University of California, San Diego

La Jolla, CA · Public

Official website

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Admission rate

University of California, San Diego admitted 28.6% of applicants university-wide (39,054 of 136,750).

CohortAdmit rateAdmittedApplicants
University-wide28.6%39,054136,750
In-state24.7%21,67787,584
Out-of-state39.7%9,88124,912
International applicants30.9%7,49624,254
Men26.1%16,24462,344
Women30.5%21,28369,786

Of 39,054 admitted students, 7,801 enrolled (20.0% yield).

University of California, San Diego Common Data Set 2025-2026 · Sections C1–C2 · 2025Published cohort admit rates — context, not an applicant-specific probability.

Test scores and GPA of admitted students

GPA (mid-50%, 4.0 scale)
3.754.00

Testing policy: Test-blind (scores not considered)

University of California, San Diego Common Data Set 2025-2026 · Sections C9–C12 · 2025Published admit stats reflect the entire incoming class unless explicitly labeled international-only.

Cost and financial aid

Published cost of attendance: $78,320/yr.

Out-of-state tuition$49,280
Fees, housing, food, books & other$29,040
Sticker cost of attendance$78,320/yr

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

Under $30k$7,525
$30k–48k$8,155
$48k–75k$9,942
$75k–110k$15,199
Over $110k$28,785

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.

University of California, San Diego Common Data Set 2025-2026 · Sections G–H · 2025

Application requirements

US applicants

  • UC Application for Admission and Scholarships
  • Personal Insight Questions (4 of 8; 350 words each)
  • High School Transcript (official, after admission)
  • Portfolio or Audition (for Arts majors only) (optional)
  • Application fee

International applicants

  • UC Application for Admission and Scholarships
  • Personal Insight Questions (4 of 8; 350 words each)
  • High School Transcript (official, after admission)
  • Portfolio or Audition (for Arts majors only) (optional)
  • Application fee
  • English proficiency (IELTS/TOEFL)
  • GPA credential conversion
  • Predicted Class XII marksheet
  • Financial documentation (I-20)

University of California, San Diego · Application requirements (official admissions pages) · 2025

Essay prompts

Draft these in the free Essay Coach

Prompts from the UC Application member feed · verified Jul 3, 2026

Graduate outcomes

Median earnings
$84,943
Median earnings · 10 years after entry
Graduation rate
86.1%
Within 150% of normal time
First-year retention
94.7%
Return for year two · CDS Section B
Median debt
$15,500
At graduation

University of California, San Diego · 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: #41
  • Forbes: #20
  • QS: #66

Deadlines

Academics and campus

Largest degree fields: Biological & life sciences (20%), Interdisciplinary studies (17%), Engineering (12%).

Student–faculty ratio: 20:1 · 35% of class sections have under 20 students.

University of California, San Diego Common Data Set 2025-2026 · Sections E, F, I · 2025Published institutional figures for the reporting year — descriptive of the current student body, not a prediction about your experience.

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