This article contains comprehensive and valuable information about the UCLA acceptance rate by major with other interesting facts.
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land grant research university in Los Angeles California.
UCLA is among the most prestigious learning institution in the western and entire US. Found in 1919, UCLA sits over 419 acres in Westwood Los Angeles just 8 miles from the Pacific Ocean.
The University of California, Los Angeles is among the 9 schools in the UC school system. The UC school system comprises UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, UC San Diego, UC Irvine, UC Davies, UC Santa Cruz, UC Riverside, and UC Merced.
In the fall of 2021, UCLA had 168,000 undergraduate applicants with transfers included, these numbers ranked UCLA as the most applied university in the US.
However, UCLA acceptance rates have been fluctuating in recent years with 15% in 2017, 14.1% in 2018, 12% in 2019, 12.4% in 2020, and 16% in 2021.
Going by statistics, the average UCLA acceptance in the past 9 years (2012-2021) is 17.75% which makes the institution more competitive.
Currently, UCLA has an acceptance rate ranging from 12%-16% keeping it on an average of 14%. This simply implies that out of 100 applicants, only 14 are accepted.
Despite having an acceptance of 14%, UCLA is still considered to have a better acceptance rate than the likes of Harvard, Yale, Stanford, and MIT all with a single-digit acceptance rate.
The University of California, Los Angeles is a more competitive institution to attend, but that does mean it’s impossible to get into. With a good GPA and SAT/ACT scores, you might just be a step closer to attending UCLA.
Talking about GPA, and SAT/ACT scores, what could be the required standard of them at UCLA?
Well let’s find out
Knowing More about UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles is a highly prestigious and public land grant research university in Westwood Los Angeles, California.
UCLA as it is popularly called was founded in 1919 which makes it the second oldest UC school after UC Berkeley. The school offers about 337 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in different areas of disciplines.
The institution is organized into the College of Letters and Science and 12 professional schools. Out of the 12 schools, the School of the Art and Architecture, Henry Samueli School of Engineering, Herb Alpert School of Music, School of Nursing, Luskin School of Public Affairs, and the School of Theatre, Film, and Television all offer undergraduates degree programs.
While the prestigious David Geffen School of Medicine, Fielding School of Public Health, and School of Dentistry are graduate-level professional health science schools. And the School of Education & Information Studies, School of Law, and Anderson School of Management complete the list.
Is UCLA the right school for me to apply to?
Gaining admission into UCLA is now more challenging than ever, as it now requires that applicants have grades that are close to perfection for the 20+ Honours/ AP/IB course. Even applicants from the state where the school is located must have a complete academic transcript and other convincing qualities. UCLA is a unique world-class institution with many recognized academic programs.
Of course, you should know that eventually about 90% of applicants will be rejected. Therefore, all students should ensure that they complete the list of eligible colleges, which includes the addition of “target schools” and “safe” schools. You want to do this with an admissions expert who understands the latest trends and strategies related to your future university.
UCLA Acceptance Rate
Attending one of the UC schools has always been an aspiration for both domestic and international students.
However, to attend any highly rated university in the world requires every academic effort you can imagine. From GPA, SAT/ACT scores to academic recommendations, you will need any factor that can be an advantage to being admitted.
UCLA currently has an acceptance rate of 14% which makes it more competitive to be admitted into the institution.
Within the last 9 years, the UCLA acceptance rate has dropped to lower figures from 18.98% in 2012 to 14% in 2021.
This signifies that as the years go by, the acceptance rate at UCLA becomes more competitive.
So if you are a high school aspirant of UCLA, prioritize making a good GPA of 4.00 and above, SAT scores of 1250-1500, and ACT scores of 26-34. This grade and scores vary depending on in-state and out-state applicants.
But, we are still going to find out if UCLA acceptance rate by major can be more or less competitive.
UCLA GPA Requirements
A lot of universities have their specific and standard required GPA for applicants to get a chance of being admitted.
