<p>@fallenchemist</p>
<p>I don’t know, as I have yet to tour campus. The PTA would be nice, as even though we have plenty of money, my family is not excited about paying $60K a year for college. Also, the first four acceptances are giving me full rides, as a National Merit Finalist. I applied to Miami RD, because I only decided to apply later.</p>
<p>I didn’t know Baylor did full ride for NMF. Interesting. So, looks like you’ve got a lot to find out still before you can make a decision. Keeps it exciting!</p>
<p>Just found out I was accepted!</p>
<p>Checked Gibson earlier today to nothing. Just checked again and found out I GOT ACCEPTED! THIS IS SO EXCITING! I’ve been waiting since OCTOBER to hear. I’ve posted a few times on here but mainly been lurking, but I have to say I am SO THANKFUL to everybody who offered me help privately. It really means a whole lot and it really made the wait better. To people who are still waiting: KEEP USING THIS SITE! I CANNOT TELL YOU HOW MUCH IT HAS HELPED ME KEEP SANE THE PAST FEW MONTHS!</p>
<p>Congratulations to everyone that’s been accepted the past few days! </p>
<p>Were you deferred or Regular Decision applicants - jack1995 and soundshaper?</p>
<p>Timihem, I was deferred EA. I can share more information with you privately if you would like</p>
<p>Timihem, I was deferred too.</p>
<p>Congratulations to Jack, Soundshaper, Survivor and all the other acceptances. It’s an exciting time!</p>
<p>I know I shouldn’t put too much stock into the comments on this forum, but some of them are hard to ignore. Dolphn mentioned a couple of things that have been concerning to me. One - when I mentioned my daughter was interested in drama he referred to a casting call for a movie that required implied nudity and thought it hilarious. In another, he mentioned how hard it would be to avoid the play hard mentality of Tulane. Both of these things really turn me off. Also, my daughter has been on the admitted students Facebook page and there have been a lot of references to partying. I know I sound like a total prude, but these comments just tend to fortify the reputation that Tulane has as a party school. When I mention to people that my daughter is considering the school, they say, " Oh, that’s a party school." These are just some of many things that we will be taking into consideration when we make the final decision.</p>
<p>Goodness. Perhaps it is a hopeless task to change your mind on this issue, but…</p>
<p>I absolutely guarantee you that Tulane is no more of a party school than 98% of the universities out there. People that say “Oh that’s a party school” are, quite frankly, just ignorant of what goes on at all colleges. My D and her friends had a great time at Tulane and in New Orleans, and they didn’t party at all in the way you are thinking. Any person that has read this forum consistently can tell you there have been tons of students that say some version of “I really like Tulane and New Orleans but I am not a party person and I am worried about finding people like myself”. And as I tell them, if they could all just get together there would be hundreds of like-minded Tulanians that could find tons to do that didn’t involve drinking or other facets of the usual partying. There is hardly a college out there where the people that don’t party are not in a minority, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of them.</p>
<p>I will also comment on outcomes. Obviously I am most familiar with my D <a href=“brag%20alert!!”>b</a>**, who just graduated in December, summa cum laude, competed for and won a highly coveted slot this summer with the Department of State (where, btw, the work she did as part of her service learning played a significant role in her being selected over great students from “more prestigious” schools), and will be attending a HYPS school for her graduate degree. Many of her friends are seeing similar levels of success. So let there be no question about the ability to achieve excellent results with a Tulane experience. Notice I quite purposely used the word experience rather than education, because the formal education is but one part of the overall experience.</p>
