This article is that map for one particular university: Life University, in Marietta, Georgia. I am not going to tell you whether it is right for your child, because I cannot know that, you do not fully know it yet either, and it is built from three pieces: what the university really is, what your child wants and has built, and what your family can afford. Here, we work only on the first piece. But we work on it thoroughly, with official data, without embellishment and without fear.
Who it is, in brief
Life University is a private nonprofit institution of four years or more. The federal university classification system (Carnegie) describes it, using data from a few years ago, as a small and highly residential school, with at least half of its undergraduate students living in institution-owned, controlled, or affiliated housing, and at least 80 out of every 100 studying full time. That same system also classifies it as a master’s university, and graduate enrollment—counted in that historical snapshot—represented at least half of the total. IPEDS, the official database of the Department of Education, lists it as offering the doctorate as its highest reported level, although that institutional data does not tell you whether the specific program that interests your child goes that far. You confirm that by asking about the exact major.
One fact worth keeping in mind from now on: Life University does not appear in any of the three special federal designations—it is not a historically Black college or university, not a tribal college or university, and not a land-grant institution. That says nothing about which communities it serves today or how your child will feel there. You ask that directly, and confirm it by speaking with someone already studying on campus.
It is in Marietta, within Cobb County, in the Atlanta metropolitan area. That tells you where it is, not how to get there from your home. If your child plans to live with you and commute every day, do it yourself on a weekday, at the exact time they would have class. GPS almost never tells the complete truth.
A medium-sized community, with a Latino presence that is not small
Life University had 2,711 enrolled students in the most recent official count. It is medium-sized, neither among the large nor the small institutions. But here is the first number that really matters if your child is starting a degree: of those 2,711, only 873 are undergraduates. The other 1,838 are graduate students. The total sounds large because it includes graduate enrollment. If your child enters as an undergraduate student, the number that applies to them is 873, not 2,711.
Among those undergraduates, 19 out of every 100 students reported themselves as Hispanic or Latino. It is not a majority, but it is not unusual either: compared with 941 selective-admission private four-year schools, it ranks in the top quarter. Keep something important in mind: that comparison does not adjust for the part of the country where the school is located, and in Georgia that matters. It also tells you nothing about your child’s specific major. It is a figure for the entire school.
Undergraduate enrollment is practically even between men and women: 48 out of every 100 are women. And 16 out of every 100 students are between 25 and 64 years old, so this is not a campus where everyone has just finished high school.
How the year is organized, and which credits it recognizes
Life University uses a quarter system: the year is divided into three terms of about 12 weeks each, rather than the traditional semester. This really matters if your child ever plans to transfer between this school and another one: the calendars may not line up, and that complicates how credits are recognized. Request it in writing from both institutions before making any decision.
The school stated that it accepts credit for AP exams, and it did not indicate that it gives credit for life experience. Accepting AP does not mean it will give credit for every exam with every score. You do not know how many points it requires or how many credits it awards until you request the equivalency evaluation in writing. Do not count that savings in your budget until you have it in hand.
As for what students study: in the most recently reported year, Life University awarded 210 bachelor’s degrees. The largest career family, by a wide margin over the others, was biology and biomedical sciences: 82 of the 210 degrees, almost 4 out of every 10. It is a concentrated offering, not a broad one. Compared with similar schools, it ranks among those reporting fewer career families in their bachelor’s-degree detail. This does not tell you whether the exact major your child wants exists today—that is confirmed directly—but it does tell you that this is not a university with an enormous catalog of options.
The student-to-instructional-staff ratio is 16 to 1. It is a middle figure on the overall scale, but compared with similar schools it ranks in the top quarter. Both things are true at the same time, and neither tells you the actual size of a classroom: that is not included in this data.
What getting in is like: an accessible university, with specific requirements
There is a tension here worth seeing clearly, because it changes depending on where you are in the process.
Life University does not have open admission. It reviews specific pieces before saying yes. Of the nine elements this report asks about, it marked two as required: high school GPA, and an English-proficiency exam for applicants. If your child studied outside the United States or completed high school in Spanish, ask about this today—it is one of those things discovered late, when there is no longer time to resolve it well.
The list of what is NOT considered in the admission decision is longer: the complete high school record, class rank, whether they completed the course plan the university recommends, the essay, letters of recommendation, a portfolio, work experience, and whether a family member studied there. The report does not state the exact weight of each piece, so this does not tell you that GPA is “the only thing that matters”: it only tells you which pieces officially enter the decision.
