<p>When I first presented U of A to my DS about a year ago, he couldn’t get past the student accents on the campus tour video and refused to consider it. We toured upstate NY schools and his top choice was RIT. Over the summer he did an overnight orientation there and, upon his return, crossed it off his list. He felt the students were not social enough and was not impressed with the presentations. I couldn’t attend so I don’t know exactly what happened there, but thought for sure the school would pull out all the stops for the event and he would fall in love. Didn’t happen, but it did make him realize he didn’t want that ‘technical college’ environment. </p>
<p>As we continued to review his options, he finally realized that affordability is an issue for our family and that some of the places that he was considering (u of rochester, RPI, northeastern) may not be affordable even with scholarship $. We started to encourage him to look more closely at state schools and he decided he would rather be ‘far away’ than go to a PA state school, although Pitt is on his list (we have yet to visit). Penn State is not b/c it is more expensive and there not merit money while there is some possible at Pitt.</p>
<p>So he started doing more research on his own and decided that U of A really is his best option. He is taking the SATs again in a few weeks to try to bring his score up to a 1400- but right now has 1380- so he is still guaranteed merit $. He even told a friend of his about it and the friend already applied. DS likes that all of his AP credits will transfer and will save him at least a semester of college. He also likes the idea of more opportunities at a bigger state school b/c he’s now uncertain of his major (leaned towards engineering for a bit, but now math/statistics).</p>
<p>I read through the ‘what schools did your child turn down for bama’ thread and started to feel much better about U of A now his ‘top choice’ (and now won’t apply to JHU ED to improve his chances of getting accepted). </p>
<p>My concern is this: Isn’t Tuscaloosa in the new ‘tornado alley?!’. I started to do a google search and saw that only 2 yrs ago there were U of A students who died in a tornado that hit close to campus. Why is that never mentioned in all the pro U of A threads? I had to dig pretty far back to see anything about tornadoes. Are other parents at all concerned or am I thinking the threat of that happening again is more likely than it really is? I know you can have natural disaster risk just about anywhere, but we moved from CA after being in 2 significant earthquakes. </p>
<p>Also- I haven’t been able to get too much information about internship opportunities. Is it competitive to get an internship? I liked the idea of a co-op program so work study was built into the program and worry that my son will have to work too hard to seek out opportunities for internships. </p>
<p>Thanks in advance for any info to help ease my mind!</p>
<p>No, Ttown isn’t in the “new tornado alley”. </p>
<p>Yes, there was a major tornado there 2 years ago. Both of my kids were on campus at the time. </p>
<p>The previous large T there was 40 years earlier. Don’t think that qualifies for worrying about another one anytime soon. </p>
<p>Yes, natural disasters can happen anywhere…tornadoes, earthquakes, hurricanes, ice storms, snow storms, floods, etc. You can’t really escape the threat anywhere.</p>
<p>The reason why you’re not going to hear a lot about the Tornado that happened two years ago in the Bama thread for the same reason why you won’t hear much about past natural disasters around any campus. Disasters happen everywhere.</p>
<p>*Also- I haven’t been able to get too much information about internship opportunities. Is it competitive to get an internship? I liked the idea of a co-op program so work study was built into the program and worry that my son will have to work too hard to seek out opportunities for internships. *</p>
<p>What is your son’s major? math and stats?</p>
<p>Internships are competitive everywhere. They’re not just handed out. Students apply and get picked based on their grades, etc. </p>
<p>Yes, your son will have to “work hard” to get an internship…here and anywhere else he goes to school. People want to give internships to those who show an effort.</p>
<p>i think the tornado was a one time freak thing. i certainly wouldn’t put it on my list of concerns. and even if it were a regular thing, i think THAT tornado was out of the ordinary.</p>
<p>storms can happen anywhere.</p>
<p>i am not an expert on the scholarship numbers, but i think your son has a high enough score for full tuition if he does engineering. 2/3 if he does math/statistics. might as well test again and shoot for the 1400 to have full tuition in whatever major he chooses.</p>
<p>LOTS of kids get engineering co-ops (many of my daughters friends have had them). not sure how many get internships (mine did this summer). many kids do REUs (i know several CC kids have does these). </p>
