I have not finished reading this thread, but UA will pay 10 semesters with the NMF scholarship. My DD has a friend who will complete her undergrad degree in two years and will use the remaining 3 years of her scholarship to pay for UA Law. Once she graduates from undergrad, she will lose the housing and stipend portion of her NMF scholarship, but the scholarship will fully cover law school tuition. Just another thing to consider.
My daughter took the NMF package at Alabama, and we couldn’t be more pleased. We talked a lot about finances with my daughter before she enrolled, and while she said she understood, she really didn’t. How can a 17 year old really understand what $320K means? Now, that’s she working and saving, she gets it. She will graduate with enough savings (and no debt) that she should never have to struggle financially. While I don’t want to share too much, I will say that her current wage would allow her to very comfortably support herself and a family. And she’s only a sophomore.
Financial considerations aside, Alabama has been great for her. She loves all of the opportunities available to her outside of the classroom! The only limitation to what she can do is the number of hours in a week. I can’t imagine what she would be receiving anywhere else that tops what she is currently experiencing.
ETA - My husband and I both attended T20 schools so we know what those schools provide.
I will tell you that we had all those same impressions about Alabama that you did before we toured. In fact, we visited only to cross Alabama off the list. UA was open for tours during C19, and we needed to get out of the house. We knew that they had a great NMF package, so we figured we should at least check it out. Well, the rest is history. Our visit really changed our perception. Yes, there are students who fit the “stereotype,” but there’s so much more to Alabama than that!
I believe she means that they went to Alabama (as a diversion from Covid 19 restrictions) because it was open and most schools weren’t, but with the intention of being able to eliminate it from consideration. Instead, their visit changed their minds and her daughter ended up choosing it.
Gotcha - I thought they were saying that with the conclusion
I see now - In fact, we visited only to cross Alabama off the list - meaning they gave it a courtesy for elimination.
I’ll say this about Bama - the feedback is pretty consistently outstanding.
I don’t read it as much anymore but I thought in the last couple years, there was outstanding feedback on experience at Pitt, U of SC, and FSU as well.
That is exactly what I meant. Sorry for the confusion. We went into our Alabama visit with several preconceived notions (none of which were positive) and open minds. It’s a good thing that were open to what Alabama had to offer because our preconceived notions were wrong. We loved our visit, and our DD is currently a sophomore there. We loved UA so much that our DS24 will also be enrolling in the fall.
As with all colleges, it’s not the perfect place for all students. But for our family, it’s a fabulous fit. As I said above, I cannot imagine what any other school could offer my DD that Alabama currently isn’t.
My husband and I both went to Umaine -I did NOT want to go there and neither did my husband. But we met and We fell in love, had some kids, have great careers, own three homes and are set for retirement at mid 40’s. My husband had a full ride and I got half.
It’s very fun there. Nice people, and I love the old charming buildings. Esp the library where I spent a lot of time. Very safe and a fun walk to town. We used to ski in the backyards of the Greek houses. We built snow sculptures and rode snowmobiles into bonfires when Maine won the 99 hockey championship. We would walk the blizzards and jump off decks into the snow. We made a time of it !
You will love wherever you end up. We are happy our parents made us choose the best financial options as we are thriving. I think you are SO smart for considering a cheaper option up front for undergrad.
My husband ended up getting his MBA from a very prestigious program -and because of his great grades from undergrad, that was free too!!!
My son is at Alabama. It was a hard decision. We did not have nearly as much saved as your parents, but we did have some savings and could pay for a few of his options without loans. His top choice was Rose-Hulman and it was in the range to need a loan. He was also considering Michigan, which we could do loan-free, but would wipe out all the savings. He didn’t love Michigan though. He didn’t love Alabama either. He also had great scholarships at a few other schools. We had lots of conversations about what that money can do - pay for college or help with his first house or a car or ??? But if he picked Rose, we would have been okay with it and he would have had loans plus working in the summer to help pay a portion.
In the end, he picked the NMF at Alabama. At the end of his first year, he said he was very happy with his choice and realizes how much the college didn’t matter as much as what he is doing there. His classes have been fairly small in size, which was one of his concerns. He’s had 20-40 in math classes, compared to his friends at Michigan with 200. His largest were about 100 students, and he said it’s reasonable and easy enough to find study groups if needed. But size was a concern at first. He doesn’t party and neither do his roommates. He’s in a paid for 3 bedroom apartment, which is amazing. He does some research with a professor and he enjoys that a ton. He was happily working an internship this past summer, making a good hourly rate and living at home, so he got to keep everything he earned and not send it to tuition somewhere. Overall, he’s really happy with his choice and should end up with his masters paid for as well.
Alabama isn’t for everyone and it sounds like it may not be for you. The summers are hot and I don’t know where skiing is. But being open to other colleges with a great scholarship that meets the other requests you have is a good thing. You may end up at a private for full-pay, but at least you will have looked at others and considered them.
