Loyola Marymount University (LMU)

Loyola Marymount University is a private Jesuit university in Los Angeles ranked among the top 110 national universities in the U.S. Known for its film school, business programs, and Westchester campus overlooking the Pacific, LMU enrolls around 10,000 students and offers 120-plus undergraduate majors. This guide covers LMU’s acceptance rate, real cost of attendance, academic programs, and famous alumni, including names you’ll definitely recognize.

If you’ve heard of Loyola Marymount University but aren’t quite sure what it is, you’re not alone. LMU college sits in a strange position in the American higher education conversation: well-respected by those who know it, surprisingly underrated by those who don’t. It’s a Jesuit Catholic university on a bluff in West LA, ranked in the top 110 nationally, with a film school that competes with USC and NYU, and a alumni list that includes some genuinely recognizable names.

But the question most people actually want answered isn’t about prestige. It’s about fit, cost, and whether Loyola Marymount is worth the price of admission. So here’s a straightforward look at what the school is, what it costs, who gets in, and whether it belongs on your list.

What Kind of School Is LMU?

Loyola Marymount University is a private, Catholic, Jesuit institution, so yes, to answer the common search directly: LMU is a private school. It’s not a public UC or Cal State campus, and it doesn’t carry state subsidies that keep tuition lower for California residents. It operates on its own endowment, its own tuition model, and its own academic identity shaped by Jesuit educational values.

But “Jesuit” isn’t just a religious label here. It shapes how the university is run: small classes, emphasis on ethics and community service, a curriculum that pushes students across disciplines rather than siloing them inside a single major. The 10-to-1 student-to-faculty ratio and average undergraduate class size of 20 reflect that philosophy directly.

Here’s a quick snapshot of what LMU actually is:

The Loyola Marymount University logo, which features a stylized lion, is one of the more recognizable in West Coast Catholic higher education. It’s a useful shorthand for the school’s identity: rooted in tradition but very much operating in one of the most competitive academic markets in the country.

A Brief History of Loyola Marymount University

The university you see today is actually the result of over 150 years of parallel histories converging in one place. The story starts in 1865, when Bishop Thaddeus Amat commissioned the Vincentian Fathers to open St. Vincent’s College for Boys near Olvera Street in Los Angeles. That made it the first Catholic institution of higher learning in Southern California, and one of the oldest colleges in the state.

The Vincentians eventually stepped away in 1911, and Bishop Thomas Conaty brought in the Jesuits to take over. The Jesuits, wanting a clean start free of accumulated debt, founded Los Angeles College that same year. By 1918 it was incorporated as Loyola College of Los Angeles, and in 1930 it officially became Loyola University of Los Angeles after moving to its current Westchester bluff location in 1928, a site offered by real estate developer Harry Culver.

The “Marymount” side of the name has its own origin. The Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary began educating women in Southern California in 1923 and established Marymount College in Westwood in 1933. By 1968, Marymount College had relocated to the Westchester campus as an autonomous partner. Five years later, in 1973, the two institutions formally merged to become Loyola Marymount University. Today, the school is co-sponsored by three religious orders: the Jesuits, the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary, and the Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange.

Is Loyola Marymount a Good School? Rankings and Reputation

Yes, Loyola Marymount is a good school, and the rankings back that up concretely. U.S. News and World Report places LMU at number 102 among national universities in its 2026 edition, number 6 among private universities in California, and number 27 in the country for best undergraduate teaching. Those are serious numbers. The undergraduate teaching ranking in particular puts LMU ahead of schools with far bigger name recognition.

What is LMU known for? The film school is the clearest answer. The School of Film and Television was ranked number 5 in the nation by The Hollywood Reporter, placing it among a very short list of programs that include USC, NYU, and AFI. LMU’s Playa Vista campus sits physically inside the same zip code as major entertainment and tech companies, which is not a coincidence.

Here’s where it gets interesting: LMU’s business and engineering programs also rank nationally, which is less commonly known. U.S. News puts LMU at number 10 for undergraduate international business, number 15 for entrepreneurship, and number 21 for undergraduate engineering. So it’s not a school that rests entirely on one niche.

