Is there someone at UA that I can contact as a concerned Alum about the recruitment of students in the state of AL? I love the direction that UA is going as far as quality of students and programs; however, I feel like our in-state kids in high school are being ignored. I feel like there isn’t as much emphasis in recruiting this state’s brightest. I did a quick research of where the top high schools in the state are sending their kids and UA is getting absolutely pummeled in-state.
You can contact Mary Spiegel at mary.spiegel@ua.edu. She’s the executive director of admissions, asst provost
Which high schools are you looking at? Bama still has trouble at some of the top AL high schools where parents are often engineers…and therefore they are often Auburn grads (because Bama’s eng’g dept was small when they were going to college…and will only consider Auburn.
Thanks @mom2collegekids. I live in Huntsville which is a major Engineer town and I understand that there will be more Auburn grads and their kids following in their footsteps, but lately I’ve noticed high schools where lawyers and doctors send their kids (i.e. Huntsville High, Randolph) have a lot more kids going to Auburn over Bama now. Just 11 years ago it was complete opposite so it could be a thing where it goes in cycles. I have also noticed schools in Birmingham and Mobile where they have traditionally been a feeder school to UA have also changed course. I know it’s not a big deal but when you drive around in a certain part of town where it has always been pro-bama and notice young kids driving with their “other” school sticker on the back windshield it kind of gets discouraging. I just hope UA isn’t shutting the door on our local kids
Thanks for flagging this up. I am very sensitive to how AL locals view OOS students, so I’m looking forward to your subsequent reports on what you find out @UA2009.
At our high school, things most definitely go in cycles, sometimes dramatic ones. A school that was popular last year is not at all popular this year. (And being in IL, our flagship continues to loose appeal, in part to the steady, growing influx of international students which make up 25+% of the freshman class.) My son was the very 1st from his HS to go to 'Bama, and then the following year there were 5; the next year there were none, and this year there are at least 8, possibly more, and many more who were seriously considering it, but backed out for various reasons.
@aeromom I LOVE that UA is bringing in more OOS students. I think that only helps the university and hope they continue targeting quality OOS kids. My issue is that most of the OOS students understandably won’t stay in state as much as the kids that are already from the state would. I talk to kids here locally and they aren’t even considering UA. Their parents and friends all want them to go to AU even if the parents aren’t from the state or has any affiliation with AU. Unfortunately The University of Alabama still has a stigma that if you want an engineer degree than AU is the better option by far; when in reality both schools have great programs.
^ And, I need to correct my post #3, above. It is 15+% (not 25+%) of incoming freshman are international. The 25% refers to total OOS.
<<<
live in Huntsville which is a major Engineer town and I understand that there will be more Auburn grads and their kids following in their footsteps, but lately I’ve noticed high schools where lawyers and doctors send their kids (i.e. Huntsville High, Randolph) have a lot more kids going to Auburn over Bama now.
[QUOTE=""]
[/QUOTE]
I suspected that you’re from the HSV area since I lived there for several years and noticed the same. My husband is a retired engineer who worked in HSV. H saw this blind-bias first hand. Even tho the engineers that were hired from Bama were just as good and qualified as the ones from Auburn, the older Auburn grads still “push Auburn” to families whose kids are considering eng’g.
Doesn’t matter if non-engineering families are choosing auburn for eng’g for their kids… if doctors and lawyers from HSV area are sending their kids to Auburn, it’s because of the overall atmosphere that exists there (which I’m familiar with). You have Cummings Research Park there and all those eng’rs who are from Auburn are influencing where the rest are going. The scholarship offers are about the same for instate, so people listen to what their (auburn alum) engineering neighbors say.
It is a problem that is unique to THAT area. UA now has an office in Cummings Research Park which will help with this issue.
It’s not a state-wide problem. If it were, UA would not be enrolling about 12,000 Alabama undergrad residents. Auburn enroll about 13,000 Alabama undergrad residents. We’re not talking about some huge difference.
[QUOTE=""]
just hope UA isn't shutting the door on our local kids
[/QUOTE]
Lol…that’s not happening.
