How Much It Costs To Be Lucy On Tell Me Lies For A Day
The Baird College student has more money than you might think.
The typical college student may not have to deal with the intensely toxic relationships that Lucy Albright (Grace Van Patten) is preoccupied with on Tell Me Lies. One thing Lucy does have in common with most students, though, is her tuition bills.
While on campus, Lucy isn’t spending money left and right like Serena van der Woodsen in Gossip Girl and Emily Cooper in Emily in Paris, but she is able to afford a $2,500 MacBook Pro in 2007 (when the show takes place). That’s a major expense that feels more normalized in 2024, but back in the early aughts, having the latest tech was the OG version of quiet luxury.
As you’re watching Season 2 and getting into Lucy and Stephen’s “will they or won’t they” drama, you’re likely not thinking about price tags. But attending Baird College isn’t cheap.
The Long-Term Expenses: The Tell Me Lies College Is Probably A Pricey School
Lucy’s biggest expense as a student is obviously tuition. Unfortunately, Baird College is a fictional university made up for Tell Me Lies, so it’s difficult to determine how much it would actually cost to attend — but not impossible.
The series is set in upstate New York, but production films in Georgia. Baird College IRL is actually Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia, and the tuition for the private women’s university is about $50,264 a year. That’s not including housing and books, which are additional fees that Lucy would need to dish out.
In the show, Lucy is an undergraduate English major who lives in the dorms alongside her BFFs Bree and Pippa. At Agnes Scott, housing and dining is about $13,605 a year added onto tuition. Lucy also needs to pay activity and orientation fees for $590, which ends up being $64,459 in total.
There are also estimated costs for books ($1,000), personal expenses ($1,000), and student health insurance ($2,800) that Agnes Scott factors into yearly costs. Even though these expenses are things Lucy doesn’t have to pay for each day, they’re still part of the bigger picture. Two semesters a year is about 30 weeks (210 days), so that’s roughly $330 a day that Lucy needs to budget just for school alone.
Total: $330
Lucy’s Morning Routine Is Straight Out Of 2007
9 a.m.: If Lucy planned her schedule correctly, she doesn’t have any early morning classes. This means she has plenty of time to get ready before starting her day.
The head of the hair department for Tell Me Lies, Caprice Green, shared a bit about Lucy’s changing aesthetic throughout the series with PopSugar. “It’s a very distinct transition from clean, straight, [and] perfect to the bigger hair that we were doing in 2007, kind of like Christina Aguilera,” she told the outlet. Keeping it clean and chill in the morning, Lucy would likely throw her hair into a high pony.
For the ’fit, she would throw on something comfy but cute. In 2007, skinny jeans were everywhere, so she’d wear the same True Religion midrise jeans she wore in the pilot episode ($75). With those jeans, Lucy wore a pink Sandro Leila cardigan which is now sold out. However, there is a similar deep red version that’s still available for $295. Of course, like any college girly in the mid-2000s, Lucy pairs her OOTD with $180 classic Ugg boots.
9:30 a.m.: For her beauty routine, Tell Me Lies makeup designer Jenny Lin told PopSugar that Lucy’s journey went from basic to bold. “She was wearing a lot of makeup, because it indicates her internal spiral,” Lin said.
The makeup artist shared the products she used for Lucy’s Season 2 first day of school look on Instagram, which included Mac Cosmetics’ Color Excess Gel Pencil Waterproof Eyeliner ($25), Charlotte Tilbury’s Colour Chameleon ($29), Marylia Scott Cosmetics’ Water Resistant Faux Freckles ($25), Mac Cosmetics’ Lipglass High Shine Lip Gloss ($24), Bobbi Brown’s Dual-Ended Long-Wear Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow Stick ($42), Hourglass’ Ambient Lighting Palette ($70), and Hourglass’ Ambient Lighting Blush ($46).
10 a.m.: Ready for the day, Lucy would head out the door with her $250 Marc Jacobs Nylon Backpack she wore in the pilot. She might even bring her MacBook Pro, which in 2007 retailed for $2,499.
10:15 a.m.: In the pilot episode, Lucy and her friends get to know each other by walking around campus after grabbing coffee. Opo Coffee is a cute cafe near the Agnes Scott College campus, so it’s close to where Lucy might go at Baird. A latte there costs $5. If she’s getting a full breakfast, she might stop by the dining hall, which is included in her tuition fees.
Total: $3,565
Lucy Has An Afternoon Of Classes, Dining Hall Lunch, & Hookups
10:30 a.m.-Noon: During class, it’s kind of hard for Lucy to be spending money, so her wallet is safe while she’s with Professor Marianne.
Noon-2 p.m.: Lucy would want to grab lunch at some point after class. Throughout the series, she can often be seen eating in the dining hall with Bree and Pippa, which is part of her tuition costs.
2-4 p.m.: The rest of the day, Lucy has time to go back to her dorm to study, attend a recitation, or catch up with any drama that is happening around campus. Depending on who she’s seeing, she may also meet up with Stephen or Leo for a steamy hookup.
4-6 p.m.: Lucy is frequently partying on campus, so she’d use this early evening time to check in with Bree and Pippa while getting ready. In the pilot, Lucy borrows a $218 black Christine Dress from Reformation, so she’d likely wear something of her own in the same price range.
Along with her dress, she’d wear Tiffany & Co.’s Double Heart Tag Pendant Necklace ($275) and a matching heart ring ($450) — both of which she wore in Season 1. In the fall semester, she’d also throw on a jacket like the $2,650 Michael Kors Asymmetric Zip Jacket she wore in Episode 5.
Lucy would touch up her makeup with some of the same products she used in the morning, but go a bit bolder for a night look. For Lucy’s Britney Spears-inspired “I’m a Slave 4 U” look in Season 2, Lin shared she used products like Urban Decay’s Moondust Liquid Glitter Eyeliner ($28), Charlotte Tilbury’s Pillow Talk Lip Cheat Liner ($25), and Hourglass’ Phantom Volumizing Glossy Balm ($36).
Total: $3,682
Lucy Spends A Night Out On Campus
6-7:30 p.m.: Before heading out, Lucy and her friends might pre-game with drinks like the bottle of nice champagne ($54) her mother left for her.
7:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m.: If they do get dinner, it would be at the dining hall again so she wouldn’t have to worry about spending money. However, if she’s spending the night with Stephen or Leo, they might take her out to dinner where she wouldn’t have to pay either.
9 p.m.-Midnight: Whatever college party Lucy ends up at, she’s getting free drinks.
12:30 a.m.-1:30 a.m.: Depending on who she’s seeing, Lucy would end the night at Stephen or Leo’s, and her nighttime routine would be pretty simple. After washing off her makeup with an OG fave cleanser from the mid-2000s, Neutrogena’s Oil-Free Acne Wash ($11), Lucy would get into something comfortable like the Splendid tank ($38) she wore in Season 1 and some sweatpants from Abercrombie & Fitch ($48).
Total: $151
TL;DR: Lucy May Not Be Flashy, But She’s Got $$$
Even though Lucy’s family may not have a membership to a country club like Lydia’s, she’s got some money to spend. Her wardrobe, school, and technology demonstrate she’s well-off or at least comfortable, especially for someone in the mid-aughts.
Sure, she’s not spending a ton of money while going to class or eating in the dining hall, but she’s clearly not worried about budgets as much as someone like Bree, who is on a scholarship at Baird College. Maybe Lucy should focus more on school, though, since her current priorities have been getting her into hot water — just sayin’.
Total: $7,728
