Alabama State was founded as Lincoln Normal School, a university only for African Americans, in 1867. Throughout the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the school underwent a number of name changes and faced some important challenges. After many obstacles, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools finally appointed Class A status to the university in 1943.
| Overall Score (about) | 72.6 |
| Total Cost On-Campus Attendance | $22,110 |
| Admission Success rate | N/A |
| ACT / SAT 75%ile scores | 20 / 1030 |
| Student Ratio Students-to-Faculty | 17 : 1 |
| Retention (full-time / part-time) | 59% / 13% |
| Enrollment Total (all students) | 4,413 |
Alabama State University offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees in a variety of areas. There is also an associate degree in early childhood education, and a doctoral decree in Educational Leadership, Policy, and Law. The University has a College of Education, a College of Business Administration, a School of Music, a School of Health Sciences, a School of Arts & Sciences, and the University College, which is home to the Honors Program, the Writing Center, and the History/Geography Center. The University also has Biomedical Research and Training Programs, which are multidisciplinary honors programs.
Undergraduate majors are offered in business, communications, various humanities and sciences, including computer sciences and several foreign languages, health, education, and visual and theatre arts. Graduate degree programs reflect the school’s history as a teacher’s college; almost all the degrees offered are Master of Education. A Master of Arts is offered in History, and a Master of Science in Accountancy and in Biology. The College of Education is accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education.
The College of Education also houses the Central Alabama Regional Inservice Center, which provides educational development and learning to teachers, principal, and superintendents in Alabama school districts.
Academics at Alabama State is dispersed among the departments of Aerospace Studies, Library & Learning Resources, Education, Business Administration, Arts & Sciences, Health Sciences, and Music.
Alabama State’s Health Information Management program gives students the opportunity to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in HIM. Graduates are adept at the management of information technology structures as related to healthcare data, knowledge of clinical medicine, computerized storage and use of clinical data, and supporting patients’ needs through effective utilization of patient information.
For undergraduates, Alabama State University requires a minimum high school GPA of 2.0 and recommends test scores, an essay, and an interview as part of the application process. Students majoring in music must audition, and a portfolio is recommended for art majors. There is no set admissions deadline, and no application fee. Application information can be requested on-line.
Graduate students must pay a $10 application fee and provide GRE or MAT scores, transcripts, and letters of recommendation.
According to its rich and diverse history, Alabama State University does not consider race, gender, or nationality a standard for admissions. The ultimate goal of the admissions process at Alabama State is to enroll the most skilled and diverse group of students possible. All students are required to attend Precollege Orientation, which is scheduled prior to the beginning of each semester. Early admissions is available for students who have a high school grade point average between 3.5 and 4.0, and who score a 24 on the ACT exam or 1100 on the SAT exam.
Financial aid is available in the form of merit-based scholarships, state and federal grant programs, and student loans. Students must meet certain income and academic eligibility requirements. Tuition, fees, and expenses (including room and board) for one year are roughly $9000.
Alabama State University participates in a variety of aid programs including, Federal Pell Grants, Federal Stafford Loans, PLUS Loans, Consolidation Loans, Federal SEOG, Federal Work-Study, and Federal Perkins Loans. The office of financial aid also facilitates grants, work-study, loans, and special undergraduate aid programs.
The campus has its own radio station, WVAS, which broadcasts at 80,000 watts. The University also houses a media center, a library with on-line electronic research tools, and the National Center for the Study of Civil Rights & African-American Culture. This center includes several prestigious collections of African-American civil rights activists, an oral history collection, and an on-line bibliography.
Alabama State is home to a variety of student organizations and clubs, including nine different fraternities and sororities, seven different business-oriented student groups, Air Force ROTC, eleven arts & sciences organizations, five counseling organizations, and groups like the NAACP and the W.E.B. DuBois Honors Program.
Alabama State University is a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, and an NCAA Division I school. The team nickname is the Hornets. ASU has intercollegiate programs in baseball, basketball, bowling, football, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field, and volleyball.
The school also has a marching band with cheerleading, and intramural programs in various sports for other students.
The Alabama State Hornets compete in the Southwestern Athletic Conference of the NCAA. The football team are the defending champions of that conference from 2004. Other intercollegiate sports at Alabama State include baseball, bowling, soccer, softball, volleyball, and men’s and women’s basketball, golf, tennis, and track. The men’s basketball team claimed the SWAC Tournament championship in 2004. Both the men’s and women’s basketball teams earned No. 2 seeds in the SWAC Tournament in 2005. The women’s bowling team earned a Tournament berth in 2005.
The city of Montgomery is the state capital of Alabama, and has a zoo and a minor-league baseball team, among other attractions.
Montgomery is the heart of the civil rights movement and is steeped in history and national significance. The Civil War had a major impact on the area, and decades later Rosa Parks’ historic stand made national headlines. Known as the “Capital City of the American South,” Montgomery is a must visit—or must live—city for anyone who appreciates history.
This website and its associated pages are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by this school.
StateUniversity.com has no official or unofficial affiliation with Alabama State University.