The time commitment to a D1 sport is quite different as to a D3 sport. That would be the major point to discuss if your parents are willing to pay for all these schools - especially if your academics matter (it’ll be harder to maintain high grades at a D1 school, so that D1 sport and premed or D1 and engineering would not be very compatible, for instance.)
I am surprised at the number of people who have come on to say “absolutely!” My answer is no, probably not.
I took a full merit scholarship from a good but not top liberal arts college (certainly not even as highly reputed as Tulane) over offers from Emory and Georgia Tech. I probably could’ve gotten into several of the other schools you listed, had I applied, given my high school record and test scores. I graduated from college almost 7 years ago, and I certainly do not regret my choice. Most days I don’t even think about it, tbh. (I’ll tell you what I definitely don’t regret - leaving college with minimal debt.)
One of my coworkers went to Tulane undergrad. She has a PhD from Johns Hopkins (top school in my field) and recently accepted an offer to be faculty at Harvard. She loved Tulane and loves New Orleans.
The real question is - where do YOU want to go? Do you like Tulane; do you want to go there? Do you prefer one or more of the other schools? And - most importantly - are your parents willing to pay the full cost of one of the other schools if you would rather go there?
If you have to ask…
I think the precedents set in the initial post are clear: whether or not Tulane is a good fit doesn’t seem as crucial here as the options on the table for the OP, the parents’ apparent unwillingness to help with other colleges (is this set in stone?), and the OP’s future goals. It could be a recipe for resentment later on, unless Tulane ends up being an ideal situation after all.
I’d be wary if I were forced into taking a D1 athletic scholarship – I agree with others, it will necessarily become a huge part of your college life at that level – but were really only doing it for the scholarship money. If being a serious runner is a major part of your future goals, and you actually like Tulane for what it offers, then OK. If not, you could encounter difficulties in the next few years. Better to try and sort it out now if possible.
Something sounds strange about OP’s story. 500K income and the parent’s advice is to take the scholarship? Who’s the father - Snoop Dog?
@menefrega, eh, $500K might not go so far depending on where the parents live after taxes, house, etc.
You can’t really regret something you don’t have a choice over. And that will certainly be the case if your parents won’t pay for those other schools. Tulane is a fine and respectable school. And the money your parents saved can be used on other things for you, like graduate studies. I’d recommend seriously considering matriculating there unless you absolutely hate it.
One key question is whether you are sure you want to run track all four years. If not, then Tulane will not be free. If you are trying to get to the Olympics, then Tulane would be better. If you are not sure you even want to run, then I would consider the best fit among Yale, Dartmouth, and Duke.
Not so much depending on where they live (in terms of city/region, as opposed to the choice of living in a neighborhood of super-expensive houses), but on what their spending habits are like.
^I agree. Earning half a million dollars every year “might not go far” only if the parents spend lavishly. Regardless of where you live, that’s a very high income.
My issue is that running for D1 teams isn’t for the faint of heart. Your parent may not realize that if for whatever reason you can’t run next year, your scholarship is over. AND it means you’ll be practicing about 30 hours per week ( if you include conditioning/weightlifiting, doing “optional” things with the team) so, like the coach who proudly tweeted about the 2.57GPA being the highest ever for his team demonstrates… keeping your grades up will be difficult (keep in mind that internships typically require a 3.0 and no one will cut you any slack because you’re running track). Are you ready for that level of commitment?
In short, you may well have to be full pay for 3 or 4 years at Tulane anyway. An Athletic scholarship isn’t the be-all, end-all, it comes with strings, just like academic scholarships that come with a GPA requirement.