<p>what do you think?<br>
some say penn state is far better, while most others say tulane is definitely the way to go. anyone have some light to shed?
thanks</p>
<p>It really just depends on what you want. PSU is huge, isn't it? One of the things I like most about Tulane is its size. It isn't too big but it's big enough to have a somewhat varried social scene within the student body that you don't always find at a smaller liberal arts school.</p>
<p>I'd get lost both socially and academically at a school that's as big as PSU (assuming it's as big as I think it is). I go to a small school right now where we get great attention from the faculty. I definitely couldn't go somewhere where the professors wouldn't know my name. </p>
<p>If you're a PA resident, though, PSU is definitely going to be cheaper and that's definitely something that I'd weigh in my decesion.</p>
<p>Weird haha. I live 2 hours from penn state! And I just attended tulane for the fall semester.</p>
<p>Well, PSU is TONSSSSSSSSSSS bigger than Tulane!! It has 43,000 students which is like 7 times bigger than Tulane haha. The campus has its own bus system.</p>
<p>Anyways, Tulane is a lot more difficult to get into for sure, even though PSU ranks higher in US NEWS and I don't know why. They're both wonderful schools, but if you get into PSU honors, and tulane honors, I'd say psu honors is a better school. It's impossible to get into so those who DO get in are truly gifted lol. (n ot that Tulane's isn't difficult , but psu's is one of the hardest in the nation to get into.)</p>
<p>It also depends on what you go for. If you go for journalism, PSU is the way to go. hell yes. Tulane no. But anything else (like english, science, whatever,) is good at both. Tulane is very science/business oriented, so it may be stronger, but PSU is good in everything pretty much (They even have degrees in agriculture!....which doesn't interest me, but still, what colleges od you know of that have agriculture!! haha)</p>
<p>@Nihongoyo PSU(College of Liberal Arts, LRE) and Tulane(A.B freeman, Finance) which one is better?</p>
<p>Both are very good schools but differ so vastly! PSU is it’s own city, while Tulane is more of your tyical college campus within a (awesome) city. PSU is in the middle of PA and we freeze most of the year. Tulane is in the deep south and it’s hot an humid most of the year. </p>
<p>@nihongoyo LSU has an Agriculture program too.</p>
<p>@shr945 - I don’t think Nihongoyo is likely to answer, this thread was 6 years old! I so think you have to balance cost, size of the schools, location, etc. and decide which fit you better. I will say that Tulane’s finance major is first rate with some really unique programs. I would also just point out that while New Orleans is hot and humid much of the year, during the academic year the heat is not so bad except for the first month or so. It is pretty nice when it is in the 60’s or 70’s in New Orleans while it is 20 and snowy in State College.</p>
<p>ooops! Didn’t even notice how old this thread is. Guess the original poster isn’t interested in this topic anymore! Who are these people that keep responding to ancient topics?</p>
<p>@dolphnlvr6 - I guess if a person searches the Tulane Forum for “Penn State” this would come up. It is easy not to notice the date, especially if one is new to CC.</p>
<p>@fallenchemist @dolphnlvr6 Oops! Didn’t notice this thread is pretty old. However, Is it worth to spend $60,000/Year in Tulane? </p>
<p>I can’t say if it’s worth it or not, just wanted to do a couple of comparisons as I went to Penn State and my D is going to Tulane. It was nearly 30 years ago that I went, but some things don’t change much. I studied engineering there and found that my math/science/engineering classes were huge and I had professors who didn’t seem to really care about the students. Grad students did labs and recitations and attempting to get help from a prof often resulted in being treated like you were a nuisance. My D, on the other hand, has not only been able to get assistance from her profs at Tulane, but has even developed relationships with some of them - her physics prof from her first semester was still e-mailing her with things he thought she would be interested in her second semester. Her classes have also been much smaller with I think the most being 60 in a class but only 6 in her calc 2 class this past semester!! She has not had any class taught be a grad student although there was one class where I believe a grad student might have been available for extra help if needed. This is so different from anything I experienced at PSU. I think for some students, the chances of having a successful college career at one type of school vs. the other would make a big difference.</p>
