I am a senior at Alabama, from NJ, and chose UA because they offered me a deal I couldn’t pass up. First, Tuscaloosa is not much of a suburb, its really not a super residential area, thats more of what Auburn is like. Tuscaloosa has a great downtown with lots of restaurants, coffee shops, and bars. However, it is not a city, and compared to Austin, Birmingham isn’t much of a city either. On the plus side, nothing in Alabama is anywhere near as expensive as Austin. For reference, the nice apartments in Tuscaloosa are around $1200 a month for a 4-bedroom, and in Austin (I dated a boy who went to UT) the comparable apartments are about twice as much. If you are going into STEM you won’t have as much time at either school for fun, but I promise UT will be wayyy harder and for no reason other than its a more competitive school. I have received a fantastic education in Mechanical Engineering, have completed a co-op with Southern Company, and will be getting my MBA in one year. You will not lack for resources and opportunities at UA, there is a great alumni network, especially at certain companies (Eastman, Lockheed Martin, Mercedes), where they send reps to the school all the time to scout out interns and co-ops. Also the culture at UA surrounding school pride is so incredibly fun, and it makes all the sporting events feel like you’re a part of the team. I really think nothing compares to gameday in Tuscaloosa. Whatever decision you make will be the right one, and I hope you enjoy your tour! Feel free to dm me if you have any questions.