Hang in there, I like your chances. Your ACT isn’t that low, btw. Yes, it is just below the 25% for Tulane, but still that means there are a lot of students that got in with that score or lower. You should know soon.
Has anyone from New Mexico been accepted yet? My application was marked as complete on October 15th; I have an ACT composite of 34 and my GPA is 4.15, I’m white and MidEastern with a mid income bracket. What are my chances? I also applied SCEA and Tulane is my #1 choice, so I’m hoping that increases my chances. Is it a bad sign that I haven’t heard back yet?
Did you complete the “Why Tulane” question? Have you completed the applications for the DHS and/or PTA? You may need to send your admissions person a quick note ensuring they understand that if you are accepted, you are very likely to attend.
Hi @fallenchemist, I did not write the “Why Tulane” question, and consequently, I have not heard a decision yet. However, I am applying for the Paul Dean Scholarship due 12/5. Do you think sending in the scholarship essay would show enough demonstrated interest for me to forgo writing them an email? Or should I still do both?
Thanks!!
I would spend some time, if you have enough, to just send a short (100 words or so) email telling them you are very interested in Tulane and that your PTA application will be there soon. If you have the time to add why Tulane is one of the schools you feel is a good fit, do that as well. Don’t obsess about it, but the investment in time now, given the possible payoff, is well worth it.
You are looking at Ivy schools, so Tulane probably senses they are a “safety” school for you. Certainly the fact that you are taking the time to do the PTA shows that may not be the whole picture. Only you know what you would do if you got accepted to Yale, and also got a full tuition award from Tulane. Just be honest and tell them what you are thinking. After all, one of the reasons those awards are based totally on merit is to convince students like you to attend Tulane instead of Yale or Penn.
Some people think it is crazy, but now that my D is done with undergrad and has seen things from the perspective of grad school and working with high level people at places like the Department of State, she is really glad she picked Tulane over several of the other choices such as the ones you might have, and the full tuition was a huge bonus. But the undergrad focus of Tulane compared to more grad level focused schools was a big plus, and of course she really liked NOLA.
[color=green]Decision: Accepted[/color=green]
Objective:
- []SAT I (breakdown): CR: 570 W:700 M:740
[]SAT II: Math 2C: 650
[]Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.6
[]Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 5th decile
[]AP (place score in parenthesis): n/a
[]IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
[]Senior Year Course Load: Calc Honors/ Organic Chemistry
Subjective:
-
[]Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): President of L.E.A.D. Club (Leadership Education and Development)
- 2 Years of JV/Varsity Football
- 2 Years of JV Basketball
[]Job/Work Experience: Cashier/Clerk at CVS
[]Volunteer/Community service: Helping the homeless in the city
[]Summer Activities: YYLC Leadership Conference
[]Essays: Very good
[]Teacher Recommendation: Very good
[]Counselor Rec: Very good
[]Additional Rec: n/a
[]Interview: n/a
Other:
- []State (if domestic applicant): NJ
[]School Type: Public
[]Race: Asian
[]Hispanic (Y/N): N
[]Gender: Male
Reflection:
[ul]
[]Strengths: Leadership
[li]Weaknesses: GPA[/li][/ul]
General Comments: Don’t worry too much!!
[color=green]Decision: Accepted[/color=green]
Early Action I’M ECSTATIC!!! 
Objective:
- []ACT: 29, 30 superscored
[]Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.5
[]Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School doesn’t rank
[]AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 on AP US, 4 on AP Lang
[]Senior Year Course Load: AP English Literature, AP U.S. Government, AP European History, AP Macroeconomics, Conceptual Physics, Advanced Algebra/Trig, Apologetics & Ethics
Subjective:
-
[]Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Held leadership position as an ambassador for a non-profit dedicated to helping students pursue their career interests, Peer Leader at my high school, Varsity Girls’ Golf member, Student Council, Sunday School assistant, Volunteer at a medical supply sorting center
[]Job/Work Experience: Staff at a Pie Shop
[]Volunteer/Community service: Sort medical supplies
[]Essays: Excellent, wrote about my hair and being a minority in suburban Atlanta, private school
[]Why Tulane: Pulitzer-worthy; Tulane has been my first choice for a while now and I put my all into the Why Tulane essay, from seeing the campus as a little girl to my grandfather being one of the first African-American graduates in the 50s.
