2026 UC Admissions Data Update: UC Irvine, UC Davis, and UC Santa Barbara

UC Irvine, UC Davis, and UC Santa Barbara have released their freshman admissions data for fall 2026. All three universities reported higher overall admission rates than last year. UCSB experienced the largest change, with its admission rate rising from approximately 38% to 44%. However, this does not mean that popular majors at these universities have become easy to enter. UCI admits by major, UC Davis remains highly competitive in engineering, design, psychology, and business, and UCSB has introduced a new artificial intelligence major that is expected to attract a large number of applicants.

Therefore, when reviewing campuswide admission rates, students must still consider their intended major, course preparation, and relevant experiences.

UC Irvine: The Overall Admission Rate Rises, but Major Selection Directly Affects Admission Difficulty

UCI received 125,987 freshman applications this year and admitted 38,165 students. The university expects 6,700 students to enroll. Its overall admission rate was 30%, approximately 1.1 percentage points higher than last year.

UCI offered waitlist positions to 18,353 students, and 4,616 were eventually admitted. This resulted in a waitlist admission rate of approximately 25.2%. This rate is higher than those at many other UC campuses, so accepting a place on the waitlist may still be worthwhile. However, students should not assume that they will eventually be admitted.

UCI also received 1,346 admission appeals, but only eight were approved, resulting in a success rate of approximately 0.6%. Unless students can provide important new information that was not included in the original application or demonstrate a clear error in the review process, they should not expect an appeal to change the decision.

Academically, admitted students had a median weighted GPA of 4.19, with a middle 50% range of 4.04 to 4.27. Their median unweighted GPA was 3.95, with a middle 50% range of 3.84 to 4.00. These ranges were nearly unchanged from last year. Although UCI’s overall admission rate increased, its academic expectations did not decline significantly.

The admitted California students came from 1,603 high schools. Among them, 35% were first generation college students and 38% met the university’s criteria for low income students.

The most important point when interpreting UCI’s data is that the university admits students by major. The overall admission rate of 30% does not directly represent the actual difficulty of entering popular fields such as nursing, computer science, engineering, or business.

This year, 54% of freshman applications were concentrated in ten majors: Biological Sciences, Business Administration, Nursing Science, Mechanical Engineering, Psychology, Undeclared, Computer Science, Political Science, Public Health Sciences, and Criminology, Law and Society. More than half of all applicants selected a small group of majors, showing a clear concentration of demand.

Nursing, computer science, engineering, and business remain highly competitive fields. If a student’s courses, activities, and intended major do not form a clear connection, applying to a popular major simply because it is in demand can increase the risk of rejection. At UCI, selecting a major is not merely a required field on the application. It is an important part of the admissions strategy.

The School of Engineering has eliminated Engineering Undeclared. Students interested in engineering must now apply directly to a specific engineering major or select the universitywide Undergraduate Undeclared option. Engineering Undeclared can no longer be used as an alternative route into the School of Engineering.

Students should understand the differences among engineering fields earlier and ensure that their high school courses and activities support their intended direction.

The Urban Studies major has also been renamed Urban Studies, Planning, and Policy. By adding Planning and Policy, the new name more clearly reflects areas such as urban planning, public policy, community development, and economic development.

In music, the Music B.A. and Music B.Mus. have similar names but serve different goals. The Music B.A. offers greater curricular flexibility and emphasizes music history, theory, and composition. It does not require an audition. The Music B.Mus. focuses on professional training in Western classical music performance and requires an audition as part of the application. Students should choose based on their long term goals rather than the program names alone.

UCI is also expanding its accelerated undergraduate and graduate degree pathways. The law school’s 3+3 program allows students to complete a bachelor’s degree and a J.D. within six years. Students receive a total of $90,000 in scholarships during their three years of law school. Participating academic areas include the Honors Program, Humanities, Public Health, Engineering, Social Sciences, and Social Ecology.

The university has also introduced a 4+1 business program. Students can complete a bachelor’s and master’s degree within five years and receive a $10,000 business school scholarship. The program is currently available to undergraduates in Social Ecology, Humanities, and Physical Sciences.

These programs may appeal to students who are already seriously considering graduate study in law or business. However, students should not apply simply to shorten the time required for their degrees. They still need to consider their academic preparation, career goals, and graduate school plans.

Overall, UCI’s admission rate rose to 30% this year, but popular majors are unlikely to become significantly easier to enter. With the elimination of Engineering Undeclared, applicants need to identify their direction earlier and build clear connections among their courses, activities, and intended major.

UC Davis: The Admission Rate Approaches 46%, but the University Should Not Be Treated as a Safety School

UC Davis received 104,850 freshman applications this year and admitted 48,001 students. The university expects 6,375 students to enroll. Its overall admission rate was 45.8%, an increase of 1.2 percentage points from last year.

Compared with last year, applications increased by approximately 1,900, while the number of admitted students rose by approximately 2,000. Overall admission was therefore slightly less restrictive. However, popular majors such as engineering, design, psychology, and business should not be evaluated according to the campuswide admission rate of 45.8%.

The middle 50% range for admitted students’ unweighted GPAs was 3.79 to 4.00, while the weighted GPA range was 4.00 to 4.25. Although UC Davis had an overall admission rate close to 46%, admitted students still earned primarily A grades. A 3.79 GPA is only the lower boundary of the middle 50% range. It does not mean that a student with this GPA is likely to be admitted.

