TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Enrollment at The University of Alabama reached a record 37,100 students this fall, and it includes another academically talented freshman class.
Total enrollment is up by 945 students, a 2.6 percent increase from fall 2014.
“The University continues to attract talented students,” said UA President Stuart R. Bell. “We are pleased they selected us, and we look forward to helping them achieve their goals”
Freshmen bring to campus an average ACT score of 26.6 and an average high school GPA of 3.66. The 7,211-member class includes 174 National Merit and National Achievement Finalists. More than one-third (36 percent) of the class reports an ACT of 30 or higher, and 2,261 freshmen are enrolled in Honors College.
That number includes: undergrad, grad, and law school students.
Do you have the link to the report? I don’t see it on UA’s site. Also, I have noticed that UA reports an average ACT score that suddenly becomes higher as the semester goes on. For example, in the first enrollment report that came out at the same time last Fall , the avg. ACT was reported to be a record 26.1, but then later in the semester, it was reported to be 26.7. Are they tossing out the scores for the students who leave before the start of the second semester? I imagine there is a greater percentage of those who do not return for the second semester among the lower scoring students.
http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20150915/NEWS/150919795?tc=cr A bit more info here. Turns out that the freshman class is 65% out of state this Fall! Record class, both in quantity and quality. But 4% fewer graduate students. That is not good, but maybe the Grad school has increased standards.
CyclonesGrad, I agree that its time to tighten the low end acceptance criteria. Hopefully, UA is using the extra money its raking in from the increased numbers of higher paying out of state students to prepare for a new push in growing the grad school. Those fully funded graduate assistants don’t come cheap. But it must do this if it wants to improve its research profile.
Unfortunately, I think raising standards for admission could mean even fewer in state students the first year or two, as it may take time for the word to get out to better qualified in state students. I think some of the kids who go to Auburn do so because they are told by guidance counselors that it is harder to get into Auburn. Its a common claim from Auburn folks. Some people like the idea of going to a school that accepts fewer of those on the low end.
Can the school really continue to grow the freshman classes by 300 to 400 each year?
I think they are at the limit of size for freshman class when compared to UIUC, UM-TC, Purdue, UW.
Atlanta68 I agree about grad students. UA is a little less than half of the schools mentioned above. They will need to push there to get into the elite university class.
Auburn only has 20K undergrads to 5200 grad students. UA has 31K undergrad to 5200 grad. Seems Auburn is more selective and not letting undergrad grow. UA will need to not let undergrad grow any more and be more selective.
Isn’t the undergrad population big enough (50% bigger than AU)?
Actually, Auburn too is once again growing its undergrad enrollment. There was this meme that Auburn had a cap on enrollment, but its just not true. Auburn had both a record freshman and record overall enrollment this Fall. UA is improving in quality at a faster rate than Auburn, but yes, for a while now, Auburn has been enrolling far fewer of the lower end (ACT of 21 or lower) students, even as UA has been enrolling more of the top (ACT of 32 or higher) students.
mom2collegekids Do you think the lower end students, < 22 Comp ACT, do not apply to AU because they do not think they will get in? Thus they apply to UA?
Maybe AU admits 70% of applicants because they get more of Alabama’s middle 50%? Stats from 2014:
UA (25/75 ACT) 22/31
AU 24/30
Seems like UA is getting more of the high end than AU but also more of the low end. Looks like AU is getting more of the middle 50% of the state population. Scholarship money for all ACT ranges seems tilted toward UA. I would think that would help capture the middle 50% of the state.
Why do you think the yield is different at each school?
I believe in-state students should have the opportunity to attend UA if they meet admission criteria – admissions may admit an in-state student with stats that an OOS student could not get admitted with, IDK. Cannot judge by a couple of stats when a student may be a hard worker, entering a major they are successful with, may be able to maturely handle the transition from HS to college. Also URM - again if they have some individual circumstances on being successful.
There are students that have a full tuition scholarship and don’t have the personal maturity or cannot handle the freedoms at college, or get intimidated/don’t know how to study or do the class work, don’t seek help and do very harmful behaviors like skipping classes, etc.
Admissions is a ‘balancing act’.
I don’t know how successful junior college or other transfer students are for UA, but I know a smart gal that went to Montevallo and realized it was not a good match for her; she transferred to AU, and they told the transfer student group some very dismal stats on success rates from transfer students - sort of a wake up call for needing to step up the study/work ethic for the University’s expectation level for earning grades. This student was noticed as a stand out student after a few terms at AU, and is doing super well. Her mistake was selecting Montevallo.
