REAL Tide (Record of Engagement and Learning) is a comprehensive reflection of a student’s transformative engagement and learning experiences at The University of Alabama. This record, coupled with the academic transcript, helps our students track growth in key areas that resonate with employers and graduate schools. These stakeholders can expect UA students to be equipped with applicable knowledge and skills gained from their beyond-the-classroom experiences as well as those gained from their academic coursework.
Current UA freshman and sophomore students can get REAL Tide credit through engagement wave-tagged experiences, events, campus-based leadership roles, student organizations, out-of-class projects and visiting REAL Tide locations. Engagement wave credits will appear in the students’ REAL Tide engagement record where they will be able to view and share their visual record at the end of each semester.
Engagement Waves
The engagement and learning experiences are focused within five central areas, the engagement waves. REAL Tide tracks growth in five waves:
Global and Intercultural Learning
Enhance your capacity to connect and communicate effectively with individuals from various cultures and backgrounds.
Holistic Development
Learn how to care for your whole-person wellness so you can thrive at UA and beyond.
Community Service
Participate in meaningful service in communities – locally and abroad – and gain insight to equip you for a commitment to lifelong positive impact.
Leadership Development
Identify and hone your personal strengths and learn new skills to expand your leadership capacity.
Professional Development
Engage in opportunities to practice the skills and knowledge you’re developing in and out of the classroom.
Grow and Transform
In addition to a focus on these areas of emphasis, our goal is for students to gain transformative knowledge. As students participate in activities, take on leadership roles or have new experiences, Real Tide-tagged experiences provide students with three levels of integration: Discovery, Engagement and Transformation. Staff will look for evidence of growth in their students to determine the integration level.
Select either of the buttons below for more information about REALTide for students or staff members.