The Cost of Attendance at Bama

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Alabama
1

<p>In-State … Description …Out-of-State
$9330… Tuition and Fees … $22630
$10781…Room and Board…$10781
$1100…Books … $1100
$1158… Transportation…$1608</p>

<h2>$2300… Miscellaneous…$2860</h2>

<p>$24669… TOTAL…$38979</p>

<p>Some are freaking out that the COA has gone up. Yes, the Super Suites price has gone up to so that has impacted the COA.</p>

<p>The COA assumes the cost of the Super Suites.</p>

<p>Those who choose a “standard double” (like in Tut or Burke or many other dorms) can save about $2-3k per year. Obviously, someone who chooses a Standard Double will not pay $11,000 for room and board. </p>

<p>Those who have tuition scholarships (1/2, 2/3 or full) will have their awards increased to reflect the higher cost.</p>

<p>Do NOT worry that your NMF scholarship shows a lower amount for housing. Housing scholarships WILL cover the 4 bedroom super suite (this is per the website). </p>

<p>Bama has increases estimates for travel, that’s just a reflection of the large number of OOS students now attending Bama. </p>

<p>Travel and Misc expenses are flexible depending on how thrifty a person is and how diligent they are about getting good travel rates. </p>

<p>Books are another area where savings can be had…renting books, buying used, borrowing/trading, and selling back your old books can reduce costs there.</p>

<p>Frosh year does require at least the Silver Plan for meal plan. After frosh year, a lesser plan or no plan can be an option.</p>

<p>The $600 per year cost for Dining Dollars can be refunded to you at the end of the school year if you don’t spend the money. </p>

<p>** Be thrifty, you don’t have to spend $4500 on travel and personal expenses! **</p>

<p>COAs are purposely padded for FA purposes. If COAs only reflected the most economical options than people wouldn’t get the FA they need or the loans they want to cover the more costly options.</p>

2

<p>The COA online is $42,000 and everyone is FREAKING… including me…
I have the presidential, a $3900 a year pell grant, work study, a $2000 unsubsidized loan and a $3500 subsidized… yet it is still saying this will only cover 33,000 a year. When I did the financial aid calculator with my EFC results from FASFA, it said it would cost -$10 a year with all of my financial aid. Now, it is saying $9000 a year.
I realize this is an extreme overestimate, but I wish I had a more realistic idea of how much it will cost. I plan on saying in one of the 4 bedroom suites.</p>

3

<p>Can you post the link to that amount. I keep hearing it, but I’m not finding it or the breakdown.</p>

<p>This is the one I found…which I copied in post #1
<a href=“http://financialaid.ua.edu/faq/costs.html[/url]”>http://financialaid.ua.edu/faq/costs.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

4

<p>There is no breakdown. I think that is what has people freaking out. This is how it shows up </p>

<p>Estimated Cost of Attendance<br>
$42,547.00</p>

<p>Undergrad Sub/Unsb Orig Fee
$65.00</p>

<p>Total:<br>
$42,612.00</p>

5

<p>Did they do the same thing last year? Because someone said they did.</p>

6

<p>Where are you seeing that?</p>

<p>Can you call Bama and ask for breakdown…they are open this morning.</p>

7

<p>Under my student tab, I scroll down to financial aid and click on award… Choose the year, and this shows above* my breakdown for my financial aid package </p>

<p>Someone posted on the class of 2016 page that their mom called and the person told them that it is with the most expensive everything and an overestimate. I am not sure if that is true.</p>

<p>I can try calling or emailing. A lot of people have been posting saying they will not be able to afford going if it is this much. They are really upset about the whole situation since deadlines have already passed at other schools and they had their hearts set on bama. I have a hard time believing it will jump this much in cost.</p>

8

<p>I don’t see where the jump would be. If it’s in tuition, it will be covered by my scholarship… and I highly doubt room and board would jump $4,000</p>

9

<p>I just called Bama and asked if they had a breakdown for that amount. She first told me that expenses went up from last year. When I asked for a breakdown, she said it is not online yet and that I should probably wait until mid April and then it would be posted online. We are NMF, so the additional expenses for room and tuition should not affect us, but it still shows the awards as $10,950 for tuition and $3232 for housing per semester.</p>

