When most families purchase a house, an automobile or some other expensive item, they are usually very cautious. They try to get the very best value for their money. When it comes to selecting a university, families need accurate information and expert assistance; yet,  most just assume they will get value for their money: their student will graduate in a reasonable time and move on to a good job.  For public institutions in Louisiana, that is not a good assumption. The total cost of attendance for students living on campus can be as high as $20,000 per year, but a student’s chance of graduating from a public institution in Louisiana with a meaningful degree is among the lowest, if not the lowest, in the nation. According to data from the National Center for Educational Statistics, the average four-year graduation rate of the 14 four-year universities in Louisiana is only 11.2 percent. The average four-year graduation rate of the 15 four-year institutions in Virginia is four times that for Louisiana schools, or 44.3 percent. LSU and Louisiana Tech have four-year graduation rates significantly better at 26 percent.
While the graduation rate in Louisiana is low, the average time required to earn a bachelors’ degree in our 14 universities is a high 5.7 years. This means that those students who do graduate are paying, along with the state, 42 percent more than the expected cost of completing a four-year degree. Again, LSU and Louisiana Tech have better records: 4.6 years for the time to degree, or 20 percent less than the state average. For those who fail to earn a degree in six years — an amazing two out of three entering freshman students, given a 37 percent six-year graduation rate — the student and the state both pay the cost of attendance, but no valuable credentials are produced. There must be in Louisiana tens of thousands of residents with significant student debt with insufficient earning capacity to pay the debt.
Large sums of state and federal money go into supporting institutions and students. In addition, students and their families use savings and borrow large sums to pay the cost of their effort to obtain a meaningful college degree. One would think public institutions would do their very best to produce graduates who have the credentials required to earn a living and enrich society in general. That is not the case in Louisiana. Most Louisiana institutions want enrollment and institutional classification because that equates to funding and economic influence. Students that are not even close to being prepared for attendance in a four-year institution are recruited and encouraged to attend. If they borrow money and fail, they cannot take bankruptcy and it is unlikely they can pay off a sizeable loan working part time for minimum wage. Graduates tend to be mobile, and those who fail tend to be locked into state boundaries.
People wonder why the Legislature is unhappy with higher education. The various higher education boards have allowed our current problems to develop in the past 30 years. Instead of following the lead of progressive states like Maryland, North Carolina and Virginia, Louisiana has spent large sums of money per postsecondary student but has failed to produce the occupational credentials needed by a strong economy.  
In view of the circumstances, parents should insist on knowing in advance the likelihood that a student with grades and test scores similar to those of their child will graduate in a reasonable period of time at each institution. It is not where students start but rather where they end up that count. Parents and students can get help at: www.nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator
     
                                         
James H. Wharton
Chancellor Emeritus, LSU