Atlanta68 - You spend an awful lot of time talking about Auburn. Why not just talk about how great UA is.....a lot of the information mentioned on these forums is old or wrong and you can calculate and spin numbers any which way from Sunday...it's fun but what are you trying to prove and who are you trying to prove it to?
I don’t know anyone who would go to Auburn because it is more selective -that’s just silly, maybe a top 20 school but not a school in Alabama and they are less selective than UA…maybe because UA gets the volume applicants of every kid who graduates from an Alabama High School to apply but it still makes for good selectivity numbers.
Most of the kids I have met at Auburn fell in love with the school and the academics and the kids my son hangs around want to be engineers and most of them turned down full tuition at UA to attend Auburn Engineering. It’s a great school with awesome kids and a lovely campus and a fantastic marching band and that’s why they selected Auburn!
And yes, Auburn did have a cap at 20,000 a few years ago…it was published by the University. They may have lifted that recently but they don’t appear to have any desire to cram 30,000 UG into Auburn.
Threeofthree: You show me something I have said about Auburn which is incorrect, and I will be happy to apologize. I have great respect for Auburn. I know that some Alabama people underrate Auburn, and that bothers me. We can have two great schools in the same state, but I want the school with the state’s name, my alma mater, to be the top school in the state.
I grew up around Auburn people, in an Auburn town in Alabama. I think Auburn is more selective when it comes to its lower scoring applicants, though I think the extent of that selectivity is exagerrated. I would like UA to be as selective if not more selective. With that said, I am proud that UA now gets more of the top students. Many people don’t know that. Even most Alabama people have no idea that UA’ s undergrad Engineering program is now bigger and has a higher quality student body than Auburn’s undergrad Engineering program.
I grew up in a divided family, with siblings that went to Auburn. I have heard from them, other Auburn fans who were friends, and seen a lot in social media to back up what I have posted about Auburn. As a proud UA alum, I have been taken aback by the ridicule thrown at UA by many on the Auburn side. One common theme that I have heard from them is that anyone can get into UA. That UA is not very respected. I think that perception still lingers among people who matter, like high school counselors. I think this perception has some basis in past reality, as UA administrators and the Board of Trustees let Auburn surpass UA in academic rep in the 70s and 80s.
That’s all. Its a fun rivalry. I want UA to beat Auburn in academics, even more than I want it to beat Auburn in football. I want UA to enroll the most in state students, especially the top level ones. I am happy with UA’s progress, and glad that Auburn serves as a good competitor. But I want the state school that bears my home state’s name respected and appreciated, not ridiculed, though Auburn folks seem more respectful lately given UA’s rise. I think I am sensitive to this given that I lived in California for nine years. I heard lots of anti Southern comments. Alabama in particular, receives more than its share of scorn. I think UA’s progress will help to improve my home state’s image. Simply put, I Iove UA, not just cause I went there and established a deep connection with the campus and fellow students, but because I love my home state.
I’m not disparaging UA, never have…great school…just find it amusing that for some reason posters seem to constantly compare it to Auburn like it is some sort of competition and can’t figure out why you want to do that, almost like they need to justify the numbers, or certainly brag on them if they go in their favor. Just felt like I needed to add my 2 cents about Auburn since it is mentioned so much and I have a stake in that school but I guess the UA forum isn’t the place, although that’s where most of the conversation about Auburn takes place…so it felt appropriate at the moment.
Touche @Atlanta68 - that’s the point though - UA is a GREAT school…on it’s own merits and you should be proud of it. . If they keep offering the scholarships they offer the engineering students, it will outgrow the facilities…trust me, it was VERY hard to turn down. I guess I was a little sensitive tonight…
@threeofthree I live in IL and compare UA to some well known schools in the Midwest such as UIUC, UW, Purdue, UM-TC. UA overall ACT (middle 50%) is lower on low end but comparable on high end. The engineering school is comparable to UW, Purdue, UM-TC and slightly lower than UIUC.
I did look at Auburn compared to UA because I was interested as an outsider. What I see is that Auburn is better on low end and not as good on high end (middle 50%) on overall incoming freshman. UA definitely has better incoming Freshman in engineering; surely driven by the OOS scholarships offered while Auburn offers almost no scholarships.
Here are the 2014 stats:
Overall Population
Auburn (25/75) 24/30
UA 22/31
Engineering
Auburn (25/75;% in top 25% of HS class) 26/31 71%
UA 27/32 79%