<p>Every year, and at lots of schools besides Tulane, the Facebook sites are dominated by students that talk about the partying that will go on. It shouldn’t surprise you in the least that students that are more inclined that way are also more likely to dominate Facebook. I would suggest that your D start a Facebook page devoted to potential Tulane students that don’t want to have partying be their main focus and see what happens. I have no idea if that will work, but with luck it might just serve as the focal point so these students can find each other. But I cannot emphasize enough, having been on hundreds of campuses in my career, how much partying there is at all of them. Tulane is no different other than that the warmer weather lets a lot of the partying occur outside so it is more visible. When you go to school at Syracuse or Michigan, the partying is forced indoors where it is not so obvious, but we all know it is happening in a big way.</p>
<p>Finally, in fairness to dolphnlvr (who I believe is a female, btw), I post her comment as a quote here.</p>
<p>
Frankly, I don’t see or infer anywhere in there where she thought it was “hilarious”. It is equally possible she was being sarcastic, and in any case that is a Hollywood actor so clearly that is for a professional production, not a Tulane production. I think it was far more of a comment on how handsome most people think Ryan Reynolds is.</p>
<p>Edit - I couldn’t find dolphnlvr’s comment where she said it would be “hard to avoid the play hard mentality” at Tulane, so I cannot comment on the context. But as I alluded to above, it may be hard to not see it, but it isn’t at all hard to not participate in it, either completely avoiding it or participating only in moderation. And just to repeat, that is true at all schools, or at least the vast majority. In rural area schools it is especially tough because there are limited options. At least in New Orleans and other cities there are concerts, plays, lectures, sporting events, etc. etc. There are most definitely other options. The bigger the city, the more options, although location within that city and personal circumstances certainly are factors as well.</p>
<p>oh for goodness sake, “play hard” in no way means partying! I have heard that phrase from Tulane students and admissions and alum etc. It just means there is a balance between work and play! Play being whatever it is you choose. Some students party, some don’t. There are many things to do at Tulane and in New Orleans that don’t involve drinking. There is going to be a party scene on just about any college campus you go to. It’s just a part of college. </p>
<p>Ah, that’s true, you did say play, not party. My mind just filled in party because of what mommio was saying. But that is absolutely correct. My D sometimes “played hard”, meaning she did lots of fun things that didn’t involve schoolwork or anything related to it, without “partying hard”.</p>
<p>I saw this youtube video of President Cowen addressing parents at Destination Tulane. @mommio, he addresses exactly your point of partying at Tulane and life in New Orleans in general. You might want to check it out.</p>
<p><a href=“Destination Tulane - President Scott Cowen - YouTube”>Destination Tulane - President Scott Cowen - YouTube;
<p>Thanks, FC! As usual, the voice of reason! I’m certainly not naive enough to think there will be no partying. I, myself was a willing participant at a robust party school in the Big 10. Of course, my school was not located in a beautiful and culturally rich city like New Orleans. That is one of the biggest draws for my daughter.</p>
<p>Thank you DebmomNY. Great video! </p>
<p>Accepted!! After being deferred from ea! I was not expecting to hear back until April so it was a nice surprise:)
Stats:
85/100 gpa
2080 sat
leadership roles in extracurriculars
wrote the why tulane essay
sent in an extra teacher recommendation</p>
<p>Congratulations! </p>
<p>So after the excitement of being accepted set in, I’m starting to worry about merit aid because that’s definitely an issue. If I didn’t get any extra letter about merit aid in my acceptance, is there no chance I will be receiving any merit aid? And is there any chance my financial aid package could actually cover what I need?</p>
<p>Just to be clear, soundshaper, did you receive the physical, paper letter already that said you were accepted at Tulane? If so and if it said nothing additional about merit aid, then you are correct that you did not get any. There is no separate letter than that about merit aid.</p>
<p>It is quite possible (but not guaranteed) that you will get a need-based package that will meet your needs. Tulane does not promise to meet 100% of need, but they often do. I seem to recall that after the dust settles, Tulane averages meeting 95% of need, but a number of people that make up that average do get 100%. Some is usually a grant, which is money you don’t have to pay back but unlike a merit scholarship is not fixed for 4 years. Some will be loans, and there could be work-study involved also.</p>