Best Test-Optional Louisiana Colleges
Louisiana has 13 ranked test-optional colleges, part of our national test-optional list. These schools do not require SAT or ACT scores with your application, ranked by academic quality and outcomes.
Louisiana State University tops our 2027 test-optional rankings in Louisiana. The top rated public option is also Louisiana State University. Also highly ranked: Xavier University of Louisiana, Louisiana Tech University and University of Louisiana at Lafayette.
Without test scores, your GPA, activities, recommendation letters, and essays carry more weight. Compare acceptance rates, tuition, and enrollment across the colleges below. Sort by tuition or acceptance rate to find schools that fit your profile. See our ranking methodology for how schools are scored.
Louisiana State University
- Public 4 Year
- Baton Rouge, LA
-
4.7 | 3 reviews
- Jul 15 application deadline
LSU is a large public university known for undergraduate petroleum engineering, agriculture, and business. The campus sits along the Mississippi River in Baton Rouge.
- SAT Range 1180-1340
- Avg GPA 3.77
- Acceptance Rate 73%
- Net Price $21,430
Xavier University of Louisiana
- Private 4 Year
- New Orleans, LA
-
| 0 reviews
- Jul 1 application deadline
Xavier University of Louisiana is a private Catholic HBCU known for undergraduate pharmacy, biology, and chemistry. The urban campus sits in New Orleans.
- SAT Range 950-1113
- Avg GPA 3.7
- Acceptance Rate 69%
- Net Price $17,162
Louisiana Tech University
- Public 4 Year
- Ruston, LA
-
3.3 | 3 reviews
Louisiana Tech is a public university known for undergraduate engineering, computer science, and architecture. Ruston is a college town in northern Louisiana built around the campus.
- SAT Range 1100-1310
- Avg GPA 3.58
- Acceptance Rate 86%
- Net Price $12,325
University of Louisiana at Lafayette
- Public 4 Year
- Lafayette, LA
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
UL Lafayette is a large public university known for undergraduate nursing, engineering, and architecture. The campus is set in Lafayette, a hub of Cajun and Acadiana culture in southern Louisiana.
- SAT Range 1120-1240
- Avg GPA 3.4
- Acceptance Rate 87%
- Net Price $13,017
University of Louisiana at Monroe
- Public 4 Year
- Monroe, LA
-
| 0 reviews
ULM is a public university known for undergraduate pharmacy, nursing, and health sciences. The campus borders Bayou DeSiard in Monroe.
- SAT Range 1160-1360
- Avg GPA 3.53
- Acceptance Rate 85%
- Net Price $13,648
Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University
- Private 4 Year
- Baton Rouge, LA
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
FranU is a private Catholic university known for undergraduate nursing and health sciences. The compact Baton Rouge campus is tied to the Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady health system.
- SAT Range -
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.23
- Acceptance Rate 99%
- Net Price $16,432
University of New Orleans
- Public 4 Year
- New Orleans, LA
-
3.5 | 2 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
UNO is a public university known for undergraduate naval architecture, marine engineering, and hospitality. The urban campus sits on the south shore of Lake Pontchartrain.
- SAT Range 935-1241
- Avg GPA 3.21
- Acceptance Rate 74%
- Net Price $12,258
Louisiana State University Shreveport
- Public 4 Year
- Shreveport, LA
-
| 0 reviews
LSU Shreveport is a public university in the LSU system with undergraduate programs in business, education, and the sciences. The campus serves students across the Shreveport-Bossier region of northwest Louisiana.
- SAT Range 1000-1195
- Avg GPA 3.38
- Acceptance Rate 51%
- Net Price $7,287
McNeese State University
- Public 4 Year
- Lake Charles, LA
-
| 0 reviews
McNeese is a public university known for undergraduate nursing, engineering, and business. The campus sits in Lake Charles in southwest Louisiana.
- SAT Range 940-1198
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.36
- Acceptance Rate 78%
- Net Price $12,430
Northwestern State University of Louisiana
- Public 4 Year
- Natchitoches, LA
-
| 0 reviews
Northwestern State is a public university known for undergraduate nursing and education. The campus is in historic Natchitoches, a small city along the Cane River.
- SAT Range 866-1163
- Avg GPA 3.3
- Acceptance Rate 93%
- Net Price $13,134
Dillard University
- Private 4 Year
- New Orleans, LA
-
| 0 reviews
Dillard is a private historically Black university known for undergraduate nursing, public health, and the sciences. The urban campus sits in New Orleans's Gentilly neighborhood.
- SAT Range 968-1202
- Avg GPA 3.31
- Acceptance Rate 42%
- Net Price $21,842
Southeastern Louisiana University
- Public 4 Year
- Hammond, LA
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
Southeastern Louisiana is a public university known for undergraduate nursing, education, and business. The residential campus is in Hammond, a smaller city between Baton Rouge and New Orleans.
- SAT Range -
- Avg GPA 3.39
- Acceptance Rate 99%
- Net Price $13,116
Southern University and A & M College
- Public 4 Year
- Baton Rouge, LA
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
Southern is a public historically Black university known for undergraduate nursing, engineering, and agriculture. The Baton Rouge campus sits on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River.
- SAT Range 790-1020
- Avg GPA 3.1
- Acceptance Rate 35%
- Net Price $18,353