Aristo Scholars · Tactics
Admissions Essentials
The public numbers behind college admissions in California: who gets into each UC and Cal State, from which high schools, in which majors, and what the degree is worth after. Every figure is from the dataset named under it, with its year.
Getting in
6 piecesUniversity of California Information Center
UC acceptance rates by high school
15.3% of California high school applicants admitted to UC Berkeley, fall 2023 to 2025
Each UC campus’s Common Data Set office
UC waitlist rates
11.1% of students who took a spot on UCLA’s waitlist were admitted from it, fall 2025
University of California Information Center
UC transfer rates by community college
76.6% of California community college transfer applicants admitted to at least one UC campus, fall 2025
College Board
SAT scores in California
30% of California’s class of 2026 took the SAT, against 67% of the class of 2020
Getting in
Early decision at California colleges
64% of Claremont McKenna’s fall 2025 first-year class, at most, was admitted through early decision (CDS 2025-26)
US Department of Education
Who attends California colleges
6.9% of Hispanic undergraduates at California four-year colleges attend the 10 that admit fewer than 1 in 4 applicants, fall 2024
High schools
4 piecesUniversity of California Information Center
Public high schools by UC results
75.7 UC admits per 100 seniors at Dr. Richard A. Vladovic Harbor Teacher Preparation Academy, Wilmington, where schools like it get 20.6, fall 2023 to 2025
University of California Information Center
Private high schools by UC admits
91.6 UC admits per 100 seniors at BASIS Independent Silicon Valley, the top California private school, fall 2023 to 2025
University of California Information Center
Charter and magnet schools by UC results
74.9 UC admits per 100 seniors at Design Science Middle College High, Fresno, where schools like it get 20.9, fall 2023 to 2025
California Department of Education
A-G completion by high school
53.9% of California public high school graduates finished the UC/CSU A-G courses, class of 2025 (2024-25)
Majors
1 pieceUniversity of California Information Center
UC acceptance rates by major
0.7% of nursing applicants admitted to UCLA and UC Irvine, fall 2025 (88 of 12,747)
After college
4 piecesUS Department of Education
California colleges: cost and earnings
$382,000 UC Berkeley’s 10-year return on a degree, our calculation from College Scorecard, October 2026 release
University of California Information Center
UC and CSU earnings by major
$262,600 median pay of UC Berkeley computer science graduates 10 years out, working in California, UC data updated July 2026
University of California Information Center
Where UC graduates work
319 Google job records among UC Berkeley graduates five years out, in UC’s career-profile sample, updated July 2025
University of California Information Center
UC graduates and graduate degrees
42.2% of UCLA graduates of 2001-02 to 2019-20 earned a graduate degree, UC data updated July 2026
