<p>For the first time, I attended a recruiting event last night as the parent of a current UA student. It was a very interesting experience. I certainly know why we’re happy with the University of Alabama, but I’d love to hear from others. When you tell a prospective parent, in a nutshell, why Bama was a good choice, what do you say?</p>
<ol>
<li>COA</li>
<li>Special programs</li>
<li>Student centric</li>
</ol>
<p>1) They got the education that they needed.
2) Beautiful campus
3) awesome scholarships.</p>
<p>My D felt wanted at UA.
We liked the scholarships.
They were building a new engineering complex.</p>
<p>I personally like that UA always tries to improve. Ex. they didn’t offer any college credit for someone who had taken AP Literature and Composition. A few folks asked about it, now they give credit for it. There are many examples of little improvements. Just ask the folks about airport shuttle times.</p>
<p>LOVE this question…I get it a lot here in Chicago.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Amazing opportunities for freshman - D has been to Nicaragua w/ Alabama Greek Missions and to Ecuador with Honors College. Freshman Forum was a great experience for her. Academic support is available at every level. </p></li>
<li><p>Southern Hospitality - No really, this is something that is all over campus. Everyone, and I mean everyone is so friendly and helpful. There are tons of stories on this forum about people going above and beyond. We just came back from campus and brought my niece with…she could not believe how many people invited us to tailgate with them. When we looked lost, within 10 seconds someone was asking if they could help. It has made my D a nicer person! It has made her realize the value of conversation. This is not something to be discounted.</p></li>
<li><p>Football - I gotta say that I LOVE going to football games. I love the pomp and history. I get goosebumps when they play the history video. I love seeing the girls dressed up and hanging on the quad. School pride is so evident on game days…the campus shines and sparkles. The actions of the fans says a lot about the school and it is all positive.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>1) Excellent Honors College program
2) Research and mentorship opportunities available
3) Friendly and helpful campus community</p>
<p>Good topic.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>At least very good in every major (and excellent in many), so DS can change his mind without changing schools.</p></li>
<li><p>Size and diversity ensures DS’s ability to experience college life in full. </p></li>
<li><p>Close enough to come home for the weekend, not close enough to come home for dinner. (And visa versa: close enough for the parents to visit on a weekend, not close enough to drop in on a work/school night.)</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Computer Based Honors Program.</p>
<p>Catholic church on campus.</p>
<p>Close enough to come home for breaks.</p>
<p>Agree with all of the above, but for us more specifically:</p>
<p>There has been a fantastic variety (many choices) and availability of opportunities from the very start of school as Freshman.</p>
<p>A small-school feeling within a much larger school. (Honors Housing, Honors College, Honors classes/seminars, College of Engineering, First Year Experience…have all contributed to this.)</p>
<p>Unlike any other place we visited or considered.</p>
<p>Great question. I looked at Cuttlefish’s comments and they reflect perfectly what I would have said, just changing “D” to “S” and adding that the sense of feeling wanted is complemented by the quality and hospitality of everyone you meet on campus.</p>
<p>High emphasis on student academics & quality of life. The first visit we had was about a month after they won the national championship 2 years ago. The briefly mentioned the win at the beginning of the session and after that is was all about academics, preparing students for a career, & quality of student life. We never went to visit UGA but many friends did (we live in GA) and they said it was football, football, football, having fun, and oh yea we have some academic stuff…</p>
<p>Scholarships…</p>
<p>Opportunities (both academic & social)</p>
<p>I’m not sure what my daughter’s top 3 would be, but here are mine:</p>
<ol>
<li> Daughter is very happy.</li>
<li> She is getting a good education and we’re paying very little for it.</li>
<li> I now have an adopted football team (I went to a Div3 school with no football), and if you’re going to adopt a team, I can’t think of a better one.</li>
