<p>Oooh! They have one of the 3D printers? How cool! They’ve been coming up quite a bit in my reading lately & I haven’t seen one. Of course, neither of kids will ever see one since they’re not in their areas of study, but I’d love a demo ;)</p>
<p>*but will he get the same treatment when he visits? *</p>
<p>Your son will get very good treatment when he visits. There are many “tour stories” from families who didn’t have a NMF student. Every tour is going to be a bit different based on who is available to speak to the student during that visit. Sometimes a student will visit and various Deans are out of town or at conferences or something. </p>
<p>Is there as much opportunity for the kids who won’t likely qualify for the top honors (CBHP, Fellows, etc.)?</p>
<p>Certainly. But why do you think that your son “won’t likely qualify” for…?</p>
<p>You don’t have to be in CBH or UFE to do research. My younger son isn’t in CBH or UFE and he’s had amazing research experiences.</p>
<p>@wdaveo, DS is same as your son (OOS full scholarship and honors, not NMSF) and we just had the same red carpet treatment last week.</p>
<p>wdaveo,</p>
<p>I just wanted to add my 2 cents! My D is a current junior at UA! She loves it!</p>
<p>We are from Cleveland and the drive down is easy. I think it may be even easier for you. </p>
<p>I usually leave around 7am and make it to T town 12 hours later. With many stops along the way. The roads are great (compared to Cleveland) and get smoother along the way!</p>
<p>D was a Presidential Scholar, did Alabama Action. And her freshman year also did research under the Emerging Scholar Program. More than a few students on CC are participating in the program year! She also has done research on three other Psych projects.</p>
<p>The dorms and campus are beautiful, but the opportunites are what she liked about Bama…so take the drive. It will make the rest of senior year so enjoyable. FYI we did not visit until March and boy do I wish we did. Would have saved alot of time, stress and money!!</p>
<p>Omama, would you mind sharing if your student has ever flown to UA? My daughter is highly considering this school. I think she will most likely fly over drive. If you have flown, what airline, out of cleveland, etc? What drew your daughter to UA? When my D tells people other students (and even adults) that she is considering UA, they basically laugh and D feels like she has to defend her reasons for considering it- even to her guidance counselor. I can’t wait to visit so I can brag about the school!</p>
<p>^^^Ignorance knows no bounds, linnylu. There is nothing to defend. We just need to educate.</p>
<p>I’d suggest your daughter copy happykidsmom’s post above, print out 100 copies, and hand them out to all the pseudo-intellectuals who are too smug and self-absorbed to realize the joke’s on them.</p>
<p>I’m enjoying all these wonderful stories but I have to wonder if my son’s experience will be different since he is not a NMSF? He will qualify for the OOS full tuition scholarship and the honors college…but will he get the same treatment when he visits? Is there as much opportunity for the kids who won’t likely qualify for the top honors (CBHP, Fellows, etc.)?</p>
<p>My D’s experience was different (it was fine, just nothing like others on here describe), but I don’t think it was because she wasn’t NMSF. It was just bad timing - we visited the Friday before Capstone Scholars Weekend, and I guess they were so busy that things were pretty disorganized and she didn’t get to meet with any honors college faculty or anyone associated with CBHP (both of which she requested), and the student who was supposed to take her to lunch didn’t show. It was unfortunate, because unlike most others who are totally sold on the school by the visit, my D’s Alabama visit didn’t stand out relative to other schools she visited. So I’d advise avoiding potentially busy times like right before Capstone Scholars Weekend or the interview weekends for UFE/CBHP. M2CK would probably know if there are other times to avoid.</p>
<p>linnylu,</p>
<p>When we looked at the school we flew to ATL from Akron Canton. D made this trip a few times her freshman year. Her roommates lived in ATL and were kind enough to pick up drop off. </p>
<p>Sophomore year she had a car on campus. So she drove home. This year she will have company as two hometown girls will be traveling with her.</p>
<p>we visited the Friday before Capstone Scholars Weekend, and I guess they were so busy that things were pretty disorganized and she didn’t get to meet with any honors college faculty or anyone associated with CBHP (both of which she requested), and the student who was supposed to take her to lunch didn’t show. It was unfortunate, because unlike most others who are totally sold on the school by the visit, my D’s Alabama visit didn’t stand out relative to other schools she visited. So I’d advise avoiding potentially busy times like right before Capstone Scholars Weekend or the interview weekends for UFE/CBHP.</p>
<p>Oh my…I remember that Friday well. I was there with my nephew from Calif. Hundreds of people arrived on campus on Friday for CSDay (which was on Saturday), including my nephew so that they could have some face-time with profs and faculty and get a real tour (CS Day doesn’t have a full campus tour). </p>
<p>Faculty were completely booked up meeting with prospective students/families that not all people could be accommodated. Everywhere we went there were prospective students/families in droves (I even had people coming up to me asking if I was mom2collegekids…didn’t know I looked the part. lol)</p>
<p>I believe we met Cuttlefish and her D that day. 
