California State University-Northridge

Northridge, CA · Public

Official website

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Admission rate

California State University-Northridge admitted 65.8% of applicants university-wide (18,253 of 27,738).

CohortAdmit rateAdmittedApplicants
University-wide65.8%18,25327,738

Of 18,253 admitted students, 5,543 enrolled (30.4% yield).

California State University-Northridge Common Data Set 2024-2025 · Sections C1–C2 · 2024Published cohort admit rates — context, not an applicant-specific probability.

Test scores and GPA of admitted students

ACT (mid-50%)
16–22
GPA (mid-50%, 4.0 scale)
3.393.39

Testing policy: Required

California State University-Northridge Common Data Set 2024-2025 · Sections C9–C12 · 2024Published admit stats reflect the entire incoming class unless explicitly labeled international-only.

Cost and financial aid

Published cost of attendance: $40,817/yr.

Out-of-state tuition$17,622
Fees, housing, food, books & other$23,195
Sticker cost of attendance$40,817/yr

Average net price by family income (US, federal aid data)

Under $30k$4,905
$30k–48k$5,450
$48k–75k$7,744
$75k–110k$11,262
Over $110k$18,040

U.S. Dept. of Education · College Scorecard — average net price by family income (Title IV, from IPEDS) · 2023

US applicants

Need- and merit-based aid available.

International applicants

No need-based aid reported for internationals.

California State University-Northridge Common Data Set 2024-2025 · Sections G–H · 2024

Application requirements

US applicants

  • Final High School Transcript
  • Application fee

International applicants

  • Final High School Transcript
  • Application fee
  • English proficiency (IELTS/TOEFL)
  • GPA credential conversion
  • Predicted Class XII marksheet
  • Financial documentation (I-20)

California State University-Northridge · Application requirements (official admissions pages) · 2025

Essay prompts

California State University-Northridge requires no supplemental essays.

Prompts from the Cal State Apply member feed · verified Jul 4, 2026

Graduate outcomes

Median earnings
$59,115
Median earnings · 10 years after entry
Graduation rate
57%
Within 150% of normal time
First-year retention
83%
Return for year two · CDS Section B
Median debt
$13,872
At graduation

California State University-Northridge · U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2023 release) · 2023Earnings and debt figures are federal data for aid-receiving graduates — cohort outcomes, not a guarantee for any individual student.

Published rankings

  • WSJ: #52
  • Forbes: #271
  • Niche: #421

Deadlines

Academics and campus

Largest degree fields: Business & marketing (18%), Psychology (12%), Social sciences (9%).

Student–faculty ratio: 28:1 · 8% of class sections have under 20 students.

California State University-Northridge Common Data Set 2024-2025 · Sections E, F, I · 2024Published institutional figures for the reporting year — descriptive of the current student body, not a prediction about your experience.

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