<p>The National Alumni Association offers a wonderful scholarship package that is very similar to the NMF scholarships: currently it’s full tuition, an extra $3,500 per year, $300 annual book grant, and an iPad. An average of 7-12 scholarships seem to be given out each year, typically to in state students. (NMF students are generally not considered for this scholarship, I believe.)</p>
<p>Students from Madison County, AL followed by contiguous counties of Jackson, Limestone, Marshall, and Morgan are given priority consideration for a Gowen or Steven Mitchell Crimson Scholarship and must submit a typed one-page narrative statement describing personal financial need. (My daughter wrote hers from the perspective of wanting to graduate debt-free so she can go on to grad school and begin giving back to the community financially immediately upon graduation without having to repay student loans.)</p>
<p>To qualify, students must have 3.8 GPA, 1400 SAT (critical reading and math) or 32 ACT, rank in the top two percent of their high school graduating class, and have extensive leadership.</p>
<p>There is no separate application for these scholarships, but they are awarded by the Alumni Association and not the school itself. If your student qualifies, I recommend scheduling a campus tour through the NAA’s Discovering BAMA program. This way, the NAA will already know your student when it comes time to award scholarships. They’ll arrange a customized tour, including visits with the Honors College.</p>
<p>in order to participate in the tour, you have to have a recommendation from a current member of the NAA. But that’s easy to get: just go to the NAA website, find your local chapter, contact one of the officers, and ask for a recommendation. It took about 2 days for me to secure a recommendation for my D and her best friend. They arranged tours for both on the same day. The girls were practically treated like royalty: they received small gifts (insulated Bama coffee travel mugs), met with professors in their intended majors and in the School of Music (flute and trumpet), met with Honors College staff, were taken to lunch by a student, and were made to feel that UA was truly interested in both of them attending. We scheduled this tour toward the end of their junior year on a Friday; both girls were ready to move to college on the following day!</p>
<p>My D received one of the Steven Mitchell Crimson Scholarships, and I honestly think that could partly be attributed to the fact that the NAA had met her personally during her Discover BAMA tour. The kids who qualify for these scholarships are all highly-deserving kids who most likely look pretty similar to each other on paper. Having made a personal connection is a way to stand out from the others just a bit!</p>
<p>For more info, you can see the NAA’s website: alumni.ua.edu/discovering-BAMA</p>