About Tulane University
Location: New Orleans, LA
Undergraduate Population: 7,295
Most Popular Majors: Business, psychology, social sciences, and biological sciences, architecture
Motto: Non Sibi Sed Suis (“Not for oneself but for one’s own”)
Demographics:
White 65.9%
Latinx 10.5%
Asian/Asian American 5.9%
Black/African American 5.6%
Multiracial 5%
Native American less than 1%
History:
Tulane University was founded as the Medical College of Louisiana, the second medical school in the south, in 1834 partly as a response to the fears of smallpox, yellow fever, and cholera in the United States. In 1847, the state legislature established the school as the University of Louisiana, a public university, and the law department was added to the university. Subsequently, in 1851, the university established its first academic department.
After a period of closure from 1861 to 1865, Tulane went through a period of financial challenges due to an extended agricultural depression in the South. Paul Tulane, owner of a dry goods and clothing business, donated extensive real estate within New Orleans for the support of education. This donation led to the establishment of a Tulane Educational Fund (TEF). The Louisiana state legislature transferred control of the University of Louisiana to the administrators of the TEF in 1884, creating the Tulane University of Louisiana. The university was privatized and is one of only a few American universities to be converted from a state public institution to a private one.
In 1907, Tulane established a four-year professional curriculum in architecture through the College of Technology, growing eventually into the Tulane School of Architecture. By 1950, the School of Architecture had grown out of Engineering into an independent school. In 1963, Tulane enrolled its first African American students. In 1990, Rhonda Goode-Douglas, alongside other black, female students, founded the first African American sorority in Tulane’s history, AKA Omicron Psi.
Notable Tulane alumni include science fiction author N.K. Jemisin, actress and businesswoman Shannon Lee, comedian Anthony Jeselnik, chess player Paul Morphy, and political scientist Ian Bremmer.
Traditions:
- New Student Orientation, Hullabaloo Hello, welcomes students to campus. It includes move-in, orientation programming, and other fun events.
- Crawfest: Tulane’s two-stage, ten-band outdoor music festival for students and the community, provides 18,000 pounds of free crawfish for the taking.
- At any sporting event, both students and alumni can be heard cheering for the Green Wave and singing along to Tulane’s fight song and their favorite cheer, The Hullabaloo.
Noteworthy Features:
- Tulane’s five schools in architecture, business, liberal arts, public health and tropical medicine, and science and engineering offer more than 75 undergraduate majors.
- The Stone Center for Latin American studies offers more than 150 courses taught by 70 faculty members.
- Environmental studies majors have access to the ByWater Institute, where faculty members and students work together to study and preserve Louisiana’s waterways and coast.
Admissions Profile
Average GPA: 3.70
Test Scores (mid-50% range): SAT 1400-1490 / ACT
Admit Rate: 14.6%
Test-optional? Yes
Offers Early Admissions? Yes—Early Decision I and II
Supplemental Essays
Tulane’s Required Essay Prompts:
Describe why you are interested in joining the Tulane community. Consider your experiences, talents, and values to illustrate what you would contribute to the Tulane community if admitted. (250 words)
This is Tulane’s version of a “why this college” essay. The prompt focuses on students’ experiences and values and whether they align with what the school looks for in its communities. Consider the ways your experiences, talents, and values have shaped you and what you hope to gain through studying at Tulane.
Ask yourself what stands out the most to you about the school. You could be looking forward to a niche academic program or want to access a particular student organization or campus resource. Regardless of what you’re excited about, find ways to connect your interests to unique features of the college. Admissions readers want to know that you’re a good fit—and that your love for the school is genuine.
For more tips on common supplemental essay prompts, see our blog post here.
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