</p>
<p>We should mention to Allison and Dr. Sharpe that that day will likely be chaotic again this next January so to be more prepared with additional ambassador students and have more faculty ready to meet with students. Jami was doing the honors arrangements then so Allison may not know how crazy that day was for Jami (who is now doing recruiting for Bama Law) </p>
<p>Another reason why that day was chaos was because school had been out for a MONTH for Christmas break and school had just started back that Wednesday…so little time to pull everything together. </p>
<p>Other bad times to tour…</p>
<p>CBH/UFE interview weekend (usually about the 3rd weekend in February including the Friday and the Monday unless you’re not going to be in honors. Honors faculty are crazy busy at this time, but other faculty will not be.), </p>
<p>Honors Day (a Friday usually in April - check academic calendar), almost any Saturday because faculty aren’t there to talk to, </p>
<p>any days that Bama is closed/no school (again, no faculty around). </p>
<p>anytime near graduation (profs busy and hotels priced crazy), </p>
<p>probably any Friday where there’s a home football game since hotel prices will be crazy or hard to get rooms (faculty will be available, but hotels won’t likely be). However, if you arrive on Thursday eve, spend the night, and tour early on the Friday, I think hotels could be had for that Thursday night. </p>
<p>And, certainly, Bama’s Move in Day would not be a good day to tour either.</p>
<p>I grew up in Tuscaloosa - parents worked at Alabama. It’s a great school. Gorgeous campus. One thing a prospective student should know is this: Greek life is very, very big there. If your child is not interested in going Greek, he/she might want to consider another school. Greek events are not “open” to non-greeks. Dating is very limited when non-greek (greeks only date greeks). Also, the Greek system is HIGHLY selective. A student with no connections will have a hard time getting into a “good” house. My friends who went to Bama and went Greek LOVED it. My friends who went there and opted out were pretty unhappy.</p>
<p>NBC13, I thought I read that only 25% of the students were Greek. Do I have that number wrong? My D has no interested in pledging even though I was in a sorority that has a chapter at UA. So in your opinion, someone not involved in Greek life won’t be happy at UA?
Can others please weigh in? Do you think we’ll get a feeling for this during a visit, or is it something D won’t realize until she is already attending school there?</p>
<p>I’ve talked to many non-Greek students who are very involved in other activities and not at all unhappy.</p>
<p>So maybe it’s just a matter of getting involved in something. That makes sense. D is pretty adamant that she isn’t going Greek.</p>
<p>Can you imagine a campus of 30,000+ students in which more than 20,000 are moping around in an unhappy state? Come on, give me a break. Simply put, the student body is just not that pathological.</p>
<p>My son came to UA from way out of state, determined to never join a fraternity. He had a great time and fell in love with the school. He immediately made friends at Outdoor Action and thereafter never lacked for friends, activities, or dates. </p>
<p>Then he joined a fraternity and continued to have a great time. He socializes with Greeks and non-Greeks alike. There is something for virtually everyone at UA. </p>
<p>No worries, linnylu (and others). It’s all about being proactive, getting involved, and finding/creating niches within the myriad opportunities at Bama.</p>
<p>I believe the Greek participation is higher than 25% - think it’s closer to 40% for females (not as high for males). However, the pervasiveness of Greek life at Alabama is difficult to capture on paper. The issue is that the Greek system has a very dominant presence on campus. The Greek political machine runs Student Gov, homecoming, elections, etc. This may not be a big deal for some. Don’t get me wrong - I’m sure there are Independents at Bama who are happy. A very confident, self-directed student would probably enjoy it here, especially if he/she was into the Arts (wonderful Theatre dept at UA). But it’s not like other schools where greeks/non greeks can become close. Greeks are friendly - but they do stick together. Once a girl is in a sorority - that is it. Expect virtually no social interaction outside the fold. This can make it tough for a non-local kid to develop a social circle. </p>
