Frequently Asked Questions: Video Answers

Our requirements for admission vary by student type, whether a freshman, a transfer student, a readmitted student, an undergraduate student or a graduate student. To apply, begin at ApplyTexas.org.

Make sure you choose Lamar University as your target university and don’t forget to hit submit button at the end of the application. We will receive it the next day and begin communicating with you. You will need to submit transcripts from either your high school and/or all colleges that you have attended, and we will also need the necessary test scores (SAT, ACT, GRE, GMAT, etc.).

Be sure to check your email every day for updates from us. For more information about admissions, visit beacardinal.com, and choose your admission type from the menu.

You can apply to Lamar University at ApplyTexas.org. Make sure that you go all the way to the end and hit the “Submit” button. We will communicate with you immediately through the personal email address you provided so be sure to check your inbox regularly.

If you don’t see it there, check your spam folder to be sure. In addition, we will let you know how to check your admission status online, 24 hours a day in those notifications.

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• How to Apply

If you have credits from another college or university, or you took dual-credit or co-enrolled classes at your local high school, Lamar University has a simple transfer process. First, apply for admissions at ApplyTexas.org. Second, submit your transcript from any college or university you attended. And third, check your email.

We will send you specific instructions on how to login to your Lamar Email Account (LEA). All the details will be there to find out exactly what transfer credit you received. For more information about the transfer process, visit us online at lamar.edu/transfer.

     Useful Links:

• Transfer Students

Once you are accepted, there are three steps. First, memorize your Student ID. That is the number you received in your acceptance letter that starts with an L.  The second step is to activate your LU Email account.

You also received that information in your acceptance letter. Activate that account as soon as possible because your LU Email is the official channel that Lamar University will use to contact you. 

The final step is to get in touch with the Undergraduate Advising Center. You can check their website at lamar.edu/advising, or give them a call at 409-880-8822. 

Useful Links:

• Accepted Students Checklist

At Lamar University, tuition fees are relatively low in comparison with other schools in the state of Texas.  The cost of attending LU will vary with each student. Check lamar.edu/tuitioncosts, to get an estimated cost of attendance at Lamar University. Figures are based on full-time status. Cost of living on campus is based on room-and-board, transportation costs, personal costs, and book costs. If you have any other questions and need to contact someone, visit lamar.edu/financialaid.

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• Tuition and Fees

If you have already completed your tax return for the prior year, make sure that you have already gone to the fafsa.gov website. That is a free application for federal student aid. The application will start off by asking if you have a student ID? You and your parent will need an ID to electronically sign the FAFSA application. An easy way to tackle manually putting in your income information is to use the IRS Data Retrieval. Lamar University will receive your FAFSA information in about 3-5 days. If you have any questions or need more information on the process of filling out your Financial Aid Application, go to lamar.edu/financialaid.

Useful Links:

• Applying for Financial Aid

To apply for scholarships at Lamar University you would first have to be a registered student.  Then you will go to lamar.edu and click “mylamar” which will take you to “myScholarships.” Our priority deadline at LU for our General Scholarships is February 1^st, but we do have a lot of scholarships that have different deadlines. If you receive a scholarship to Lamar, the system actually emails you, letting you know that you have been awarded a scholarship and exactly what steps you need to take next. Anytime a student is awarded a scholarship they have to do what is called “Post-Acceptance,” which means you are submitting your information, your address, your updated contact information, so we can send you more information about your scholarship, whether that be your donor information. Don’t forget to check your “myScholarships” dashboard. 

Useful Links:

• Applying for Scholarships

LU has more than 100 majors from the STEM field (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) to the ASL Program (American Sign Language). Lamar University also has a Fine Arts programs along with Business, Undergraduate and Graduate programs. Our Athletics are all Division I. There is something for everybody. If you would like to find out more about what we have to offer, go to lamar.edu/academics.

Useful Links:

• Majors and Programs

Typically, a full-time load at Lamar University is going to be between 12 hours and 18 hours. 12 hours is the minimum for a full-time load. 18 hours is generally regarded as the maximum a student can take in a regular semester. You would want to find the right balance along with the other things that you may be involved in on campus. Also, Lamar University does offer a lot of other sessions, like Summer Sessions and Mini-Sessions where students can pick up classes. During the summer, typically between 6-8 hours is going to be a full-time load there, or 4 hours for a Mini-Session.

Useful Links:

• Undergraduate Advising

There is a world of opportunity to study abroad. Students can study abroad beginning their freshman year through to graduate school. Study Abroad opportunities vary from 1 week to 5 weeks or even an entire semester. You will be able to communicate across cultures and have more confidence in yourself. Students who study abroad have shown that they are more likely to graduate, graduate on time, and have a higher GPA.

In Cardinal Village, each person has a private locking room and shares a living room and bathroom with one other person. Every room comes with a twin extra-large mattress bed, a desk, two sets of drawers that can either be stacked on top of each other or fit under your bedroom and a closet. The bathroom has two separate sinks, medicine cabinets, under-sink storage, a shower, commode and a towel rack. The living room comes furnished with a couch, chair, table, cabinet, refrigerator, and a place for your television.  Each room also has cable and high-speed internet. At Cardinal Village, we value security. So when you enter a Residence Hall, all you have to do is show the guard your ID. And if you would like to bring a guest, make sure you sign them in. Every residence hall also has free laundry. No quarters or dollars are required to use these machines. Just don’t forget to bring your own soap.

