Questions about Honors and Student Culture

Colleges and Universities A-Z Tulane University
1

<p>I'm deciding between Tulane and another school at the moment. Currently, my biggest reservation at Tulane is the academics. </p>

<p>My questions about acadmics are pretty focused on the Honors Program. Are the academics substantial enough to get me into a good law or graduate school, should I decide to apply to one? Is the Honors program worthwhile? What is it really like as an Honors student (any differences)? What are average class sizes outside of the sciences (economics and international relations)? And what form do classes take?</p>

<p>Also, can any current students or parents give me a little insight as to what the student culture really is like? I'm looking for some balance at college. For instance: What is a typical weekend like on campus? How active are soroities since they don't have houses? What is the atmosphere like on campus? I know these are subjective things and I am probably visiting soon, but it's good to hear a variety of opinons.
Thanks!</p>

2

<p>The Honors Program is pretty much focused on keeping a student on track to graduate with Latin Honors at Tulane (summa cum laude or magna cum laude) which at Tulane requires a 3.8+ or 3.6-3.79 respectively, plus a research thesis. There are honors courses but there are not a ton of these and they really are not exclusive to honors students, although students in the program get preference if they get full. I think you have to take 4 honors level courses to graduate with honors, but you can also turn any course into an honors course by talking to the professor and arranging to do some extra work. These classes are also supposed to me limited in size to more like 10-15 students, I think. So it isn’t really the Honors Program itself that makes a difference as much as it is being able to say you graduated with honors. Tulane just has it set up so that you have to do the former to achieve the latter.</p>

<p>As far as getting into law schools or grad schools, Tulane has an excellent track record there. If you do well in your courses, get to know some profs well (which is something that is really good about Tulane), do some research (especially if grad school is the way you end up leaning) and do well on the LSAT or GRE, you will be fine.</p>

<p>The other benefits are preference for housing in the honors dorm, which most years is quieter than the more raucous freshman dorms, and special advising for post-graduate scholarships such as Rhodes, Marshall’s, Goldwater’s, etc.</p>

<p>Class sizes really vary, but typically they will run from 10-30. The lower level classes tend to be on the larger side, and the higher up you go the smaller they usually get, although this is very major dependent. Form also varies, although most a typical lecture style, if that is what you mean.</p>

<p>Tulane has plenty of balance. It is completely what you want it to be, everything is available. You can party all weekend, do club or weekend sports, explore New Orleans and the surrounding areas, or just veg in the (usually) nice weather.</p>

<p>Sororities do have houses, they just are not residential. But they have places to meet, hold parties, etc. Campus atmosphere is hard to describe, of course, but I think most would say it is very friendly, upbeat, and you can tell that most students really love being there. At least, that is the heavily predominant feedback both current students and visitors have.</p>

<p>Tulane is one of those schools that if it fits you, you will really love it. Hopefully you can visit, as you say, and get a sense if that is the case for you.</p>

3

<p>What about intellectual discussions outside of the classroom. are there opportunities for these kind of discussions for those who seek them?</p>

4

<p>That will require current students to give a variety of impressions. My D, (2 years at Tulane, this year in Beijing) says that it’s about a 50-50 thing. It really depends on the crowd you end up hanging with, as you might expect. She is absolutely the kind of person you are talking about, and she very quickly found a core group of friends that have similar, wide-ranging interests. In addition, through her other activities such as the literary magazine and her Chinese Conversation Group, she has had excellent discussions about more specific areas that she is interested in.</p>

<p>I think for her being in the honors dorm helped with meeting people more apt to enjoy this side of life. But like I say (well, like she says) getting involved with the right organizations will help a lot also.</p>

<p>On a personal note, U Chicago is probably the school I get the vibe from most of students that really like to have those kinds of discussions at all times. Of course there are many others, that one just impresses me the most that way. Tulane is not at that level, but on the other hand Tulane students are far more involved in community service than most other schools. Just pointing out there are different kinds of strengths, but that doesn’t mean the UC students don’t get involved in community service (of course many do) or that many Tulane students don’t like intellectual discussions just for their own sake.</p>

5

<p>Thank you so much, fallenchemist! All of the info you gave me is great and pretty much exactly what I was looking for. Maybe I will end up at Tulane this fall…</p>

6

<p>Thanks again for your insight fallenchemist. Your posts have been extremely helpful throughout the process.</p>

<p>And OP, great questions!</p>