and told me it will have to be LSU…Mizzou plays at Oklahoma on 9/24 and Donald Stephenson #59 left Tackle for OU lived with us during his Senior year of high school…we will travel to OU to watch him play his final game against Mizzou and our son will be coming from Chicago as well. So if you are in town for LSU when we get closer we will pick a place to meet…(no…not the “hot sorority” girls condo…ha ha !). DH says to tell you he dislikes (ok he didn’t really use that word I censored it) OU and Nebraska along with Kansas as much as y’all don’t like Florida, South Carolina (he had names for those coaches…Urban Meyers in particular).
You can add to the list if you like…I’m sure your little brother will keep you posted on A-Day activiites…it’s also a big day at the Beta house…oh my!</p>
<p>From Washington:</p>
<p>In looking at colleges, my criteria were:
- Affordability
- Great academics, but students who still like to have fun
- Lots of school spirit
- Acceptance of my dual enrollment and AP credits</p>
<p>I learned UA from reading CC and was overjoyed to find a school that made scholarship decisions based on objective criteria. Holistic admissions/decision criteria have generally not worked in my favor. I was also lucky to meet an admissions director from UA who encouraged me to apply and put me in contact with some higher-level administrators. Despite visiting when it was 14 degrees and then getting a parking ticket off campus, there was little doubt in my mind that I was going to attend UA. </p>
<p>Throughout my childhood, my parents assumed that I would attend the University of Washington. During high school, my plans changed and I decided that I was going to attend a smaller, 15,000-student state school with good academics, no Greek system, and a [legal] entertainment district located 25 miles away in British Columbia. When it came down to it, however, UA was by far my favorite and also the least expensive school to which I applied.</p>
<p>I especially like UA because
- I have the freedom and support to create my own academic plans.
- The dorms are excellent and the people are friendly.
- The weather is usually nice enough that I can be considered a Snowbird and not resemble any of the negative connotations of such a description.
- Academics are top notch, yet not so difficult that I can’t have the occasional fun evening out with friends
- Tons of school spirit, both on-campus and nationwide
- Excellent athletic programs
- School colors (crimson and white) that I look good wearing, i.e. not orange
- The school mascot is an elephant
- Many other reasons, but most importantly, there is a UA-specific phrase that I love to yell:</p>
<p>ROLL TIDE ROLL!!!</p>
<p>lol, I understand where your husband is coming from loud and clear in regards to disliking other Big 12 teams. I will say that I did find the OU fans to be solid individuals and pretty classy people when we had the home & home with them a few years back.</p>
<p>The LSU game should be epic. Both teams have a strong chance of being undefeated at the time and it will probably decide who wins the SEC West. I’ll be there!!</p>
<p>Fortunately for me A-Day will be televised live by ESPNU in crystal clear HD. I even have the DVR set so I can watch it again later :-)</p>
<p>SEA_tide…I was born in Spokane and lived there until I was 11 when we moved to Tacoma …Went to WSU for a year then transferred and graduated from The University of Puget Sound…am a Washington girl now transplanted to Missouri these past 27 years. I am glad you love Bama…so does our youngest…and we also love to yell “roll tide”!!!</p>
<p>I will add to the above by saying Bama has it all, great faculty, terrific opportunities, Honors College, CBHP and fantastic scholarships.
As you will see my son had other options (many closer to our home) but after his initial visit, he left UA feeling that he had found a second home. <strong>He has not been wrong.</strong></p>
<p>I copied this off a post last year:</p>
<p>My son turned down the following colleges: I am including scholarship information and other information so that this might be useful to future students.
St Johns University: Presidential Scholarship 31,250 year (full tuition) + computer
-Honors Program</p>
<p>Loyola University New Orleans: Deans Scholarship 21,000 year </p>
<p>Tulane University: Academic Merit Scholarship 22,000 year
-Tulane University Honors Program</p>
<p>Fordham University -Rose Hill: Fordham Deans Scholarship 20,800 (27,000 applicants)</p>
<p>Auburn University: Academic Presidential Scholarship 19,452 year (full tuition)
+1,500 technology allowance + 4,000 Stipend +COSAM Scholarship 2,000 yr</p>
<p>SUNY Binghamton</p>
<p>SUNY Geneseo:
-Invited to apply to Edgar Fellows Program 2,000 year (declined)</p>
<p>Stony Brook University Presidential Scholarship 3,500 year
- Stony Brook Honors (3,300 applicants, 60 accepted)</p>
<p>University of Pittsburgh: Academic Scholarship 10,000 year
-University Honors College </p>
<p>University of North Carolina -Chapel Hill:</p>
<p>Roanoke College: RC Achievement Award 1,000 yr + RC Scholarship 13,500
-Selected to participate in Roanoke Scholarship competition (declined)</p>
<p>University of Maryland College Park: Presidents Scholarship 12,000 year (increased annually)
-Invited to participate in the Catalyst Seminar
-Awarded Gemstone Honors Program</p>
<p>and the winner is:
University of Alabama Tuscaloosa: Presidential Scholarship 19,200 year (full tuition)
-University Honors Program
-International Honors Program
-Computer Based Honors Program
Roll Tide Roll</p>
<p>As an addendum, I will add that there were some additional merit offers later in the year.</p>
<p>wow, and you turned down a lot of money from that school down the road!</p>
<p>M-I-Z…a little late, huh? </p>
<p>NJ & aphi- I’ve been reading your post(s) to DH. He’s cracking up. FYI, he despises Kansas! Not a fan of OU or Nebraska but Nebraska is jumping ship to Big, so who cares, anyway! Not fans of the Big 10, just live smack dab in the middle of it.</p>
<p>We’re up for meeting at LSU game </p>
<p>aphi-are you guys going to MIZZOU Homecoming this year? Maybe we’ll see ya there…</p>
<p>yep we will be there…we should plan to meet up! When we get closer I will give you directions to our tailgate (alas…PLEASE don’t hold it against us…after attending the Bama ones DH convinced everyone to get a flat screen…ok so you need magnifying glasses to see the screen but hey we’re trying!..not exactly a Bama experience but what we lack in Bama atmosphere we make up for in a group of hilariously fun people which consists of several former Mu football players and even a couple of cheerleaders…wink…wink:) ). Y’all are also invited to meet up at the LSU game…will work on details closer to the date. Have been playing with the GPS all night …with Gods help and Susan…(yep we named the GPS) I won’t get lost some where in rural Mississippi on my to T-Town on Friday…</p>
<p>Former cheerleaders??? Send me the directions also 
j/k</p>
<p>You’ll have a blast at A-Day.</p>
<p>Roll Tide!!</p>