Since UCLA has an acceptance rate of 14%, one can only imagine what their required GPA could be.
Well, to get a better chance to attend one of the highly-rated universities in California, your GPA should be 3.9 minimum.
With an average required GPA of 3.9, you have to be top of your class to attain such requirements. Prioritize making all A’s in your class to compete or be one step ahead of other applicants.
However, if your GPA is below UCLA’s standard of 3.9 do not worry as there is an alternative. Hence your GPA is below average, you will need a higher SAT/ACT score to compensate for your low GPA.
This gives you a better chance to compete with thousands of applicants with better GPAs than yours.
UCLA Admissions SAT/ACT Policy, and GPA
The University of California, Los Angeles has shown to be more selective in the admission process. For newly enrolled freshmen for the class of 2025, in-state applicants had lower measurable than their out-state neighbours.
In a recent cycle, California residents possessed a mid-50% unweighted GPA of 4.30-4.60, SAT scores of 1250-1500, and ACT scores of 26-34. While out-state applicants had a GPA ranging from 4.35 to 4.80, SAT score of 1390-1530, and ACT score of 31-34.
Who Gets Into UCLA? What Admission Team at UCLA consider “Important”
UCLA is a community housing several ethnicities and nationals. So we want to look at the statistics of the students at UCLA.
How do I get to UCLA?
What features is UCLA looking for in applicants? There are several aspects to consider when applying for admission to a foreign university. UCLA is looking for students who can increase leadership and insight through their extensive experience and personal stories. It focuses on three points:
Excellent academic achievement
This is not just the outcome of your GPA or academic exam. They are looking for people with a high school class. UCLA looks at how many classes you attended in high school, how demanding your high school classes were, and how you challenge yourself academically.
To demonstrate this, students must complete honours or continuing education courses if they wish to become accepted.
Gifts, Achievements and more
Not everyone can achieve great things in education, but that is one reason why they should not be allowed here.
Achievements and special abilities receive a lot of attention and are a priority. They want to know about your accomplishments and honours to determine how well you are doing outside the classroom.
Personal qualities
They want to know about your personality and lifestyle. UCLA understands your personality and how you interact with others. The University will use it to determine your eligibility for UCLA and vice versa.
For the Class of 2025 ethnic identities breakdown are
- Asian American 38%
- White (Caucasian) 28%
- Hispanic 22%
- International 10%
- African-American 7%
The breakdown of gender
- Female 59%
- Male 41%
Most UCLA students are from the state of California and paid in-state tuition. The geographical breakdown for California is:
- California residents 75%
- Number of other U.S States (none-resident) 47
- Number of other countries (non-resident, in international)84
- Southern California. 46%
- Rest of California. 29%
A recent freshman class comprises students from the following high schools:
- Los Angeles County Public: 21%
- Other California Public School: 40%
- Los Angeles County Private: 3%
- Other California Private: 6%
- Outside California (Public/Private):30%
UCLA Acceptance Rate By Major
Below are the UCLA majors and their acceptance rates.
- Majors Admit Rate
- African-American Studies. 34%
- Anthropology 27%
- Applied Linguistic -B.S 33%
- Applied Mathematics, Pre 37%
- Astrophysics 23%
- Biochemistry 29%
- Biology 13%
- Business Economics, Pre 9%
- Chemistry 23%
- English 32%
- Environmental Sciences 27%
- Geology 51%
- Linguistics 48%
- Marine Biology 1%
- Physics 37%
UCLA Acceptance Rate By Major at School of the Arts and Architecture
- Major Admit Rate
- Architectural Studies. 10%
- Arts. 8%
- Dance. 13%
- Design & Media Arts. 5%
UCLA Acceptance Rate By Major at Samuel School of Engineering
- Majors Admit Rate
- Aerospace Engineering. 11%
- Bioengineering. 13%
- Chemical Engineering. 23%
- Civil Engineering. 19%
- Computer Engineering. 6%
- Computer Science 2%
- Computer Science & Engineering. 8%
- Electrical Engineering. 34%
- Material Engineering. 36%
- Mechanical Engineering. 19%
UCLA Admissions Application Tips
If you are considering joining more than 130,000 Bruin applicants in your next application period, it is important that you pay attention to the following should know the following:
While UCLA’s admission process is holistic, UCLA does have provisions for interviews.
