<p>Im a senior in high school in California, and UA is my top choice school. Just wondering, how differently are students from out of state treated?</p>
<p>do people really think that the south is really that bad? it seems that people from the coasts tend to think that alabama is some other planet or something…it’s one thing to be concerned whether you’ll fit in, but it’s another you’ll be treated badly</p>
<p>i have never been to the south (the furthest SE ive been is arizona), but ive met southerners, and i can tell you that they are nicer than the average person…and im pretty sure they dont discriminate or anything like that</p>
<p>Hmmm. well, Kimbring, my D is attending Bama as a freshman and is OOS, but I don’t think she considers herself that. She seems to have made herself right at home! It doesn’t take long for UA or Tuscaloosa to grow on you, and you will NOT be treated like a foreigner.</p>
<p>Hey kimbring, your question is a fairly common one and it’s been addressed on various threads here at the UA forum. mom2collegekids, who hails from California and now lives in Alabama, has written extensively on this subject. Look up some of her posts or PM her. She’s the best.</p>
<p>My son is a freshman at Bama (from Hawaii). I grew up in California. We both wondered what the people would be like in Alabama, and thus far they’ve been nothing short of fantastic, welcoming, friendly, and gracious. </p>
<p>To top it off, Californians seem to be flocking to Bama in increasing numbers, so no worries mate. Come on down and Roll Tide.</p>
<p>I’m a freshman from CA, and I looove it here. Especially if you’re in the honors college, pretty much everywhere you look will be full of OOSers. Granted, many of them are from LA, GA, MS, etc, but I’ve become friends with someone from Pennsylvania, Idaho, Maryland, Arizona, etc.</p>
<p>thanks! i have heard southerners are super nice, just wanted to make sure I wouldn’t have a ton of trouble fitting in. also, maybe for those that are OOS, how was the move in process for you? i’m worried about moving in and out when I live across the country!</p>
<p>How are OOS drivers treated in Tuscaloosa?, any difference? I’ve always been a little apprehensive the few times I drove to FL through GA and SC because I’ve heard that the policemen were very serious in the South and they are Sherriffs which just sound serious.
How are town/gown relations overall in T town? We live in a college town and there are a lot of issues here, but it all revolves around the off campus rentals.</p>
<p>*here’s just a sample of where the kids are from</p>
<p>Mich: 53 students
Illinois: 148
California: 103
Texas: 752
Ohio: 124
Penn: 73
New York: 43
Virginia: 338
New Jersey: 66
Maryland: 144
Mass: 37
Conn: 47
Indiana: 49
Florida: 728
Hawaii: 8*</p>
<p>Bama has students from 49 states (maybe all 50 this year).</p>
<p>I copied the numbers of a few states to give you an idea of where some kids are from. These numbers are from the last school year.</p>
<p>Southerners love people. Any stereotypes about southerners not liking “Yankees” is just silly Hollywood stuff. It may exist a tiny bit in the most rural parts of the south, but certainly not in the cities where so many people hail from all over. </p>
<p>I have never heard that people with OOS plates get treated differently. Again, that may happen in some rural parts, but not in the cities and college areas.</p>
<p>ldinct, the reason you will see sheriff’s deputies in some areas rather than police officers is that either the area is unincorporated, the city contracts out police service to the sheriff’s department, or extra law enforcement is on duty. I know during football games we have the University Security, University PD, Tuscaloosa PD, Tuscaloosa County Sheriff (which sets up a mobile command post outside the stadium complete with flat screen TV), Jefferson County Sheriff, Alabama State Patrol, and whichever law enforcement officers the opposing team decides to bring working together. All of them are very nice and professional. I would highly doubt that OOS drivers would be treated any different than in-state drivers.</p>
<p>Overall, Tuscaloosa, Northport, and UA have very good relationships with each other. Both cities take lots of pride in having the state’s flagship university in their midst. Police-wise, the University’s police chief is a retired Tuscaloosa PD officer and holds weekly meetings with the Tuscaloosa PD. Oftentimes the two departments work together, especially in off-campus areas near the university (there is a Tuscaloosa PD substation on the Strip near Subway). </p>
<p>As for how OOS students are treated, I’m from WA and I have always been treated with the utmost friendliness and respect by the people I’ve met in Alabama. Southerners truly are some of the friendliest people you will ever meet. People will be interested to hear that you came all the way from CA to attend UA and will often go out of their way to make you feel at home in Alabama. By choosing to consider attending UA, you have shown more courage and intellect than those who simply write off Alabama as some backwards state that they would never even think of visiting, let alone spending 4+ years there. While Alabama is not exactly the same as California, New York, Texas, Georgia, Mississippi, or any other state, you will find that things are a lot like home, but with an Alabama twang (sometimes literally). I highly encourage you to come down and visit campus and see for yourself all that UA and the state of Alabama have to offer.</p>
<p>As for moving in and out of the dorms as an OOS student, all of us do things differently. Some of us drive down with or without their parents, some fly with their parents and spend the weekend picking up supplies, and still others fly down alone and check/ship the items we want for our rooms. I choose to fly down, check/ship some items, and buy the rest when I go with friends or take a shuttle to the local stores. For the summer, you can share a storage unit with friends, or just send your stuff back home. </p>
<p>Once again, I highly encourage you to visit UA.</p>
<p>Roll Tide!</p>
<p>M2CK, I think you are right about the rural part. Older S was pulled over in the middle of nowhere in upstate NY on his way back to school and it turned into a very bad situation. My h received 5 tickets over the years driving up there. But I don’t blame them for the speeding tickets, if you are driving too fast you are driving too fast.
We were driving from 'bama to Ole Miss in June and I came over the crest of the hill to a road block, but they just waived us through. I think they were looking for seat belt and other violations.</p>
<p>I’ve always thought that the reason many drivers with OOS plates get pulled over is because if they do live out of state then they will be less likely to go to court to contest a ticket. However- that is definitely not the case in Tuscaloosa. Just go by the Walmart on skyland and you’ll see plates from several different states just walking to the store.</p>
<p>As an alum, just want all of you OOS students to know that we really do want you to come to UA. Alabama is a conservative state, but the influx of OOS people and students is going to help Alabama meet its full potential. So come on down! I lived in CA for nine years, and want some of that CA spirit to combine with Alabama spirit. It is a great mix of flavors!</p>
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<p>Hear, hear, Atlanta68! Well put.</p>
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<p>Let me just say that is not a universal opinion among Southerners. The truth is Southerners have just as many overblown stereotypes about Californians as vice versa.</p>
<p>everyone has stereotypes of everyone else</p>
<p>though, may i ask what stereotypes southerners have of californians?</p>
<p>Hippie, pot smoking, liberal punks. And that’s only the nice stereotypes (g).</p>
<p>lol! and what are the mean ones? :D</p>
<p>Socialist homosexual degenerates and the people who defend them.</p>
<p>Sad, but true.</p>
<p>indeed. stereotypes do work both ways…do southerners get nervous when they go up north?</p>
<p>Haha, you’re assuming southerners ever leave their home county.</p>