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Too many students have the resources to score well on the ACT/SAT nowadays and its costing Bama too much. Scholarships should be reserved for the most intriguing and ambitious students, not students just with high test scores/GPAs and nothing else intriguing about them.[\quote]
The numbers from both the ACT and Collegeboard don’t bear this out. The highest scholarships go to the top 2-3% of test scores. Alabama does not superscore, while many of the elite colleges do. That 1500 SAT and 36 ACT might be multiple attempts and the best sections from each attempt. It’s far rarer for a student to get the high score at a single sitting. A lot of the kids who get the Presidential, Presidential Elite, and NMS packages at Alabama also receive big scholarships at more competitive schools. Many choose Alabama over that more prestigious school because they can afford Alabama. Alabama gets the top notch students in their programs, and they will in turn get good jobs and remember Alabama’s generosity when they start their working lives.
Alabama’s Alumni association donates a huge amount of money to the college. So it appears that their strategy is a good one. Bring in top students who then love their alma mater, and then they continue to donate.