UCI Acceptance Rate: Admissions Statistics

Shortcuts to sections offered for UCI prospective students and UCI Acceptance Rate:

 Successful Applicant Profile 

• Demographics
• SAT/ACT Scores

 Entry Requirements

• Tuition
• Scholarships
• Checklist of Application Requirements
• Application Deadlines

What Should You Expect?

• Student life
• Academics offered
• Athletics offered
• Notable alumni

The University of California, Irvine – or UCI for short – is without a doubt one of the most prestigious schools not only in the UC system but also in the entire country.

First established in 1965, UC Irvine is one of the 10 campuses in the University of California (UC) system. Back in 1996, UCI became a member of the Association of American Universities, the youngest university to hold the honorable membership. If you are looking to study at UCI, it is important for you to know information such as what the UCI acceptance rate is.

An acceptance rate is the percentage of high school students who are accepted to a university compared to the total number of applicants in a given year. Last year, the UCI acceptance rate was 29 percent.

That means that out of 100 students who applied last year, just under 75 percent were not able to make the cut. That simple breakdown alone should give you a pretty great idea when it comes to just how hard it is to get into UC Irvine.

No matter what schools you are planning on applying to, it is crucial for you to have the basic information when it comes to those schools, what they expect out of high school applicants, and what kind of program they offer their students in the event that you are in fact admitted.

Here at AdmissionSight, we make it our number one goal to make sure but the most dedicated and brightest high school students are able to get into the colleges and universities of their dreams.

If your dream is to attend the University of California, Irvine, there is no doubt that diving deep into the information that we have gathered will help you get a better idea regarding your chances of getting in as well as whether or not this school truly is the right home for you.

One of the very first steps to figuring out whether or not a specific school is the right fit for you is to take a look at the typical requirements and thresholds that high school students have to meet in order to have a great chance of getting in.

Despite the fact that UC Irvine acceptance rate is higher than the most competitive UC schools such as UC Berkeley, UCLA, and UC Santa Barbara, it requires students to enjoy similar success when it comes to their high school studies and more.

For starters, let’s briefly break down some of the most basic and objective information regarding high schoolers who apply and get into UCI. When it comes to testing scores and GPA, here is the simple truth about UC Irving. When it comes to the SAT, the average score lies between 1195 and 1435 out of the perfect 1600.

When it comes to the ACT, the average score lies between a 27 and a 33 out of the perfect 36. When it comes to GPA, students who are accepted to UCI score an unweighted GPA of 3.97 and a weighted GPA of 4.25.

From these simple numbers, it is abundantly clear that just because the UCI acceptance rate is over 25 percent does not mean that it is an easy school to get into in the slightest. In fact, all UC schools are considered highly competitive when it comes to admissions due to the fact that California residents get a dramatically reduced price, but we’ll get into that information later.

Without a doubt, getting into any of the top schools in the United States is an incredible achievement. If getting into UCI is on your wish list, here is the information that will certainly help you along your journey towards that goal.

With that being said, simply scoring top scores on standardized tests and earning a great GPA is not all you need to do in order to achieve it. So, with those raw numbers out of the way, let’s get into how you can beat the UCI acceptance rate odds and become a proud student there.

Successful Applicant Profile

As you probably know, UC Irvine is considered to be right near the top of the most prestigious UC schools. Considering the fact that UC Berkeley, UCLA, and UC Santa Barbara annually show up as three of the top 10 public universities in the country, UCI’s prestige and competitiveness should not be taken lightly by any means.

If you are looking to get into UCI, you are going to have to score top grades, standardized test scores, and more. Some of the factors that admissions officers at UCI look very deeply at have to do with the extracurricular activities students took part in during their high schools years, the college recommendation letters from faculty at their high school as well as the essays that the applying student writes about why they think UCI is the right fit for them.

Making the most out of the non-grade and test score aspect of your application is paramount as it is a way for you to tell the admissions officers looking at your application the “story of you.”

It is a chance for them to get to know you and a chance for them to decide whether or not you are the right fit for what they are looking for out of UCI students.

In all, there are just over 30,000 undergraduate students currently studying at UCI. If you think that number is huge, consider the fact that over 117,000 … yes, I’ll say that again … 117,000 students applied to UCI last year. It was a record year for the school.

The number of students who apply and the number of students who currently attend UCI should already tell you something: This school is incredibly diverse. If you are curious about the ethnic, gender, and geographic diversity at UC Irvine, read ahead!

Demographics: Who attends UCI?

Based on a poll conducted by the highly reputable CollegeFactual, UCI is considered to have excellent overall diversity. Let’s break down that the average graduating class of UCI is going to look like!

From an ethnic standpoint, here is the diversity breakdown for UCI:

• 7% of the students at UCI are Asian
• 4% of the students at UCI are Hispanic/Latino
• 7% of the students at UCI are Non-Resident Alien
• 0% of the students at UCI are white
• 9% of the students at UCI are Black or African American

As you can see, the campus at UCI is as diverse as they come, with white students not even making up a top 3 demographic!

This ensures that no matter what ethnicity you are, you will be sure that your courses will be filled with people who both look like you and people who do not look like you. In this ever-changing world, that fact is considered a major strength of UCI’s proud student body.

When it comes to gender diversity, UCI is equally impressive. Women outweigh men on campus at a ratio of 53.1 percent to 46.9 percent.

Finally, when it comes to international students, UCI is similarly impressive. In fact, in a poll that looked at 1,240 total schools in the United States, UCI ranks as the 24th best school for international students.

Back in 2013, UCI was home to 3,283 international students. Now, that number has more than doubled. UCI is highly popular for students who come from countries such as Singapore, Greece, Iran, Kuwait, Japan, Russia, South Korea, Spain, and Hong Kong.

