<p>Hi,
Just wondering what my chances for admission are and if possible how much merit aid i could receive. </p>
<p>Academics-
ACT- Composite 33
GPA-3.4/4.0 unweighted school does not weight
Freshman-2.9 - Had a bad freshman year which I address in my additional info on the App.
Sophmore-3.5
Junior-3.8
Rank-School does not rank
2 honors classes senior year
School does not offer AP's
Very prestigiously known high school school </p>
<p>Extra Circs-
I have a a lot of extra circulars that i am very involved in and hold different positions like captain and president.
I also volunteer and work in the summers. </p>
<p>Application-
essay and recs are excellent </p>
<p>Also i submitted step one of the application but realized i never checked it over? is there a way i can go back or is it not very important?</p>
<p>thanks</p>
<p>Not sure if you can go back or not. I am sure it is fine, since Step One is pretty basic info IIRC.</p>
<p>I think your chances of getting in are very good. Yes, GPA a bit low but as you say it is freshman year dragging that down. Far more important is that you have a much better GPA sophomore year and much better yet junior year. That is what really counts. Your ACT is clearly outstanding. If you showed the kind of interest in Tulane they like to see, I have a hard time seeing you getting denied.</p>
<p>As far as merit, you are kind of the complimentary case of the person that got $20K. They had a 4.0 GPA but “only” a 28 ACT. I think you have a shot at the same amount, maybe 15K and maybe 22K. Heck, if they kind of overlook the freshman grades you would even be looking at 25-27K. So you asked about possible aid, that is possible I suppose. My guess is that $15-22K is more likely.</p>
<p>wow, was not expecting that much at all.
As you can tell if you look at my posts U Miami and Tulane are my top two choices.
I have never visited Tulane but everything looks great, but now my question is, would you recommend writing the “Why Tulane” essay? I know tons about the school but the fact that I never visited might make it seem a little tedious.</p>
<p>
Well, keep in mind I don’t make the awards, lol. Just my best guess. And Miami and Tulane often compete for the same students. So that part is not a surprise.</p>
<p>
You have to write the Why Tulane essay, it really is critical. And it is OK that you haven’t visited. Something is drawing you to it. What is it that “looks great” to you? Do you know students a grade or two ahead of you that have gone there? Do you know what you are interested in studying? There are lots of ways to approach it that take it beyond the generic “It seems like a great school, New Orleans is awesome” (although both are true! LOL) that you can know even without seeing it. Lots of people are not in a position to visit, and before the WWW and Internet I would have said a question like this was not as meaningful. But as you indicate, there is more info available to you than can possibly be digested. There are also campus “tours” on YouTube, besides the one on the Tulane site.</p>
<p>So with a little homework and a personal angle, you can write a great, short statement.</p>
<p>Great. Would you say around 250 words is good?
Do you think with my stats it would be worth applying for the Deans Honors or Paul Tulane scholarships?</p>
<p>Yes, 250-300 I think is a very good goal.</p>
<p>Tough call on the scholarships. Your ACT is in the range, the GPA not so much, but again you have that real outlier in your freshman year. But let me be clear, that is just me trying to set your expectations. Your record is so unusual with your severe (and great!) upward trend combined with the strong ACT, that I think a great project or great essays might just catch their attention. Put more succinctly, yes I think you have a shot.</p>
<p>So rather than kicking yourself later for not trying, go for it, and with all the positive energy that you know you can win. You are clearly academically very talented, now that you have whatever issue there was Freshman year behind you. If you don’t end up with either one, I hope you will be proud that you tried.</p>
<p>Great advice,
Thanks for everything!</p>
<p>No problem. I meant to mention that you need to be sure to get anything you submit proofread by someone you know is really good at it. One thing that will sink you really fast is to have typos or incorrect word usage, especially with autocorrect sometimes really screwing things up. For example, I know it doesn’t matter on here, but you use the term “extra circulars” above when of course it is “extra curriculars”. Exactly what an autocorrect would probably do, because technically curriculars is not a word, it is “curricular activities”. Not to be pedantic, just to make sure you and everyone else applying have these things checked and rechecked.</p>
<p>Ya of course.
On here I am just kind of typing am not really worrying to much.
Would you like to read my main essay for Tulane?
I haven’t done why Tulane yet but will soon.</p>
<p>Seems like you are very knowledgeable about this stuff.</p>
<p>Happy to. I will send you my e-mail by PM.</p>