The University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) Admissions: Everything You Want to and Need to Know
Overview of University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA)
UCLA is one of the more selective public universities in the country. It is situated in Los Angeles, California. With 125 undergraduate majors and 150 graduate degree programs, the institution’s offerings are impressive. The institution has a large selection of undergraduate and graduate degree programs for students to select from. Students are backed by an 18 to 1student/faculty ratio, and professors take a personalized approach to the teaching and learning process. Outside of the classroom, students will find plenty of opportunities to engage with the campus community via the university’s many clubs and organizations.
Enrollment
- Total Enrollment: 45,930 (31,577 undergraduates)
- Gender Breakdown: 42 percent male/58 percent female
- 98 percent full-time
Cost of Attendance Information
- Tuition and Fees: $13,226 (in-state); $42,218 (out-of-state)
- Books: $1,463
- Room and Board: $15,902
- Other Expenses: $4,465
- Total Cost: $35,056 (in-state); $64,048 (out-of-state)
Financial Aid Information
- Percentage of New Students Receiving Aid: 64 percent
- Percentage of New Students Receiving Types of Aid
- Grants: 55 percent
- Loans: 32 percent
- Average Amount of Aid
- Grants: $18,913
- Loans: $6,123
Academic Programs Offered
- Most Popular Majors: Social Sciences; Biological and Biomedical Sciences; Psychology; Engineering; and Mathematics and Statistics
Retention and Graduation
- First-Year Student Retention (full-time students): 97 percent
- Transfer-Out Rate: 4 percent
- 4-Year Graduation Rate: 77 percent
- 6-Year Graduation Rate: 91 percent
NCAA Athletic Programs
- Men’s Sports: Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Soccer, Tennis, Track and Field, Volleyball, Water Polo
- Women’s Sports: Basketball, Cross Country, Golf, Gymnastics, Soccer, Softball, Swimming and Diving, Tennis, Track and Field, Volleyball, Water Polo
- The UCLA Bruins play in the NCAA Division I Pacific-12 Conference (Pac-12).
Overview of University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) Admissions
Admissions at UCLA are selective, but students whose SAT/ACT scores and GPA are within the institution’s requirements have a good chance of being admitted. Applicants must complete an online application, and send test scores from either the SAT or ACT and high school transcripts. Glowing recommendation letters can bolster your application, along with being involved with student organizations and attempting a challenging course load. Students with unique talents and accomplishments can still receive strong consideration even if their GPAs are outside of the admissions offices mean range. After applying, students will receive a message from an admissions counselor about the next steps of the application process. Interested students should check out the university’s website, which has helpful tips and contact information for the admissions offices.
Admissions Data
For students entering UCLA in the 2018-19 academic year, UCLA had an acceptance rate of just 14%.
SAT Requirements and Scores
For students who entered UCLA in the 2018-19 academic year, 78% provided SAT scores. If you compare SAT scores for the University of California system, you’ll see that only UC Berkeley is more selective than UCLA. Based on national SAT score data, we can conclude that nearly all admitted UCLA students scored in the top 20% of test-takers., the middle 50% of students scored between a 650 and 740 on the math section of the exam. 25% of students scored a 650 or lower, and 25% scored a 740 or higher. The middle 50% of students scored between a 640 and 780 on the evidence-based reading and writing part. This reveals that the bottom 25% of students got a 640 or lower, and the top quartile scored a 780 or higher.
ACT Requirements and Scores
For the class entering UCLA in the 2018-19 academic year, 53% provided ACT scores. T mean ACT score is roughly a 21, so as with the SAT, UCLA students tend to score significantly over mean. Nationally, only a couple of public universities have mean ACT scores that are higher than UCLA. If we compare UCLA’s ACT scores to national score ranges, we can see that the great majority of students are in the top 11% of test-takers. The middle 50% of students scored between a 30 and 34 on the ACT. This means the top 25% of students scored a 34 or higher, and the bottom 25% scored a 30 or lower.
GPA and Class Rank
For students who entered UCLA in the 2019-20 academic year, the mean GPA was 4.31. You are certainly going to need to be primarily an “A” student to be competitive at UCLA. The class rank of students is likewise high: 97% of students were in the top 10% of their class, and 100% were in the top 25%.
Safety Net Schools: Easy to Gain Admission
If past admission data predicts that you would be a competitive candidate for UCLA, then it should be easy for you to gain admissions to the schools below. If UCLA is currently out of your reach, then you are sure to be a competitive candidate for the schools below.
University of California, Santa Barbara, University of Texas at Dallas, Stony Brook University, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, University of Connecticut, Rochester Institute of Technology, University of California, Davis
Same Tier: Just As Hard to Gain Admission
If you’re a competitive candidate for UCLA, then you should have an equal chance of gaining admissions at these schools.
Boston College, Boston University, Tulane University, University of California, Berkeley, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Villanova University, Southern Methodist University
Reach Institutions: Gaining Admissions Will be More of a Challenge
These schools are more challenging to gain admission into than UCLA. If you improve your GPA and SAT/ACT scores, then you’ll be a competitive candidate for these schools.
Brown University, Cornell University, University of Notre Dame, Tufts University, Northeastern University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgetown University
Applying to UCLA
Application Deadline: November 30
Undergraduate Admissions Website:
http://www.ucla.edu/admission/undergraduate-admission
Undergraduate Application Link(s):
Graduate Admissions Website:
https://grad.ucla.edu/admissions/
Graduate Application Link(s):
