Graduate Schools in Louisiana | LA Graduate Programs

Louisiana is like a zesty jambalaya of Creole and Cajun culture – an intoxicating mix of Spanish, American, French, and Caribbean influences. New Orleans, especially, is well known for Jazzfest and Mardi Gras, two city-wide parties with fantastic music and colorful parades, respectively.

There’s a vibrant culture in and outside the cities, where you’ll find mythical swampland and rich Southern charm. Going to graduate in Louisiana could be an exciting and inspiring experience, for sure.

So let the good times roll! In Cajun French, that’s, Laissez les bon temps rouler!!

Why Go to Grad School in Louisiana

In the center of the Gulf of Mexico’s northern coast, the Bayou State appeals to grad students from around the world for its unique culture, outdoor landscape, palette-pleasing food, and lively vibe. Students pursuing a graduate degree in Louisiana can study a variety of topics from information technology and criminal studies to architecture and music in both private and public universities.

New Orleans is the largest city in the state and its center of tourism. With its historically rich neighborhoods, music festivals, nightlife, museums, food, Mardi Gras and voodoo vibe, New Orleans is known around the world. It suburb Metairie offers more quiet surrounds, with Big Easy attractions only 30 minutes away. The state capital of Baton Rouge draws for its outdoor recreation, regionally-focused museums, iconic architecture, and college sports. In the northwest corner of the state, surrounded by lakes and rivers, Shreveport not only offers myriad recreational opportunities but hosts many cultural events throughout the year.

Fun Fact

Mardi Gras is Louisiana’s biggest party – and it’s most colorful. The Mardi Gras colors are Purple (Justice), Gold (Power), and Green (Faith).

Living and Learning in Louisiana

Rural Creole culture and easygoing urban affluence come together in Louisiana. New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Shreveport contain an intoxicating mix of culture and energy. Outside the cities, you’ll find an equally exciting mix of Creole and Cajun culture and history infused with seemingly endless outdoor pursuits.

No matter where you choose to settle, Louisiana certainly will keep you inspired with its unique culture that is like no other in the United States. Louisiana has a humid subtropical climate – summers are hot and humid, while winters are warm and mild. New Orleans serves as the main airport gateway, with many smaller regional airports. Getting around the state is best by car but buses and Amtrak trains also provide transportation.

Culture

Louisiana culture is rich in history, both Southern and Creole, dating back to the 16th century when New Orleans served as Mississippi River gateway port for French and Spanish traders. The cities, especially New Orleans, embrace their history through music, food, and culture.

You won’t find a shortage of Southern-focused museums, music venues of all sizes, and a mouth-watering culinary smorgasbord of regional cuisine. Outside the city, Southern and Cajun culture abounds: the Great River Road –its stunning collection of Southern antebellum mansions, filled with period antiques, line the Mississippi River – showcases the state’s Plantation heritage, while Cajun Country wears its French influence proud through its music and zesty cuisine. To be sure, Music is everywhere throughout the state, from the Zydeco brunches in Cajun Country to the lively rhythm and blues in New Orleans – it’s entwined with the culture.

Getting Outside

With year-round warm weather, Louisiana offers myriad outdoor opportunities throughout the state. After all, more than 15 percent of Louisiana is covered in water – swamps, marshes, bayous, and rivers are everywhere. Kayak, paddleboat, canoe, or whisk through a swamp on airboat ride.

Away from the water, you can golf the many courses outside Shreveport and Baton Rouge, hike Tunica Hills State Wildlife Management Area or the Barataria Preserve trails of Jean Lafitte National Park outside New Orleans. Let’s not forget the many outdoor music festivals throughout the state, where you’ll be feted with not only music but also with zesty Cajun and Creole food.

The Food Scene

Louisiana is world famous for its food – and when you’re here you’re going to taste a lot of flavors. Seafood is otherworldly here – oysters, crawfish dishes, alligator – as well as spicy staples like jambalaya and gumbo. Creole flavors all the cuisine, so even in the smallest towns and rural areas you’ll find plenty Southern staples like grits, ham, barbeque, greens, cornbread, and Creole bread pudding. And you’ll finde it abundance, so bring a hearty appetite.

City Living

Nestled within the Louisiana’s rural farmland, swamplands, and bayous, these four cities are fantastic spots to pursue a graduate degree. Music, outdoor excursions, food, culture, and a variety of graduate programs make these cities worth checking out:

  • New Orleans
  • Baton Rouge
  • Shreveport
  • Metairie

New Orleans

The Big Easy – one of the most exciting and unique cities in the United States – blends well-mannered Southern hospitality with a full-on party spirit. You have the lively French Quarter with its 18th-century Spanish architecture; the lavish mansions in Garden District; Uptown, with its parks and university vibe – and that’s just the beginning. The culinary scene is no less than fantastic – gumbo, muffuletta sandwiches, Po boys, beignets, crawfish etouffee, oysters freshly shucked, and so much more.

Mardi Gras and Jazzfest draw million of tourists every year, plus there’s many smaller music festival year-round that keep rhythm rocking. New Orleans nightlife scene is equally lively, with its many music clubs in the Faubourg Marigny, French Quarter, and Uptown as well as street musician that wander around the French Quarter.

The city holds many interesting museums – the New Orleans Museum of Art, Ogden Museum of Southern History, Mardi Gras Museum of Costumes and Culture, New Orleans Historic Voodoo Museum – as well as historic above-ground cemeteries, streetcars, and beautifully manicured parks. Its proximity to outdoor activities outside the city make it an exciting place for graduate study.

