Louisiana State University--Baton Rouge | Student Reviews | Best College

Student Profile

Nuca

Class: Alum
Major: Economics
Gender: F

High School: Abroad
Transfer Student: N

Big Picture

The tradition it's the best thing. The culture. I like that people have a sense of belonging. I would change the tuition system. I know that because of TOPS, instead of putting a tuition, on some that covers all, they break it down in 100 fees so that they can cheat the system. TOPS waves the tuition, but not the fees. This makes the life and the accounting more complicated and reduces significantly the assistantships of grad students. The school is just right, I don't think it's too big. Definitely not small. In Louisiana, people are impressed if you say that you go to LSU. Outside Louisiana... not so much. They smile and they talked about football, but they are not impressed about the academic performance here. What college town and... after the killing of the 2 Indian students in Eduard Gay... are you kidding me? I don't even leave late from office anymore!!! Rec center I guess is the only place I go from time to time and I do hang out at the bookstore for a coffee. Chimes is not bad either. Highland coffee... if you have time to kill and the weather is nice. The LSU administration is pathetic. With the money that come in because of football, they could do something for the education too. Improve the ratings. And I do know what I talk about since I have worked as an accounting student worker for some grant and I have seen first hand how money is wasted. There is no sense of responsibility or accountability in many of the departments here. And... to quote from an old saying: the fish gets spoiled starting with the head, so the upper echelons in administration... I don't even want to think about it! I do not keep track of the frivolous controversies on campus, but I do wander why the killing of 2 students inside the campus apartments didn't start any controversy. Is it because they are international, so... less than nothing in this country? There is a lot of school pride, that we have. Pride! Unusual... pleasantly unusual is the dedication with which Tiger fans come from across the state to the games with their families and manage to keep the party decent. The mascot I would say is pretty unusual. But spectacular and nice. Experience I'll always remember... hopefully my graduation! Complaints: students complain about teachers. Always. Everybody else is to blame for their poor academic performance but themselves.

Academic Life

I do not hold in high regard the academics here. I have seen students in their senior years asking me how can I expect them to be able to divide 100 by 8 without a calculator and that says it all. I do think that the school has some competitive departments, but a lot of them are just a poor excuse for education. Ask outside Louisiana... LSU is about football, not about school. In the same time I am scared thinking about the quality of the school I would end up teaching at since I will be graduating from LSU. I have seen a lot of good students too and I have encouraged them to pursue PhD programs anywhere but here. It's sad, but it's true. Some students are competitive, but most of the time there is a poor understanding of competition. They are used to get high grades for nothing, receive a huge curve for under performing. There are classes where they get the B for just attending the lectures and when they come across one when that does not happen, it's hell on earth and it's never their fault! Some great classes with some high quality professors: Econometrics and Statistical Theory I and II. My department (Economics) is a small one but with some high quality faculty and grad students. Unfortunately we have to lower the standards too many times to accommodate the students coming from other departments to take classes in our department. The research is limited by the low funds that exist and the teaching assignments. In other schools, the assistantship that we are getting is paid for half of our teaching load. plus, the responsibility is enormous. Luckily we get support from the senior faculty. Otherwise it would be just ridiculous.

Student Body

I really do not pay any attention to this since I've always considered that the school should be free of any racial/religious/political/financial discussion. School should be about school and this is all I care about. The rest... is nonsense and when people care more about the collaterals... there is a problem! When it comes to the international students, most of them tend to keep together and get attached to cultural organizations.