UA News

The MacBook Scholars Program, in its first year, is providing 500 freshman students with new computers to assist them in succeeding academically at the UA.

For the first time, The University of Arizona will award MacBook Pro laptop computers to incoming students as part of their financial aid package.

The first group of "MacBook Scholars" received the new computers, preloaded with software to support the students' academic needs, on Saturday at a celebratory event at the UA Student Union Memorial Center.

The MacBook Scholars Program, in its first year, is providing 500 freshman students with new computers to assist them in succeeding academically at the UA.

Each MacBook Scholar receives a custom-designed Apple MacBook Pro, featuring a 13-inch monitor, 2.0-gigahertz processor and a 160-gigabyte hard drive. The laptops have been personalized for the students, with the University's logo embossed on the laptop case and Apple's trademark logo in UA red.

The computer's browser already has several student services Web sites bookmarked, including the library, the 24/7 IT Support Center, the Think Tank at the Student Academic Learning Center, the Advising Resource Center and other sites.

In addition to the laptop – valued at $1,300 – each student also received a printer, the Apple iWork suite and an offer for a $229 rebate on an iPod Touch from the UA BookStores.

In times of limited resources, UA Admissions and Student Affairs leaders were looking to provide students with a kind of aid that would help their academic success.

"We asked ourselves, ‘What can we do is that the students have the tools they need to be successful,'" said Paul Kohn, UA associate vice president for enrollment management and dean of admissions. "We aligned ourselves with a product that students have a lot of faith in."

"As we continued our discussions, we realized the power these awards presented," said Melissa Vito, UA vice president for student affairs. "So we approached Apple to see if they would allow us to personalize these computers so that they could be fully utilized as educational tools."

A panel of reviewers examined every new student application, supporting information and personal statement and selected the first group of MacBook Scholars. Only full-time students who are Arizona residents were eligible for the scholarship.

According to Kohn, many MacBook Scholars have overcome significant obstacles in making it to college. "We are always looking for students who persevered," said Kohn. "We have faith that they will make contributions while they are here."

Under the UA's comprehensive admissions process, admissions personnel review aspects of a student's profile beyond test scores, grade point average and financial background. Prospective students submit a personal statement as part of their application.

Not having a strictly formulaic approach to admissions and financial aid enabled the UA to identify the unique cohort of MacBook Scholars.

The initial response to the program, Kohn noted, is significantly more positive than expected. "There is more excitement than any of us previously imagined," Kohn said. "They are really excited."

Kohn said it is likely that the program will expand in some fashion next year.

"We are planning to maintain contact with these students to seek their feedback about their experiences this year, advice they may have for next year's freshman and other issues that these students will be able to comment on – sort of like a 500 member ongoing focus group," Vito said.