Outstanding new crop of FSU students set to start fall classes

The Class of 2028 joins the Florida State family as the university continues to build upon an excellent record of student success. (Bill Lax; FSU Photography)

Florida State University will greet an outstanding group of incoming freshmen this fall as the new academic year begins Monday, Aug. 26.

The Class of 2028 joins the Florida State family as the university continues to build upon an excellent record of student success. FSU’s latest graduation and retention rates set school records last year: 75 percent of FSU students graduated in four years, and 96 percent of freshmen returned for their sophomore year.

FSU received 79,400 applications for about 6,000 spots in its first-year class. The students admitted this year continue to rank among the most academically distinguished in the university’s history, with an average GPA of 4.4, a combined SAT score of 1390 and an ACT composite score of 31.

The admitted class includes students from all 50 states, all 67 Florida counties and 48 countries. Outside of Florida, the top five states for newly admitted students are Georgia, New York, New Jersey, Texas and Illinois.

Twenty-one percent of admitted students are among the first in their families to attend college or university. The five most popular majors for incoming freshmen are business, engineering, biological science, exploratory and chemistry/biochemistry.

Other notable items for the upcoming academic year include:

  • The university’s graduate programs will enroll about 3,000 new students this fall.  The university received over 18,500 applications, which is the third-highest number ever for graduate applications. FSU’s graduate enrollment is now close to 10,000 students across all programs.
  • FSU hired more than 200 new faculty for the second consecutive year.
  • This year, 6,707 students will live in one of FSU’s 18 on-campus residence halls. University Housing offers a variety of living styles for undergraduate and graduate students.
  • The Presidential Scholars Program — the premier undergraduate merit scholarship at FSU — will welcome its largest cohort of first-year students in history with 60 students joining the program this fall, increasing from 48 in last year’s class.
  • The university’s competitive Honors Program is up to more than 750 students, well above last year’s first-year cohort of 600.
  • Welcome FSU is offering an array of events and activities to kick off the fall semester through Friday, Aug. 30. These events are a great way for students to learn about campus resources, ways to get involved and how to make FSU and Tallahassee home.
  • The FSU football team opens its season at the 2024 Aer Lingus College Football Classic in Dublin, Ireland, against Georgia Tech at 12 p.m. Saturday, Aug 24.