Merit Scholarships entering 2019

[lovofu]

Hi, my first post! I am wondering when merit scholarships are usually updated? DD is on track to be a NMSF and fingers crossed a NMF and she is really interested in UA!. With OU NMF package value dropping recently, just hoping same doesn’t happen in Alabama!

[TheGratefulDad]

The UA package just went up significantly in the past few months, and is one of the most awesome scholarships I have ever seen. I think it is a good sign for your DD that UA is enhancing this scholarship.

[lovofu]

Thanks so much, we hope so!

[LucieTheLakie]

I agree. Looks like they’re focusing merit money on NMFs for the foreseeable future.

[gusmahler]

What’s the new UA merit aid package? I don’t see anything new at https://scholarships.ua.edu/types/out-of-state.php

It’s unfortunate for DD19 if they really are focusing on NMF, She missed the NMF cutoff and “only” got a 34 on the ACT. And getting a 36 seems like a real long shot.

[Roo17]

I believe they usually are updated in mid-July

[Atlanta68]

Anyone have an idea why the focus is on NMF? So UA can claim the largest number of NMF freshmen? Or does it get students to commit to UA earlier in the process? Just curious.

[DavidPuddy]

@Atlanta68
I have several “ideas”, but they certainly aren’t official. It is pretty much what you imply however.

1. It is a “no effort” way to identify and offer top talent. With large matriculation, state schools can not afford to examine things like ECs in detail in order to evaluate great candidates. This is especially important during a general period of significant growth as we discussed in the other thread.
2. It comes with some attached free press
3. It does allow the University to be visible on those “top lists”
4. NMF focus is not new. Alabama has been near the top of this list for some time along with large publics like OU, aTm, UNCch. The privates are places like U Chicago, Harvard, USC.

There is an article on this subject from about a year ago in the NYT. Although I am not a an of the Times, I would suggest it to anyone who has not read it.

The University of Alabama is the fastest-growing flagship in the country. Enrollment hit 37,665 this fall, nearly a 58 percent increase over 2006. As critical as the student body jump: the kind of student the university is attracting. The average G.P.A. of entering freshmen is 3.66, up from 3.4 a decade ago, and the top quarter scored at least a 31 on the ACT, up from 27.

Berkeley, the University of Michigan and University of Virginia are the schools “we compare ourselves against,” said Kevin W. Whitaker, Alabama’s interim provost,

[lovofu]

Talked to scholarship office at Alabama today, they have “heard” no changes but it will be posted on their website next week!

[LucieTheLakie]

I suspect if there are any changes next year, they will come later in the process and be along the lines of sweetening the other merit packages. (I only see this happening if the number of Presidential Scholars drops dramatically.) Hard to beat what they’re currently offering in the NMF and Presidential Elite packages since they restored the extra three years of housing, which had been eliminated a few years ago.

Here’s a link to the Times article: @DavidPuddy is referencing: https://nyti.ms/2ehdBy8. It’s from November 2016.

And here’s another one from November 2015 that specifically discusses National Merit Finalists: https://nyti.ms/2jIVZ4q.

In the last decade, enrollment has increased by more than 55 percent, to a record 37,100 students this fall, and more than half of the students now are from out of state, another seismic shift. The acceptance rate in the last decade fell to 54 percent, from 72 percent. This year, 2,261 freshmen are enrolled in its Honors College, two and half times the number 10 years ago. Its 174 National Merit and National Achievement finalists rank Alabama among the top five public universities.

I found both articles pretty “fair and balanced,” given that the comments section included folks accusing the Times of serving as an extension of Bama’s PR department, along with those who found it overly critical.

(Probably not a popular opinion in this forum, but I am a fan of the NYT, and a paid subscriber. Which doesn’t mean I don’t think they have room to improve. Still better than the vast majority of news outlets out there. YMMV.)

[elodyCOH]

New packages were posted this afternoon. We were there on VIP tour and they told us it was coming. It was posted within the last hour or so.

[LucieTheLakie]

Out-of-State Merit Scholarships for 2019-2020

Please review our FAQ section for details on the scholarships listed below.

