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College

University of California - San Diego

#33 in Top Public Universities in America
  • A
    Overall Grade
  • 4 Year
  • La Jolla, CA
  • 3,322 reviews
A
Overall Niche Grade
How are grades calculated?
  1. Academics
    A
  2. Value
    A
  3. Diversity
    A
  4. Campus
    B-
  5. Athletics
    B
  6. Party Scene
    B-
  7. Professors
    A
  8. Location
    A-
  9. Dorms
    C+
  10. Campus Food
    B
  11. Student Life
    B
  12. Safety
    B-
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UC San Diego is a highly rated public university located in San Diego, California. It is a large institution with an enrollment of 27,880 undergraduate students. Admissions is fairly competitive as the UC San Diego acceptance rate is 34%. Popular majors include Computer Science, Economics, and Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Graduating 85% of students, UC San Diego alumni go on to earn a starting salary of $39,600.
About University of California - San Diego...
Athletic Division
NCAA Division II (without football)
Athletic Conference
Division II Independents
Address
9500 Gilman Dr
La Jolla, CA 92093
Website
ucsd.edu
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University of California - San Diego Rankings

Niche rankings are based on rigorous analysis of key statistics from the U.S. Department of Education and millions of reviews.

Admissions

Acceptance Rate
34%
Application Deadline
November 30
SAT Range
1210-1410
ACT Range
27-33
Application Fee
$70
SAT/ACT
Required
High School GPA
Required
Early Decision/Early Action
No

Test Prep

SAT and ACT Prep Options
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Cost

Net Price
$14,616/ year
National
$15,523
Average cost after financial aid for students receiving grant or scholarship aid, as reported by the college.
Net Price by Household Income
  • <$30k
    $8,692/ year
  • $30-48k
    $10,155/ year
  • $49-75k
    $13,960/ year
  • $76-110k
    $21,190/ year
  • $110k+
    $28,282/ year
Student Loan Options from Lenders
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  • Rates starting at 4.26% APR + 1% Cash Back
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Academics

Professors
A
Based on faculty accomplishments, salary, student reviews, and additional factors.
Student Faculty Ratio
19:1
Evening Degree Programs
No
71%
of students agree that professors put a lot of effort into teaching their classes.204 responses
39%
of students agree that it is easy to get the classes they want.219 responses
36%
of students agree that the workload is easy to manage.220 responses
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Majors

Most Popular Majors
  • Computer Science
    607 Graduates
  • Economics
    564 Graduates
  • Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
    470 Graduates
  • Anatomy
    390 Graduates
  • Biology
    343 Graduates
  • Communications
    315 Graduates
  • Management Sciences and Information Systems
    307 Graduates
  • Political Science and Government
    294 Graduates
  • Electrical Engineering
    273 Graduates
  • Neuroscience and Neurobiology
    248 Graduates

Students

Full-Time Enrollment
27,880Undergrads
Undergrads Over 25
5%
Pell Grant
31%
Varsity Athletes
2%
Poll
What one word or phrase best describes the typical student at this school?
Based on 110 responses
Report
  • From SoCal, Asian, Bio Major, PreMed
    43%
  • Intellectual
    21%
  • STEM
    13%
  • Smart
    7%
  • Chill
    5%
  • Brilliant
    3%
  • Cool
    2%

Campus Life

Freshmen Live On-Campus
—
Poll
58%
of students say that Greek life is average, and no one will treat you differently if you don't join.286 responses
Poll
60%
of students say varsity sporting events are attended, but not a huge part of campus life.328 responses
Poll
What one word or phrase best describes your school?
Based on 166 responses
Report
  • If you don't get involved, you're doing it wrong
    22%
  • Great undergraduate experience
    19%
  • Can be Amazing or disappointing
    17%
  • Engineers
    13%
  • Love it or hate it
    8%
  • Awesome
    7%
  • Continuously growing and improving
    5%

After College

Median Earnings 6 Years After Graduation
$58,600/ year
National
$33,028
Graduation Rate
85%
National
49%
Employed 2 Years After Graduation
88%
National
83%
67%
of students feel confident they will find a job in their field after graduation.147 responses
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University of California - San Diego Reviews

3,322 reviews
All Categories
My father attended UCSD, and as a San Diego native, I myself have participated in some of the events the school has hosted. At an event called Splash, I was able to take classes in various subjects, such has happiness and cryptography. I was able to meet many people and the graduate students who taught the courses were extremely passionate about the subjects. I have also had the opportunity to ask some UCSD professors/students to speak to the students in a club I am Vice President of. The psychiatry professor and senior that came to our meeting were kind enough to take time out of their day to answer our questions about their research. The school and people in it are great!
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This year, the average GPA for incoming freshmen was 4.08. People here are not only intelligent, but hard-working as reflected in this high average. The classes here are rigorous, in large part due to large class sizes. Since professors can teach a class of up to 300 students, students here need to take initiative on their learning, which means asking questions, forming study groups, reading the textbook. While the expectation varies between professors, this general method works well for many students here. The campus provides an immense amount of resources for women, military veterans, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and other under-represented groups. The campus also provides students with academic advising, writing workshops, and supplemental tutoring and instruction for all subjects and classes at UCSD.
My experience at UCSD was an unexpected, pleasant, surprise. Yes, i know you have heard a lot of "UC Socially Dead" or "lack of socialization", however, these are all wrong! The people here at UCSD are unlike any people I have met, they are social in their own way (its a very admirable and fascinating trait). Just because UCSD holds the reputation of no parties does not make the school socially dead, there are other ways people can socialize! There are campus events for everyone in any college and there are events that are specific to each individual college.
The people here each have amazing distinct personalities in which anyone can find who they vibe with easily. In my personal experience, my favorite part of college is spending time with people in my residence halls and staying up late at night talking and watching vine compilations, going to the beach at 2 am in the morning and having deep conversations, or crashing at a strangers dorm