@UA2009, this topic comes up periodically here. We’ve done a lot of speculating, with no real conclusions, but the two theories that many of us seem to agree on are:
- Auburn alumni in engineering fields are pushing their alma mater to their neighbors and co-workers. Since UA didn't traditionally have as strong an engineering program, there just aren't as many of them in the AL workforce. That will likely change as UA Engineering grows in size and stature.
- The huge influx of out-of-state students, many of whom are from the North and West, may have made UA less appealing to those who would prefer a more traditional (and conservative) Southern experience.
I’ll be curious to hear what you uncover as well. A couple of threads you might find of interest:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-alabama/1859259-2014-15-college-of-engineering-admissions-stats-p1.html (The discussion about in-state students choosing AU over UA begins around post #41.)
@LucieTheLakie Thanks for the input. You guys are probably right and I’m probably being a little too precautious. I remember those threads and in fact I was involved in them if I’m not mistaken. To your 2nd point; if that’s the case and these students can’t adapt and get along with kids from other cultures and backgrounds than I don’t want them to represent my University. There is no need for small-minded thinkers that want to live in their own comfortable bubble. Those are not the kind of people that grow up to do anything worthwhile.
@UA2009, sorry, I didn’t realize you were involved in those earlier threads.
It’s truly hard to know what’s going on with regard to in-state students choosing AU over UA in larger numbers in recent years. I suspect UA is quite aware of the situation and I would be interested to hear if you are able to get anybody there to address your concerns.
@Atlanta68. did you ever heard back from anybody when you were asking these same questions a while back?
@aeromom said
[QUOTE=""]
(And being in IL, our flagship continues to loose appeal, in part to the steady, growing influx of international students which make up 25+% of the freshman class.) <<<
[/QUOTE]
This is patently FALSE information
http://www.dmi.illinois.edu/stuenr/abstracts/fa15Freshman.xls
It amazes me how someone’s outlier, anecdotal example somehow is proof of a major trend. UIUC (particularly the COE) continues to enroll increasing selective freshman classes.
The #1 reason IL students enroll at UA is cost or it was their safety.
@IlliniDad18 Please let’s not turn this into a pissing match. I didn’t create this thread for it to turn into that. Is there a poll that shows that the #1 reason for IL students to enroll at UA is BECAUSE
cost or safety? ( Sorry, accidentally hit enter before I was ready)
@IlliniDad18 She already corrected her post to indicate 15% int’ls.
I think we all can agree that IL students enroll at UA because they can’t afford UIUC, they can’t justify the cost, or they didn’t get into eng’g or the school…or maybe they want to attend a school that can win football games. 
No one is suggesting that UIUC isn’t a great school, particularly for eng’g. But if an IL family has 2-4+ kids and they can’t pay $120k+ per child to go to college, then UA can become an attractive alternative, including for eng’g.
<<<
UIUC (particularly the COE) continues to enroll increasing selective freshman classes.
<<<
and so does Bama.
My IL daughter enrolled at UA because she preferred UA to UIUC. We could afford to send her wherever she wanted to go and she got into the business school at UIUC, so that wasn’t an issue. I don’t doubt that a lot of students choose UA for cost, and still others because they’re shut out of UIUC (particularly if they want business or engineering), but there are plenty of kids who do a comparison and Bama comes out on top. And I guess I shouldn’t refer to her as my IL daughter anymore, because she has every intention of staying in Alabama.
As @mom2collegekids said
<<<<<<
No one is suggesting that UIUC isn’t a great school, particularly for eng’g. But if an IL family has 2-4+ kids and they can’t pay $120k+ per child to go to college, then UA can become an attractive alternative, including for eng’g.
[QUOTE=""]
[/QUOTE]
UIUC is a VERY good engineering school BUT $s do play into the equation. When a school is $31K, Tuition/Fees/R&B, and you have two going at the same time then a cost/benefit is required.
UA has very good engineering facilities and the entering classes have been equal many, i.e. UW, UMinn, Purdue, OSU. Granted, UIUC and UMich are a step above and I am sure my twins would have been accepted just as they were accepted to UMinn with a scholarship so only had to pay IS tuition/fees.
In the end, they chose UA because they liked the good facilities and the strong Coop program. To me, an engineer and graduate from Iowa State, the great facilities and great scholarship were too good to pass up.
One other great benefit is a FANTASTIC football team! Roll Tide! :)>-