Experience So Far

Colleges and Universities A-Z Tulane University
41

<p>Jeremy,</p>

<p>I am a current junior at Tulane. First of all, in terms of classes and your major, tulane offers some of the most amazing experiences for musicians. You are in New Orleans! you have the opportunities to study under some of the most incredible musicians. My room mate is a jazz pianist, and she has apprenticed under some famous and talented individuals. In terms of safety, the uptown area is as safe as any other city, as long as you are being smart. I have never touched a drug my time here, and have completely real and honest friends. We do party, but classes and extracurriculars are extremely important. I agree that it is pretty unreasonable for you to vent in this particular outlet. Primarily because you are such a minority. For the most part students at Tulane are pretty obsessed with the school. If they weren't they wouldn't have come back after the storm, it would have been a lot easier not to.</p>

42

<p>I also think that if you don't like New Orleans, you may not like Tulane.</p>

<p>The city, and the school, all reflect a certain type of vibe that truly ISN'T for everyone. But for those who find a fit, it tends to be a very happy one indeed.</p>

<p>Best of luck to those of you still searching.</p>

43

<p>oh no, i am in LOOOVE with new orleans! It's on of my fave. cities lol. Tulane is like a northern bubble in the south, a completely separate entity from the city.</p>

44

<p>My son is also a Freshman. He was not happy at all his first two weeks, but came to realize it was mainly his own personal issues. He went to the same small school all his life and really never had to adjust to meeting new people and living in a different place. Plus his girlfriend is a senior in HS back there, and we have moved to a different state, so it's not like he can come home there to visit anymore. He has to maintain a high average to stay in the honors program, so he has turned down a lot of invitations to parties, which has limited his social life. He doesn't like to get drunk or smoke pot, since he is an admitted control freak and hates to be out of control. He is also by nature a pretty shy person, but since he has had the same friends for years, that was never much of an issue before.He admitted to me a couple weeks ago that he was very lonely and missing his friends. He likes his roommate but they are not best pals. I encouraged him to join a club or get involved in intramurals or some other activity with likeminded kids. So he looked on Facebook and found a few other Tulane kids with some similar interests and now they are forming an activity club. He also decided to look for part time work and has applied for a couple on campus jobs. He is considering moving to the Honors Dorm (he did not want to originally) where his need to study won't be so at odds with socializing. </p>

<p>He was bugging me to fund his trip back to his HS homecoming this month, but I said no. It was hard for me, but we have limited funds, and I really felt that he needed to work more on making Tulane his new home. He's now arranged for his gf to visit there and is being a little more proactive about making his way at Tulane. I shared with him my own difficulties in adjusting to college many years ago, and told him that he was not alone - despite what he might think, there are many kids finding their first semester to be unlike the idealized experience they expected.</p>

<p>Sometimes it's good to throw out your previous expectations, and make a concerted effort to find what you like about a place. Hate your advisor? Then maybe you can request a different one, especially if yours is consistently not available. Go to Academic Advising and tell them you really feel that you need a different advisor, one who is more available and on your wavelength. Haven't made any deep friendships yet? Continue to pursue your interests, and challenge yourself. Were you aware that even if you are not an honors student, you can often pick up an honor's section class? Try this next semester. Also, a great cure for feeling bad and lonely is helping others - I am sure that the Tulane students who work on with Habitat would welcome another pair of hands, no matter how little experience you have in that sort of thing.</p>

<p>Also, try picking up a new instrument in the music department, or joining a singing ensemble, which I know from experience is a great way to challenge yourself and meet new people.</p>

<p>And you might try substance free housing for the spring (even tho I know it is not entirely substance free), where you are likely to encounter a lot more sober kids to socialize with.</p>

<p>In short, give it all you've got. This may be the first time you have been so challenged to create your own new social circle. It is not easy, but if after 8 months of these kind of efforts, you still feel lost, then maybe it is not the school for you. I have a feeling things might actually be quite different for you by then.</p>

45

<p>Jeremy,</p>

<p>there are over 40 posts here - 30 plus from students and parents mostly offering sound advice and 7-8 posts by you on why you hate it there. But, I have not seen any response from you that you have tried or will try any of the recommendations made by others.</p>

<p>So...why don't you pick just THREE activities (drinking and partying not included) that will make your Tulane experience more rewarding? Are you going to see La Boheme simulcast on campus this week? Are you volunteering? Talking to a counselor? Going for a workout/taking classes at the Reailly center? Going to the football game this week? Tutoring school children in New Orleans through Tulane? Painting school houses? Joining an on-campus or off-campus choir? Joining Hillel? Joining the Gay Club? Working on campus? Writing/editing for any of the school newspapers? Joining one of the many environmental clubs? I could go on and on.</p>

