LSU Academic Recruiting - Credit where credit is due

Well, those are the least important aspects of that decision and easiest to nail, so I’d hope so.

I'm not liking their lack of scholarships to in-state freshmen. Every professor I've spoken to says LSU isn't gambling much on freshmen due to the dropout rate. The scholarships supposedly "kick in" when they enter the second year.

Can he pitch?

They have too. The great schools are swamped with applications and don't have to recruit or give aid.

Exactly. My kid had a 4.0 and got a 33 on the ACT and LSU offered practically nothing. This was 5 years ago.

Interesting to hear about everyone’s experience. Ours will be finishing LSU in May and then heading to grad school out of state. When she was accepted to LSU four years ago she received a minor scholarship (5k I think), a payment for a campus job that she never got, and TOPS at the full amount it can be granted out. Our 529 funds have covered the rest. It was about 7k each semester but $3400 of that was sorority dues/fees etc. her sophomore thru senior year she also got a 5k a year scholarship from my previous employer. Because the market has done well over those years, we are only down 22k from her original amount and grad school will be doable without taking a loan (we hope). I can’t complain and wouldn’t. I have been surprisingly happy with her choice to go to LSU.

quote:

---

Exactly. My kid had a 4.0 and got a 33 on the ACT and LSU offered practically nothing. This was 5 years ago.

---

Sounds familiar.

Then they have the temerity to include TOPS in their total financial aid they give out every year.

My take is unless your kid is going to a top tier targeted program (Georgia Tech for engineering, UPenn for business etc.), go to the cheapest school possible that is at least somewhat reputable (not Devry etc.) for undergrad. A lot of kids have no idea what they want to do as undergraduates, they can spend money on a good grad program or go to grad school for free with assistantships by the time they figure out what they want to do.

I went to LSU undergrad and then had to choose between going to a top law school for a hefty price or going to a state grad school in an area of interest for pretty much nothing. I got my undergraduate and grad degree with zero debt. And while neither were fancy degrees, it may have hurt my job prospects in my early to mid 20s, but by age 30 nobody cares where you went if you prove to be a competent employee.

quote:

---

I think LSU has done the best in terms of communication, quality of marketing materials, and tailored event (accepted student). They are even having an event tomorrow night with "successful" alumni here in New Orleans.

---

Never been the issue. The issue is money, and your son will get far less going to LSU. I don’t regret choosing LSU over Bama or others, but it would have saved me a ton of money when they wanted to pay me to live and go to school on their campus

quote:

---

Exactly. My kid had a 4.0 and got a 33 on the ACT and LSU offered practically nothing. This was 5 years ago.

---

My son was in the exact same situation. Same grades and same score. Got calls from every big school in the country except LSU and he was at U High. We took the best offer(out of state), and he graduated Magna Cum Laude. At the time, we were told it was because LSU was focusing on Out of State Tuition payers, but it still irked me.