False Advertising Univ of Oklahoma vs UA?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Alabama
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<p>I was just watching the Texas vs Univ of Oklahoma football game and there was a commercial for the University of Oklahoma that stated:</p>

<p>“university of oklahoma ranks #1 in the nation in natl merit scholars enrolled at a public university”</p>

<p>Isn’t that false? I thought UA had the most?</p>

<p>[UA</a> Ranks First Among Public Universities in Enrollment of National Merit Scholars | University of Alabama News - The University of Alabama](<a href=“http://uanews.ua.edu/2013/02/ua-ranks-first-among-public-universities-in-enrollment-of-national-merit-scholars/]UA”>http://uanews.ua.edu/2013/02/ua-ranks-first-among-public-universities-in-enrollment-of-national-merit-scholars/)</p>

<p>Does anyone know?</p>

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<p>OU had been #1 for many years for Public Univs. Last year, Bama was #1. However, because Bama changed its NMF award for Fall 2013’s incoming frosh class, Bama dropped a LOT. So, likely OU regained its #1 spot.</p>

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<p>We toured OU in July, and I recall that statement being made. I also thought it odd since I heard the same thing about Bama. I have learned through our college tour experiences that schools make many impressive claims which may be accurate depending on the source of info, specificity of the question, etc. One would think the number of National Merit scholars would be easily quantified. Maybe it pertained to different years, particular classes, or IS vs OOS.</p>

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<p>Thanks, mom2collegekids. I was a slow poster, but I thought it was something like that. They also said something about having the most national championships at OU. Surely I heard that wrong!</p>

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<p>Other than bragging rights, does the number of NMFs mean much? Until I came to this site, I wasn’t aware that some kids started prepping for standardized exams in the 6th or 7th grade.</p>

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<p>Key word, I believe, is “advertising.” There are many good reasons to attend a given school. I think for my D3, as flaky as it might sound, it will come down to where she “sees” herself.</p>

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<p>OU did not say freshmen…they said ENROLLED. Given that they have had the biggest freshman class, except for last year, and given that they have offered tuition for FIFTH YEAR for some time, I am absolutely sure that The University of Oklahoma currently has many, Many more NMFs (past and present) ENROLLED on campus …</p>

<p>Too bad they don’t have an offensive line.</p>

<p>Roll Tide.</p>

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<p>You have to go where you feel comfortable. For my son, that was 2 of the 10 schools he visited. The number of NMFs wasn’t on his radar.</p>

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<p>DD was on track to attend OU…and had been for sixteen years.</p>

<p>M2CK’s NMF posts about 'BAMA on CC caused us to visit UA.</p>

<p>It was all over except for the deposits after that visit.</p>

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<p>I came across UA while searching for schools with guaranteed merit scholarships. I later found a thread that on CC that had a comprehensive list. Among those schools, UA was arguably the best.</p>

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<p>Thanks for all the responses. UA is the BEST in my opinion!!</p>

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<p>Texas beat Oklahoma today! :wink: (Sorry, couldn’t resist…)</p>

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<p>riprorin – Our family did not see getting high NMF as bragging rights. For us, it showed that the breadth of some large public Us to provide a strong enough depth to attract and retain academically strong high school students. DS had a very low opinion of the large Universities. Just looking on CC, DS was not alone. The privates definitely appeal as stronger to HS students. The NMF stats gave us parents a concrete argument that he would not be bored in classes.</p>

<p>As for prepping since 6th grade, my son, as many others, took standardized tests in middle school to qualify for gifted programs that kept him interested in learning. We never did it for “college prep” purposes. The perk was nice that he did not have anxiety over SAT/ACT that his classmates did, it was never the intent to take it to begin with.</p>

<p>I have 2 middle school kids now – 1 has opted to take SAT/ACT; the other sees no point since the gifted programs do not appeal.</p>

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<p>We looked seriously at one private school and even with the most generous merit scholarship it was still more expensive than the two very good state flagships we had in-state tuition for.</p>

<p>The NMF numbers were interesting, but really didn’t have any bearing on our decision. As we’ve seen, the number can be manipulated.</p>

<p>Don’t all kids take some standardized tests? I was referring to taking the ACT or SAT in the 6th or 7th grade. I hadn’t heard of that before I saw it here.</p>

<p>My kids went to Catholic school with very small classes. I’m sure they could pick out the bright kids pretty easily without having to look at standardized test results. As a parent who was engaged in my kids’ education, the results just confirmed what I already knew.</p>

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<p>around page 40 the number of NMFs per school are shown … <a href=“http://nationalmerit.org/annual_report.pdf[/url]”>http://nationalmerit.org/annual_report.pdf&lt;/a&gt; … interesting</p>

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<p>If would be more interesting if the number was normalized for enrollment. Just scanning the numbers, there doesn’t seem to be a good correlation between the number of NMS and school ranking.</p>

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<p>DS and I took the OU NMF tour in 2010. They rolled out the red carpet! It was his second choice school behind USC, where he currently attends. He didn’t consider Bama because he was looking for a school with strong film and Japanese programs. He could have gone to OU for next to nothing, but instead, pays part of his own tuition to attend a school that he felt better met his needs, even with the NMF scholarship.</p>

<p>DD is Bama bound. Not a NMF but a Presidential Scholar. Bama has just what DD is looking for. </p>

<p>When it comes down to it, it is important that the kids and parents make the right choice for that child. Roll Tide!</p>

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<p>

Just keeping it interesting. I mean it’s not much of a rivalry if OU wins every game…</p>