Tulane University marches to the beat of its own drum, and their haphazard admissions statistics show it. The private research university has given us a partial picture of their Class of 2030 admission cycle, and the results are, well, pretty lackluster. All told, “over 32,000” applicants applied this year, roughly on par with the applicant pool sizes recorded over the last two cycles, while the acceptance rate clocked in around 15%, according to reporting by The Tulane Hullabaloo. While these figures are certainly nothing to dismiss, should Tulane be proud of its results this year? And for the students who are currently suspended in admissions limbo after receiving word of being waitlisted to Tulane, what’s the best path forward?

Tulane University Acceptance Rate and Admissions Statistics (Classes of 2030 — 2019)

Tulane University Class Year	Total Applications Received	Total Applications Accepted	Overall Acceptance Rate
Class of 2030	32,000+	Not Yet Released	~15%
Class of 2029	32,942	4,763	14.46%
Class of 2028	32,603	4,558	13.98%
Class of 2027	27,936	4,077	14.59%
Class of 2026	31,615	3,621	11.45%
Class of 2025	45,525	4,385	9.63%
Class of 2024	43,892	4,877	11.11%
Class of 2023	42,185	5,431	12.87%
Class of 2022	38,816	6,724	17.32%
Class of 2021	35,622	7,657	21.50%
Class of 2020	32,006	8,162	25.50%
Class of 2019	26,257	8,008	30.50%

Tulane’s Class of 2030 in Historical Perspective

We suspect the admissions statistics reported for the Class of 2030 lack specifics (including a precise applicant total, number of admitted students, or acceptance rate) because these details would only serve to drive home that this was a relatively unimpressive year for admissions officers at Tulane. The 32,000 or so applicants recorded this year do not even come close to breaking the record for most applicants set by the Class of 2025 (45,525).

For most elite colleges in the United States, acceptance rates have been uniformly decreasing over the past two or so decades. What were once moderately selective schools to which an average student could hope to attend have transformed into highly selective juggernauts to which only the nation’s top academic talent stands a shot of admission. 

At Tulane, this trend is somewhat visible in the school’s dramatic decline in acceptance, which for the Class of 2019 stood at 30.5% and only six years later would decrease to a record-setting 9.63%. However, over the last four admissions cycles, this progress began to regress, with the acceptance rate most recently clocking in at roughly 15% for the Class of 2030. This is somewhat unusual, but when the total number of applications received is considered, things get a lot weirder.

Making Sense of Tulane’s Fluctuating Applicant Pools

Applications peaked at Tulane during the admissions cycle for the Class of 2025, with 45,525 applicants. Two short years later, that figure would fall by nearly 20,000 applicants, to 27,936, accompanied by a 5% hike in acceptance. Some of this variation is the result of pure chance, but, likely, the 2023 New York Times report on the gender imbalance in Tulane’s student body, which highlighted a significant overrepresentation of female students, may have driven some students away. More significantly, the dramatic fall in Tulane’s US News ranking from a high of #44 to #73 during the same year could have also contributed to the decrease in applications.

It seems that not even going test-optional during the height of the pandemic could help Tulane rally up high application numbers for the Classes of 2026, 2027, 2028, 2029, and 2030, as this move would normally flood a college with applications from “squeakers” (Ivy Coach’s term for students who apply to top schools without submitting test scores). Perhaps too many have become aware of how few applicants Tulane admits outside of its two Early Decision rounds that it scares away potential applicants.

Ivy Coach’s Assistance With Tulane University Waitlist Admission

If you were waitlisted to Tulane’s Class of 2030, the time is now to spring into action and enlist Ivy Coach’s team of former elite college admissions officers to help you earn admission. But even if you’re just the parent of a future Tulane hopeful, it’s never too early to get the ball rolling on optimizing their odds of admission. There’s no telling when the next record-setting admissions cycle could occur, so it’s best to enter the admissions process with as much help as possible.

To get started with Ivy Coach, fill out our complimentary consultation form and we’ll be in touch.