Study: Louisiana has a low percentage of college graduates, state is working to change that

Trinity Velazquez
·2 min read

BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) – A study found that Louisiana has a low percentage of college graduates.

The study by Casinos.com looked at how many people have bachelor’s degrees in each state. It divided that number by the number of people 25 and older, to find the percentage of graduates. They ranked the states in order of most likely to graduate from college based on the percentages to least.

The study found Louisiana has a 26.45% chance of getting a college degree. It’s the fourth-worst ranking in the U.S.

“Louisiana’s economy has long been built on oil and gas, an industry dominated by laborer jobs, many of which don’t require a degree,” said Katelyn Wilkerson, the Communications Director of the University of Louisiana System and executive assistant to the president. “Much of the older workforce in our state never needed a degree to be successful and make a great living.”

Three other southern states are in the Top 10 with low percentages of people graduating. Mississippi had 24.78%. Arkansas had 25.27% and Alabama had 27.43%.

“Every student’s degree completion journey is different. Some students have to step away from school because of family obligations or pregnancy, job opportunities, or just not being ready for the college setting,” Wilkerson said.

The University of Louisiana System created the Compete LA program. It aims to re-engage students who earned some college credit but didn’t finish their degree.

“We pair each student with a dedicated Coach who guides them through the re-enrollment process into the degree program that’s right for them at the UL System member institution of their choosing. Over 6,500 students have expressed interest in the Compete LA program so far and are at various stages of the re-engagement process,” Wilkerson said.

Wilkerson said the nine UL System member institutions awarded 16,020 degrees in the 2022-23 academic year.

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