My daughter doesn’t like to be hot either. But one of her top priorities is having her own room. So we are heading to Alabama this week to tour and see if it’s enough to put it higher on her list. She will have to decide which things are most important to her - own room, city size, weather, etc. But she’s been open to a wide variety of places so I’m sure she’ll get there.
So sensible! And as I’ve said before, the money saved by taking the full ride at Alabama can pay for ski vacations every winter and spring break, all the way through, and still leave money to buy a ski condo after graduation, compared to the now close to 400K eventual total for self-pay at a top private university.
And guess what? The northeast of the US often has terrible heat waves in early September, but the dorms usually have NO air conditioning, whereas the dorms in Alabama surely have air conditioning. So even for those who suffer with heat, Alabama is no worse than schools in the northeast with no air conditioning in the dorms, maybe better. They don’t have to stay there in the summer.
It is very hot in August and most of September. My son’s in marching band and on the practice field it was well over 100 at band camp this summer. Brutal for sure. But they had lots of shade/water breaks and the buildings have great air conditioning for sure. And he says from Oct on is very nice with mostly highs around 60 and lows in the upper 30s. We will be there Saturday and the high is only 45! He’s hoping for some snow and a snow day next week, haha.
He also has a Roth IRA going that we’ve contributed to instead of paying for college. He will graduate in a very good spot financially.
Just my monthly reminder there’s a reason the University of Tulsa has the most per capita NMFs in the country. And it’s only going to be bigger this year!
My daughter visited U of Tulsa and really loves it. She is commended, so no big NMF scholarship. If she was, I am sure she would pick it. It is beautiful and they have most everything she wants. Not sure about skiing there either though!
I don’t pretend to be the most financially minded teenager out there, but my job and my economics class have helped me gain a new appreciation for money. The more I think about it, the more I think there is no way that paying full price for undergraduate education would be worth it when I have guaranteed full rides on the table. Considering only something like 40 percent of Americans can cover an emergency $1,000 charge, I can imagine the head start a large amount of savings could do for me - especially once invested.
It’s awesome to hear your daughter is thriving at Alabama!
I will say that her current wage would allow her to very comfortably support herself and a family. And she’s only a sophomore.
Is this through an internship? Or a salaried position? If you don’t mind saying more, how did this opportunity come to be? That sounds like a wonderful position to be in!
And from what I have seen in other threads, I believe your daughter is in engineering. Is that correct? And if so, can you speak to her experiences in the program? The facilities, the faculty, etc.? And also the feasibility of potentially double majoring or taking a minor in a different field.
Your parents have a fully funded 529 account which, as I understand it, they’re willing to all but give to you at the end of the next four years (like, when you’re just turning 21.) Full stop.
I think the fact that you are even considering the finances makes you a very financially minded teenager!
My daughter’s current job started off as an internship. She got her internship after her freshman year, and she loved it. They offered to have her stay on part-time during the school year, and she agreed to do so. The company gives her 100% flexibility about when and how much she works. She can work anywhere from 0 up to 40 hours per week, and she sets her own hours (sometimes in the middle of the night). Her company doesn’t require her to tell them when she plans to work. As she said, it’s great that she doesn’t need to work, but it’s even better that she loves what she is doing. She will be returning to the same company next summer, and they have told her that she will have a full-time job offer awaiting her when the time is right. From a financial perspective, her scholarship covers every last cent of her educational and living expenses, so she saves 99%+ of what she earns.
My daughter is engineering, specifically computer science. She is also getting a second major/degree in Italian. She will minor in both math and Randall Research. She is also planning to get her masters in CS during her 4 years. Overall, she likes her classes, but honestly, she thrives on all of the things she does outside of the classroom. She’s a team lead for Eco Car, holds two leadership positions at Bama Catholic, participates in Crimson Defense (Cybersecurity Club) and Italian Club, does research through Randall Research, and has a social life. Alabama has so many opportunities to get involved outside the classroom!
She really enjoyed her freshman year CS classes, but honestly, she wasn’t crazy about the two she took first semester of her sophomore year. She’s looking forward to her upper level classes. Facilities are great and well-maintained. The upkeep of campus was a huge selling point! I am happy to answer an specific questions you have. Good luck as you make a decision!
All of my daughter’s friends have very similar stories. Of course, their experiences are tailored to their interests and educational goals. Alabama truly has so much to offer. For students who want a full and enriching college experience, they can do that at UA!
As several posters have said above, Alabama isn’t for everyone. No school is. I am a firm believer though that the big merit schools can offer an experience similar to the big money schools. Like every college search, it’s about finding the right fit. Most of college is what a student makes of it, regardless of where (s)he is attending.
Just chiming in— My D22 is a soph at UMaine. She’s having a blast. It was indeed a great financial option for us, as they basically matched SUNY, and it offers SO much more of a variety of experiences than many of the SUNY campuses can offer.