<p>While you do this, abstain from drinking and partying for one week. Obviously, that's not you and the more you do it the more you will be out of your comfort zone! </p>

<p>The people on this board all seem to be rooting for you. They do not want to see you failing without giving it an effort. Let us know the three you pick and then we can wait for your follow-up. GOOD LUCK!!</p>

46

<p>I honestly can't imagine a better town in America to be a music major than NOLA. I've heard bums on the street play better than what I pay to hear in Washington. JazzFest alone is reason enough to go to Tulane if you love music .</p>

47

<p>I just wanted to add my 2 cents, for what it's worth..... </p>

<p>We have 3 kids in college right now. Our oldest daughter transferred last month to Tulane (she's a Communications and French major). Some of what Jeremy says has been echoed by our D. An example is the partying. D has early classes so when she's up at 6:30 a.m. showering to get ready for class, she's been shocked at the number of students just getting in from partying the night away (on a school night). She said for the most part that she gets a lot of comments from students wondering why she's spending so much time studying instead of going out. She told me she just couldn't handle that kind of party life during the week....(this coming from a girl who is very social and usually has a hard time turning down a party). She said when she goes to parties on the weekend, people do expect you to REALLY drink. She and I agree that we're glad she didn't go as a freshmen because we're not sure she would have been mature enough to handle the temptation and to keep things balanced. But that's just her, and other freshmen may do just fine. </p>

<p>About a week ago she mentioned that she was a little lonely during the week because everyone seems to get together at night to party and since she's trying to start off her time at Tulane getting good grades, she hasn't been going out during he week. I think since she's gotten involved on campus, she's feeling better.</p>

<p>I'm very concerned about the violence in NOLA as well as near the campus (D called today to say a football player was charged today with stabbing 5 guys on Bourbon Street last night). We had a talk with her before she left about safety in ANY large city, but especially NOLA right now.</p>

<p>But aside from that, she's doing great in her classes, got a job working for the athletics dept in public relations (going to the games and working with ESPN & MTV in the press box), got a production position with the Hullabaloo (school paper), signed up to be a note taker in one of her classes, works out at the incredible Reilly Center, sun bathes on her dorm roof, and submitted an application to be a Tulane Ambassador (I think that someone who does the tours).</p>

<p>With all that said, she's probably told me a dozen times that she LOVES Tulane and thinks it was the PERFECT choice for her. She and I were just saying yesterday that Tulane seems to be the kind of place that has as much to offer as you want to put yourself out there for. What I mean by that is she was very worried about being accepted into groups being a transfer student but every group she's approached has been really welcoming and in fact she said she doesn't have time to get involved in anything else right now.</p>

<p>Jeremy, hang in there - I wish I could give you a hug! Much of what you say about being lonely and having a hard time sounds very normal to me for a freshman living away from home for the first time (S called us last year from outside of Chicago [we live in CA] crying...literally crying every time we talked to him, starting in mid Sept until I flew out there at the end of Oct to make sure he was ok). I hope you give it some time and find some friends that you have something in common with. </p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

48

<p>I'm sorry--are you kidding? I mean--really?</p>

<p>I'm not sure which classes you've been taking here at Tulane, but I've got 15 hours--one class less than usual--and I have a constant stream of good, demanding work. My papers make me think, my professors give me great questions, and I'm left thinking and learning, studying this Saturday night away. I've only finished "Knowledge and the Wealth of Nations" just now... and after I've spent my entire weekend studying. I've been studying when my first test isn't for three weeks because I know I should, and well, these two papers aren't going to write themselves.</p>

<p>I'm not a bad student. I'm just in that vast majority of people who sit next to you in class and care, I mean really care, about the grade. And I know I'm smart: a 34 on the ACT and National AP Scholar awards can back me up on that. (Eight 5s and one 4 given that four of those--English Lit, Comp Gov, Euro Hist and Stats were self-taught independent studies.)</p>

<p>So, you know what? I don't care to be told me my school sucks because, two weeks in, you don't find what sounds to be a grossly irrepresentative sample of introductory courses to be sufficiently challenging. I know in my heart of hearts that I'm getting one of the best possible educations in my field, and I know that I'm smart. I know that Tulane is a damn good school.</p>

<p>I'm sorry you think that Tulane is just about drinking, or that it's about drugs; as a sophomore, I would never think that, and I would never venture to assume so much about so many people from having been here so little time. You don't know it yet, Jeremy, but my time here has shown me a community of students dedicated to their academics and their campus above all else. I'll admit some students do party more than they should, but they pay the academic price and frequently bear a real social stigma later on. And those students are so far in the minority as to be unnoticed... were it not for their loudness.</p>

<p>You should know that these first few weeks do not reflect normal student life over your entire time here at Tulane. These first three or so weeks are typically the time that freshmen party more than anytime else given their newfound freedom and independence. I remember my first year: I was free! No more small town! No more parents! I mean: it's damn tempting. But midterms come, grades are important, and Tulane students learn to budget their time. Give it TIME, Jeremy! Your class will figure this out; it looks to me they're already doing so.</p>