<p>have him apply. and have him VISIT. the visit seals the deal for a lot of kids (and parents).</p>
<p>My D started at UA in Fall 2012, over a year after the April 27 tornado. I’m not particularly worried about a tornado for a couple reasons. First, I am taking comfort (probably misplaced) that Tuscaloosa is not going to be hit by two big tornadoes within the space of a few years. Second, if there’s a school that is prepared for a tornado, it’s the University of Alabama. They have procedures and warning systems in place, and they take bad weather very seriously. I’m not burying my head in the sand - my D has a weather radio and I follow James Spann on social media so I’m aware of weather issues and can reach out to my D - but it’s just not something I worry about. Natural (and unnatural) disasters occur all over the place.</p>
<p>Thank you for your responses. It does seem as though the University has some solid procedures in place, and yes, whether natural disaster or a tragic shooting like the one at Virginia Tech, we can’t predict/protect. I just wanted to double check to make sure it wasn’t something that people there are so used to tornadoes that they don’t see it as a big deal.</p>
<p>I used the phrase ‘work hard’ incorrectly. My son works hard. But he does not ‘sell himself’ to stand out. For example, I suggested he list a few particular volunteer experiences on his applications and he shrugged it off and said ‘that was no big deal’. He does a lot in the special needs community and because his sister has special needs, he assumes that volunteering with Special Olympics or our local Buddy Walk isn’t really ‘significant’ because he wants to be there. So I really encouraged him to look at schools with built in co-op opportunities b/c he wouldn’t have to be schmoozing someone to get an internship.</p>
<p>Many, if not most, students at UA have more neutral accents. For a time, UA was using students with stronger accents for speaking parts in admissions materials, but this has been changing. As staff are more likely to come from the local area, one will likely see more evidence of a southern accent when speaking with them. While some people can hide their accents when speaking professionally in order to be better understood by people from across the world, it’s an acquired skill. Even though my accent (West Coast/Canadian) is relatively clear, I still make a point to use a more neutral accent and speak slower when speaking with people who are not familiar with my normal speaking voice.</p>
<p>Big tornadoes are quite rare in Tuscaloosa and as they are relatively localized, which makes cleanup easier. After the 2011 tornado, one could cross the river over to Northport where they never lost power and had plenty of clean water, food, and gasoline/diesel. I did buy travel insurance for my family in case my graduation ceremony was postponed due to a tornado, but other than a few tornado watches and warnings each year, tornadoes aren’t something to be overly concerned about. Have some emergency supplies, including cash, and know what to do in case of a tornado and one should be fine. Tuscaloosa is far enough inland that the only effect it sees from hurricanes is lots of rain.</p>
<p>While I do see room for improvement in terms of internship and co-op opportunities, UA does have a lot of relationships with great companies. UA is actively reaching out to alumni in other areas of the country to further expand its co-op and internship opportunities. That said, a lot of companies primarily recruit employees online and many students get jobs, internships, and co-ops with companies that do not recruit at UA.</p>
<p>So I really encouraged him to look at schools with built in co-op opportunities b/c he wouldn’t have to be schmoozing someone to get an internship.</p>
<p>Well, I don’t think “smoozing” is necessary, but a student/employee usually does have to sell himself to get internships/jobs. Your son’s going to have to “get over” this if he hopes to be a fully employed adult. :)</p>
<p>Since my D is only a freshman at UA I can’t tell you much about the internship situation. However, don’t forget that not all internships have to come directly thru the school. You can also use connections that you may have at home to secure internships for summer interns. </p>
<p>As for the tornado, I’m a native Dallasite and we have more bad weather with tornado threats than that area of Alabama. As for the one that hit Tuscaloosa, only 1 UA student perished in that tornado. She was from Dallas. The Tide in Texas has a scholarship in her honor. She was at her apartment and did not feel safe so she went over to her boyfriends apartment. Very tragic situation. Am I concerned about my D being there, no more than if she were anywhere else. UA has several buildings with basements, a new facility is being planned that will also have a storm shelter. Several of the newer apartments and townhomes/condos have reinforced walls in like the utility rooms for storm shelters or basements. They are more prepared than most people anywhere.</p>
