GWU vs Tulane vs UW-Madison

Colleges and Universities A-Z Tulane University
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<p>The title says it all, I was torn between these three schools. </p>

<p>My parents generally like UW-Madison better because of financial and geographical reasons. Since we live in illinois, that out-of-state tuition does not make UW-Madison less expensive than the other two private schools. Also, we are originally from another country and UW-Madison does have a higher (or way higher) name reputation back in my country. My parents think I may have more opportunities if we ever go back for jobs. Their arguments are actually valid and sound to me. </p>

<p>Personally, I don't like UW-Madison. I have visited the campus and I think it is not as nice as people said (sorry if offended). The size is overwhelming, even I came from a large public high school. Also, I am not a really sport person, but I like schools that have spirits. So I'm kind of inclined to Tulane and GWU. </p>

<p>I love the Tulane campus. But given that I am not a drinking person, Tulane's crazy night live may not be my forte. I also know that Tulane has a very low asian percentage and a high snobby white percentage, which causes my parents worrying about being a super minority is not a good idea. To be honest, I am one of the very few asians in my high school and I fit in just fine. But college is different from high school, I don't know,.... The only problem is that the name Tulane is very foreign back in my country, so being a Tulane grad is not golden in the market. </p>

<p>GWU's fantastic internship opportunities are really attractive to my family. I also like being in a political oriented atmosphere. But GWU is not geographically ideal to my parents. (Not that because I don't want to be independent, but I know I am needed in my family for reasons that I don't feel comfortable telling). Even though I have never been to the campus, I've heard that GW's is very urban (except the one in Mt. Vernon) and possibly will not give me the best college experience. </p>

<p>I applied to engineering at UW, architecture at Tulane and Elliot School at GWU. So I don't have a clear major choice. I am focusing on more college experience and my future prospect. </p>

<p>Thank you for reading such a long post. I really appreciate it. So please help me out!</p>

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<p>Multiple things to comment on here. FIrst:

There is a very significant percentage of the Tulane students that either don’t drink/do drugs at all or only drink occasionally and moderately. You would not have any trouble finding like minded students for that. I also rather suspect that those same like minded students won’t care if you are Asian, Antarctican, or Martian. It is true that Tulane does not have a lot of Asian students, although it does continues to grow. New Orleans has a significant Vietnamese population, but you don’t say what your heritage is. Anyway, I know there are a few Asian and Asian-American students that pop up on here sometimes, hopefully one of them can comment. I can only say that my D (we are one of the snobby white percentage, btw) is a China studies major and has been involved with the China Conversation Club (not sure that is the real name, but something like that) and while I think she was the only non-Asian there she didn’t feel like it was much of an issue. She did observe that those actually from China had definite adjustment issues, but I have heard that same thing happens at every school, not surprisingly.</p>

<p>Next, you are correct that GWU is completely urban. It is in the heart of DC, near the White House and Capitol Buildings. I have known maybe a dozen people that have gone there in the last 10 years, and most like it, but some decided that being that urban was not for them and transferred. It is a different kind of college experience for sure, not the classic movie type like Tulane is. I rather agree with you about UWM btw. I spent a year in Madison for grad school and didn’t care for it at all. Too cold, and the campus is spread out within the town. Best part to me is during the late spring/summer when it is warm, the lakes are very nice. But other than transportation, it doesn’t sound like UWM would be any cheaper for you.</p>

<p>Next, you did not apply to Tulane for architecture. You applied to Newcomb-Tulane College, intending to major in architecture. That is actually an important distinction and potentially very positive for you. At Tulane, you are accepted to the College and you have your choice of majors among all the schools: Architecture, Business, Science/Engineering, Public Health & Tropical Medicine, and Liberal Arts. I think I got them all. Anyway, clearly for Architecture and Engineering especially, the program is pretty firmly designed (no pun intended) because of the numerous requirements for those majors. Also, I assume you are aware that at Tulane they only offer a 5 year program for a Masters degree in architecture. But should decide after a year that Architecture is just not for you, you really don’t have to do anything except tell your advisor and take a variety of other courses to find a new major. You do have to declare after your second year, though, although you could still change after that.</p>

<p>So there really is no magic answer for you, but you have 3 really distinct choices in terms of size, atmosphere, city size, campus locations, etc. Go by what you like, not what you think will give you the best job prospects or name recognition. Things change fast these days, and you don’t know what you will settle on yet. Heck, isn’t it possible you will stay in this country? I am just saying anything can happen, so go with the situation you think will make you happiest in the most ways. Nothing is perfect, they all have something to offer that is better, for you personally, than the others. Go with your instincts.</p>

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<p>@Fallenchemist: Thank you! Thank you for your detailed analysis! I will definitely take all of your comments into account.</p>