No school is perfect – but Tulane isn’t far off

Going into freshman year of college is both terrifying and exciting. I remember committing to Tulane last April and feeling so lucky to have found a school that I absolutely fell in love with. At the time, not having to settle for my second choice seemed like all that mattered. But then summer came, and I began to think, “What if I made the wrong choice? What if I get to school, and everything goes wrong?”

Second week of school with the Mo4 squad

Fortunately, this was not the case, and I am incredibly grateful. However, there are countless college students who have not been as lucky as me. I have a number of friends who returned home after their first semester. But, the fact that some people find that the school they started out at wasn’t for them does not mean that there is something wrong with the school. It just wasn’t a good fit. And there is no way to know that ahead of time.

Reaching the maximum of my personal limit of two trips to Bourbon a semester

I will say, however, I think that previous articles on this topic made Tulane seem like the problem. Tulane nor the individuals expressing their poor experiences are the problems in the situation. I think the main problem in these sort of situations stem from expectations. Expectations of the student for how college life will be, what their classes will be like, and their overall experience. Expectations of the parents for how well the student will perform and excel in their new environment. And expectations of society set by popular culture’s depiction of college. When these expectations are not met, the student hits a wall and begins to regret their decision and despise their school.

I also think that these previous articles also bring forward the bigger issue of mental health. There definitely is not enough support for freshmen and their academic and emotional needs. Sure there is CAPS and free tutoring from the Success Center, but the level of accessibility of these resources is not well-known information. In addition, the Success Center’s tutoring is not always helpful and is somewhat rushed which makes it feel extremely impersonal. Tulane is not particularly on top of it when it comes to mental health, but is any school? This issue goes beyond just Tulane. It is a prevalent issue on pretty much every college campus and is extremely stigmatized by society as a whole. However, Tulane does have several amazing organizations on campus that are making a huge push for improvement in mental health services including NAMI, USG, and SAPHE.

To all incoming Tulane freshmen, do not let other negative Tulane freshman experiences deter you. Without a doubt, some of you will have a hard time adjusting. Some of you will get lucky and quickly find a #squad (which will definitely change by second semester). Some of you will find out the hard way that it is not ideal to hit up the Boot and Palms 5 to 7 nights a week. Others will take some time to find alternatives to the hectic Tulane weekend scene, but soon enough you’ll find some people who would rather explore NOLA or raid the bookshelves of Cafe Luna. Some of you will get super involved right away, and others will take it easy for a semester or two until you find a club that really grabs you. While some clubs and organizations may seem major specific, they are not exclusive whatsoever. This just opens more doors for you to explore interests outside of your major. I mean, who wants to be doing financial accounting or chem 24/7?

Don’t let the soft smiles fool you, these two gals LOVE NOLA

Whoever you are, I can promise you that whether it takes two weeks or two semesters to fully adjust you will find your place at Tulane, and most of all, New Orleans will have your heart. Not many college students are lucky enough to live in a city that loves you as much as you love it.