What are the test scores and grades necessary to get into UCI?

From before, you already have a pretty good idea about what it takes to get into UCI from a standardized testing and GPA standpoint. To break it down even further, we have included a table that you can find on UCI’s official admissions site to figure out where you stand compared to the students who get an acceptance letter from UCI.

Through this table, it is abundantly clear just how serious of a school this is. These grades and SAT/ACT thresholds are similar to many of the most prestigious and competitive schools in the country.

If you are looking for ways to improve your GPA, consider enrolling in weighted courses such as AP courses and honors courses at your high school in order to boost your GPA and give yourself a great chance of gaining acceptance.

As for your standardized testing scores, even if you typically are a strong test taker, you should absolutely consider applying the necessary time and effort to preparing for these exams.

Think about signing up for an online tutor or schedule study sessions with your group of friends so that you can tackle the material together and hold each other accountable.

Remember, when nit comes to mastering the ACT or SAT, studying the actual format of the exam is just helpful as studying the material that you will face on the exam.

While these are highly important factors to keep in mind, make sure not to forget about the other crucially important aspects of your college application. Here at AdmissionSight, we make sure that every student’s written essays and college recommendation letters are top-notch.

Which brings us to the next section!

Entry Requirements

The journey that will take you from filling out your application to UCI to your very first day on campus as a student is going to be a long and difficult one! There is a lot of soul searching and hard work that goes into every student’s decision when it comes to college.

After all, you are hoping to not only find your new school for the next four years but also your new home! Some of the most important factors that every student has to consider include the cost of a school as well as the financial aid options that are available.

It is also crucially important for you to know exactly when your application is due. After all, no matter how great your application is, it will not be considered if you don’t send it in before the deadline.

So, without further delay, let’s start breaking down that information and so much more!

How much does it cost to attend?

Just like every other public university in the United States, UCI has two different costs. One cost is for students who are legal residents of the state of California. The other cost is for students who are coming in from a different state or different country entirely.

Here is a breakdown of the differences in costs for California residents and non-residents.

As you can see, the two prices differ greatly. It is also a major reason why an astounding 78 percent of students who end up going to UCI come from within the state of California.

Still, if you either in-state or out-of-state and trying to afford UCI, the cost of attendance may prove to be too much. Luckily, the school offers bountiful financial aid options.

Financial aid at UCI

The standard financial aid package at UCI for newly arriving freshmen students is just under $24,000. Beyond that, approximately 60 percent of new students at UCI will get some form of financial aid, which primarily comes in the form of scholarships and grants.

Application requirements

In order to best prepare for your application to UCI, you will have to make sure that you fulfill all of the required steps to their application. That includes sending in a lot of material and paying an application fee. Here is what you need to send in.

Application deadlines

Just like it is important what criteria you have to meet in order to get in, considering the UCI acceptance rate, you also will want to know when to send in your application by.

To make things easy, UCI does not offer early action or early decision. Instead, the deadline for all applicants is Nov. 30, with notifications for all students coming on March 31.

What to Expect

One of the very best ways to figure out whether or not a school is the right fit for you is to ask current or former students about their experiences at a school.

While we at AdmissionSight are not going to put you in touch with students at UCI at this moment, we will post some of the best reviews we found on a site that allows students to post about the schools that they go to. Take a look!

“University of California – Irvine is diverse and provides many opportunities, while it also can have a relaxed, easy-going environment at times. People are friendly and most strive hard to achieve their goals.

It would be nice if certain professors would work harder to engage with their students and provide as much help as they can. Overall, the University of California – Irvine is a good place to go to school and has a good success rate of graduates.”

“I’m a Computer Science major at UCI, and I really love the school. Classes are interesting and challenging, and if you’re willing to put in the work you will learn a lot. I have been very satisfied with most of my professors and feel very confident that I am receiving a world-class education.

“Your social life is what you want it to be. In general, the way that people socialize at UCI is pretty laid back and chill; but if you’re the type of person who wants to join a frat and party on Wednesdays, there are definitely still people like that here. You won’t feel any pressure to act in a certain way.”

Academics at UCI

Another great way to get an idea about whether or not a school is right for you is to take a look at the most popular programs that are offered. At UCI, some of the most popular programs include STEM programs.

The most popular programs amongst undergrads include Social Psychology; Biology/Biological Sciences, General; Business/Managerial Economics; Computer Science; and Public Health. Without a doubt, there are countless wonderful courses and programs that you can invest your time and energy in, but if your interests lie in any of the aforementioned programs, you should for sure move UCI to the top of your list!

Athletics at UCI

The UC Irvine Anteaters as they are called are quite feisty! They participated in the NCAA Division I Big West Conference and Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.

Varsity sports include men’s baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s and women’s track and field, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s volleyball and finally men’s and women’s water polo.

In all, UCI has won 28 national championships through the years. 53 Anteaters have competed in the Olympic games!

Famous UCI alumni

Just like many of the other top schools in the world, UCI has many alumni that have gone on to achieve great things. Here are some of their most famous alumni:

• Jon Lovitz, actor
• Greg Louganis, Olympian
• Lisa Mari Scott, model
• Tonantzin Carmelo, actress
• Coco Lee, singer-songwriter
• David Benioff, writer and TV producer
• Erin Gruwell, author
• Miachel Chabon, writer
• Aras Baskauskas, businessman
• Alice Sebold, author
• Glorio Remero, politician

If you hope to one day see your name on this admissions list, the very first step is to get into UCI.

Here at AdmissionSight, we have the tools necessary to help you get into the school of your dreams! If you have the right test scores and grades, there should be nothing getting in your way. Let us make sure that the path is clear so that you can become a proud Anteater!