June 25, 2021
Dear Tulane Community:
I am pleased to announce a new appointment that will serve to build and enhance an essential component of Tulane University – our future undergraduate and graduate classes. Effective July 1, Satyajit Dattagupta, Vice President of Enrollment Management and Dean of Admission, will become the university’s first Senior Vice President and Dean of Admission for Enrollment Management and Graduate and Pre-College Strategy.
This position will help coordinate and grow the recruitment and retention of undergraduate and graduate students. It will also oversee our pre-college Summer Programs, which introduce middle and high school students to life at Tulane and gives them the opportunity to explore their artistic, intellectual and professional passions through both credit and enrichment courses.
Since his arrival in 2016, Satya has understood the unique strengths and qualities of Tulane and has been able to communicate these to students the world over. By articulating Tulane’s story and conveying the transformative experience that awaits its students, he has been able to build the most diverse, academically strongest and most selective classes in Tulane's history. We received more than 45,000 applications for the Class of 2025. This represents a 60 percent increase of applicants over the last 5 years. With such increased interest, our acceptance rate for this class was 10 percent, the most selective in university history and one of the lowest in the country. Moreover, Tulane’s yield — the number of students who are admitted into the university and who actually go on to enroll — rose to about 45 percent this year, a 98 percent increase from five years ago. The Class of 2025 is also our most academically accomplished and most diverse.
Now, Satya will use this success and expertise to help coordinate strategies for our pre-college programs and graduate schools while continuing the progress he has made through our undergraduate admissions office. As a former international student, Satya has always had a special interest in increasing the number of students from abroad, as well as from underserved communities from throughout the United States. That includes right here in our home state, where he helped introduce Louisiana Promise, a program that meets the full financial need, with no loans, of Tulane students from Louisiana whose families make less than $100,000. In addition to increasing the number of Louisiana students attending Tulane, Louisiana Promise provides special funding for 50 Louisiana high school students to attend our pre-college summer programs. Louisiana Promise also includes a college preparatory center designed specifically for New Orleans-area students.
Louisiana Promise is one of the many initiatives Satya has championed to expand the accessibility and appeal of Tulane. He says of his new appointment, “These past five years have been some of the most fulfilling years of my career. Tulane has been a great fit for me and New Orleans for me and my family. I am grateful to my enrollment management team which is one of the best, if not the best, in the nation. I look forward to this new opportunity and am excited about what we will accomplish as an institution in the coming years.”
In his new role, Satya’s work will encompass every portal, gateway and entry point to our university, as he helps to ensure that we are open, welcoming and supportive of all who desire to join the Tulane family. Please join me in welcoming and supporting Satya in this new and exciting endeavor.