</ol>
<p>Here’s my list, and I believe my son would agree with it. I know that DH does. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Transparency regarding scholarship opportunities. My S knew from the time that he started his college search what it would take to get scholarships at UA. No digging for info, no waiting to see what was available when the student pool was complete. This made it so easy to set a goal - early!</p></li>
<li><p>UA pursued S in a way that others didn’t (including my alma mater, DH’s alma mater, and the school where S1 was enrolled). He felt like more than a statistic even though he was fully aware that UA was pursuing many high stats OOS students.</p></li>
<li><p>Hospitality - helpful, friendly people on a dadgum gorgeous campus. We have never visited when we haven’t had people talk to us, offer assistance, etc. On our first visit it was a college dean who saw us out walking around and came over to meet us. Most recently it was during tailgating on the Quad when strangers invited us to have drinks/food/watch a game on their TV. This happened over and over and over on the same day. I was absolutely blown away.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>No regrets.</p>
<p>I’ve had the pleasure of presenting 'Bama to recruits from the perspective of a student’s parent on a few occasions. I always lay out my version of the top 10 reasons why UA is a great choice. So, at the risk of violating this thread’s rules, here goes (some of the old timers on this forum have seen this before):</p>
<ol>
<li>Plentiful and generous out-of-state scholarships. </li>
<li>The Honors College–the personal touch and rigor of a small liberal arts college, coupled with the resources of a major research university. </li>
<li>Diversity—more than 50% of incoming freshmen are from out-of-state. Looking for a church, temple, or mosque? They’re all here.</li>
<li>A drop-dead gorgeous campus.</li>
<li>A modern, state-of-the art infrastructure—the facilities are first-rate.</li>
<li>The finest dorms we’ve ever seen.</li>
<li>An endless array of extracurricular activities, service opportunities, internships, and recreation.</li>
<li>Southern Hospitality—the Aloha Spirit, Mainland style.</li>
<li>Water! Kayaking, canoeing, rowing, water skiing, sailing, and swimming.</li>
<li>Deep traditions. Awesome school spirit and pride. A visionary chancellor and president.</li>
</ol>
<p>My son feels truly valued by UA. As he put it so aptly a few months ago, “If there’s something you want to do, 'Bama will do whatever it can to help you get it done.” </p>
<p>And yes, the football is above average. ;)</p>
<p>Roll Tide!</p>
<ol>
<li>OOS scholarship- leaves $ for grad school </li>
<li>Many opportunities for majors/on campus clubs</li>
<li>Honors program made a large school into a more intimate college community.</li>
<li>DS is thriving at Bama- has an awesome on campus job, is engaged in classes, and extremely happy.</li>
<li>DS loves being far from his parents and the distance has promoted his independence. </li>
<li>DS friends in California- particularly community colleges - cannot get classes they need to graduate in 4 years.</li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li>National Merit Scholarship</li>
<li>Traditional SEC college experience</li>
<li>High ranking of PR/Advertising Departments</li>
</ol>
<p>And, I have not seen mentioned here, but very compelling, was the role of the Regional UA Recruiter who helped in many, many ways, even after the “sale” was saucered-and-blown.</p>
<ol>
<li>DS felt wanted which speaks volumes for an 18 year old vs. other top schools</li>
<li>Scholarships that is transparent based on merit</li>
<li>Opportunities that places young adults in responsible positions early in their college years…ROLL TIDE</li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li><p>The School Spirit is exceptional</p></li>
<li><p>Direct admit to the Business School</p></li>
<li><p>Honors Students are recognized as valuable to the University and they are provided with tuition assistance, superior housing, personalized advising, early registration and many many more advantages.</p></li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li> Scholarship Opportunities</li>
<li> Research Opportunities (Computer Based Honors specifically Dr. and Mrs. Batson)</li>
<li> Classic College Experience rich in tradition </li>
<li> High percentage of OOS students </li>
</ol>
<p>Sorry, could not limit to 3!</p>
<p>Amazing how many folks cited the scholarships! How smart is UA for being so generous?</p>