University application numbers are rebounding after a slow start in the first months of the 2017 application season.
Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management Charlotte Tullos said as of Nov. 8 the University has received 12,147 applications and admitted 6,797 students. Both numbers are up from November 2015, with an increase of approximately 498 and 47 students, respectively.
Applications dipped from Aug. 1 through early October, when application trends began to shift in a positive direction, she said. The biggest application spike came over Halloween weekend, when the University received 2,100 applications during an application fee waiver promotion.
Tullos said an application dip was anticipated due to TOPS cuts and the city’s tumultuous summer, but she’s pleased with the way the numbers have rebounded.
“I was worried, I have to admit, but not that much,” Tullos said. “We knew that we would be low first and expected that.”
Key areas that dipped include the Greater New Orleans area, specifically Orleans and Jefferson parishes, and East Baton Rouge Parish. Data shows East Baton Rouge application numbers have recovered, but New Orleans’s applicant numbers are still down, she said.
Applications were down across all ethnic groups regardless of location, Tullos said. With numbers rebounding, the University has seen an increase in applications from African Americans and Hispanics, as well as “other” ethnic groups.
As of Nov. 3, African-American applicants increased roughly 51 percent and Hispanic applications increased 19 percent from 2015, while “other” increased by 29 percent. The number of admitted students also increased in each category.
The University also saw a jump in application numbers from certain states. As of Nov. 7, the University received 223 more Texas applicants compared to the same period in 2015, she said.
The spike follows the institution of the Texas Tigers scholarship, which offers a 20 percent non-resident fee exemption for qualified entering freshmen. Tullos said she believes the scholarship played an important role in the application increase, and the University’s three newly scholarships will likely result in a similar bump.
On Oct. 21, the LSU Board of Supervisors approved three new scholarships — the Tiger Nation scholarship, Tiger Alumni Legacy scholarship and Louisiana Tiger Legacy scholarship — to attract both non-resident and resident students through either fee exemptions or stipends for qualifying students.
Tullos said application numbers haven’t picked up significantly since the scholarships were announced because student awareness is low. The admissions team is actively working to promote the scholarships to students, she said.
Admissions is also diversifying student outreach efforts with a new texting software that will allow the department to connect with current and applied students via messaging. Students are primarily mobile now, and it’s important to meet students where they are, Tullos said.

Gallery • 1 Photos

Ari Ross