<p>If OP really wants opinions saying “definitely take NYU, cost be darned”, suggest best shot would be to post the question on the NYU subforum.</p>
<p>In my family we hold two (graduate) degrees from NYU. We lived 1/2 mile away from it for a dozen years, and now we live within a 40 minute drive. We have three kids, all qualified academically, and none of them even applied to NYU. And it wasn’t due to proximity.</p>
<p>(Though in fairness none of the three applied to Tulane either…)</p>
<p>OP doesn’t want opinion. Any rational person reading this thread would see it is a landslide. OP wants somebody to say that NYU is the right choice… period, and will keep asking the same question until somebody does. On vote for NYU is all OP is waiting for.</p>
<p>I got my financial package for Tulane. My estimated costs are about 56k. I was awarded a 47k financial package (with my scholarship included of course). So uhhh, yeah I’m still deciding between NYU or Tulane. Money aside, one of my few griefs with Tulane is the lack of diversity in the student body. I’m Asian and I rather not be considered the “token Asian” kid at events. </p>
<p>Sorry for necroing this thread. I’m still torn between schools. At this point, it is a question of which school is academically better and will help me get into a good graduate school or find a high-paying job.</p>
<p>Both are academically rigorous (probably about the same), both lead graduates into good jobs and high quality grad schools (assuming they work hard), and right now one is going to cost you 9k/year, while the other probably won’t come close.</p>
<p>To be fair to my parents, they want me to stay near (In New York). I’m visiting Tulane during my spring break to see if I like it.</p>
<p>Are your parents willing/able to pay the difference between Tulane and NYU?</p>
<p>If Tulane gave you 47k, I’m guessing no.</p>
<p>At this point it’s all about which college will be the better fit. Money is always a factor but it’s sort of a secondary factor compared to of academic reputation and post-graduate opportunities. The “fun” factor is also a huge factor in my decision.</p>
<p>Which decision leaves YOU, not your parents, with more debt? </p>
<p>I suppose if your parents are willing to take out PLUS loans in support of NYU over Tulane, then it’s their choice. BUY NOT SO FAST. Beware of your responsibility to your parents in their retirment years when they cannot take vacation trips. or God forbid pay their medical bills because they diverted money intended for their retirement into paying back the PLUS loans they took out for you to attend NYU. This would leave you, as a ditiful son, either helping them out (thus diverting resources from your *own) growing family), or feeling quite quilty about not being in a position to help them much. You lose either way for THEIR overspendin on your behalf when you were a mere 18 years old.</p>
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<p>point, set, game, match…</p>
<p>game over, the OP is enrolling at Tulane</p>
<p>with the $47,000 in financial aid (versus what very little NYU will offer) and with the visit to Tulane, the probability that Tulane will win out is over 90%. </p>
<p>It has been rumored that Tulane is so incredible on student visits, that very few students turn it down after their visit.</p>
<p>haha ^. I think the main factors on why my parents are hesitant on me going to Tulane is due to a)The crime in New Orleans. b) The low graduation rate (my parents think that I’m going to party so hard that I’ll be kicked out. c) I’m far away from home (Long Island, New York).</p>
<p>The one slight counterbalance is you are probably more likely to wind up around NYC out of NYU, and probably more likely to stay in the south out of Tulane.</p>
<p>counter balance??..sounds like a win, win to me!! lol</p>
<p>Going to your safety school (Tulane) is not a bad idea in this economy. It may not be as prestigious as NYU, but Tulane at such a good discount is not a bad option. </p>
<p>I’d love to live in NYC, but it is expensive.</p>
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<p>there is no way that living and going to school in downtown NYC (the Village) is safer than living at Tulane in New Orleans</p>
<p>Anybody know the top departments at Tulane?</p>
<p>I know you have heard all this before, but just to make it perfectly clear:</p>
<p>1) The crime around the Tulane campus is very low. The crime New Orleans is most known for is quite a ways from campus. Use common sense and you will be fine. As onecircuit said, Tulane in its location is safer than NYU in its location.</p>
<p>2) The low graduation rate is mostly due to Katrina. As I pointed out before, the freshman retention rates are very similar, and I suspect once Katrina is more than 6 years past (which will take another year) the graduation rates will be about the same as well. As far as partying too hard, well that is just something you have to learn to control yourself. Surely if you already know this could be an issue, you can take steps to keep it from becoming an issue.</p>
<p>3) For some being far from home and learning what a completely different part of the country is all about is a real plus, for others not so much. No way to address this except to say you have to live your life for yourself, not for your parents. I don’t mean you shouldn’t be considerate of their feelings, but this is something that is so much more about you than about them that choosing NYU just so they will be happy you are closer is just not right.</p>
<p>As you heard on the Tulane thread, you will not be the “token Asian”. I am sure there are more at NYU, but this really should be a non-issue. You are an American, not an Asian. You should be fine.</p>
<p>BTW, don’t worry about things like “top departments”. Schools like NYU and Tulane have good departments, especially at the undergrad level, across a wide spectrum of areas. Whatever you end up deciding to major in, both schools will offer what you need, and in high quality. That is what you get with top level schools.</p>
<p>Okay OP let me lay it out for you.</p>
<p>Coming from a strict Asian family myself, my family is somewhat confused on the issues of colleges. My mother doesn’t care where I go because it’s not Stanford, and my dad just wants the least amount of money and my choices are all equally prestigious and wonderful in his opinion.
