So I’m currently deciding between two schools (Tulane and UCSD) and the decision is very, very close. So I’ve come here; can anyone give me reasons that’ll convince me enough to pick Tulane? I’m majoring in Biology.
Here’s the catch: I prefer San Diego to New Orleans. I just like the beach and surf and sun vibes of UCSD to the jazz festivals and Mardi Gras of Tulane. So it may be hard to sell me on the city.
What’s on Tulane’s side: Tulane’s offering me a scholarship that makes it almost $20,000 cheaper per year compared to UCSD.
So, what do you love about Tulane? Sell me on it!
Thanks!
@fallenchemist
I’m actually not completely sure yet, but as of now I would think grad school.
I was not invited to the Honors Program, and I received the Distinguished Scholar award for $27,000 per year.
@itsisha
I actually have not attended either school (my son is choosing between Tulane and one other), but living in Southern California I have some insight on UCSD. For biology, it is a very strong school. It is a beautiful school, close to the beach and La Jolla which is an expensive but adorable city. However, the one thing I could maybe stress is that UCSD is very academic. I know a lot of people who have graduated from there and really enjoyed it. But I also know many that were not prepared for the rigor and emphasis on academics. If you are looking for a fun school, with a lot of social interaction I would definitely try talking to some current UCSD students to get their take. From what I hear, you really need to make an effort to get involved with sports, clubs, etc. But of course, every person is different, and every experience is what you make it. Congratulations and good luck!
OK, two great choices, tough call. I think the best arguments for Tulane I can think of are threefold:
$80,000 is a LOT of money. I could say a lot more like you should think about what that kind of money could mean to your comfort level in grad school, etc. but hopefully you know all that.
I truly believe the academic experience at Tulane has a few things going for it over UCSD. That also breaks down to three things: A) The overall academic level of Tulane students is higher. The stats as published for both schools shows a significantly higher average for Tulane. This will make you work a little harder, which you will be grateful for in grad school. This is not different than what strawshort just posted. That post sounds to me more like that UCSD students are just surprised that the school actually takes academics seriously. Everyone knows Tulane is a strong school for academics; B) Tulane undergrad is 1/3 the size of UCSD. You will have smaller classes and get to know some profs better, which is good for getting recs for grad school; C) Undergrads at Tulane are very involved in research if they choose to be, and this sometimes leads to having papers published with your name on them even before you go to grad school, and always leads to a great recommendation from a prof assuming you are a good student and worker. Either and especially both of these, the paper and/or the rec from a research prof, are extremely good for getting into the best grad schools.
UCSD and UCLA are known to be stronger grad schools in this area. I would also therefore say it is more prudent to save the money now, focus on academics at Tulane, and give NOLA a chance and enjoy what it has to offer. For that matter you could easily end up in So Cal in your career job, depending on what path you take. But for sure Tulane undergrad and UCSD for grad school makes a lot of sense on several counts.
There are a lot of other factors I could point out, like that Tulane in far more diverse geographically, that it is easier to transfer to UCSD than to Tulane (besides which you wouldn’t get the $27,000 back if you transferred in 2nd year if UCSD wasn’t what you had hoped for), and that Tulane is just more well known. UCSD kind of fades compared to Berkeley and UCLA, and is just underrated. That’s not fair to them, but it is just how it is. But within the professional world of biologists, the grad school is extremely well known. But I don’t know how important any of these things ae to you. The three I highlighted are usually important to everyone.
For what it’s worth, the gulf beaches are about an hour away from New Orleans. One spring break, DS and friends rented a beach house on Dauphin Island, about 2.5 hrs from NOLA. They loved it.
Tulane is incredible and I don’t think you could fully understand the vibe of New Orleans without living here for a bit. It has so much culture & character. Best decision I ever made
i apologize as that was thoughtless and extremely poorly worded. you are right to call me out. i really only meant to stress that considering Tulane’s quality and the cost difference, it should be a slamdunk decision that should not really require additional opinions. especially since the OP’s main justification for shelling out an extra $80K seems to be that they like the beach.
No need to apologize @Wien2NC. I wasn’t calling you out, just pointing out. I really agree with you but then maybe $20K per year is not a tremendous amount to this family. It must not be meaningless or she wouldn’t have asked, I assume. I guess I just took the beach issue as a proxy for overall fit, which is a legitimate issue of course. Now in my family $20K is a lot of fit! But college is a value proposition, and like luxury cars and many other things, value shifts wildly with disposable income. Also, NOLA is the greatest place in the world to go to school as far as I am concerned, but it isn’t for everyone.