Will I be accepted to Tulane?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Tulane University
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<p>Hey, thanks for reading my post, I really appreciate it!</p>

<p>I'm very interested in attending Tulane, and I'm wondering about my shot at getting in. </p>

<p>I'm a junior from Florida (does being out-of-state increase my chances? I know some colleges like diversity), and I go to a fairly well-known public school, especially for our athletics.</p>

<p>Unweighted GPA: By the time I apply to Tulane, I'm estimating it will be around 3.6</p>

<p>Weighted GPA: My school uses a very weird system to calculate this, but basically I get .04 added to my unweighted GPA for every honors class, and .08 for every AP. When I apply to Tulane it will be around a 5.4 (my estimation). They haven't told us what the conversion is into what normal people consider as their weighted GPA, but I've been told that it's about in the middle of my unweighted and my school's weighted, so around a 4.5. </p>

<p>I don't take the SAT until March, but I'd like to know what I should strive to get on it for Tulane. I've taken the PSAT, and I don't know how the conversion works, but I got a 61 for math, 59 for writing, and a 55 for reading comprehension. I've heard you just add a zero to the end, and that's your SAT range, but considering I was in the 94th percentile for the PSAT, getting 500s on the SAT seems low to me. Tell me what you think though. Oh, and I have absolutely no idea how I'll do on the ACT, I take that in February.</p>

<p>AP Classes I've Taken:
Human Geography
American Government
World History
English Language
Calculus AB
American History
Psychology</p>

<p>APs for Senior Year:
English Literature
Statistics
Biology
European History (May take AP Economics instead....suggestions?)
Latin</p>

<p>Extracurriculars:
Cross Country (will be 4 years when I apply)
Track & Field (will be 4 years when I apply)
Vice President of Latin Club (will be 2 years)
Fellowship of Christian Athletes (1 year)
Ecology Club (1 year)
Anchor Service Club (will be 4 years)
Spent a week in New Orleans freshman year to volunteer for Katrina victims (can I even put that on my app?)
National English Honor Society
National Social Studies Honor Society
Volunteer Summer Counselor for Camp Invention (local kids learn science)-- 1 Week each summer, about 40 total hours per week. </p>

<p>I don't know if this helps either, but my grandfather and uncle graduated from Tulane, and so did my uncle's wife (can I put her name down if I'm not blood related to her?)</p>

<p>Thanks so much!! I really appreciate it! </p>

<p>Oh, and as for class rank, I checked at the end of sophomore year and I was 191/650 :( But many guidance counselors have told me it's going to shoot up after this year because of all my APs. Maybe even to Top 75, they said.</p>

<p>One last thing, if you go to Tulane, could you tell me the pros and cons? Are you glad you went? Thanks thanks thanks</p>

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<p>You would be well advised to apply SCEA, and really focus on your “Why Tulane” statement. Your GPA is fine, weighted really doesn’t mean much per se. What matters more is your unweighted and how tough your schedule was. You have taken a lot of AP’s so that is great. Your SAT’s (if they come in the same as your PSAT’s) are a bit low, but you might do much better on the ACT or the actual SAT. Do as many practice tests as you possibly can. EC’s look good and the legacy stuff helps a little (and yes, even an aunt by marriage is still family, shows an overall connection to Tulane when combined with your grandfather and uncle). Oh, and being out of state from Florida is irrelevant, since Tulane gets tons of kids from Florida. Being a private school, OOS isn’t so much of a factor, but if you were from somewhere Tulane gets fewer kids, like North Dakota or Vermont, it might help a little. But not Florida.</p>

<p>Let us know how your real SAT and ACT scores come out. Right now, with an SCEA app and a strong “Why Tulane” statement, along with attending local Tulane events and hopefully visiting Tulane, your chances seem decent. Maybe 2-1. Just a guess of course. Will be more meaningful when you have your real scores.</p>

<p>Finally, as far as the pros and cons, the pro of someone else might be your con and vice-versa. So not sure how that will help you. But almost anyone on this forum will tell you they are glad they went, it is very biased by selection. I can only say that people that peruse a lot of forums say that Tulane students seem more enthusiastic about their school than almost any other forum they see.</p>

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<p>What is SCEA? And yeah, I figured Florida wouldn’t do much, just thought I’d give it a shot… As for the SAT/ACT, what scores do you think I’d need to be comfortable applying to Tulane? </p>

<p>And by pros and cons, I just want to see what YOURS were. I realize that your pro could be my con, but it still reveals a lot about the school to hear from the students themselves. Thanks for replying!</p>

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<p>SCEA=Single Choice Early Action. You apply by November 15 (although the earlier the better) and they let you know their decision by December 15. Also means you agree not to apply EA or ED to any other schools. Shows the strongest interest in Tulane, although it is non-binding, unlike ED which Tulane doesn’t have. Tulane also has regular EA, which has the same deadlines but doesn’t restrict you from applying for early decisions (binding or otherwise) elsewhere. Tulane has an average SAT around 2000 and ACT around 30-30.5. Since this is an average obviously people with lower scores get in, but those would be very comfortable for you I think. Slightly lower and you are probably OK.</p>

<p>Goodness, there are so many wonderful things about Tulane it is hard to say. When I was a student it was the city, the wonderful relationships with the profs, the great weather many many days, the music scene at Tulane and in the city, the research I was able to do as an undergrad while at Tulane (2 publications in the highest prestige journals (chemistry) for an idea that was actually my own and the prof let me run with it), really intelligent fellow students, the UNBELIEVABLE food, the opportunity to experience a completely different way of life,…I could go on forever. I am sure you have looked that the thread of the 101 reasons to attend Tulane.</p>

<p>Now that was 30 years ago. My D, who has been at Tulane 2 years and is now in Beijing for a year, would tell you that all of the above is still true (less the chemistry part since she is a liberal arts double or triple major) and add the amazing community aspects. Not just the community service, which is completely entwined into the Tulane culture and ethos, but also the other potential community connections, be it religious, Greek, or other opportunities. It is an amazing environment for those that choose to take advantage of what is there, which is most from what I can see.</p>