<p>So take this semester: it can all be overwhelming at once, and it seems like you've just got those jitters. But settle down, maybe join an activity, and if your classes are easy, great! You'll start with a 4.0, and when you hit a more representative sample of Tulane's workload, you'll be off to a great start.</p>

49

<p>Thank God koski deciced to chime in. He sounds as if he's had a similar experience to my son's, and perhaps you students who think our sons and daughters habitually lie to us about their lives (uh-huh--some of us treat our adult sons and daughters with respect; that changes things) will listen a bit more to him. </p>

<p>My son, too, spent a lot of time at the frat rush parties drinking the free beer the first few weeks of his freshman year (and no he's not a greek). It was free. He inherited my cheap genes. All we asked was that he stay safe, and he did. He also got over it in a hurry. I've told you a lot about him and his extremely ambitious academic and work life at Tulane, JB, some of it privately. It seems to me that you aren't listening to me or to anyone here. Are you doing any of the things people have suggested? Do you want to improve your experience?</p>

50

<p>thanks. meanwhile two weeks later, the situation remains stagnant. The same and yes. I didn't mean to infringe on people's intelligence, nooo. NONO. I just meant that I wasn't happy.</p>

51

<p>I don't know what "infringe on people's intelligence" means, but I'll push on, anyway...</p>

<p>Have you TRIED anything new, JB? On another thread you say you're depressed because you haven't met more than one or two other gay people and that makes it hard for you to date. Okay, but have you gone to the Office for GLBT (Okay, so if I got the order wrong, who cares? It exists for you.) Students? If not, then you haven't done anything to try to change your situation.</p>

<p>Have you tried to get a job? I've always found that one of the easiest ways to make friends is to get to know people I work with. </p>

<p>Have you even talked to a counselor? I don't mean an advisor--I believe you've already said that's not working for you, though you haven't said why you won't ask for a different advisor then. </p>

<p>Instead of staying in the same unhappy place, change something--anything. One change is generally enough to prove to yourself that you have the power to effect change in your life. You are in a position of enormous privilege, JB. It will be a shame if you can't see that and take advantage of it. Now I'm done. I hope you change something for yourself or find a different place to be happy. But staying in the same place and just dropping in here to say you're still unhappy now and then seems self-destructive on your part, so I won't contribute to it further.</p>

<p>Good luck to you.</p>

52

<p>I haven't read all 4 pages replies, but I'll just say my experience has been completely different. I really do enjoy Tulane...I'm in 19 credit hours and I'm a science major (pre-med so far) and I definitely don't think classes are too easy!!!! I took lots of APs in high school and I'm in honors. But all of my core classes/ science classes are 100 level and I get lots of homework and writing and reading. and I guess I just study a lot, too. If you think your classes are too easy, I would just ask the prof if you can move up a level -- my roomate was placed in spanish 203 but found it easy, so she was able to get into 204, and now she loves it. </p>

<p>As for friends, you just have to find the right people to hang out with. I met a lot of people in my dorm who are nondrinkers as well....so I've had a lot of fun hanging out with some new friends. and we've explored the city, baked a cake, watched movies, etc..and still had a social life without the early morning partying. I was also really close with a tight-knit group of friends back home, but that's what the cell phone is for! :)
my experience has been pretty awesome, even though tulane wasn't my 1st or 2nd choice college. There are sooooo many commnity service and extracuricular opportunites...and lectures almost everyday. </p>

<p>Jeremy-hope your experience improves!</p>

53

<p>Jeremy seemed to be having such a difficult time trying to adjust to life at Tulane I thought I’d check back in and see how he was doing now. It looks like he ended up transferring to the University of Miami and since moved on to California now attending a community college.</p>

<p>I didn’t think Tulane could be as bad overall as his experience seemed to indicate but I know a couple of people that had a major red flag go up after reading about his description of Tulane. Fit really has a lot to do with it so when you are working on your list of colleges pay attention to how you think you are going to fit in with the student body and educational environment.</p>

54

<p>Elrod - How in the world did you happen to dig up such an old thread?</p>

<p>Jeremy appeared to have a flair for drama and significant personal issues, borne out by your noting that he hasn’t been able to adjust well other places either. As has been amply discussed in other threads here, the drinking and crime problems are often grossly exaggerated by those who either don’t really have first hand knowledge or have an axe to grind with Tulane (or both). As far as the academics, well that was just silly stuff. It is clear that most students find the academics to be thorough and challenging.</p>

<p>Anyway, I don’t see any point in resurrecting this fairly personal thread, since all the issues raised have been addressed in a more general way in other threads.</p>