@collegedream412 My daughter is a neuroscience major and, like you, is service oriented. She is not a partier and has found a nice friend group who are serious-minded academically, many research oriented, with goals of graduate school, great internships and great first job opportunities. Tulane class sizes are large enough–approx. 1,800 to 1,900 in each of the past three years, that you will be able to find similar minded friends. There are lots of programs and clubs to join, including community service clubs, in addition to the community service course requirements. Tulane University Neuroscience Association (TUNA) and Women in Science & Engineering (WISE) may be ones you should look into given your stated interests. And Tulane’s school of public health and tropical medicine is one of the best and even though its downtown, you can minor in public health or take courses there. Also, Tulane’s students are one of the most academically qualified in the country and its a well run University, with Mike Fitts doing a tremendous job as President. Checkout https://news.tulane.edu/news/tulane-university-among-best-us-news-rankings Students who don’t take academics seriously or who don’t put in the required effort studying will do poorly. There will always be some students at every school that party too much—and Tulane has its share, but they are in the minority, you just need to actively seek out friends with similar values and interests. As others have mentioned before, Tulane is in New Orleans, a party city, and that, i believe, has contributed a lot to the “party school” reputation. There are lots of festivals most weekends throughout the year, with Jazz fest and Mardi Gras to name just a few. And students can visit downtown New Orleans and experience Bourbon street and the french quarter, where alcohol is relatively easy to consume. But most students do not spend every weekend going to Bourbon street and the french quarter, as they are too busy with academics, social and recreational activities in and around the uptown area where the campus is located.