10

<p>Do NOT worry about whatever the Presidential or housing or 2/3 scholarships are showing. Those WILL be adjusted on your actual billing to reflect actual tuition and the 4 bedroom super suite (if that’s what you choose). </p>

<p>There’s no way that it will cost anywhere close to that COA. That must include the cost of a single bedroom super suite (not the 4 bedroom super suite) and the “all you can eat” meal plan. I’ve noticed that Bama also mistakenly doubles the cost of the parking decal when in reality, you’re only charged one time for the year (not per semester). </p>

<p>And, the above shows a 4500 estimate for travel and personal expenses. Obviously, that will vary. Yes, our Hawaii and Alaska kids probably do have that high of costs, but most others do not.</p>

<p>Again…Bama would be using the priciest COA with all the extras so that those who want to do a Plus loan or whatever will be allowed to borrow up to those amounts for all the pricey extras.</p>

<p>For those with housing scholarships…</p>

<ul>
<li>Regular room rate is defined as the largest room option in a particular dorm. Example: Riverside, Lakeside and Ridgecrest have four-person suites. The cost associated with the four-person suite would be the value of the housing scholarship in this circumstance. If you live in an alternate dorm where a double room occupancy is the largest available option, then the cost associated with the double room would be the value of the housing scholarship.</li>
</ul>

11

<p>how much did the super suites go up for the year, does anyone know?</p>

12

<p>The Super Suites did go up quite a bit. They were about $8000 this last year, and now they’re $8800 for a 4 bedroom.</p>

13

<p>I believe m2ck is right about the financial aid awards reflecting the most expensive housing and meal plan options. The most expensive single, excluding the 11.5 month apartments, cost 5150 a semester, and the Unlimited meal plan is 1757 per semester. </p>

<p>What they post on the web site for last year’s estimated COA is a suite at 4050 and the silver meal plan at 1350. The difference in room and board is a large part of the increase. </p>

<p>My question is, is should I accept the award offer now, or wait to see what my d’s actual cost will be. What happens if the cost is quite a bit lower than the accepted package? Will some be rescinded?</p>

14

<p>so the suites went up $400/ semester…correct?</p>

15

<p>Yes, the super suites are up 400 per semester.</p>

16

<p>Our D1 is in a 2 person suite in the north tower of RCS this year and a friend she plans to room with next year is in a 4 person at Riverside. They have both enjoyed living in the dorms and their suites are very nice. Because they both will require summer housing next year, we looked into the new off campus apartments across from campus. We were interested in being able to stay in the same location throughout the year and summer to eliminate the need to move back and forth to different dorms during the summer. We found that by renting a 2 br/2 ba completely furnished apartment which includes dishwasher, stove, fridge, washer and dryer in the unit also, not only saves us money during over the 2 semesters, but also eliminates the additional dorm cost for the summer, laundry cost, moving cost and storage cost, and the costs of hotels. It also allows them to come and go as they please during breaks. As I said, the dorms are super nice and they enjoyed them, but we will save $930.00 over two semesters plus pick up free summer housing compared to the projected cost for a 2 person unit at RCS which is what she has now. Her roommate, who is currently in a 4 person unit at Riverside, will pay $20 more next year than for the 2 semesters but will pick up free summer housing. It is something to consider as parents consider the COA. You can always move off campus the second year or choose a less expensive dorm option.</p>

17

<p>Just fyi on the meal plan…choose the basic plan. Bama allows students to bump up at any time, but not down. Our D eats lunch most days at Fresh Foods and some evenings at Lakeside, but she has tons of meals left on her basic meal plan. She hasn’t used any of her dining dollars, so she will request a refund at the end of the semester and get that money back.</p>

<p>Just checked…80 meals left.</p>

18

<p>Did anything else go up, like the cost of the silver food plan? Travel expenses have gone up between the cost of gas and cost of plane tickets. Both my husband and I signed up for the Southwest credit card and hope to use that for reasonable airfare over the next 4 years. I think the 4 person super suite is still worth the money. Many schools we have looked at charge almost that amount for a single room and a traditional style bathroom where you share with the floor. Plus the kitchenette is a plus too.</p>

19

<p>I agree, the super suites have been well worth the money for us. Those with housing scholarships won’t need to worry anyway.</p>

20

<p>I am not complaining at all! The private bedroom was one of the selling factors for my only child…
I was just trying to put the amount of money in perspective.</p>