Is LMU a good school for students who care about community and service? The Princeton Review thinks so, ranking it 17th nationally for student community engagement. And if sustainability matters to you, number 4 for Green Colleges is hard to argue with. So the short answer to “is LMU a good school” is: it depends what you’re looking for, but in a handful of categories, it competes with schools that charge the same price and get twice the press.

What Is the LMU Acceptance Rate?

The Loyola Marymount University acceptance rate sits at approximately 45 percent for the most recent admissions cycle, meaning roughly 4 in 10 applicants receive an offer. That puts LMU in the moderately selective category. It’s more competitive than most colleges nationally, but it’s not in the ultra-selective tier of the UC campuses or the Ivies.

Worth pausing on that for a second: a 45 percent rate can feel misleading. The school receives over 23,000 applications in a typical cycle, which means tens of thousands of students don’t get in. The admitted student profile matters more than the headline number. Most accepted students carry GPAs in the 3.6 to 3.9 range, and SAT scores for admitted students typically fall between 1260 and 1430. LMU has remained test-optional through 2026, so submitting scores is not required.

The 11-year trend on the LMU acceptance rate is also telling. According to historical admissions data, the average acceptance rate over the past decade has been around 47 percent, and it’s been gradually tightening. The enrollment yield, around 15 percent, suggests most admitted students treat LMU as one option among several rather than a top choice.

The loyola marymount acceptance rate rewards applications with a clear reason for being there. Because LMU emphasizes Jesuit values around service, ethics, and community, essays that engage those themes genuinely tend to strengthen an otherwise solid application.

How Many Students Attend LMU?

The LMU population as of the 2024 to 2025 academic year is 10,179 total students. The LMU undergraduate population accounts for 7,273 of those students, with 2,906 enrolled in graduate programs. By comparison to other private research universities of similar size, those numbers are fairly typical, but LMU keeps class sizes small enough that the undergraduate experience doesn’t feel like a large university.

The gender breakdown leans slightly toward women, with female students making up about 55 percent of the undergraduate body. LMU’s student population has grown by over 1,000 undergraduates over the past decade, while graduate enrollment has been declining slightly. About 45 percent of undergraduates live in campus housing; the rest live off campus or with family.

Here’s the part most people miss: LMU is genuinely diverse. The student body reflects Los Angeles closely. Hispanic and Latino students make up around 27 percent of enrollment, White students around 37 percent, Asian students around 11 percent, and Black students around 8 percent. International students from 57 countries add another layer. That diversity isn’t accidental. It reflects both the Jesuit commitment to serving underrepresented communities and LMU’s deep roots in the LA basin.

What Programs and Degrees Does LMU Offer?

Loyola Marymount University degrees span seven distinct colleges and schools, covering over 120 undergraduate majors and minors, 44 master’s degree programs, three doctoral programs, and 12 credential programs. That’s a broader catalog than most people expect from a school this size. The breadth is one of LMU’s real strengths.

The seven academic divisions are worth knowing by name:

Faculty research at LMU is well-funded. The school spent $16.2 million in external grant funding in the 2024 fiscal year, with professors holding grants from NASA, the National Science Foundation, and several public health foundations. The school employs 19 Fulbright Scholars. That’s the kind of research activity that lifts students into graduate programs and competitive careers, even if it doesn’t make the same headlines as larger research universities. You can explore more California higher education coverage at Cal Channel.

What Does LMU Actually Cost? Tuition, Fees, and Financial Aid

Here’s where the numbers get serious. Undergraduate tuition at LMU for the 2026 to 2027 academic year is $68,042, up 5.54 percent from the prior year. That increase outpaced most of its California private peers, including USC, Santa Clara University, Chapman, and the University of San Diego, all of which raised tuition by 4.5 percent or less. When you add housing, food, books, and fees, the on-campus total cost of attendance approaches $99,289 per year.

