<p>I was planning to apply for Dean's Honor and I could use some input. My GPA is 3.9, I have a 33 ACT, I'm VP of student council, a cross country and track runner, a Louisiana native, and I have family history and connections with Tulane. </p>
<p>As for my project, I was planning on taking the box and making it into a 3D figure. The reasoning behind this is building on what's already there and making it something new. In my written part, I linked it to my school (we're a new school, so building into something new ties in well), my student council, and my future professional life (as a doctor). </p>
<p>I realize this post is really long and obnoxious, but could I get any input on my project and my chances? Thanks!</p>
<p>As far as your stats and your chances, they certainly seem in line. I am assuming the 3.9 is UW and you have taken and/or are taking a number of AP courses. If so, then you are in good shape from that perspective.</p>
<p>As far as the project, it is really hard to comment on that. If it is what you like and you do it well, it should be fine. But there is obviously a subjective component to this and our judgement is meaningless, only the administration’s judgement counts here. Also there is not really enough information to say what I think, even if it mattered. Do you mean making the box into a cube? If so I would have to say that has probably been done 100 times and doesn’t strike me as very creative. But you might mean something very different, hence it is impossible to give an informed opinion.</p>
<p>I am not even sure past winners can fairly indicate what might win this year, as there may be new people in the mix (new business school dean, relatively new architecture dean, etc.). You can only give it your best shot, but it certainly seems you should be in the running.</p>
<p>Yeah, my weighted GPA is around 4.5 I think and I am taking/took AP courses. As for the project, do you know how much weight that carries? Do I need a fantastic and intricate one, or will a relatively simple one like mine typically suffice?</p>
<p>The projects definitely make a difference. Remember, you are competing against about 1500 people that for the most part are the best of the best. They have stats as good as or better than yours, so the project is one of the things that can make you stand out. It doesn’t have to be intricate, but it should be intelligent, thoughtful, and give the impression that it is something that you gave a lot of your time and consideration. I am not saying spend 100 hours on it, I don’t think that is usually needed. But I bet my D spent about 20-25 hours on hers in total between formulating and refining the idea, researching it, writing it, editing and finalizing.</p>
<p>In the end it not only helped her win, but I think it remains a point of pride and satisfaction for her. Of course it helps when you are talking to an admissions officer or administrator and when I say “she was the one that did X for her DHS project” they immediately light up with recognition of it. I wouldn’t call her project intricate, but it was original and (he says unbiasedly) pretty clever. If you search these threads with the term “Tulanium” you will see 3 or 4 old posts that describe her DHS entry. The oldest one (2-20-2009) was written by my D using my screen name and summarizes her stats as well.</p>
<p>Hmm, I’ll make a few adjustments then. I’ll just take my original concept and ramp it up a bit. Thank you for the insight.</p>
<p>np and good luck!!!</p>