<p>I’m watching FB posts of a family friend from here in Atlanta chugging a large bottle of wine and playing in the flood waters in Boulder on the days classes were cancelled. Safety in a college town is very dependent on the students’ willingness to follow directions and procedures, and far less on the geographic location of the campus.</p>
<p>I’m not particularly concerned about another tornado near Tuscaloosa, but when moving my son into his dorm last year it made me feel better that we left him an “emergency” backpack just in case. My H put in a radio, some batteries, flashlight, and other necessities. This year before we moved him in again, H went through it and replaced any items that were now out-of-date. Do we think he will need this backpack, no. Does it make us feel better that he has them “just in case”. Definitely yes. Also because UA went through a tornado, I actually feel they are better prepared and take the threat more seriously than some other schools might which makes me feel a little better too.</p>
<p>Yes, as a matter of fact it is. There’s a new tornado alley being carved by President Bonner, who’s blowing away the clutter of dead wood to make room for a new-growth forest. :)</p>
<p>You people crack me up. You have gone on and on for the better part of 2 weeks about how racist we are and now you are concerned about encountering southern accents.</p>
<p>“As for the tornado, I’m a native Dallasite and we have more bad weather with tornado threats than that area of Alabama. As for the one that hit Tuscaloosa, only 1 UA student perished in that tornado.”</p>
<p>Sadly this is incorrect information. There were actually six UA students who died in the April 27th tornado. I was born and raised in Tuscaloosa. I’ve seen tornadoes in the area before, but that storm was not the norm.</p>
<p>okay, this is why I’m not comfortable posting on forums. Apparently I am not doing a good job of communicating some of my points. I’m not sure how I became ‘you people/y’all people’ b/c I have not posted anything about southerners being racist. I should have not mentioned the accent issue. It is obviously not an issue as my son ‘got over it’ because U of A is his top choice. The reason I mentioned it was to point out that U of A was not on his radar for a very absurd reason and that he changed his mind once he took a closer look. I thought that would be encouraging to other ‘northerner’ parents. My mistake. </p>
<p>We are not concerned about him ‘encountering’ southern accents-give me a break! I am concerned about tornado preparedness as that is not something we are used to thinking about. I was looking for assurances/ideas on how to be more comfortable with that. How is that different from parents in the south asking about how their children get to classes in 6 feet of snow if they choose a school up north? So those who are replying about building security and the emergency backpack- thank you! It is those types of responses I was hoping for. </p>
<p>Also, I know my son has to ‘get over’ not being able to sell himself. My concern is that in doing some research, some schools are better at getting internships set up than others. So my question is specifically regarding internships at UofA. Again, specific ‘this is what we we did’ is what I was looking for. Not a general ‘you find that at all schools’ answer. </p>
<p>We/he had been leaning towards schools with co-ops b/c he wants the experience outside the classroom. My understanding is that with co-op schools, employment (paid or not, depending on where you go) is built into a semester, so even though he still has to apply, it will be part of the schedule. That make me think that there is more hand-holding counseling/direction to make sure that happens. DS may need that initial hand-holding in the job search/internship dept as part of his education. Some colleges that we visited spent a lot of time promoting their career counseling- and you can even find that ranked. That is important to us. Again, I was hoping for some examples of personal experience. </p>
<p>DS is my first off to college. My husband and I applied at local state schools without a second thought. Both of us left our respective (different) schools after 2 and 3 yrs b/c they were not a good fit. We didn’t know what questions to ask back then, so we’re trying to support our DS by making sure he knows what he is gaining and what he is giving up. We are still learning ourselves, which is why I turned to this forum.</p>
<p>I do not quite understand how some people are getting so defensive with my questions. They are genuine- so I am appreciative of those who have offered specific, encouraging responses.</p>
