LSU sees record enrollment despite the coronavirus pandemic

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Even with the coronavirus pandemic, Louisiana State University enrollment has reached an all-time high for the fall semester, with more than 34,000 students taking courses through the Baton Rouge campus.

The flagship university announced it has enrolled 34,290 students this school year. Its freshman class also has broken records for the third-straight year, with the 6,690 freshmen enrolled in the university exceeding last year's then-record of 6,126 students.

“It’s an incredible accomplishment during this year of a pandemic. These outstanding gains speak to the great strength and reputation of LSU, and they are testament to the fantastic work of our talented faculty and staff,” LSU Interim President Tom Galligan said in a statement.

Students are taking classes through a mix of online and in-person instruction this semester because of the coronavirus outbreak.

LSU has changed how it approached its admissions criteria, lessening its reliance on standardized test scores and grade point averages. But the university said the average score on the ACT college entrance exam remains above 25 for its latest freshman class, while its average GPA for new freshmen was an all-time high of nearly 3.5.

Students who identify with a minority group make up more than 30% of the freshmen class, according to the university.