But here’s the thing. LMU runs what finance researchers call a high-tuition, high-aid model. The sticker price is real, but most students don’t pay it. Ninety percent of all LMU undergraduates receive some form of financial aid. In the 2025 to 2026 academic year, the university distributed $192 million in grants and scholarships: $142 million in direct institutional aid, $18.2 million in federal and state grants, and over $6.4 million in work-study awards.

“When I analyze schools like LMU, the sticker price is almost never the real price. The net cost after aid for families earning under $75,000 is often less than half the published tuition. What matters is the school’s discount rate and how aggressively it funds students at your income level. LMU’s endowment of $782 million and its 605 donor-funded scholarships give it real firepower to close the gap.”

Sam Niclame, Higher Education Finance Researcher

To put net cost in perspective: a family earning under $30,000 per year can expect a projected net price of around $37,030 at LMU after aid. For families earning between $75,000 and $110,000, that number rises to about $46,542. Data USA tracks LMU’s financial profile and shows the school’s aid distribution has expanded consistently over recent years. The gap between sticker price and net price is wide, and that’s by design.

Famous LMU Alumni You Might Recognize

LMU’s alumni roster skews heavily toward entertainment, law, and media, which makes sense given its location in Los Angeles and the strength of its film and law schools. Some of the names are very well known. Others are the kind of recognizable-from-somewhere that takes a second to place.

Linda Cardellini is probably the most decorated LMU alumna in Hollywood. She graduated in 1997 and went on to earn a Distinguished Alumni Award from the university. Younger audiences might know her from the Netflix series Dead to Me, which earned her an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress. In an earlier phase of her career, Linda Cardellini appeared in Freaks and Geeks, ER, and the live-action Scooby-Doo films. And yes, she voiced Velma in animated Scooby-Doo projects, which is how the “linda cardellini velma” searches tend to find their way to LMU.

Holly Madison attended LMU before her career took a very different direction. She’s best known as a former girlfriend of Hugh Hefner and as a central cast member on the reality series The Girls Next Door, which brought wide attention to her life at the Playboy Mansion. Holly Madison later wrote the memoir Down the Rabbit Hole, which briefly topped bestseller lists and offered a frank look at that period of her life. Her connection to LMU is less often cited but clearly documented.

Scott Eastwood, son of Clint Eastwood, attended LMU before building his own film career. His movies include Fury, Suicide Squad, The Fate of the Furious, Pacific Rim Uprising, and Fast X, a filmography that spans action and drama and keeps growing. He initially worked under the name Scott Reeves to avoid assumptions of nepotism, establishing himself on his own terms before leaning into the Eastwood name.

And that’s just one part of it. The full LMU alumni list includes Mila Kunis, who played Jackie on That ’70s Show and went on to major film roles in Black Swan and Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Tyra Banks attended LMU. Colin Hanks, son of Tom Hanks, studied there. Clark Duke, known for The Office, developed the web series Clark and Michael while a student at LMU. Johnnie Cochran, one of the most famous defense attorneys in American legal history, is an LMU alum. So is civil rights attorney Gloria Allred.

The Bottom Line on LMU

Loyola Marymount University is a solid private university doing real work in film, business, law, and engineering, all from one of the best-positioned campuses in the country for post-graduation opportunity. A bluff overlooking the Pacific, three miles from an international airport, inside the largest media market in the United States. That’s not a coincidence. It’s a competitive advantage.

The cost is real. Sticker price approaching $100,000 per year is a number that demands serious financial planning, and the year-over-year tuition increases at LMU have been steeper than most peers recently. But the financial aid operation is robust, and for families who qualify for institutional aid, the net price can look very different from the listed one. Running the net price calculator on LMU’s site before drawing conclusions is essential.

If you’re weighing LMU against other California options, the question isn’t really whether it’s a “good” school. It clearly is. The question is whether its specific strengths match your goals, and whether the financial math works out for your situation. For the right student, especially one drawn to LA’s creative and legal industries, LMU has a lot going for it.