<p>@stilltay…- yes sororities are a little crazy at Bama, and that was what ultimately made my daughter decide against Bama…even though she would not have any issues getting bids, but I did not like that the girls at Bama once pledged get off school dining hall plan and eat most meals at the sorority house, which would limit friendship with non sorority girls…my daughter will rush in the spring at Tulane, but it’s a lot more low key there. Unfortunately, my son may be a perfect candidate for the frat scene both at Bama and Tulane…he is definitely a kid who likes to play hard (and work hard).</p>
<p>I was admitted to the honors college with $25k a year. I have a high GPA (all As, mostly AP classes), but my test scores are not that high (2080 SAT, 30 ACT), so I was surprised to receive merit aid! My “Why Tulane” essay was only about three sentences, so I am really wondering what was seen in my application. I do have several leadership positions and ECs, especially on the state level, so maybe that was it! I am psyched regardless and although I am not very hopeful, I am going to apply for the Paul Tulane Award!</p>
<p>@ calmom
I’m sure he will do great at either! Definitely something to be said for saving money for grad school!</p>
<p>Elerange - That’s a pretty strong resume, actually. High grades with very tough schedule, and certainly very good test scores. Only on CC is 2080 and 30 “not that high”, since they are both like 96th percentile. As far as the Why Tulane…well, Shakespeare wrote that brevity is the soul of wit. Maybe they were just a great three sentences! In any case, they clearly thought you were a great fit for Tulane. Congratulations. Good luck with the Paul Tulane. It is a long shot, as you say, but even longer if you don’t try!</p>
<p>@elerange - congrats and remember Abe’s Gettysburg address address that lasted only a few minutes, written ad hoc on a piece of paper outlasted the very long speech of the key note speaker 
You will never know what grabbed their attention…but something did and I am sure it’s well deserved…</p>
<p>Calmom - Congrats for your son. We are also from southern ca and I have a d at Tulane currently and another one who got accepted several weeks ago. We have heard good things about Alabama as well esp in regards to scholarship dollars. My d has not interest in the larger univ school and is very focused on architecture so it went off the list pretty quickly. I do think having a sibling helps for admission but your s has great stats regardless. I have also heard that Univ of Miami does not give much money but with his stats he might get some. For us as parents having 2 kids in the same school is wonderful but we all want to make sure they are in the right place and don’t come out buried in debt.
FC- Your comments are fabulous and given that I’ve been lurking on these boards for several years now , it seems that Tulane’s is always hopping and that you really help facilitate it along. Thank you</p>
<p>And I did forget to add - D is extremely excited by her admission to Tulane and her sister is as well! We are hopeful it will all work out from a financial perspective since it is her top choice.</p>
<p>Thanks Carb, your comments are most kind. I hope Tulane works out also, it would be fun to have both of them there, I am sure. More years of visiting NOLA! Can’t beat that.</p>
<p>However, I was under the strong impression that U Miami was similar to Tulane for merit $$. I will see what I can find out, but anyone that knows more chime in. U Miami is a major competitor for Tulane, so it is good to know what they do.</p>
<p>FC, I tried out the financial calculator for Miami for my D and it came out much lower for merit than what Tulane has offered her. Not sure how accurate it is but even the top of the range was $10,000 per year lower.</p>
<p>OK, I found the stats. Tulane is more generous with merit aid, but it isn’t terribly dissimilar. Bottom line is that Tulane provides 39% of the incoming class with merit $$ for an average of $21,157 while Miami is 30% for an average of $20.891. That still makes Miami one of the more generous schools in that regard, it is just that Tulane is at the highest levels when you look at both % and average amount.</p>
<p>NYMom - I assumed since she mentioned stats that Carb was talking about merit $$. I always thought the financial calculators only addressed need based aid.</p>