NYU was my dream school for many years, because I knew next to Columbia that’s where I would get in. City life, romanticized notions about picking up Starbucks in the city before going to class, etc. but the finances were absolutely ridiculous. I don’t know if this will have any effect on you, but NYU is also listed as one of the most overrated colleges in the country. It has the highest average student debt, and I know that may not mean a lot to you right now, but in twenty years it will, I promise. Not only the debt from the school (which by the way, isn’t nearly as prestigious as you’re thinking it is…it’s kind of thought of as the retro urban school that kids who didn’t get into Columbia go to), and everyone knows its a financial hell hole that’s not worth it. If you were comparing Tulane and an ivy league, or anything of that sort, this would be a completely different conversation. Not saying that Tulane isn’t comparable to an ivy league, just the fact that NYU is not NEARLY as prestigious as an ivy league, and in fact, Tulane is probably going to turn more heads in the next ten years than NYU will. Academic reputation and post grad opportunites are what you’re concerned about, right? I was too. I know as Pre-Med kids go to WashU and ivies from Tulane, which is no small feat. In the end, I know a lot of people say this, but you will get into law school based on your GPA and such more than anything else, and that will be no different at Tulane vs NYU. It seems like you or your parents have this idea that NYU is like some awesome ivy league level school. It’s not. As for fun, haha, it’s New Orleans. There are ENDLESS opportunities of things to do. NYU’s lack of school spirit and city campus might not necessarily seem like cons now, but when you’re actually going there, and you want to visit your friends in another dorm that live 20 minutes away and you have to pay a metro fare to get there, you will appreciate having a campus. City life isn’t as great as it sounds, and I promise you, the expenses might not seem like much now, but paying for cab fare + eating out all of that adds up, and NYC likes to make it more expensive, because they KNOW they’re NYC. Look up some threads on here about NYU being overrated. I promise you will understand where I’m coming from after you do.
If you haven’t visited Tulane, go. If you’re fillipino, I know the office of multicultural affairs offered me a travel grant to pay for my visit down there, so I’d call and inquire about that if your parents don’t want to pay for your visit. There’s so many kids from New York who go to Tulane it’s absolutely ridiculous. My parents are really concerned about the crime rate down there too, but take a look at the virtual 360 degree tour of Tulane online. Tulane is literally a bubble. It’s in the most affluent part of New Orleans centered and shut off from everything else, and in fact, some of the people I’ve talked to about my decision on here actually have told me that people rarely get out of the bubble. A great pro about New Orleans and post Katrina as well, which is something that greatly attracts me, is the opportunities for community service. I don’t think many students can say they actually helped rebuild the city they go to school in - there’s so many opportunities for community service, actually substantial life changing opprtunities, it’s almost ridiculous. Rather than looking at the crime, look at the opportunities that New Orleans could bring. Also, yeah, the party scene is insane, but it’s a work hard, play hard school. It’s a vital life skill that you will learn by going there, and if it’s the financially cheaper option, I promise you it will be worth it.
As for diversity? Having lived in the San Fran Bay Area for my adolescence and then Maine, I promise you that the diversity factor is greatly overrated. I was initially concerned about that as well, but I promise you that you’ll get a lot of different perspectives and ideas because of the geographic diversity. There are a good number of other ethnicities down there, while it may not rival some other schools.
In the end, honestly, I can only tell you what my dad has told me…distance from home might be a factor for your mom or dad, especially your mom if she’s anything like mine, but I know my dad told me from day 1 that distance matters, but it isn’t the primary concern. Why? Because to become an independent person and learn about ourselves, sprout our wings, whatever euphemism you may want to use, which is what college is about, you need to get away from the coddling of home and everything you use as your security blanket. Put yourself out there! You never know what you might learn about yourselves. College is the best four years of your life and you’re never going to get them back. Try something new, and if you really hate it, you can transfer.
The only reason I haven’t packed up my bags and committed to Tulane yet is because of the financial package I’ve gotten, which wasn’t good enough for my family. I’m terrified of my visit this weekend because I know I’m going to love it, and it’s going to make me want to beg my parents to part with a beloved 15K per year c:. Tulane is a dream school for many, and it’s quickly getting up there. Take Tulane. I promise you won’t regret it.</p>
<p>Thank you for putting things into perspective =). Especially to you avenlea. I really appreciate your post as well as everybody that also posted here. My parents are pushing hard for NYU (mostly for the idea of me staying near by…they’re even moving to the city just to be close to me). They’re also really concerned about Tulane’s low graduation rate. Their scared that I’ll drop out and end up spending more than me going to NYU where they’ll be able to “watch” me.</p>
<p>I want you to know that if you need any help at all, you can feel free to let me know. I have similarly overprotective parents, but I’m pretty sure in the way that your response was phrased, you realize that your parents are completely terrified of sending you to college and going overboard. I would suggest that you sit down with them and tell them that you completely understand where they’re coming from (I mean, who doesn’t…if I had a kid I’d probably put them in sort of protective nest until their mid 20s) but they need to let you go at some point.
Explain to them that the Tulane low graduation rate also takes into account not only Katrina (because kids were shipped off to other schools…including Harvard and other ivies) but the fact that many kids underestimate the intensity of the work (aka they expect to party 24/7 cause they’re in New Orleans).
I wish you the best of luck and I truly hope that you can convince your parents to let you get out of New York. It’s truly a risk that I promise you will be worth it in the end if you work hard in college, which I’m sure you will.</p>
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LOL My first reaction when I read that statistic was that the NYU grads could donate back b/c they were too busy paying back theit huge college loans and were in debt up to their eyeballs!</p>
<p>FWIW, my s visited some friends at NYU recently. He enjoyed the visit and the place that served a zillion different types of mac and cheese, but he commented that he prefers the green grass yet access to city life in NOLA and couldn’t afford the prices in NY for very long .</p>