<p>Is anyone aware of the retention rate of NMF students?</p>
<p>My freshman son and one of his roommates are NMF recipients. I was thrilled that they “clicked” and thought they would room together all 4 years. I was surprised to hear that his roommate (R) will not be returning next year, and is giving up the remainder of his scholarship. The R is on the Presidents list so he excels academically. I’m still trying to get a straight answer from S as to why R is not returning. He said something along the lines of he is looking for a much smaller school, with more personalized attention, closer to home. R will be attending a school in his home state next year.</p>
<p>On a side note: The other two roommates are moving to off campus housing, which leaves S asking to move off campus, or he needs to find new roommates. We are strongly encouraging the later. S is not thrilled with the prospect of “random” roommates" (which he has for next year) so he is pestering housing, to see if his housing scholarship will apply to off campus housing. </p>
<p>I was just curious how many NMF students return for their second year, and what, if anything, the University is doing to retain them, given the time and effort they put forth to recruit them.</p>
<p>I hope your S is happy at Bama. I hope the fact that his friend is leaving doesn’t detract from his experience. My D is an NMF and a sophomore. I also wanted my D to room with the same people all 4 years but it didn’t work out that way. Some of the roomies weren’t NMFs and they moved off campus. Some students give up their housing scholarship just to move off campus.</p>
<p>Personally, I don’t know why anyone would leave UA but I am a parent. There are so many opportunities at Bama that my D can not even begin to do everything she would like to do there.</p>
<p>My S is a freshman NMF this year and he is definitely going back to Alabama. Maybe R is homesick, has medical issues, or his parents don’t like him being so far away. I think he probably is in the minority - most people won’t give up that big of a scholarship unless they have to.</p>
<p>I don’t know if that figure is available, but my NMF D will be returning for her 3rd year as is another NMF in her suite. Of the 7 NMF from her high school class attending UA, I believe all are returning.</p>
<p>Maybe your son’s roommate is homesick? Or the school just wasn’t a fit for him? </p>
<p>Wanting to move off campus was an issue for us for next year, but we compromised and will be paying the extra so that she can have a single suite for the last two years.</p>
<p>I’m not aware of the rate of retention of NMFs, but I’ve never heard of it being an issue. Anecdotally, my D had an NMF roommate this year and will have a different NMF roommate next year, and also knows a number of other NMFs, and as far as I know all will be returning next year. There are always kids, NMF and otherwise, who find that their schools aren’t a great fit for whatever reason and decide to make a switch. I’m aware of two kids from my D’s 2012 HS graduating class who transferred to schools closer to home after just one semester (one from an east coast school, the other from a west coast school). I’d be surprised if your son’s roommate is indicative of a larger trend.</p>
<p>All three of my roommates and I are NMF, as are many of my friends (mostly freshmen), and everyone that I know of is staying. We’re not necessarily all rooming with the same people next year, but we’ll be here and on-campus. I’m sure the roommate’s reason is very personal and has to do with the various aspects of how he fits with UA vs. a smaller school. Perhaps he initially chose UA because of scholarships alone and didn’t consider the dozens of other factors that affect college life.
I definitely don’t know of any other NMFs who are leaving, and I know a lot of them.</p>
<p>My daughter is a rising junior and is one of three NMF from her high school who chose Alabama. All three are still at Alabama and plan to graduate from Alabama.</p>
<p>On the roommate question, my daughter actually had much better luck in terms of overall compatibility this year with potluck roommates (she was willing to go potluck for a shot at East Edge) than she did with the roommates she chose during her freshman year.</p>
<p>Son is an NMF returning for his 4th and final year at 'Bama. He could have easily graduated in less than 4 years, given his AP credits, but loves UA so much he wants to savor every drop. Same goes for one of his fraternity brothers who’s also an NMF.</p>
<p>I know of one former NM kid who did transfer following her freshman year. I believe she went to a top private university closer to her NJ home. She just was not happy at Bama – her mom wrote to me and said her daughter did not feel that the school met her academic needs, she did not like the party scene, was not wild about her roommates, etc. In other words, she was just unhappy. The parents now pay big bucks for her to attend the other school. </p>
<p>My son is NM from Virginia. He shall miss Bama when he graduates, I’m sure.</p>
<p>Yeah, sarcasm. My S wouldn’t party if it happened in his own bedroom. He does enjoy a good time, mind…just not the kinds of parties that I think most people think of on a college campus. But in truth, I would not categorize UA as a party school. It’s there if you seek it, I’m sure, but not enough to make a student want to leave? (unless your drunken roommates are doing it every night, in which case you move rooms, sure, but not schools) There is something for everyone at UA, with the very rare exception when there is apparently nothing for some.</p>
<p>I haven’t heard that Bama has a NMF retention problem at all. </p>
<p>Of course, every school will find that some students leave after the first year, for a variety of reasons…school didn’t click, wants to be near a boyfriend/girlfriend, wants to be near old high school friends, homesick, money issues, etc. </p>
<p>My older son did have a NMF friend who almost transferred. She was intimidated by the school size (she had been home-schooled and was shy). Plus, she wasn’t “into sports,” so she thought that “not liking football” meant that the school wasn’t for her. Soon, she found out that many kids don’t go to the games and found her “group.” She graduated with my older son, and now she’s a PhD student at Emory. </p>
<p>I’ve only personally known 2 students who left after their first year/semester. One was a neighbor’s D who whined that she wasn’t making friends, she transferred, and guess what? She complained that she wasn’t making friends at her new school, either. </p>