And now the number that will probably surprise you most: out of every 100 people who applied for admission in the most recent cycle, 94 received an offer of admission. It is a very accessible university, one of those that does say yes. Compared with similar schools, it is on the high-acceptance side. But being likely to get in does not make what comes next easy: that percentage does not tell you how much it will cost, how many complete their degree, or whether the specific program that interests your child has its own additional filter. Those three questions must be asked separately.
Of those admitted, a little more than half—54 out of every 100—ended up enrolling here. The other 46 do not appear enrolled at this school; the data does not say whether they went to another university or what happened. This number does not measure quality or satisfaction; it only counts who enrolled. When admission letters from several schools arrive, this percentage does not decide anything: place the letters side by side and compare net price, major, and distance.
The SAT and ACT are optional. Among those who did enroll and submitted SAT scores (31 out of every 100, a high proportion compared with similar schools), the middle half scored between 440 and 570 in reading and writing, and between 460 and 550 in math. That 440 is not a minimum for admission, and that 570 does not guarantee anything either: these are data for students already enrolled, not for all applicants.
On transfers: of a cohort that entered in 2017, 16 out of every 100 left for another school without finishing here. Changing universities is not failing. But it is wise for your child to know beforehand how to request the paperwork to leave if it is ever needed.
The sticker price, and why it is not what you will pay
At Life University, among 42 first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid and whose EFC records showed family income below $30,000, the average net price was $29,119. Among 17 students in the same population with family EFC income from $48,001 to $75,000, it was $32,094; among 19 students with family EFC income above $110,000, $30,316. For dependent students, the band adds their parents’ income and their own.
The average for the lower-income band (42 students) and that for the higher-income band (19 students) ended up $1,197 apart. Among first-year students who received any scholarship, the average was $30,403.
Among the 937 schools of the same type and control included in this census that reported this data with the same time coverage, this one falls in the most expensive quarter for lower-income families. That does not mean you should rule it out. It means you need to request the aid letter before deciding.
The fact that the two extreme bands are so similar does not mean your family will pay that. The income bands in this profile describe first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid; public institutions use the in-state or district rate. The overall average with scholarships, when it appears, describes first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal, state, local, or institutional scholarships or grants. Run the school’s net price calculator with your own numbers before relying on this figure.
Aid, scholarships, and debt: separate the piles
Out of every 100 degree-seeking students at Life University, 80 received some scholarship or aid that does not have to be repaid. Compared with similar schools, that proportion falls in the quarter where aid reaches fewer students. Among those who did receive it, the average was $11,516 per year. And 39 out of every 100 students received Pell, the federal grant for families with demonstrated financial need.
Here is a clarification I always use with the families I support: a percentage and an average are not multiplied by one another. The percentage tells you how many received something. The average tells you how much they received, on average, only among those who did receive it. They are two different questions.
And now the loan. In the most recently reported academic year, 49 out of every 100 Life University undergraduate students took out a federal student loan. Nearly half. Among those who borrowed, the average was $9,130—in a single academic year. If your child borrowed something similar each year during the four years of the degree, the total would be around $36,520, not counting interest. And that calculation is decided before the first signature, not at the end of the road.
To be clear, that average is only for federal loans in the student’s name in one year. It does not include Parent PLUS loans that parents sometimes sign for, bank debt, or credit-card debt. Nor is it the total debt someone leaves with upon graduation: that would require adding all years, and that number is not in this report.
The institution reports one concrete mechanism for managing payment: an installment tuition plan. It is worth asking about directly at the financial office.
Campus life: housing, sports, and what is not marked
Life University has institution-owned housing, and not all students are required to live there. It also offers meal plans, with a fixed number of meals per week in the largest plan. Its reported maximum housing capacity is 661 students. The existence of housing does not guarantee an available bed; request in writing the year’s rate, the deadline to apply, and whether they guarantee you a space or you go on a waiting list.
The school did not mark any ROTC opportunity in its most recent report. Of the four-year universities in this database, more than half did mark it; Life University was not among them. Its not being marked does not prove that no nearby path exists—it only says it was not reported in that field. If that scholarship matters to your family, ask admissions directly before writing it off.