[]Teacher Recommendation: Very good
[]Counselor Rec: Very good
Other:
[ul]
[]State (if domestic applicant): GA
[]School Type: Private
[]Race: African-American
[]Hispanic: No
[]Gender: Female
[]Strengths: Showed A TON of interest (attended multiple, Legacy student, Leadership
[]Weaknesses: GPA, Lower level math courses
[]Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/denied: Extremely high interest, excellent essays and recs
[li]Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/denied: Deferred at UGA, Accepted into LSU and U of Arizona, Waiting to hear from USC (Southern Cal), U of Miami, Fordham[/li][/ul]
Does anyone know if Tulane is actually making admission decisions today or are people just checking Gibson today, but the acceptance was earlier? Thanks
@fallenchemist I did send my admissions counselor an email about how much I would love to attend Tulane, and that was about a week or so ago and I still have not heard. I did submit Why Tulane, and my college counselor reviewed my essay and said it was great and definitely showed my interest. I actually did not even know about the scholarships; are these essays available on Common App or the Tulane website? Thank you so much for getting back to me. Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving to you as well, @shaymere.
These full tuition scholarships require a separate application for each one.
DHS info: https://tulane.edu/financialaid/grants/dhs.cfm
PTA info: https://tulane.edu/financialaid/grants/paultulaneaward.cfm
DHS and PTA application form links can be found at: http://www.admission.tulane.edu/aid/merit.php#dhs
Note that both are due Dec 5, so you need to hustle!
@X22011 I last checked Gibson on Sunday and didn’t have a decision. I checked this afternoon and received an acceptance. I’m sure it was updated sometime between Monday and today.
Yeah same! I never actually got an email from them.
That’s because Tulane doesn’t send emails when Gibson is updated, even when the update involves the admission decision.
S hasn’t heard yet and wanted to apply for some scholarships but doesn’t know if he’s competitive for them since hasn’t been admitted yet. 34 ACT, 3.56 UW, 3.96 W with 12 AP and honors classes, including a college course and many extra curricular activities (community service youth foundation boards, religious school leader, political youth leadership board and more). Also completed Why Tulane essay. Has emailed local rep but never visited Tulane. Should he bother to apply for scholarships without having received decision whether he is admitted or not?
His ACT is spectacular, of course, and he certainly appears to have had a challenging schedule. So it really depends on if that GPA puts him in the top 5% or so of his class. Generally speaking my experience is that few high schools grade that strictly, but of course I cannot know in his case. But if his grades are not towards the top of his class, his chances for the DHS or PTA would be very small. His chances of admission and a partial scholarship seem very good though. So would his chances for the $20,000/year Community Service Scholarship, which can be added to any partial scholarship up to the amount of full tuition plus fees.
I just got accepted into Tulane. I found out because, I visited the Gibson page on a random whim. I’m still in the process of applying for DHS/PTS/Stamps, but I remember, somewhere on the website, it was written that they give us automatic consideration for partial scholarships. How, from where and by when can I know the status of the partial scholarships?
@fontana Where on the portal did you find the merit scholarship amount?
You only find out about the partial merit scholarships (up to $32,000/yr) in the paper letter via regular mail. If you are international they may send an email, depending on your location. Domestic letters usually arrive in 3-7 days after the Gibson posting, but add a couple of days now for the holiday.
@fallenchemist Yeah, I’m an international. Thank you, for the information. I’m so relieved.
[color=green]Decision: Accepted[/color=green]
(sometime on the 25th or early the 26th)
Merit Scholarship, if received: no physical letter yet but fingers crossed!
Objective:
- []ACT (breakdown): 32
[]SAT II (place score in parentheses): none
[]Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.8
[]Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2nd decile
[]AP (place score in parentheses): 5 on one exam (not a lot of APs until senior year in my school)
[]Senior Year Course Load: 4 APs & some other classes
Subjective:
- []Extracurriculars: good, and I’m very involved with a couple of clubs/sports, but certainly not anything spectacular
[]Essays: Very good
[]Teacher Recommendations: they should be excellent but i didn’t see them (waived my right)
[]Counselor Rec: see above
[]No interesting hooks
Reflection:
-
[]Strengths: GPA and ACT weren’t hurting me, strong why Tulane
[]Weaknesses: a lot of kids from my school applied so that had me worried lol
[]Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: scores were in the middle 50% and high demonstrated interest
Advice:
- Write a good why Tulane if you actually care about Tulane, i think that probably helped distinguish me from the other people applying from my school–i was one of the few to actually visit/research it so extensively, and I heard back before almost everyone. (may be a coincidence but still).
Application was “complete” for a month before i got a decision so there’s still hope for all of you, hang in there and good luck!