<p>I just wanted to say this page has been very helpful and the other ones about Tulane too. I have been stalking this page for about two months now, and today I finally made an account. I got accepted to Tulane University yesterday!!! And I thought since I was an underdog I should post my stats. O and I received this decision on Gibson no mail yet.</p>
<p>High School in MD, top 100 in nation every year, public
3.2 uw, 3.85 w,7 APs/IBs only 2 sent
28 ACT, 29 superscore</p>
<p>EC:
Football 4 years, lax 4 years
Jazz Band(with auditions) 2 years in high school, sax 10 years
camp for 9 years, Counselor this coming summer (essay)
club prez</p>
<p>Basically I didnt really think I had a shot and I got in. How I did it
SCEA
killer essays
visited last year
emailed once a month
hotel and school visit</p>
<p>I applied Oct 9th…Everything was in so I waited exactly 3 MONTHS!! worth the wait
Congrats to all accepted students, and to all the underdogs hope you get in!</p>
<p>@wedabarons - how do you come up with these monikers…
Congrats and hope for a good letter…and remember there may be more in the needs based FA letter…my daughter got some more there last year as well…not much though, but every little bit helps.</p>
<p>@fc… I think this is the first time that I think you are incorrect…the NPC will spit out both merit and other aid based on the financial data and academic data you provide…
so, it will give you a rough idea… Last year, I found the NPC fairly accurate as to what net price would be once we had all the FA packages on hand…The nice thing about merit aid is that is is guaranteed for 4 years as long as you maintain GPA, while other needs based aid may change…providing more uncertainty to your parental budgeting</p>
<p>You are right Calmom. I had never looked at one before, so I took a look at the cover page of Tulane’s. I didn’t look at Miami’s, but it does obviously calculate a projected merit award. Lots of caveats in the terms and conditions, though. I wonder what the correlation is between what it says and actual notifications have been. Interesting. Thanks for the correction.</p>
<p>fallenchemist - just want to give you a shout out. It is so so nice to have this site to assist with this complicated process, and you are such a calm and patient voice of reason. You are a great asset to Tulane. I have to tell you that I was excited to post D’s acceptance, cuz I knew we would get the official personal “congrats” from FC!</p>
<p>Thanks Gertrude, that is really nice of you to say. I hope your D is surviving the rest of the admissions process. Did she apply for the big scholarships at Tulane? Or I guess I should say bigger, the Presidential is pretty big!</p>
<p>Interesting that a talented vocalist such as your D might attend. You might have noticed that one of the final 8 contestants on “The Voice”, Caroline Pennell, was accepted at Tulane and says it is her top choice. It is impressive how many talented students there are at Tulane. And with your D being such a high achiever academically as well, she would be a fantastic addition to the Tulane family. But I know she will have several outstanding choices. We will just root that she picks Tulane, if that’s OK.</p>
<p>I will definitely have to tell D about Caroline Pennell! She also loves the fact that several Tulane students were cast in the movie “Pitch Perfect” as members of a capella groups.</p>
<p>Tulane is definitely a contender at this point - we visited in June and had such a great day. Andrew Farrier spent about 2 hours just with D & her dad & I, showing us all the facilities and opportunites there - even in late June there was tons of activity in the theater & music buildings. And it seems to be one of the few places where the music majors can realistically double major in another field - not sure if D still wants to do that (she originally planned on music + chemistry) but it’s nice to have that option. And so strong academically too, and in NOLA, and…well, it’s a great place! </p>
<p>She is working on her DH and PT apps - it will come down to the wire this weekend, but they will get in!</p>
<p>FC-- “Bottom line is that Tulane provides 39% of the incoming class with merit $$ for an average of $21,157.”</p>
<p>Does this mean that 39% of the incoming class receives $21K/year from Tulane or $21K across four years? Just curious….Thanks!</p>
<p>CT1417 - That’s an average per year amount, so about $84,500 for their time at Tulane. Right now it would vary from $10,000 per year to about $65,000 per year from the lowest scholarship to the highest, for the almost 40% that do get merit aid. I am not counting any smaller merit awards that might exist from the state, if there are any. I don’t think so, but not sure.</p>