Metairie

Sleepy Metairie, New Orleans largest suburb, offers prospective grad students proximity to New Orleans finest universities, its attractions, and its rocking nightlife. It’s also closer to many outdoor and rural attractions like the Great River Road and Cajun County. In contract to New Orleans, Metairie is a quiet respite, perfect for the graduate students who prefer the quieter side of New Orleans. You’ll find superb restaurants, many parks for outdoor pursuits, and a sophisticated cultural vibe that infuses the community.

Baton Rouge

The stately state capital, Baton Rouge blends a lively university spirit with cultural subtlety. This is the home of LSU, after all, so college sports fans will have much take part in. Add to the mix is diverse collection of bars, music clubs, and restaurants – more relaxed than in New Orleans but no less interesting. The city has a vibrant performing arts scene, many nearby outdoor attractions such as swamp tours and the LSU Lakes, and historic architecture. The Saturday morning Red Stick Farmers Market is a great way to soak up the culture and the food in Baton Rouge.

Shreveport

With its oil-rich industry background and the mansions on Fairfield Avenue, Shreveport wears its history proud. It’s a golf lovers mecca, too, with a plethora of fine courses in an outside the city. To be sure, outdoor lover will find many recreational opportunities here – hiking, biking, boating, and more on the city’s nearby rivers and lakes. The food scene here is no less than savory, and you can indulge in the Cajun cuisine at many restaurants and diners throughout town. You can also find other ethnic delights, as well. A bustling nightlife scene in downtown Shreveport rounds out the mix.

Fun Fact

Louisiana’s official musical instrument is the “Cajun Accordion,” essential in the lively Zydeco music you’ll hear all around the state.

Major Louisiana Industries

Students going to grad school in Louisiana can pursue a variety of post-graduate opportunities including small business, hospitality, film, engineering, education, and law. New Orleans continues to have a growing economy and is strong in hospitality, health care, education, and the energy industries. Health care, hospitality, education, and small business opportunities avail themselves in Shreveport, while Baton Rouge adds those and government opportunities to the mix.

Explore Graduate Schools in Louisiana

Prospective graduate students can find a variety of schools in Louisiana. You may find one that suits not only your area of study but also one that has an environment that fits your lifestyle. The following are a few highlights:

Popular Graduate Programs in Louisiana

Louisiana offers an array of graduate school opportunities not only in its major metro areas of New Orleans and Baton Rouge but also in the myriad smaller communities throughout the state. Here are some of the top options to study at the graduate level.

Business

A variety of business opportunities – including Finance, Hospitality Management, Market and Advertising, and more – can be found throughout the state, especially in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, and New Orleans. At the University of New Orleans, the Master of Science in Hospitality & Tourism Management seeks to prepare future leaders in the hospitality and tourism industry, helping to shape student knowledge in global tourism. In the Media and Public Affairs graduate program at Louisiana State University, students explore how political communication, journalism, advertising, and public relations shape perceptions and public discourse locally, nationally, and globally.

Also at Louisiana State University, the Finance graduate degree program provides its students with the analytical and communicative skills necessary for effective financial decision-making through the application of financial theory and quantitative techniques. The International Business program at Tulane University focuses on translating education into experience through group project, case analyses, computer simulations, videotape sessions, field assignments, and internships.

Education

At Louisiana State University in Shreveport, a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction in ESL degree seeks to give students the knowledge and skills to shape your success in the teaching world. The graduate program in Education at University of Louisiana at Lafayette provides students with the confidence, content knowledge, and professional leadership skills to become effective leaders who are ready to face the challenges of education in the 21st century.

Southern University and A & M College offers the Administration and Supervision graduate program, which brings an esteemed graduate faculty of Fulbright Scholars, distinguished researchers, and mentors to engage and mentor students in new and dynamic leadership. The School Psychology program at Tulane University focuses on knowledge of normal developmental processes as the basis for understanding children’s behavior and learning.

Science & Engineering

At the University of New Orleans, a graduate degree in Biological Science provides opportunities for coursework and independent research in a variety of areas ranging from molecular to ecosystem biology. The Petroleum Engineering graduate program at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette seeks emphasizes research in drilling, production, well completion, reservoir characterization, enhanced petroleum recovery, and environmental issues.

The Master of Science in Physics at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette strives to prepare scientists and engineers to enter various technical fields or assist them to improve their skills in their current employment through Applied Physics and Computational Physics. At Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, the goal of the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology graduate program is to provide students with the core knowledge, analytical skills, and intellectual discipline to become a successful biomedical scientist in academia or industry.

Health & Medicine

Opportunities for a graduate degree in health and medicine are wide and varied in Louisiana. The Health Systems Management degree at Tulane University seeks to advance public health knowledge, promote health and well-being, and prevent disease, disability and premature mortality through rigorous scientific research of public health problems and creative partnerships in the international public health community. A Master of Science in Nursing program at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette is designed for nurses seeking the opportunity to engage in advanced nursing practice to improve the health of diverse populations across the lifespan. Northwestern State University of Louisiana in Natchitoches offers a Master of Science in Health & Human Performance designed to prepare professionals to design, implement, and evaluate health promotion programs.

At Southern University and A & M College, graduate students who pursue at degree in Speech-Language Pathology can move forward to provide public service to local, state, national, and international communities regarding persons with communication disorders across the lifespan as well as provide ethical service delivery to a broad spectrum of cultural and linguistically diverse populations in employment settings such as schools and other educational institutions, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and more.

Find a Graduate School in Louisiana

Want to pursue a graduate degree in Louisiana? You’ll find many schools and settings from which to choose. It’s simple! Set your filters with the menu bar – degree level, subject, etcetera. Choose graduate programs in Louisiana based on your preferences. Then apply with the on-page form. You’re ready to go!

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