First time freshmen who meet the December 15 scholarship deadline, have a qualifying score on the ACT or SAT and have at least a 3.5 cumulative high school GPA through the junior year will be eligible for the following merit-based scholarships:

Capstone
A student with a 27 ACT or 1260-1290 SAT score and a minimum 3.5 cumulative GPA will be selected as a Capstone Scholar and will receive $24,000 over four years ($6,000 per year).

Collegiate
A student with a 28 ACT or 1300-1320 SAT score and a minimum GPA of 3.5 will be named a Collegiate Scholar and will receive $32,000 over four years ($8,000 per year).

Foundation in Excellence
A student with a 29 ACT or 1330-1350 SAT score and at least a 3.5 GPA will be named a Foundation in Excellence Scholar and will receive $60,000 over four years ($15,000 per year).

UA Scholar
A student with a 30-31 ACT or 1360-1410 SAT score and at least a 3.5 GPA, he or she will be named a UA Scholar and will receive $80,000 over four years ($20,000 per year).

Presidential
A student with a 32-36 ACT or 1420-1600 SAT score and at least a 3.5 GPA will be selected as a Presidential Scholar and will receive $104,000 over four years ($26,000 per year). Students graduating with remaining scholarship semester(s) may use these monies toward graduate school and/or law school study at UA.

Presidential Elite
A student with a 4.0 GPA and a 36 ACT or 1600 SAT will be selected as a Presidential Elite Scholar and will receive:

Value of tuition for up to four years for degree-seeking undergraduate and graduate or law studies

One year of on-campus housing at regular room rate

$1,000 per year stipend for four years

$2,000 one-time allowance for use in summer research or international study (after completing one year of study at UA)

$2,000 book scholarship ($500 per year for four years)

A Note About Test Scores
The University of Alabama will accept from both the previous SAT and the redesigned SAT (any SAT taken on or after March 5th, 2016). If you have a previous SAT score, please contact us.

If you have taken the previous SAT and the redesigned SAT, we will use your highest score for your admission and scholarship application reviews. Highest score will be determined by using test score conversion by College Board.

The optional writing section in the redesigned SAT will not be required for admissions or scholarship purposes.

The writing section of the ACT will no longer be required for admissions or scholarship purposes.

**For scholarships awarded only by Undergraduate Admissions - If tuition is being paid by an outside source, the scholarship dollars may be used for other educational expenses (room, board, books, etc.).

**Merit scholarships are typically awarded for a regular academic year which includes fall and spring semesters only (ie. 8 semesters over the course of four years). Merit scholarship awards will not exceed a semester’s tuition.

**If a student is receiving funding through the Academic Common Market, the ACM grant will pay the out-of-state surcharge and the merit scholarship will be applied up to the full cost of tuition. In total, the funding received from both the merit-based scholarship and ACM grant will not exceed the full tuition cost for the student.

https://scholarships.ua.edu/types/out-of-state.php

[LucieTheLakie]

Didn’t the Presidential Elite get a bump in years of housing along with NMF this past spring? If so, expect the NMF to be back to one year of housing.

[elodyCOH]

I was asking about scholarships today, and I was confused by the answer the admissions officer gave us about the Presidential Elite scholarship. Our son meets the GPA now, and currently has a 34 ACT. I asked if he retook it,and got 36, what would the amount be and she said still Presidential.

[JohnGaltIII]

Presidential ACT and SAT requirements are 1 point and 60 points lower respectively and the award went up $1000 a year.

[mountainmomof3]

@LucieTheLakie I think the Elite was still only the one year of housing. S19 qualifies and in February was given info matching this latest update. If you check the NMF it is still the new upgraded package with 4 years of housing. UA is still a major contender at our house.

[DavidPuddy]

@LucieTheLakie
No, Presidential Elite for 2018 was 1 year housing. Only NMF is 4 years on campus.

[LucieTheLakie]

Thanks, @mountainmomof3. That makes more sense.

[LucieTheLakie]

@DavidPuddy, thanks. Was the NMF for 2018 always four years or did they add those extra three years at the last minute?

[DavidPuddy]

@LucieTheLakie
I would say they added the other 3 years so late it could be called after the last minute.