My purpose of mentioning UAH was because the OP said that the student was really interested in aerospace engineering and hopes some day to land a job at NASA.
Given the original question of “go to a top-ranked engineering school or get a master’s in 5 years at Univ of Alabama” (not UAH), I’d vote for the latter.
BUT if the kid REALLY REALLY wants to work at NASA, if it was my kid, I’d give UAH a serious look. 30% of the school’s undergrads are engineering majors. The most popular clubs on campus (like a space hardware club) are engineering clubs. The school has a really excellent co-op program with local employers. MANY MANY defense industry and aerospace companies have major offices in the Huntsville area and they ALL hire interns from UAH.
You can also continue to live on campus during the semester that you’re doing your full time co-op internship. Most of those result in the student getting a job offer at graduation.