“Demonstrated interest” are not considered in the UCLA admission process.
Make sure you spend enough time and effort on the additional essays required by UCLA. Round 2021-2022 admission process has only eight questions, of which applicants must choose four to answer. Each answer is limited to 350 words.
The questions below will give you an insight into what to expect in the subsequent admission process.
- Discuss an example of experience in leadership where you have had the opportunity to positively influence others, participated in teamwork over time or helped resolve disputes,
- Everyone has a creative side that can be expressed in different ways such as problem-solving, artistic creation, original and innovative thinking etc. Describe how you express your creativity.
- What do you think is your greatest ability or skill? How have you grown this ability or skill and how have you demonstrated this over time?
- Describe a few ways you have taken advantage of important educational opportunities or worked to overcome the barriers in education you encountered.
- Describe the biggest challenge/problem you are facing and the steps you have taken to overcome it. How has this challenge affected your academic success?
- 6) Think about a particular academic subject that gets you inspired. Describe steps you have taken to advance this interest inside and outside the classroom.
- What have you done to improve your school or community?
- Other than what is stated in your application, what do you think makes you a strong candidate for UC?
The best way here is to choose the four questions that work best for you and get the most convincing and personal answer.
How Much Will it Cost to Attend UCLA?
Education in California can be quite pricey and UCLA’s cost of attendance turns out to be a staggering amount of $65,545.
The good news is, that amount covers everything you need to attend UCLA in one year. It covers your housing, dining, book, transportation, and lots more.
Let’s breakdown some of the expenses
- University Fees: $13,239
- Rooms and Meals: $16,625
- Books and Supply: $1,464
- Transportation: $441
- Personal: $1,506
- Health Insurance: $2,516
- Non-resident Tuition: $29,754
Despite all this amount, UCLA is putting efforts to ensure that education is affordable to all. As a student of UCLA, you can simply apply for different forms of financial aid available. By UCLA records, about $20,775 on average is awarded each year to students as financial aid.
What Financial Aid is Available at UCLA?
Getting a better education from a prestigious university cost a certain amount, and some students might consider applying for students loan.
However, at UCLA most families applying had to pay less than the full cost of attendance. It is also understood that 46% of students pay no tuition fees at all.
The institution has several meals plans and housing options, which include financial aid for housing that enables you to decide how you want to stay at UCLA.
The University offers financial support in three forms which are majorly dependent on academic merit, need specific talents, backgrounds, and professional interests. UCLA also offers grants namely UCLA Regents Scholarships (merit-based), UCLA Alumni Scholarships (merit-based), and UCLA Achievements Scholarship(merit-based).
The average student loan for graduating seniors back in 2018 was $29,800. While UCLA graduates had a lower average of $22,390.
Conclusion
The University of California, Los Angeles has lived up to expectations of being called one of the prestigious schools in the U.S and beyond. Sometimes considered the “Public ivy” of the U.S the school sits on some 419 acres in Westwood Los Angeles.
UCLA acceptance rate by major proves how competitive it can be to make it into a professional program.
The acceptance rate of 14% indicates how selective the admission process can be.
But attending UCLA is worth it, all you have to do is obtains good grades while still in high school.
References
- CollegeTransitions.com: How to Get Into UCLA: Admissions Data and Strategies
- StudentMajor: UCLA Acceptance Rate 2021/2025 Class Admission Statistics By Major
- Wikipedia.com: University of California, Los Angeles
- Admissionsight.com: UCLA Acceptance Rate