It does compete in intercollegiate sports, affiliated with the NAIA (not the NCAA), in basketball and cross-country or track and field. That membership belongs to the school, not a promise to your child: if they are interested, write directly to the coach and ask about openings, division, and whether that sport offers a scholarship.
It offers distance education at the undergraduate and graduate levels. In the most recent count, 12 out of every 100 undergraduate students took their entire course load online; the other 88 had at least one in-person class. The school also reported that it offers at least one complete distance program, although the data does not confirm whether that applies to the level or major that interests your child: confirm it directly.
The library operates with hired staff, has physical and digital materials, and offers interlibrary loan. The institution also reports academic and career counseling, employment services, placement services upon program completion, participation in Yellow Ribbon (for veterans), and a services page for people with disabilities. The reporting of these services does not say how good they are or how much the student community uses them: that is something to ask by talking with someone already living there.
The outcomes: the part you have to face directly
Here we reach the most difficult section, and I will give it to you without softening it, because your family deserves the complete truth, not only the comfortable part.
Of a cohort of 163 first-time, full-time, bachelor’s-degree-seeking students, 63 out of every 100 were still enrolled here or had already graduated one year later. Compared with similar schools, that figure is near the bottom: seven out of every ten similar schools retained a larger proportion. The other 37 do not appear in that outcome, and the data does not say what happened to them—it does not say they gave up. They may have transferred, paused, or started working. The source does not distinguish among those possibilities.
The six-year graduation rate is even more difficult: of 112 students who entered in 2017 without prior college attendance, 36 had earned a degree here six years later. That is 32 out of every 100. At four years, the figure falls to 20 out of every 100. Compared with similar schools, Life University is at the bottom of that table: nine out of every ten similar schools graduated a larger proportion.
It is worth seeing the complete breakdown of those 112 students, because the number alone does not tell the entire story:
| Outcome at 6 years | Students |
|---|---|
| Completed a bachelor’s degree here | 36 |
| Transferred and continued at another institution | 18 |
| Still enrolled here, without completing | 4 |
| No longer appeared enrolled anywhere | 54 |
That final group—54 out of 112, almost half—is the federal “no longer enrolled” category. It does not say why they left. It may include people who graduated after the official time limit. It is a real gap in the information, not a judgment about what happened to them.
Expanding the window to eight years, with a different cohort of 385 students who entered in 2015-16, 44 out of every 100 had earned a degree or certificate from this institution. Within that group, something is clear: among those with a Pell grant, only 35 out of every 100 graduated here within eight years, 17 points fewer than those without Pell. It is a difference worth asking the school about directly: what counseling, emergency aid, and internal scholarship renewal exist specifically for students with Pell.
And a clarification owed to precision: all of these graduation and retention rates are for the entire school, not for a particular major. IPEDS does not report graduation by program. If your child is pursuing a specific major, that number—how many who begin that major complete it—must be requested directly from the department.
What each person is responsible for
None of this tells you whether Life University is the right school for your child. It tells you what kind of institution it is, with its own numbers, in its own context.
Your child is responsible for deciding whether the major offered here—concentrated, with clear strength in biology and biomedical sciences—is what they want to build. They are responsible for researching the exact program, asking about AP-credit equivalencies, and writing to the coach if sports matter to them. Their effort is their responsibility once they are inside.
You are responsible for the money. You are responsible for running the net price calculator with your family’s real numbers, instead of relying on other people’s average. You are responsible for reading the financial-aid letter and separating by hand what does not have to be repaid, what must be repaid with interest, and what must be worked for. You are responsible for asking in writing what this report cannot answer: the housing deadline, the actual AP-credit evaluation, and the English requirement if your child studied outside the country.
And the university is responsible for what it has already done: admit 94 out of every 100 applicants, offer a sticker price of $41,295, and show a six-year graduation rate of 32 out of every 100. Those numbers are real and they belong to it. Neither your hope nor your fear changes them.
Now you know in depth one of the three pieces you need to decide. Combine it with what your child wants to study, what they have built so far, and what your family can truly afford, not the sticker price. From that combination, and not from a single piece, a plan is born.
Source: this information comes from IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) and data published by the United States Department of Education, corresponding mainly to the 2022-23 and 2023-24 cycles, as indicated in each section. Best College Aid does not represent Life University or any government agency; this article organizes public information to help you understand it.