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• Campus Housing

To apply for on campus housing all you have to do is go to lamar.edu/residencelife. From there you will see Residence Housing and that will bring you to the Application Portal. You will to login with your L-number and Password that you received in your acceptance letter. The first thing you have to do is pay the $150 down payment. Now, you are able to go through and finish your application. When you are finished, sign the contract electronically. If you are under the age of 18, you will have to get a Parent/Guardian Authorization Form. And then you can select a Meal Plan and a Roommate. If you would like to room with someone you know, make sure you and the roommate fill out the application at the same time. 

Useful Links:

• Apply for Residency at Cardinal Village

As a member of the Texas State University System, it is a requirement that all first-time freshmen live on campus. For local students, they can fill out a Campus Housing Exemption Form online. Residence Life provides a number of activities and events that students of the resident halls are able to attend that are free of charge.

            

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• Living at LU

New Student Orientation takes place during the summer to give incoming freshman their first experience with Lamar University culture and to help these students sign up for classes.

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• Learn more about NSO

Move-In Day is an exciting time around campus. When you arrive at your appointed time, check-in with your residence hall, and dozens of student organizations will help you unload your vehicles and get you moved into your new home.

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• Move-In Day: What to Bring and What to Leave Behind

Big Red Take Off is a back-to-school celebration. Various events take place all across campus every day. Big Red Take Off is designed to engage incoming students with the student body and to meet new people. Events take places at many locations across campus to get new students familiar with Lamar University. Big Red Take Off takes place in August and January to welcome back students from the winter break.

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• Week of Welcome

At Lamar University, we encourage students to be involved on campus; there is something for everybody. If you want to go Greek, there are more than 20 different fraternities and sororities. We also have more than 100 other clubs and organizations involving politics, religion, veterans, business, sports, most majors, international countries, honor societies, service, and sporting clubs. 

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• Student Activities & Events

Lamar University has numerous eateries on and off campus. First, The Brook-Shivers Dining hall, where different meat is served daily, there are two in the Setzer Student center, which are Mirabeau’s, a café-style place to eat and study and if you are looking for something quick, the Nest is there. We also have a juice bar in the Recreation Center, for your custom made smoothies after a workout. A Papa Johns and Convenience store located inside of Monroe Hall with fresh pizza and wings. There are also two places to eat across the street on campus: Subway and Kampus Korner. 

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• Campus Dining

Recreational Sports offer a lot of activities, such as free-play basketball, volleyball, and racquetball, rock-climbing wall as well as play rooms. We provide certified personal trainers, who are students, for a small fee, can pay that personal trainer. Recreational Sports does have a dress code for students. You can go to lamar.edu/recsports to see what it is you have to wear to be safe. You can go to the pool, which is across from the Sheila Umphrey Recreational Sports Center. Outdoor Pursuits has casual trips that they take to go hiking or camping or canoeing at different places in and outside of Texas. 

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• Recreation and Wellness

Every student here at Lamar University has the opportunity to purchase a parking pass, which you can get at the Carl Parker Building. This allows you to park in lots designated with an A. Lots with an F are reserved for Faculty and Staff. When you become a Senior, you can purchase an S Parking Pass. This pass gives access for seniors to park at designated lots during certain hours. To check out all the rules on where to park and shuttle service times visit lamar.edu/parking.

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• Campus Parking & Maps

The Lamar University Police Department (LUPD) has security officers that does roaming patrols, either on foot or on bicycle. LUPD provides shuttle services for  students, which runs throughout the day and the week. If you live off-campus in the apartment buildings, the shuttle does run there too. Then on the weekends, if needed, the shuttle will take students to Walmart and Central Mall, so they are able to pick up some stuff they need that they may not find on campus. The shuttle services help students who may have a class or are leaving the library at night back to their dorm or location if they do not want to walk back. Lamar University also has emergency blue and white polls designated on campus for students to push a button if they do not feel safe in the area they are in, which acts as a 911 call, there LUPD can pick up and know exactly where a student is  at the exact moment.

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• Campus Safety

There are 8 floors and plenty of rooms and seating for everyone in the library. When you cannot make it to the library, you can access our library and academic search engines online. Also, LU has tutors and an academic writing center on the first floor, where the brightest students can help you with your papers. On the first and 7^th floors, you can use computers and print things. You can also study on the second floor of our Setzer Student Center on one of our relaxing pieces of furniture. Nearly every building and department has at least a study lounge or room so no matter where you are at, there is always somewhere to study within just a few feet of you. Remember, opening and closing times of our study areas varies by day of the week and location. 

Useful Links:

• Mary and John Gray Library

The Disability Resource Center at Lamar University offers accommodations so that students with disabilities have an equal chance at getting information, accessing events on campus, and also being able to be a student. Everything is kind of tailored and unique to the individual so that the person can put the focus back on being a student, just like everybody else, and take the focus off the disability. If you are a student with a disability and planning on attending Lamar, come and check out the Disability Resource Center and talk with us to find out what services you might qualify for and know that there will be a team of people to support you. 

Useful Links:

• Disability Resource Center

Lamar University students enjoy cheering on the Cardinals in more than a dozen NCAA Division I men’s and women’s sports. Competing in the Southland Conference, Cardinals teams have a history of winning championships in sports including men’s and women’s basketball, volleyball, golf and cross country. LU’s football program has heightened excitement on campus with sell-out crowds and students involved in marching band, cheerleading, the dance team and all the fun of game-day tailgating. 

Useful Links:

• LU Athletics