I am a data geek and find this data point from the 2017 Data Set astonishing. Last Fall’s freshman class had a middle ACT range of 23-32. That means that at least 25% of all freshman had an ACT of 33 or higher! Yet, at least 25% of all freshman had an ACT of 22 or lower. Is UA subsidizing some of the students on the upper end via tuition from students on the lower end? It is an interesting business model, but it does seem like it could keep the six year grad rate from rising. And that is not good for rankings. But how wonderful it is that UA has so many smart students on campus! Given the larger freshman class size at UA, this means that there are more top notch students at UA than at fellow SEC flagship schools like UGA and even UF!
Just to clarify, the increase in the middle range has all been on the upper end, and there has been a little movement upward on the low end, just not much over 10 years.
@Atlanta68 Those numbers are CRAZY! I don’t think it means that 25% had a 33 or over. I would think that a fair amount of the people over 75% had a 32 also.
I’ve never seen another school with that range. Most schools with a X-32 range is something like 28-32 or 27-32.
Last year, I thought it was 24-31 for Bama. So it looks like both ends are moving?
As for whether or not students on the low end are subsidizing student’s on the high end, that’s obviously true. Everyone with a 33 or above gets free or nearly free tuition. So Bama isn’t getting much money from them. They have to get that money from somewhere.
The optimists way of looking at it is that a state school is supposed to serve the needs of the state. By admitting many lower stats kids, that’s how Bama is doing it.
As for what 23-32 represents, my understanding is that the 25th percentile score is 23 and the 75th percentile score is 32. It’s highly unlikely that the 75th percentile score is exactly 32. It’s rounded So we don’t know if 25 percent of the student body has 33 and above or if 25 percent has 32 and above.
@gusmahler - I agree with your post. At the same time, with the Presidential Scholarship capped at $25,000, it is not nearly as good as full tuition. After 4 years it will still most likely cost between $22,000 - $25,000 since tuition goes up every year. While that isn’t too much and is a fantastic deal, people that live several states away and have very solid in-state options can be a deal breaker.
The spread at Ole Miss is 22-29 because they give out automatic scholarships which is a big spread but nothing like Alabama’s.
I think it is amazing and matches my daughter’s on the ground experience. As a freshman this year all 4 in her suite have a 34-36 ACT scores. All over campus, in classes, clubs, activities, she is so impressed with her peers and the experiences and knowledge that they bring to the campus. Imagining the sheer number of students in this large freshman class that are in the 99% of the country is awesome! Roll Tide!
Why does U of A choose to spend so much money on high-stats kids? I’ve heard it was to allow laxer standards for football recruits, but that is a completely unverified rumor. Does anyone know the real reason?
Huh? Why would spending money on high stats kids allow lax standards for football recruits? UA’s standards for football recruits are the same for every other SEC school, except for Vanderbilt, and even Vanderbilt lets students in who would not otherwise be able to gain admission there.
I think it is obvious why UA spends so much on high stats kids. It wants to graduate more top notch students who will improve UA’s rep over time via their success, whether in grad school, med school, or employment.
@Studious99 Alabama Football is all about the academics and their players graduating with degrees. There success on the field does impact their acadmic rankings a bit since they lose a few stars each year to the draft before graduating but otherwise their academic record is stellar. Alabama ranked 7th in academics in the football rankings of the top 25 performing teams.
In addition, the Alabama football program is among seven recipients of the 2017 American Football Coaches Association Academic Achievement Award. One of the many criteria was recording a 100% graduation rate and they are ranked up with Northwestern, Utah, and UVA as recipients of this award.
I don’t think the football program is using the top stat students in any way, in fact it is the other way around. The overflow of all of that licensing $, ticket sales, broadcasting rights, and merchandising has brought in millions of dollars to the University. After decades of schools all over paying for top athletes, Alabama made the decision to pay for top students and top athletes. Having the #1 football program in the nation with an amazing 17 National Championships is a draw to top students who are looking for great sports and great school spirit.
I’m assuming that spending money on high stats kids is/was part of the growth plan. The school increases its stats, and thus its reputation, by having those high stats students. As the stats and the reputation grow, the school becomes more desirable. At some point it won’t be as necessary to offer as many scholarships for students at the top to attend, as the school will be more academically attractive. Beyond the university, there is a benefit to the State of Alabama both to having high stats students come from OOS and also retaining the brightest in-state students. Lots of kids settle near where they go to college, and having a well educated and intelligent workforce is good for the state. My OOS daughter attended UA on a full tuition plus scholarship and remained in Alabama after graduating. I consider that a win for her and a win for the state of Alabama.
The reason for the scholarship is obvious–they want to attract out of state students and improve their reputation. The ACT range has gone from (I believe) 23-28 to 23-32. Before, if you had a 32 ACT, you wouldn’t even think of Alabama if you weren’t from AL or a neighboring state. But the scholarship money means a lot of people with 32 and above are considering it.
Just 15 years ago, the thought that a high stat student would have a college list of, e.g., Vanderbilt, Duke, Harvard, and Alabama would have been ludicrous. It’s not ludicrous now (even if Bama is just a financial safety).
The problem is that it takes time for a school’s reputation to change. For a long time, Alabama was just a southern in-state school that’s abnormally good at football. Now, it’s a financial safety school for lots of high stats kid (as well as being abnormally good at football).
Once the reputation catches up, they are going to reduce scholarships. Hell, they already have. It’s going to go the way of Oklahoma. OU used to give scholarships just as generous as Bama. OU has recently reduced their scholarship amount. I don’t know all the details. Because they aren’t generous any more, I didn’t even consider them for D19.
@windows16 I understand where you get your $22k figure from. Since that is $4k + $5k + $6k + $7k, it seems that is the total tuition minus the $100k in scholarship, assuming that tuition goes up $1k each year.
Thing is, every college goes up every year. So that part is basically a wash compared to in-state schools, unless the in-state school matches full tuition.
E.g., let’s say you’re comparing it to University of Texas. UT is about $10k for in-state. If you compare $22k to ($10k * 4), and you might think that the difference is worth going to UT. But that comparison assumes UT tuition does not change each year, while assuming UA rises each year. If you assume UT rises also, the comparison becomes $22k to $62k. You still might choose UT, but it’s a tougher decision than before. Especially if you plan on grad school.