University of California Fall 2025 Admission Trends
Hot off the press! We've had a chance to review the preliminary Fall 2025 admissions data released recently by the University of California and we thought it would be helpful to summarize it and share our key findings.
Overall freshman admission rates increased systemwide to 73 percent from last year’s 66 percent,, fueled by a more than 7 percent increase in acceptances. If you're an out of state or international student, pay close attention...there continues to be a window of opportunity to take advantage of favorable rates at a couple of UC campuses.
Click on Continue Reading for the details.
UC Admission Rates — Overall (Fall 2025)
University of California Office of the President
| Rank | Campus | Admit Rate (2025) | Admit Rate (2024) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Angeles | 9.4% | 9% |
| 2 | Berkeley | 11.4% | 11% |
| 3 | San Diego | 28.4% | 26.8% |
| 4 | Irvine | 28.7% | 28.8% |
| 5 | Santa Barbara | 38.3% | 32.9% |
| 6 | Davis | 44.6% | 42.1% |
| 7 | Santa Cruz | 72.9% | 65% |
| 8 | Riverside | 87.4% | 77.2% |
| 9 | Merced | 97.7% | 99.6% |
| — | Total | 72.8% | 66.3% |
UC Admission Rates — California Residents (Fall 2025)
University of California Office of the President
| Rank | Campus | Admit Rate (2025) | Admit Rate (2024) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Angeles | 9.6% | 9.5% |
| 2 | Berkeley | 13.6% | 14.9% |
| 3 | Irvine | 21.6% | 21.8% |
| 4 | San Diego | 24.7% | 26% |
| 5 | Santa Barbara | 32.1% | 32.3% |
| 6 | Davis | 37.3% | 36.7% |
| 7 | Santa Cruz | 71.2% | 60.9% |
| 8 | Riverside | 87.5% | 75.2% |
| 9 | Merced | 100.1% | 103.8% |
| — | Total | 77.2% | 70.1% |
UC Admission Rates — Out-of-State (Fall 2025)
University of California Office of the President
| Rank | Campus | Admit Rate (2025) | Admit Rate (2024) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Berkeley | 10.3% | 7.3% |
| 2 | Los Angeles | 11.2% | 9.3% |
| 3 | San Diego | 39.4% | 33.6% |
| 4 | Irvine | 47.6% | 49.9% |
| 5 | Santa Barbara | 54.8% | 38.5% |
| 6 | Davis | 63.4% | 57.7% |
| 7 | Santa Cruz | 86.4% | 81.8% |
| 8 | Merced | 87.1% | 85.3% |
| 9 | Riverside | 95.2% | 95.3% |
| — | Total | 61.9% | 55.8% |
UC Admission Rates — International (Fall 2025)
University of California Office of the President
| Rank | Campus | Admit Rate (2025) | Admit Rate (2024) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Berkeley | 6.1% | 3.4% |
| 2 | Los Angeles | 6.4% | 6.3% |
| 3 | San Diego | 30.6% | 22.4% |
| 4 | Irvine | 42.8% | 43.1% |
| 5 | Santa Barbara | 48.1% | 30.4% |
| 6 | Davis | 57.1% | 51.5% |
| 7 | Santa Cruz | 72.2% | 81.3% |
| 8 | Merced | 80.3% | 81% |
| 9 | Riverside | 83.7% | 84.9% |
| — | Total | 69.2% | 64.8% |
Overall Findings
- From 2024 to 2025, UCLA remained the most selective campus, with Berkeley at #2, San Diego at #3, Irvine at #4, Santa Barbara at #5 and Davis, Santa Cruz, Riverside and Merced at spots 6-9.
- Systemwide, the freshman admission rate increased from 66% to 73% year-over-year, driven by relatively stable application volume (-0.8% change in overall applicants) but increased acceptances (8.9% increase in total admits).
- Considering admissions by residency, the average admission rate for California residents increased the most from 70% to 77%, while out-of-state and international admit rates rose from 56% to 62% and from 65% to 70% respectively. Total applications received slightly declined for domestic student (-2.5% for Californians and -2.1% for out-of-state), but was offset by an increase of 8.5% for international students. Acceptances increased, particularly for international students. Overall resident acceptances rose by 8% while out-of-state acceptances rose 9%. International acceptances increased by 16%.
