How to Get Into UC Santa Barbara (UCSB): Acceptance Rate and Strategies

July 9, 2024

ucsb acceptance rate, santa barbara acceptance rate

Ranked as one of the Top 5 public universities in the nation and a Top 30 overall national university, the University of California, Santa Barbara now attracts six figures worth of applications each and every year. As of 2024, the UCSB acceptance rate has dipped under 30% and it is extremely rare for UCSB to accept students who have less than a 4.0 and did not place in the top decile of their high school class.

In 2024-25, aspiring Gauchos will face a test-blind admissions process that requires near-perfect grades in a rigorous curriculum and exceptional essays. Given this tall order, the intent of this article is to provide future UCSB applicants with the following:

  • Admissions Calculator
  • UCSB acceptance rate
  • UCSB in-state vs. out-of-state acceptance rate
  • SAT, ACT, GPA, and class rank of accepted UC Santa Barbara applicants
  • Admissions trends
  • The make-up of current UCSB students
  • UC Santa Barbara鈥檚 yield rate
  • How UC Santa Barbara鈥檚 admissions officers evaluate candidates
  • Tips for applying to UC Santa Barbara
  • How to assess whether applying to UC Santa Barbara is even worth the $70 application fee (for you)

UC Santa Barbara Admissions Calculator

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UCSB Acceptance Rate 鈥 Class of 2027

UCSB received 110,876 applications for the Class of 2027 and admitted 30,914 of that group. This means that the UC Santa Barbara acceptance rate is 27.9%.

Historical UCSB acceptance rates are as follows:

Applicants Admits Acceptance Rate
Class of 2026 110,995 28,688 26%
Class of 2025 105,631 30,823 29%
Class of 2024 90,961 33,384 37%

UCSB In-State vs. Out-of-State Acceptance Rate

If you are a California resident, your chances of acceptance at UCSB are almost identical to out-of-state or international students:

In-State

  • Applicants: 74,691
  • Admits: 20,951
  • Acceptance Rate: 28%

Out-of-State/International

  • Applicants: 36,185
  • Admits: 9,854
  • Acceptance Rate: 27%

What GPA do you need to get into UC Santa Barbara?

The University of California System has adopted a test-blind policy (more on that below). Class rank is not taken into consideration at UCSB, either. As such, performance inside the classroom is of the utmost importance. Freshmen in 2023-24 had an average unweighted GPA of 4.13-4.29. Roughly 90% earned perfect GPAs.

Admissions Trends & Notes

  • 31% of incoming 2023-24 freshmen were first-generation students.
  • The average admitted applicant took 18 honors/AP/IB courses and 50 A-G courses.
  • Over the past four years, the number of applications has increased by nearly 20%.
  • By discipline, the greatest number of incoming freshmen are majoring in Biological Sciences (19%) followed by Psychology (12%), Economics (10%), and Math & Statistics (10%).

Who Gets Into UC Santa Barbara?

Let鈥檚 look at the demographics of UC Santa Barbara students:

Most UC Santa Barbara students hailed from the Golden State and paid in-state tuition:

  • California residents: 79%
  • Domestic nonresidents: 11%
  • International: 11%

2023-24 freshmen came from the following high schools:

  • Public: 79%
  • Private: 10%
  • International: 10%

Here is the breakdown of the Class of 2027 by academic division:

  • College of Letters & Science (Mathematical, Life, and Physical Sciences): 50%
  • College of Letters & Science (Social Sciences): 23%
  • College of Letters & Science (Humanities and Fine Arts): 8%
  • College of Letters & Science (Other): 9%
  • College of Engineering: 9%
  • College of Creative Studies: 2%

UCSB Acceptance Rate 2024 (Continued)

Looking at ethnic identity, the Class of 2027 is:

  • Asian: 19%
  • Hispanic: 27%
  • Black or African American: 4%
  • International: 11%
  • White: 28%

The breakdown by gender reveals far more women in the incoming freshman class:

  • Male: 38%
  • Female: 60%
  • Other Identity: 3%

UC Santa Barbara鈥檚 Yield Rate

UC Santa Barbara鈥檚 yield rate鈥攖he percentage of accepted students who elect to enroll, divided by the total number of students who are admitted鈥攊s 16%. This is similar to other UC campuses such as Irvine and UCSD.

How UCSB Rates Applicants

There are only two factors that UC Santa Barbara ranks as being 鈥渧ery important鈥 to their admissions process: GPA and application essays. Areas that are 鈥渃onsidered鈥 include: talent/ability, character/personal qualities, extracurricular activities, volunteer experience, first-generation, state residency, volunteer work, and paid work experience.

As mentioned previously, UC Santa Barbara, along with all other UC schools are now test-blind. This makes the traditionally holistic review process at UCSB even more pronounced.

In the admissions office鈥檚 own words:

  • 鈥淯CSB considers聽 to聽review your achievements and personal qualities聽in the context of the opportunities and/or challenges you have experienced. We do not compare your application with any other applicant, regardless of school or location.鈥
  • 鈥淯CSB doesn鈥檛 just look at academic accomplishments to bring in our freshman class. We look at your extracurricular activities and accomplishments in light of the opportunities available to you.鈥

Tips for Applying to UC Santa Barbara

If you plan on joining the 110,000+ Gaucho hopefuls for the next admissions cycle, you should know the following:

  • UCSB looks closely at the number of UC-approved honors courses, AP courses, IB courses, or dual enrollment courses a student has taken.
  • While a holistic process, UC Santa Barbara does not offer interviews.
  • Like the other UCs, UC Santa Barbara is test-blind, meaning that your ACT/SAT scores will not be considered, even if submitted.

UCSB Acceptance Rate 2024 (Continued)

  • UC Santa Barbara does not consider 鈥demonstrated interest鈥 in the admissions process.
  • Make sure to dedicate sufficient time and effort to the supplemental essays required by UC Santa Barbara. In the 2024-25 cycle, there are eight total prompts, of which applicants are instructed to choose four. Each response is limited to a maximum of 350 words.

UCSB Essay Prompts

1) Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes or contributed to group efforts over time.

2) Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side.聽

3) What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?聽

4) Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced.

UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) Acceptance Rate 2024 鈥 Continued

5) Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement?

6) Think about an academic subject that inspires you. Describe how you have furthered this interest inside and/or outside of the classroom.

7) What have you done to make your school or your community a better place?聽

8) Beyond what has already been shared in your application, what do you believe makes you stand out as a strong candidate for admissions to the University of California?

The best approach here is to select the four prompts that are the best fit for you and elicit the most compelling and personal responses. For more, read our blog:聽How to Master the UC Personal Insight Essays.

Should I apply to UCSB?

Getting into UC Santa Barbara has never been a more challenging endeavor, as it now requires near-perfect (or perfect) grades in 15+ honors/AP/IB courses. Given the similarity of the in-state vs. out-of-state UCSB acceptance rate, even locals need to have pristine academic transcripts and other compelling attributes.

UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) Acceptance Rate 2024 – Final Thoughts

All prospective UCSB applicants need to make sure that they formulate an appropriate college list, containing a complement of 鈥渢arget鈥 and 鈥渟afety鈥 schools. You鈥檒l definitely want to do this in collaboration with an admissions professional who is aware of the latest trends and strategies associated with your prospective colleges.

Ready to begin crafting your UC applications? Consider checking out the following: