OK, you real University of Oklahoma aficionadoes...

[TUSooner]

Tell me about OU's National Merit Scholars program.
Have you or anyone you know received this scolly?
Does it equate to a full scolly including room and board for out-of-staters?
Is the Honors College admission aspect a really big deal?
Anything else I need to know about it?

Thank you in advance.

[Half a Hundred]

Tell me about OU's National Merit Scholars program.
Have you or anyone you know received this scolly?
Does it equate to a full scolly including room and board for out-of-staters?
Is the Honors College admission aspect a really big deal?
Anything else I need to know about it?

Thank you in advance.

Yup. I was one of "those" kids back in the day.

When I started (back in '03... damn time has flown), there was still about $1200 that wasn't covered for out-of-staters. Honors College just gets you on the cum laude track a little more quickly, and gives you some more interesting classes to start with.

That's all I've got for now.

[SbOrOiNaEnR]

Honors College just gets you on the cum laude track a little more quickly, and gives you some more interesting classes to start with.

Not just "more quickly"...but PERIOD. I started in '04, and you can't have summa, magna, or cum laude on your degree unless it's through the Honors College. Had a 3.92 GPA with two bachelor's in four years when I graduated, and all I have to show for that is "Special Distinction" on my degrees.

And when I was a freshman, the whole "original research project" scared me away from the Honors College, but if you're a liberal artsy-fartsy type (one of my degrees is a History degree), your capstone project totally counts.

If I could go back and do it again, I'd totally do the Honors College.

[Stitch Face]

I wasn't a Nat'l Merit Scholar, but instead got money from taking the ACT. My deal was supposedly not quite as good at the Nat'l Merit thing, but I still got a "free ride." So if it's anything like the mid-90s, the Nat'l Merit deal should be pretty good. I think when I was there my friends on that got everything plus a little throwin' around money or somethin'.

[yermom]

my buddy was in-state and had money left over, like Half a Hundred said, i guess it's not quite as sweet if you are out of state. that is a pretty big gap to make up

you also get to enroll super early, like football player early. they do a lot of hand holding

plus they take you on the field for one of the early football games :D

[badger]

Tell me about OU's National Merit Scholars program.
Like other schools, you must designate OU as your top choice in order to be eligible for the OU scholarship. If you are a National Merit finalist, get prepared to get bombarded by OU, including a Boren letter.


Have you or anyone you know received this scolly?
I was not, but I knew people who were. It draws students from around the country to Oklahoma (but no longer Texas, who discontinued their nat'l merit program, haha)


Does it equate to a full scolly including room and board for out-of-staters?
Absolutely not, emphasis on the not. You can get more info on this site right here (http://www.ou.edu/go2/home/nationalmerit/faq.html#nationalmeritprocess)straight from the source. According to the site, expect 5k to 6k annually in additional educational expenses. Hopefully your merit scholar will not be like the beyonce in one of my classes that complained that she had car payments that her scholarship didn't pay for. Holy sh!t, are you serious.


Is the Honors College admission aspect a really big deal?
Like someone else already said, it is the only way for you to get summa, magna, or cum distinction to your degree at OU. So, is that a big deal? If so, Honors College admission is. If you are worried about the classes being tougher, they are not. They're smaller than normal classes and usually offer better instruction, from my experience in them. It's like OU being a private school in those courses, heh. You will be required to take at least one honors course per semester (or year, I forget which), and like I said, those courses are actually fun.


Anything else I need to know about it?
Definitely check out the link I provided. Something that they won't tell you there and you probably won't find online is that being a merit scholar and honors college and all that jazz is a good way to get ties to Uncle Dave. He looks out for his Pe-et'ers, his honors students, his merit scholars. It's a very important aspect of the university to him. I know of a few exes of those programs that are now in cushy OU admin jobs shortly after graduation. This probably goes on elsewhere, but it definitely goes on at OU.

Hope that helps... or encourages people who know more to participate in this thread :O

[SunnySooner]

I got that scholly, I think the second year it was offered, it was allsome. I still rub it in hubby's face that all the student loans are his because I got "paid" to go to OU. It was a great deal, I always had the best schedules because of the early enrollment. I skipped the honors track as well after I had 2 different classes taught by high ranking faculty who just could not teach. One of them was an accounting class, there were about 20 of us, and the class average was around a 60. The prof was completely incompetent, the tests and assignments never had the slightest thing to do with anything he said in class. He had to grade the whole class on a huge curve or we would've all flunked it. When it happened again the next semester with a different professor, I called it quits. So I ended up with the special distinction too, but really, I don't think it's that big of a deal to employers.

[TUSooner]

One more cast....

[SoonerAtKU]

Yup, I was an in-state Merit Scholar starting in '96. It was between OU and Duke, and the scholarship made all the difference. I could have gone to Duke and been disgustingly poor after paying for school, or go to OU and get paid to do it. I don't know what it's like currently for out of state kids, but my experience was pretty great. Just don't let them put your kid in the Honors dorm or on the Scholars floor of the dorms. I transferred out to a regular room with a regular roommate after the first semester.

[proud gonzo]

i was national merit. pays for an awful lot. honors college is crap.

[XingTheRubicon]

First thread in 19 months without the Posse.

[olevetonahill]

First thread in 19 months without the Posse.

Say What ?

[SunnySooner]

First thread in 19 months without the Posse.

You must have missed my post. :)

[AlbqSooner]

I made the Dean's list back in the day. Unfortunately it was the list of hell-raisers that the Dean wanted to keep an eye on.