<p>The second was a young man who posted on this forum. He complained that he wasn’t making friends either (I know his Bama roommate and that roommate said the kid never left his dorm room except for classes). Anyway, the student transferred, and still posted on CC. About a month or so at his new school, he reported that he was transferring again to a school that he could commute to from home. He reported that he had been Dx’d with depression.</p>
<p>Certainly, some schools just aren’t good fits. But, sometimes young people can have unrealistic expectations. You have to be a friend to make a friend.</p>
<p>From what I’ve been told by inside sources, the students most likely to not return to UA after their freshman year are students from nearby states who are not in the Honors College and don’t feel connected to UA. UA created an OOS student organization to help solve this issue and to give OOS students a venue to meet other OOS students.</p>
<p>Having high grades does not mean that one enjoys a certain school. Some of the people I know who transferred or were considering transferring had 4.0s.</p>
<p>From what I’ve seen, the strongest predictor in determining if a student will transfer out of UA or simply fail to meet many people on campus is how much time they spend communicating with people from their high school/hometown. It’s hard to meet people when one spends their free time in their rooms playing games or Skyping with friends from home. Sure, that is fine every now and then, but go out and experience UA. </p>
<p>Depression and other forms of mental illness are not often talked about, which causes students to internalize such feelings, which in turn negatively affects their interactions with others. If you are feeling depressed or think you might be suffering from a mental illness, seek professional help ASAP.</p>
<p>There is also this thought that one has to go with other people to attend events on campus. This is not true at all and oftentimes it’s better to go alone as one can follow their own schedule.</p>
<p>Let’s not forget the impact of those who want to transfer on the people around them. There have been multiple instances when my happiness and livelihood has suffered because students I often interact with have been unhappy, depressed, or wanting to transfer and as a result have disrespected me. That has not been fun at all and has likely caused me to gain weight as a result.</p>
<p>As I indicated in my OP, I don’t know why S roommate is transferring out. It’s really not my business, although I will admit I am curious, since our S experience has been positive. From what I can gather the roommate that is transferring out, does have a group of friends and is a sociable young man. He is athletic and may be on an IM team. My son had said “I don’t know how I got so lucky” in terms of his roommate situation this year. All four of them seem to get along and enjoy each others company. We wish his roommate the very best in his future college endeavors.</p>
<p>Not every school is a fit, for whatever reason, and I applaud the young man for having the courage to realize it and make the move. Yes, he is giving up the remainder of a very generous scholarship, that included tuition and board, but it is his decision and that of his parents’.</p>
<p>In terms of our situation, our son loves Alabama, and will return. He seems to have adjusted well, his grades are strong, he was on an IM team, loves football and has a great group of friends. We’ve encouraged him to be proactive in finding leadership, research and volunteer opportunities. At the end of the day, it’s up to each individual student to make the most of their undergraduate experience.</p>
<p>My DS is NMF (very likely) and is not considering Alabama because he doesn’t see it as a good fit. He doesn’t want a school with a big sports and frat scene and is more interested in going to school in the northeast or midwest, in a big city or college town. No one in our family pays any attention to big-time college sports. No judgment, just not our thing.</p>
<p>There may be students with similar preferences who went to Alabama because of the super financial aid who are now finding out (or rediscovering) their preferences.</p>
<p>I’m a NMF who’s transferring out. (Or at least, I’m applying–the schools I’ve applied to are very competitive, so we’ll see.) Regardless, I will not be on campus next semester; if I don’t transfer, I’ve already been accepted for an exchange program with another school.</p>
<p>One of my friends, who was a University Fellow–which is arguably even more prestigious than National Merit–has also transferred. At least two of my other friends are also transferring, though I don’t think they’re National Merit. The financial aid was the principal draw for me; though I have a 4.0 and developed a lot of great relationships with professors and friends, the academic rigor of the classes has been incredibly disappointing. Though there are many opportunities available at UA–I did three internships my freshman year–I’m transferring in the hopes of being challenged further, especially in my area of study (International Relations with a focus on social inequality).</p>
<p>I’d be happy to answer any questions considering transferring. I know a lot of NMFs who are happy here, so please don’t take my story as the norm. In the end, it really is about the fit.</p>
<p>Sakari: I am sorry to hear that Bama was not the right college choice for you. If I might inquire about the classes that you did not find challenging…were they upper levels or just typical general ed requirements? Did you come to UA with a lot of credits? I am trying to see if you had the opportunity to take the higher level classes in your major or were you just turned off by the less interesting core requirements? While it is certainly the right thing to transfer if you know it is the right thing to do for yourself, I wonder how much of a chance you gave yourself to fully explore the curriculum. Did you maximize your scholarship and take the full twenty credits to challenge youself? It certainly would be a shame to transfer if all you have experienced are the lower level classes which are typically the same at any college.</p>
<p>Also, might I inquire how did you do three internships the first year? Were those internships over the breaks and summer?</p>
<p>Whatever your choice for the future, I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors.
Roll Tide</p>
I know a lot of NMFs who are happy here, so please don’t take my story as the norm. In the end, it really is about the fit.</p>