Admissions & selectivity
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Acceptance Rate & Admissions
What is the acceptance rate at LSU?
LSU’s reported acceptance rate is 73.3%.
- Acceptance rate · Fall 2024
- 73.3%
Source: College Scorecard · Fall 2024 admissions. Acceptance rates can change from year to year; this figure does not predict the current or next admission cycle.
How to interpret the acceptance rate
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College admitted 73.3% of applicants, a rate that sits below the median of 78.1% for comparable institutions (same type and size).
What SAT and ACT scores do LSU students report?
The middle half of enrolled students who submitted SAT scores scored between 1,180 and 1,340. For those who submitted ACT scores, the middle half ranged from 24 to 30.
These ranges describe recent enrolled students who chose to submit scores, not a minimum for admission. A score below the 25th percentile is not a bar to admission, just as a score above the 75th percentile is not a guarantee.
The figures represent only the students who submitted scores, not every enrolled student.
The ranges below describe enrolled students who submitted test scores at LSU. Use them as academic context, then check the university’s current testing policy for your application cycle.
- Approximate lower endpoint
- 1180
- Approximate upper endpoint
- 1340
Enrolled students who submitted scores. This range is not an admission cutoff. The endpoints add section percentiles; they are not verified composite-score percentiles. A separate SAT-equivalent average is not plotted as a median. Source: College Scorecard; sum of section 25th/75th percentiles; enrolled score-submitters.
- 25th percentile
- 24
- 75th percentile
- 30
Enrolled students who submitted scores. This range is not an admission cutoff.
Figures cover fall 2024.
Who enrolls at LSU?
- Pell Grant recipients
- 26.6%
- Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group
- 12.2%
- First-year retention
- 84.7%
Retention source: College Scorecard; full-time first-year retention.
About these student measures
The entering-student group includes part-time entrants as well as other attendance patterns.
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College enrolls 30,594 undergraduates, with Pell Grant recipients making up 26.6% of the student body. An estimated 12.2% of undergraduates enter as transfers or part-time students.
The composition reflects a public university that serves a broad in-state population alongside a sizable share of students who begin their college path elsewhere. The university admits 73.3% of applicants, a rate that sits below the median of 78.1% for comparable institutions (same type and size).
For Pell-eligible applicants, the university's financial-access figures suggest a campus where peers share a range of economic backgrounds. Transfer applicants should note the estimated 12.2% share of entrants outside the first-time, full-time group, which indicates a sizable community of students who followed that path.
Students who start full-time at Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College tend to stay and finish. The first-year retention rate is 84.7%, against a peer median of 83.1% for comparable institutions (same type and size).
The six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 68.8%, compared to a peer median of 65.0%. Pell Grant recipients in that cohort complete at 61.0%, which is 7.8 percentage points below the overall rate.
A student enrolling here can expect a large community where most classmates return for a second year and a clear majority finish within six.
Data & methodology
Sources and reporting periods: methodology.
Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, founder of College Azimuth.
Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.
Admission rates describe past applicants, not an individual’s chance of admission; confirm requirements and deadlines with the institution.
Figure notes link to sources and limitations. About College Azimuth.