[soonerscuba]

Just don't let them put your kid in the Honors dorm or on the Scholars floor of the dorms. I transferred out to a regular room with a regular roommate after the first semester.This. While it's a nice thought, everybody there, at minimum could get into OU and the social sacrafice of living the honors dorm will diminish the college experience.

[soonerboomer93]

I don't know if you can consider the honors dorm a "social sacrifice" however back in the day, there were some strange going ons in there

[soonerscuba]

I don't know if you can consider the honors dorm a "social sacrifice" however back in the day, there were some strange going ons in thereIf by strange you mean deathly quiet and World of Warcraft, yes, it was very strange.

[soonerboomer93]

WoW wasnt' out when I was at OU

back in my day, they apparently loved to do what every other bored, stressed out college student did

only they apparently enjoyed the kinkier side, or atleast more then a few did

[GottaHavePride]

I had that scholarship. Started undergrad in Fall 1998. The scholarship paid for pretty much everything. Being out of state, I would owe about $1,200 each semester on tuition and fees (but as a music major I was always in 17 to 19 hours of classes each semester). Oh, and music classes have a crap-ton of extra fees.

I didn't bother with the honors college. I mean, I was admitted to the honors college, but there weren't enough honors course offerings in the music school for me to even mess with it.

IF a student chooses to live off-campus while on the scholly, the university cuts them a check each semester for the amount that would have gone toward room and board. It's usually almost enough to cover rent on an apartment if you have a couple of roommates. HOWEVER, some semesters they were ridiculously slow getting me that check. One semester in particular I wound up owing a roommate nearly $700 for rent because I didn't get my reimbursement check until Spring freakin' Break.

[GottaHavePride]

back in my day, they apparently loved to do what every other bored, stressed out college student did

Yeah. They played Quake on a LAN. ;)

[Mjcpr]

Me, GHP and Gonzo are smrt.

[the_ouskull]

my buddy was in-state and had money left over

plus they take you on the field for one of the early football games :D

Hey, Froz, if you peep this thread, which game did they bring us out for? Was it Arkansas State, or somebody? Lol.

Also, while I was 18-19 and don't remember the exact amounts, I had some playing around money left over, most of which went to beer and beer.

As for the Honors college, the dorm is a LOT nicer than it was back in the early/mid 90's, fo' sho', although there's a leather couch missing... and what everybody else has said about the classes is true; smaller, more "thought-provoking" than "learn-what-I-say," which, for freshmen especially, is nice. My "honors classes" days didn't last too long, admittedly, but I don't have anything bad to say about the program, to be sure...

the_ouskull

[SoonerAtKU]

The honors Poli Sci classes were great, I'll say that for sure.

[soonerboomer93]

Yeah. They played Quake on a LAN. ;)

Quake on the lan? I'm not that young

They wired the dorms in '94, with that fall being the first year you could hook up to it. it was doom II on the lan.

[yermom]

they must have wired you guys before us... when i was in Couch in '94 they were still beta testing PPP

we hung out in the Honors dorm a bit that year. it was like a circus of geekdom when i was there :D

[King Crimson]

circus of geekdom made me laugh. growing up in Norman, i got the same money at Vanderbilt. i didn't need the Frat greek thing....after having seen it up close at NHS.

[the_ouskull]

circus of geekdom made me laugh. growing up in Norman, i got the same money at Vanderbilt. i didn't need the Frat greek thing....after having seen it up close at NHS.

It's like a d*uchebag farm system... and I was IN a fraternity! Other than myself, of course, we tried to avoid the doosher type.

the_ouskull

[Stitch Face]

Quake on the lan? I'm not that young

They wired the dorms in '94, with that fall being the first year you could hook up to it. it was doom II on the lan.

What I was gonna say.

Guys played Doom II by running cable from room to room through the halls. That and Warcraft were big.

[oklaclarinet]

Yup, I was an in-state Merit Scholar starting in '96. It was between OU and Duke, and the scholarship made all the difference. I could have gone to Duke and been disgustingly poor after paying for school, or go to OU and get paid to do it. I don't know what it's like currently for out of state kids, but my experience was pretty great. Just don't let them put your kid in the Honors dorm or on the Scholars floor of the dorms. I transferred out to a regular room with a regular roommate after the first semester.

During my time at OU, there was a huge difference between the Honors Dorm and the Scholars Floor, so much so that the students developed a rivalry. I don't know how much it has changed since OU made the initiative to move non-freshmen out of the dorms, but it wasn't uncommon in the early 2000's to have students stay on the Scholar's floor for three, four, or even more years. Also, only about half the students on the Scholars Floor were actually National Merit Scholars. If it is anything like when I was there, I would highly recommend the Scholars Floor. The Honors Dorm on the other hand...

Other than that, I think everyone has covered the main points of the program. One important thing to point out, at least when I was there, the tuition part of the scholarship was good for five years, but the room and board stipend only lasted for four years. Also keep in mind that the tuition portion covers the complete dollar amount of all tuition regardless the number of credits, but does not include fees. The room and board portion was a lump sum given each semster, so depending on the particular dorm rate, meal plan, extra fees, textbooks, etc., it may more than cover everything or come up a little short of a true full ride.

And personally, I found the Honors College to be worth it. I didn't actually apply to get in until the end of my freshman year, and the process, at least at the time, was much easier if you were already a student. The honors classes I had were very enjoyable and didn't add that much to my schedule, even as a music ed major.

[badger]

but does not include fees.
And fees be teh price hog at teh ou.

Many students with book stipends gave this advice after a silly froshie year spending spree - don't spend it all at the beginning of the semester on official OU notebooks and pens and crap! Get your necessary texts and get out! I think they said the money you don't spend goes back to your bursar so it can take care of some of those pesky OU fees.