

Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center-New Orleans, commonly called LSU Health New Orleans, is a public health-sciences institution whose roots include the opening of LSU's medical school in New Orleans in 1931. It developed into a center for education in medicine, dentistry, nursing, public health, allied health, and biomedical research.
Its history is tied to the city's health-care system. Hurricane Katrina disrupted teaching and clinical operations in 2005, and the institution subsequently rebuilt and expanded parts of its downtown campus. Today, students train across multiple health professions rather than within a general undergraduate university.
LSU Health New Orleans is organized into six schools: Allied Health Professions, Dentistry, Graduate Studies, Medicine, Nursing, and Public Health. Its programs lead to different credentials, including bachelor's degrees, graduate degrees, and professional degrees.
The range includes nursing, dental hygiene, clinical laboratory science, rehabilitation and other allied health fields, biomedical sciences, public health, dentistry, and medicine. Applicants should start with the school and specific program - not a university-wide major list - because prerequisites, clinical placements, accreditation, and licensing paths differ substantially.
The reported student-to-faculty ratio is 3 to 1, with 738 full-time and 224 part-time faculty members teaching undergraduate and graduate students. That institution-wide ratio reflects a specialized health-sciences campus; it does not describe the size of every lecture, laboratory, or clinical group.
LSU Health New Orleans is in downtown New Orleans, Louisiana, near hospitals and other health-care facilities used in professional education. Its urban setting can make clinical training and research sites accessible, although a student's actual placement may be elsewhere in the region.
Commuting is a significant consideration: institutional figures indicate that about 90% of students commute. Before arranging transportation, applicants should check the location and hours of their own school's classes and clinical rotations, along with parking and transit options. Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport serves the metropolitan area.
LSU Health New Orleans describes its purpose in terms of health-professions education, research, patient care, and service to Louisiana's communities. These priorities explain why instruction is closely connected to clinical practice and public health rather than to a broad liberal-arts curriculum.
The institution's stated goals are aims, not proof of any particular student outcome. Prospective students can assess how those aims appear in their intended program by examining its clinical requirements, research opportunities, community activities, and graduate outcomes.
Name of the institution
Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center-New OrleansLevel of institution
Four or more yearsControl of institution
PublicSetting type
City: LargeInstitutional Category
Degree - granting, primarily baccalaureate or aboveInstitution size category
1,000 - 4,999School type
UniversityMain student body
CoeducationalCalendar system
OtherFoundation year
1931Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center-New Orleans is institutionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, an accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Accreditation confirms that the school meets quality standards and is required for students to receive federal financial aid.
Certificate of less than 1 year
Associate's degree
Bachelor's degree
Master's degree
Doctor's degree - research/scholarship
Doctor's degree - professional practiceData last updated on November 2, 2026
Data sources: IPEDS 2024-25, Peterson 2026, College Scorecard 10/2026, Clery 2024 (2023-24), OpenAlex 2026
Figures on this profile come from federal and third-party datasets in the editions listed above and are refreshed periodically, so they may differ from what the institution currently reports. Confirm costs, deadlines and requirements with the school before making decisions.