<p>@shr945 - Just to bounce off of what cyclonehome is saying, the nature of the experience of attending a big state school like PSU is so completely different that a midsized private like Tulane. Whether that is worth $X is a value judgement, and only you can decide what is of value to you. I just looked at your other posts and see that you are a transfer from a community college. I am assuming that you will basically be a sophomore. Therefore you have to consider that a lot of students will have formed their social circles already. Is it easier to now “break into” the groups at Tulane or PSU? I really don’t know, but I kind of think it might be Tulane, which admittedly is counterintuitive. But being a smaller, very welcoming community as opposed to a big, kind of faceless university, that is my guess. Could be wrong, maybe it is about the same at both. I know that if you are a reasonably social person, you will have no trouble finding friends at Tulane.</p>
<p>It also doesn’t look like Tulane is really that much more, at least when talking about college costs. You say on your other thread that Tulane is actually $50,000 a year because they gave you a $10K scholarship, and PSU is about $43,000. So over 3 years, while $21,000 or so is nothing to sneeze at, if you really value the smaller classes and campus, the NOLA location, the warmer weather, etc. then I would say for most people that is money well spent. But that is for you to decide. It does seem like that is the crux of your decision though. I think if you try really hard at Tulane and get yourself involved in some of their more interesting finance offerings, like Burkenroad Reports, energy finance, investing part of the school’s endowment, etc. then you will have a great experience academically, as well as having lived in NOLA which in and of itself is worth it for a lot of people.</p>
<p>@fallenchemist That’s help me a lot. How about job oppounities after graduate from Tulane? some of my friends said it is really hard to find jobs, is that true?</p>
<p>It’s difficult to find jobs no matter what school you go to. You have to take personal responsibility for working hard to maintain your GPA, doing internships, volunteering and building a resume that makes you competitive. And use your time in college to start building your network. Both Tulane and PSU have extensive successful alumni networks. Students at this very small college that I work at have obtained jobs at Google, the IRS, Homeland Security, the FBI, Nike, ESPN, Price Waterhouse and many other prestigious companies-not because they went here but because of what they did while they were here to prepare themselves for the job market. </p>
<p>@shr945 - Nothing substantive to add to what @dolphnlvr6 said. I have heard that Tulane tries hard to find internships for their students, especially the business school. Now it may be equally true of PSU, I can’t say. And I am sure other Tulane departments try hard as well, certainly the major you have makes a difference. But I have heard there are good connections for internships in the business school. But it is mostly up to you, and that is so at any school. I do know Tulane is constantly reaching out to alumni to get them to sign on for offering internships to Tulane students, and they are always trying to use social media like LinkedIn, Facebook, etc. to improve communication between students looking for jobs and internships with alumni and the public in general. As dolphnlvr says, I am sure PSU does this also.</p>
<p>I guess I do have one additional thought to add. If you are planning on settling in the state of Pennsylvania or nearby, PSU might hold a little more weight. Although Tulane draws VERY well from the northeast, so it is pretty well known too. But if you are open to going anywhere after graduation, then Tulane might carry a bit more weight as an academically more prestigious school, despite USNWR. I think the farther away you get away from PA, the more PSU is thought of as just another state school with a big-time football team. Tulane is more universally thought of in academic terms, and in the south it is most highly known, not surprisingly. But I wouldn’t take any of this out of proportion, it still is mostly what you can accomplish at your school, getting good recs from your profs if needed, and working hard to find the right position.</p>
<p>Ah, I thought of one other small thing, lol. Although not so small in some cases. Tulane requires two semesters of service learning, where you really get out there and use your academic knowledge and/or other skills to improve the community. Usually in NOLA, but it doesn’t have to be. I know form talking to grads that this can often be a kind of “tie-breaker” when then talking to companies about internships or jobs. I know it helped my D land a very competitive internship with the Department of State. They were very interested in the writing and editing she did on a newspaper designed to help the homeless. You just never know. At the least, it can make for an engaging talking point during interviews.</p>