<p>I’ve always lived in the midwest, so tornados are the natural disaster that I’ve always been exposed to. The reason that I personally fear tornados less than hurricanes or earthquakes is that most tornados have a very narrow path. In the area I live there have been multiple tornados touch down in the last decade but most of those have done damage in relatively small areas - a few houses damaged, trees and power lines knocked down along a single road. In natural disasters such as hurricanes and earthquakes there is a much larger area impacted. The tornado that touched down in Tuscaloosa with a path of nearly a mile wide is very, very rare.</p>
<p>I also agree with those that say that Tuscaloosa is well prepared. Last year when severe weather was expected and the potential for a tornado was seen, classes were cancelled for the afternoon. When classes were first cancelled, it had not even begun raining yet that afternoon. They did wind up getting some rain and possibly thunderstorms, but my son was left very confused as to why classes were cancelled as the weather never did get very severe. I commented that it was his first ever ‘rain day’. They are now very cautious and very observant about weather conditions.</p>
<p>As for co-ops, there is a co-op office on campus and the woman who is in charge of the office is very enthusiastic about it. We met with her during one of my son’s visits and she did an excellent job of selling the opportunities. My son preferred looking into internships so he could have a more varied experience, but for those that want to co-op, the opportunity is there. My son has recently received several emails from the co-op office regarding the upcoming interiews for this fall and it appears that there are about 50 companies who will be conducting interviews on campus. Many of those are engineering related, but there are some in other fields. If your son is interested in doing a co-op, I’d try to speak to that office directly or if you visit campus, request to meet with them about opportunities in his specific field of interest.</p>
<p>If your son wants to do an internship instead, at Bama, the co-ops and internships are handled by different offices and the career center that arranges internships does not seem to be as strong. Therefore when my son wanted an internship last summer, we took the intiative and scoured the internet looking for opportunities on our own. Not only was he able to get an internship, but was able to get one in an area where we have relatives, so he had no living expenses for the summer. If we had arranged an internship through the school, it most likely would have been much closer to campus and we would have had to provide housing for the summer. So for us, it definitely worked out for us to find our own opportunity.</p>
<p>pamomofthree: Each major offers various opportunities for co-ops, internships, etc. My oldest son, a recent Alabama graduate, spent the summer between his freshman and sophomore years interning for our Congressman. He wrote a cover letter and sent a resume to land the internship. He landed the Hollings Scholarship, which offered him a paid internship in American Samoa. He has friends who have done engineering co-ops around the country – one was offered a job following graduation. Another engineering friend interned for Gulfstream and NOAA. She also won four prestigious scholarships, and she is currently studying for her masters in Ireland. Another friend did an internship for Exxon-Mobil. He went to Denmark. Some of his economics/finance friends (he has degrees in economics and political science) have worked on Wall Street. </p>
<p>So the opportunities are there.</p>
<p>As for the tornado, my son was a student when it hit T-Town. He took shelter in the basement of one of the dorms. He admits today that watching the news clips of the tornado damage makes him sick to his stomach. But, it did not deter him from returning to Alabama, nor were we worried about him returning. Our youngest son, a HS senior, puts Alabama at the top of his college list. He will not let tornadoes scare away his dreams.</p>
<p>pamomofthree: I hear you and crimsondude was out of line in my opinion.
My son is also looking at UA. He is a junior so we have a little time. UA hit the radar due to merit aid and I do believe that makes it a good value. Our concern has also been job placement and internship opportunities. He is planning on majoring in computer science so that is where most of our research has been focused. I may get slammed for the next statement but hopefully I will get enlightened too. In the field of CS I do not think UA and the Career center does as good a job of creating opportunities for the students as other universities of similar size that they are competing with. I have came to that conclusion based upon postings here, published career center statistics, and conversations with the career center. UA is still on our radar screen but we are aware that my son will likely have to put forth more effort to create opportunities than he may at another university.
As for tornadoes, haven’t given them a second thought and don’t think I will.</p>