<p>I would encourage anyone who is interested in Alabama who is NOT interested in going Greek speak with several Independents to get their honest impressions.</p>
<p>I think you proved my point Malanai. Your son was “determined never to join a fraternity” - and yet he ends up going greek at UA. That pretty much sums up the campus vibe. Not saying that’s good or bad - it just is what it is.</p>
<p>Again, super school. Unparalleled campus. Can’t beat the football (well, maybe…we’ll see!)</p>
<p>My son joined his fraternity because he enjoyed the company of the members and the ethic of his chapter, not because he felt pressured to do so, nor because he thought he’d be left out if he didn’t join, nor because a campus vibe lured him in. He was a GDI going in to UA because of unflattering and inaccurate stereotypes he held about Greek organizations. He is open minded enough that when he saw his perception did not meet certain realities, he entertained new possibilities and ultimately pledged.</p>
<p>I can assure you and everyone who reads this that he’d be having a ball at Bama if he were not in a fraternity. Again, the MAJORITY of students at UA are not Greek. If a student is not terribly confident or self-directed going into college, then it’s time to learn. UA affords students the opportunity to do so, whether or not they are Greek.</p>
<p>*I believe the Greek participation is higher than 25% *</p>
<p>It is roughly about 25%. The number can be confusing because some pledge, but don’t stay in for money/time demand reasons and depledge or go inactive. It can be hard for some to keep up the expenses and/or time demands for all 4 years. </p>
<p>*Once a girl is in a sorority - that is it. Expect virtually no social interaction outside the fold. *</p>
<p>That is not true. It may be true for those who can only identify themselves with their houses, but don’t generalize like that. </p>
<p>Anyway…neither of my kids pledged and they don’t have any regrets. They do have some friends who have pledged, but most of their friends are not Greek. One child is a math major (graduated in May) and the other is Chemical Engineering/pre-med. They simply didn’t feel that they had the time for pledging and risk jeopardizing their grades. Both have had the goal of graduating with a 4.0 for their grad/med school viability. </p>
<p>Frankly, those in certain majors are more likely to pledge than other majors. Pledging is more popular in the B-school, Communications, and other majors located in the south & west area of campus while pledging the purely social houses is less popular in the STEM majors. </p>
<p>I’m not anti-Greek. My sorority is on campus and I still keep in contact with many of my sisters. However, I’m glad my kids didn’t pledge. I doubt they’d have the 4.0 GPAs in their majors if they did.</p>
<p>So…NBC, you didn’t attend Bama?</p>
<p>^ Thanks NBC for your candid take on UA. </p>
<p>While I do think that many GDIs, my son included, can and do have a happy and fulfilling time at UA with non-Greek activities and friends, one would have to be in denial to say that the Greek atmosphere is not all-pervasive. It doesn’t seem to even slightly compare to the Greek situation at many of DSs friend’s other, primarily midwestern colleges, regardless of what the actual percentages are.</p>
<p>It seems the students who have issues are those non-greeks who want to be a part of greek activities, I just don’t get that.
If, like many GDIs you have no desire whatsoever to have any part of it then it doesn’t really impact socially in any way. There are many many GDIs (or those oblivious to the whole thing) that find things they enjoy doing every day of the week. Sure you may not have a chance to be ultimate soulmates with that guy/girl you glance at across the room in History, but honestly chances are if they are not of your persuasion (Greek or GDI) you are going to differ on a lot of other things too.</p>
<p>But again, good to go into UA eyes wide open, it’s just one of many factors in choosing a college.</p>
<p>Student government-wise - that’s a whole different story.</p>
<p>I had a talk with my son over lunch about this. Based on his first semester, he hasn’t seen any evidence that his and his non-greek friends/acquaintance’s experience at UA is being harmed at all by being non-greek. He said he has never heard anyone state a regret about being a non-greek at UA. However, there are probably some non-greeks at UA who are not happy, afterall there are almost always going to be some in any large group of people.</p>