Tulane University Paper Format & Writing Requirements

Tulane University at a glance

A private research university famous for public health (a top tropical-medicine school), architecture and the required public-service capstone.

The campus sits in New Orleans, Louisiana, operates as a private institution, and enrolls about 14,000 students — a scale that directly shapes how writing support works. Founded in 1834 with an acceptance rate around 13%, Tulane University pairs selective admissions with the large-course writing loads typical of its category.

Citation styles Tulane University actually requires

Tulane University courses predominantly require Chicago or APA 7 or MLA 9. That is not a trivial preference: it decides your title page, heading levels, in-text punctuation and reference format on every graded document.

• Chicago: used across history, fine arts and some social science seminars
• APA 7: used across social science, nursing and business courses
• MLA 9: used across humanities and writing-sequence courses

Verify against the specific course syllabus anyway — instructors can override departmental defaults, and the first paper is where they enforce it.

The writing requirement, decoded

The Service-Learning requirement embeds reflective writing in dozens of courses; the senior capstone spans both semesters.

Plan the sequence early: composition requirements compound, and students who defer them discover the advanced seminars — where the writing-intensity lives — conflict with major courses later. The registrar's degree audit shows exactly which flags remain; check it each semester.

Three things about Tulane University papers that surprise new students

• Tulane was the first US university to require service learning for all undergrads — reflective essays grade it.
• Architecture students write preservation studies for actual New Orleans historic districts.
• SPHTM follows AMA citation style — unusual outside medicine.

None of these appear in the course description. All of them appear in the rubric. Students who learn them in week one report smoother first-semesters than students who meet them at the deadline.

Assignments Tulane University students face most

• Essay — most frequently assigned across Tulane University's programs
• Capstone Project — most frequently assigned across Tulane University's programs
• Research Paper — most frequently assigned across Tulane University's programs
• Case Study — most frequently assigned across Tulane University's programs

Popular programs at Tulane University include public health (sphtm), architecture, business (freeman) — each pairs the assignment list above with its own capstone or practicum expectations, detailed on our subject pages.