Hot off the press!  We've had a chance to review the preliminary Fall 2022 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 fell systemwide from 65 perent to 60 percent based on a 3.5 percent increase in applications and 5.1 percent decrease 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.

Key Findings

• Systemwide, the overall freshman admission rate declined from 65 percent to 60 percent.   Systemwide, the overall freshman admission rate fell from 65 percent to 60 percent. The average admission rate for California residents fell from 66 to 64 percent year over year, while out-of-state and international admit rates fell from 61 to 48 percent and 68 to 56 percent respectively. UCLA remained the most selective campus, with Berkeley at #2, Irvine at #3, San Diego at #4, Santa Barbara at #5 and Davis, Santa Cruz, Riverside and Merced at spots 6-9.

• Application volume remains elevated. Fall 2022 applicant count remained elevated following the adoption of test-blind admission in Fall 2021, rising 3.5 percent systemwide.

• Fewer acceptances, particularly for non-residents. Total acceptances fell 5.1 percent year over year. Resident acceptances rose slightly (1.2 percent), while out-of-state acceptances fell 19 percent and international acceptances fell 12.2 percent.  We believe this is due in part to higher than expected yields for non-residents for the Fall 2021 cycle.

• Pockets of opportunity remain for non-residents. Despite the overall decline in out-of-state and international acceptances, a few campuses continue to offer admission rate advantages for non-residents.

Highlights by Campus

• Berkeley.   The overall admission rate declined from 15 to 11 percent in 2022 due to a 14 percent increase in applications and an 11 percent decline in acceptances.  Resident acceptances held steady while out-of-state and international acceptances fell from 14 to 9 percent and 8 to 6 percent respectively.  

• Davis.   The overall admission rate fell from 49 to 38 percent in 2022 due to an 13 percent rise in applicants and a 17 percent decline in acceptances. Despite the decline, out-of-state and international applicants continued to be admitted at rates far in excess of California residents (60 and 43 percent vs 32 percent). 

• Irvine.   The overall admission rate declined from 29 to 21 percent as applications grew 10 percent and acceptances declined 20 percent.  The acceptance rate for residents remained steady at 18 percent, while the rates for out-of-state and international applicants fell precipitously from 74 to 37 percent and 38 to 22 percent respectively.  While the rate gap has closed considerably, out-of-state and international admit rates remain higher than residents at this campus.

• Los Angeles.   The overall admission rate declined from 11 to 9 percent in 2022, driven by a 7 percent increase in applicants and 15 percent decrease in acceptances. The resident admit rate held relatively steady at 9 percent, while the out-of-state rate fell from 14 to 9 percent and international rate fell from 9 to 6 percent.

• Merced.   While there appears to be an inconsistency in the currently reported data—total acceptances exceed total applicants—the overall acceptance rate will likely continues to be in the mid to high 90s. Based on the reported data, applications at Merced grew 2 percent and acceptances grew 11 percent. While out-of-state and international acceptances rose over 30 percent for the year, Merced remains a decidedly resident-centric campus, with non-residents representing just 9 percent of the total admit pool.

• Riverside.   The overall admission rate rose from 66 to 69 percent as applications grew 3 percent and acceptances grew 8 percent. While international acceptances grew 23 percent for the year, 82 percent of total admits continue to be for California residents.

• San Diego.   The overall admission rate fell from 34 to 24 percent in 2022, as applications grew 11 percent and acceptances declined 23 percent. All acceptance rates were negatively affected, with the resident rate falling from 28 to 24 percent, out-of-state rate falling from 59 to 32 percent and international rate falling from 31 to 16 percent.  

• Santa Barbara.   The overall admission rate declined from 29 to 26 percent due to a 5 percent uptick in applicants and 7 percent decline in admitted students. While the resident admit rate held relatively steady at 27 percent, out-of-state and international admit rates declined from 36 to 29 percent and 27 to 20 percent respectively.

• Santa Cruz.   The overall admission rate declined from 59 to 47 percent in 2022 due to a 7 percent increase in applicants and 15 percent decline in acceptances. Despite the decline, out of state and international applicants continue to enjoy admission rate advantages over residents (71 percent and 55 percent vs 43 percent).

Implications

• Expect applicant interest to remain high for Fall 2023 .   With test-blind admissions in place for the Fall 2023 cycle, expect application volume to remain elevated.  

• Though shrinking, 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.

• Admission rate advantages most prominent at Davis, Irvine and Santa Cruz.   Decided admission rate advantages persist for out-of-state and international students.