<p>Will my son need to select his dining plan at the time of room selection? Also, I wondered what day classes start and when students can move in. We are OOS and I am a teacher so I am hoping to get him all set before I have to go back to work. Thanks for any info!</p>
<p>3kidsinHS: no you don’t have to worry about the meal plan yet. Freshmen don’t have a lot of options anyway:
Bama Unlimited - $1,757 per semester*
Unlimited meals; please note that this does not include the required $300 Dining Dollars.</p>
<p>Bama Gold - $1,579 per semester*
220 meals per semester; please note that this does not include the required $300 Dining Dollars.</p>
<p>Bama Silver - $1,272 per semester*
160 meals per semester; please note that this does not include the required $300 Dining Dollars.</p>
<p>Classes don’t begin until August 24th (late this year!,) but freshmen move in earlier than that so they can participate in WOW: Week of Welcome. The 2011 schedule isn’t up yet but you can see the 2010 info at: [Student</a> Affairs | Week of Welcome](<a href=“Weeks of Welcome - University Programs”>Weeks of Welcome - University Programs)</p>
<p>I think things are about a week later this year as Alabama/Outdoor Action is scheduled for August 14th-19th (if your child is OOS & Honors I strongly suggest he consider one of those programs.) Regular freshman move in would be Friday August 19th & Saturday August 20th then with WOW to be the 19th-25th.</p>
<p>^ wow! classes start late - that’s a good thing for us 
anyone remember when we (upperclassmen) choose dining plans?</p>
<p>I think this has been answered before, but, if freshmen have enough AP/dual enrollment credits to be classified as a sophomore by second semester will they allow you to sign up for a lesser plan than the silver that semester?</p>
<p>no. they seem to have closed that loophole.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that the first year is really only the expensive meal plan year. After that, you can have no meal plan or a very small one.</p>
<p>I advise that for freshmen, you don’t select higher than the Silver Plan. Because there are so many other eating options, such as retail dining on campus and nearby off-campus dining on The Strip, Midtown Village, and Downtown, kids quickly start taking advantage of other dining options. </p>
<p>Also, if your child is just a bagel or cereal, and juice/milk/coffee kind of person in the morning, it’s easy to just have that in your dorm.</p>
<p>^One of my son’s meal plans (at another college) is $2825 per semester! Period. There are various combinations of dining dollars and meals, but the cost is $2825 per semester, no matter how you slice it. So, I’m really glad to hear that Bama’s first year, at $1757 max, is the most expensive year! :)</p>
<p>^Btw, like many of you, I’m sure, I could feed a family of four on $2825 per semester. I’ve often wondered how it could possibly cost that much.</p>
<p>Bama Silver - $1,272 per semester
160 meals per semester; please note that this does not include the required $300 Dining Dollars.
*</p>
<p>The meal plan price is about 2600 for the first year…plus 600 in dining dollars.
If your child doesn’t spend the additional 600 in Dining Dollars, you can get that returned to you.</p>
<p>*Btw, like many of you, I’m sure, I could feed a family of four on $2825 per semester. I’ve often wondered how it could possibly cost that much. *</p>
<p>Yes…that’s because your labor is “free”…a school has to pay people to purchase the food, make the food, do all the cleanup, and maintain the dining halls. Labor is probably a very large component. Plus, being food service and health concerns, they have to throw out more food then we do.</p>
<p>^I’m not sure you caught the distinction … you’re talking about $2600 for the first year at Bama; I’m talking about $2825 per semester at another school. That’s $5650 per year. Quite a difference. We LOVE the other school. But it DOES charge a heck of a lot of money for its meal plans.</p>
<p>I and many others here strongly advise you to pick the silver meal plan. It doesn’t cost anything to upgrade later but there is a fee to downgrade. </p>
<p>My lil bro had the silver plan and still had 40+ meals left over after Fall semester. Many others on here experienced similar with their kids.</p>
<p>Unless you’re sure your kid will eat 3 meals a day, 7 days a week then get the silver.</p>
<p>*Unless you’re sure your kid will eat 3 meals a day, 7 days a week then get the silver. *</p>
<p>And, even those who do eat 21+ meals a week won’t eat them all in a dining hall with so many other choices.</p>
<p>agree with the above. most kids have a hard tome getting thru the required meals.</p>
<p>It’s just that Bama is located in a city which offers so many inviting alternative places to eat. and, the Crimson Ride does go to The Strip where there are easily 10+ places to eat right off the bus stop…and more just a walking block away.</p>
<p>Regarding the freshman distinction with incoming AP credits: they have closed the loophole by saying that all “first year” students have to have the silver plan at minimum (unless they go Greek & then they can downgrade to the Greek 50 plan.) Believe me, D & I tried working that angle ad nauseum back in December as she was officially listed as a sophomore then and even had a lovely young man Keith (who post on this board & has a student elected position at UA) try to help us to no avail. </p>
<p>D ended up having 92 of the 1st semester meals (out of 160) left so started the 2nd semester with 252 meals! She’s been trying harder this semester and it looks like she will finish all of her dining dollars. And she’s down to 207 meals left on her plan. Most of her friends are in the same boat, although maybe not to the same degree.</p>
<p>Considering I’m having difficulty using up my 50 meals per semester plan, I would definitelyb suggest the smallest meal plan you can get. Not wanting any of my meals to go to waste last year when I was on the required meal plan, I ended up eating 2 meals every day of the week at Lakeside. </p>
<p>AL34 and others, don’t select a meal plan before you confirm your student’s schedule. If you add a meal plan after you confirm your schedule, you don’t have to pay for it until October (and then possibly November if you put it on a credit card). Additionally, Bama Dining was having a promotion where you get a friend to sign up for a meal plan and you each get 5 free meals added to your account. Assuming they do this promotion again, I’m sure those of us at CC could do a sort of conga where we all end up with 10 free meals.</p>
<p>*Assuming they do this promotion again, I’m sure those of us at CC could do a sort of conga where we all end up with 10 free meals. *</p>
<p>LOL</p>
<p>Since freshmen are req’d to have the Silver plan (at least), I would try to get a commitment out of my student to eat at least lunch at the dining hall during the school week and at least 4-5 dinners a week. That still allows for some weekend meals out. </p>
<p>160 meals a semester on the Silver Plan…</p>
<p>Are there about 110 or so days to eat (not including MLK and Spring Break) per semester??</p>
<p>SEA_tide: You aren’t the only upperclassman having trouble using up that 50-meal plan. My son has not cracked the 50 mark this semester. (He had 28 meals left from the fall.) </p>
<p>BTW, he does eat, too. But there are so many opportunities for those free meals and snacks …</p>
<p>just what we need 10 MORE meals we can’t use!!!</p>
<p>: )</p>
<p>In 1996, UA commissioned a study which concluded that on-campus dining would be revenue neutral or unprofitable unless dining dollars and freshman meal plans were made mandatory. </p>
<p>FWIW, Bama Dining tries to compare the dining halls to the Golden Corral, saying that the food isn’t top notch because the dining halls are less expensive than off-campus buffets and have free drinks. Still, given the choice, I’d pay the extra money and choose the Golden Corral; they have steak and cheesecake. :)</p>
<p>In case anyone was wondering, requests for refunds of Dining Dollars can be submitted starting April 15th.</p>