Highlights by Campus
- Berkeley: Remained extremely selective with an overall admission rate slightly increasing from 11.0% to 11.4%. The admit rate for CA residents declined slightly from 14.9% to 13.6%, but the out-of-state rate improved from 7.3% to 10.3% and international rate rose modestly from 3.4% to 6.1%. These changes were driven by notable increases in the number of non-residents admitted with a 42.6% increase in out-of-state admits and an 94.8% increase in the number of international admits.
- Davis: The overall admit rate climbed from 42.1% to 44.6% with moderate 4.2% growth in the applicant pool paired with a 10.4% increase in admits. Non-residents saw the most advantage with a 63.4% rate for out-of-state and a 57.1% rate for international. CA residents had an admit rate of 37.3%.
- Irvine: The overall admit rate remained relatively steady between 28.8% and 28.7% with out-of-state students seeing a slight decline from 49.9% to 47.6%. International applicants grew by 11.5%, matched by growth in international admits of 10.8%. CA residents saw a slight 1.5% drop in applicants matched by a 2.5 decrease in admits.
- Los Angeles: Remains the most selective UC even with the overall admission rate slightly increasing from 9.0% to 9.4%. The out-of-state admit rate increased the most from 9.3% to 11.2%, as their applications decreased 1.0% but acceptances increased 19.7%. International students also saw a large 12.4% increase in acceptances but thi s was matched by a 9.4% increase in applications.
- Merced: While there appears to be an inconsistency in the currently reported data—total CA acceptances exceed total CA applicants—the overall acceptance rate will likely continue to be in the mid to high 90s. CA applications surged with a 76.3% increase this year, but acceptances kept pace with a 70% increase in CA admits. International applicants also saw gains with a 17.8% increase in applications and a 16.8% increase in admits.
- Riverside: The overall admission rate rose dramatically from 77.2% to 87.4%, driven by strong growth among CA residents with a 26% increase in applications and a 46.5% increase in acceptances. The CA admit rate increased from 75.2% to 87.5%. Admit rates for non-residents slightly decreased but remained high with 95.2% for out-of-state applicants and 83.7% for international applicants.
- San Diego: The overall admission rate rose slightly from 26.0% to 28.4%, primarily driven by increases in non-resident admissions. International admit rates increased, going from 22.4% to 30.6%, driven by a 11% increase in applications and a 51.8% increase in admits. Out-of-state applicants also saw an increased admit rate from 33.6% to 39.4% paired with a 20.8% increase in admits.
- Santa Barbara: The overall admission rate increased from 32.9% to 38.3%, driven by large increases in non-resident admits. The admit rate for out-of-state applicants rose sharply from 38.5% to 54.8% and the international rate increased from 30.4% to 48.1%.
- Santa Cruz: The overall admission rate rose from 65.0% to 72.9%, driven by a 7.7 decrease in applicants and a 3.6% increase in acceptances, primarily focused on admission growth for domestic applicants. CA resident applications fell 8.6% but admits grew 6.9%, leading to a change in admit rate from 60.9% to 71.2%. In contrast, international applications grew 2.9% but admits fell 8.5%, resulting in an admit rate decrease from 81.3% to 72.2%
Implications
- While admit rates are rising, the size of the applicant pool is stable. The higher admit rates are thus driven by the UCs admitting more students. Increased acceptances are come from both California resident prioritization and expanded non-resident admits.
- CA residents saw the greatest jumps in admit rate at UCSC (10.3% increase) and Riverside (12.2%)
- Pockets of opportunity persist for out-of-state and international applicants. The search for improved diversity and full pay applicants to counter rising expenses continues to create opportunity for non-residents interested in a UC education. Not all campuses have reached their non-resident enrollment limits, and the mix of out-of-state and international admittances continues to rise at selected campuses. International admit rates are up at many campuses.
- Non-residents have an advantageous admit rate at Davis, Irvine, UCSD, UCSB, and UCSC, with the differences most pronounced at Davis, Irvine, and UCSB.
- Out-of-state acceptances are up 9% and international student acceptances are up 17% across the board, with the UC citing the rising uncertainty of their likelihood of enrolling. Increased. The increased non-resident admissions are most prominent at Berkeley, UCSB, and UCSD.