Does anyone have any insight on merit awards? My son has been receiving merit awards based solely on his ACT score at many universities, but Alabama seems to require both high ACT and GPA for their awards. Is this requirement strict?
Also, competitive award decision dates? He wrote an essay for the Dr. J. Henry Hollingsworth Endowed Scholarship and submitted yesterday 12/7/23.
It’s automatic. So yes strict in that sense.But I believe TO gets too but not automatic.
We are trying to figure out when to visit. My daughter was invited for the Capstone Scholars day in January. And she applied to Randall Research which could involve a visit in February. And of course there are accepted student days.
She signed up for the Capstone Scholar day, but I am thinking we should cancel that and wait to find out about Randall Research. And maybe sign up for a regular admitted student day as a back up.
Does anyone have an itinerary for the Capstone Scholar day? Or the admitted student day? Or even know how they differ, other than the Capstone is an invite event?
Any new admits or denials?
I saw this itinerary from last year. I think its nice that the kids get to sit through an honors class.
Thanks! That looks like a great day. I wish the timing were better so we could make a better decision. But I think going to Capstone Day looks pretty good. It seems the odds of RRSP are pretty small, so I’m not sure it makes sense to hope for it.
If I remember correctly, the invitation for Randall finalists happens in early February. Also, the students typically go alone as the program pays for their trip. Parents can pay to fly with them and get their own hotel room, but they aren’t invited to any of the events.
If it were me, I’d probably do the Capstone Scholars day for now (assuming you are attending as well) and then the Randall visit would just be a bonus for her.
My kid’s Blount interview was a zoom; maybe that’s an option for RRS?
That’s what I am thinking would make the most sense. I think going to Randall on her own would be great, but I think she’d be most comfortable if we had been there a bit more. We were there last Thanksgiving, but that seems like a long time ago.
I’ve wondered that too. Weekends are busy and it would be hard to miss an important event senior year, so Zoom would be a nice option!
Are they doing it January 20? We are doing that and Capstone on the 13th.
D just was invited to another scholarship weekend and while we usually pick the first time slot we went with the later one because the first was the week after Blount.
how hard is it to get accepted to Blount? Is it purely stats driven or what are they looking for?
It’s not stats driven, not after some unknown threshold. That’s my thinking.
And they do say there’s no stats requirement on their page. It’s subjective, afaik.
If you take a look at the questions in the Blount application and they intrigue you and make you laugh and instantly start formulating your responses in your head, it’s probably right for you (and you’re right for them).
ETA: my kid is a humanities nerd but the other three kids in his dorm room are STEM nerds. It’s an interesting mix.
If you take a look at the questions in the Blount application and they intrigue you and make you laugh and instantly start formulating your responses in your head, it’s probably right for you (and you’re right for them).
Haha, I took a quick look at them myself and that was my reaction.
Could you speak to the dorm experience at Blount? How is it’s location on campus? And how is the structure compared to the other honors dorms that get praised commonly here?
Blount does not have the super deluxe setup that the other dorms have. It’s two roommates x two roommates with a shared bathroom - standard suite. Not as bad as old style dorms with shared common bathrooms down the hall - but not as impressive as Ridgecrest and Pres, the two most desired dorms (Ridgecrest is for other honors cohorts.) Those dorms are essentially apartments. Blount is very close to Ridgecrest. Pres (more of a party rep, not honors) is farther away. They’re all fairly close, though.
The thing my son says is great about Blount is the building’s multiple common areas, which sparks much more community and communication. Because the rooms are places to sleep and not much more, the kids leave their rooms to study, cook, hang out and watch TV or play cards.
Blount has its own academic buildings and one is on the quad, so a great place (with a/c - extremely desirable) for tailgating. Blount also has a formal in the fall. And a kind of open mic night. And its own student government.
My son’s GF is in honors but not Blount - my son splits his time between Ridgecrest and Blount and says that if Blount had the same amount of room space as the other dorms, it’d be the most desirable- because its common areas are so cool.
What do you mean the “week after Blount”? Blount interviews? In person?
Her Blount interview is on January 20 by zoom. They break them down into groups of 10 to 12 and do a seminar.
We will be in Tuscaloosa on the 13, and her other scholarship weekend was either January 27 or February. She preferred not to do 3 weekends of college stuff in a row.
how does one get into Ridgecrest? Just be being in honors?
Sorry, I don’t know all the ins and outs, just that it is an honors dorm.
Fwiw, there sometimes are non-Blount students in Blount, so I think things are not set in stone - depends on housing needs (Bama does run out of housing - some NMFs were housed in a complex off campus even in their first year.)
The student needs to be in honors, and then the student selects Ridgecrest during room selection in May. In past years, there was plenty of available space in Ridgecrest. However, last year, some honors LLCs were relocated to Ridgecrest, and the dorm filled up much faster than normal. If your student wants a specific form, I would pay the housing deposit as early as you can.