Among admitted students, 31.9% came from underrepresented groups, 34.1% were first generation college students, and 29.9% came from low income families.

UC Davis offered waitlist positions to 17,527 students. Of the 9,865 students who accepted a place on the waitlist, 2,156 were eventually admitted. Based on the number who remained on the waitlist, the waitlist admission rate was approximately 21.9%.

Accepting a place on the waitlist may still be worthwhile, but the opportunity declined significantly from last year. Approximately 3,824 students were admitted from the waitlist last year, compared with 2,156 this year. Students on the waitlist should continue moving forward with decisions at other universities rather than basing their enrollment plans on a possible waitlist offer.

UC Davis identified Mechanical Engineering, Design, Psychology, Business, Pre Landscape Architecture, and Animal Science as highly competitive majors. The most selective fields are no longer concentrated only within the College of Engineering. Competition in design, psychology, and business is also increasing.

Students applying to engineering need strong preparation in mathematics and STEM courses. Applicants interested in design, psychology, business, or animal science should also demonstrate their academic interests through relevant coursework and activities. They should not rely only on the university’s overall admission rate when evaluating risk.

UC Davis continues to have particular strengths in agriculture, biology, and veterinary medicine, while its other academic programs are also developing rapidly. A new residence hall is expected to be completed in 2027. The School of Veterinary Medicine received a $120 million donation, and the university has established the Resnick Center for Agricultural Innovation.

These investments continue to strengthen UC Davis’s resources in agriculture, life sciences, and veterinary medicine. For students interested in these fields, the university’s value extends beyond its relatively accessible overall admission rate. It also includes the specialized resources and research opportunities available to undergraduates.

Overall, UC Davis remains one of the more accessible campuses within the UC system, but it should not automatically be treated as a safety school. GPA is only a basic academic indicator. When students apply to popular majors, the rigor of their mathematics and STEM courses, the direction of their activities, and their preparation for the intended field can create further differences among applicants.

UC Santa Barbara: The Admission Rate Rises to 44% as a New Undergraduate Artificial Intelligence Major Is Introduced

UCSB received 108,513 freshman applications this year and admitted 47,715 students. The university expects approximately 5,125 students to enroll. Its overall admission rate was 44%, approximately six percentage points higher than last year.

UCSB received approximately 1,700 fewer applications than last year while admitting approximately 5,500 more students. Admission was therefore meaningfully less restrictive overall. However, the 44% figure represents the universitywide admission rate. It does not directly reflect the difficulty of entering popular fields such as biology, psychological and brain sciences, computer science, or artificial intelligence.

Admitted students had an average UC GPA of 4.15. This figure refers to the UC system’s official weighted and capped GPA calculation and should not be treated as equivalent to the weighted GPA shown on a student’s high school transcript.

The majors receiving the most applications at UCSB this year included Biology, Undeclared, and Psychological and Brain Sciences. These fields remain highly popular. Students should not overlook academic and major preparation simply because the university’s overall admission rate increased.

UCSB received 860 admission appeals this year, but only nine were approved, resulting in a success rate of approximately 1%. Unless an applicant can provide important new information or identify a major error in the application review, an appeal should not be treated as a routine way to change the result.

UCSB’s most important academic change this year is the introduction of a B.S. in Artificial Intelligence, which will begin admitting students for fall 2026. This is the university’s first independent undergraduate major in artificial intelligence, and it is expected to attract strong interest.

Students preparing to apply should complete rigorous mathematics and computer science courses and demonstrate a genuine interest in artificial intelligence through research, programming, competitions, or independent projects. A new major does not necessarily create more accessible admission opportunities. The first group of applicants may instead face substantial uncertainty and competition.

The university has also introduced three new minors: Environmental Humanities, Child Studies, and Health Humanities. These programs may appeal to students who want to connect humanistic or social issues with environmental studies, child development, or health.

In addition, Asian Studies will be renamed East Asian Studies, and the Computing major in the College of Creative Studies will be renamed Computer Science. These changes make the content and direction of the programs clearer.

UCSB has expanded its freshman housing guarantee to two years. The San Benito residence hall is expected to open in fall 2027 and will add 2,224 beds. This is a practical improvement for students who value campus life and stable housing.

UCSB has long been known for its campus environment and balance between academics and student life. The increase in its admission rate to 44% makes the university more accessible overall than it was last year, but applications remain concentrated in popular majors. Biology, Psychological and Brain Sciences, and the new Artificial Intelligence major will not become easy to enter simply because the overall admission rate increased.

How to Understand This Year’s Changes at the Three Campuses

UCI, UC Davis, and UCSB all reported higher overall admission rates this year, but the main admissions considerations differ among the three universities.

UCI admits by major, so competition in nursing, computer science, engineering, and business will be significantly greater than the campuswide admission rate of 30% suggests. Following the elimination of Engineering Undeclared, students must also determine their specific direction earlier.

UC Davis reported an overall admission rate of 45.8%, but its admitted students continued to have strong GPAs. Engineering, design, psychology, business, and animal science should not be treated as low risk options.

UCSB’s admission rate rose to 44%, representing the most substantial change among the three universities. The university also introduced an undergraduate major in artificial intelligence and expanded its housing guarantee. For students applying in artificial intelligence, computer science, biology, or psychology, rigorous coursework and relevant experiences remain essential.

The three universities share one important feature: campuswide admission rates provide only an overview of general trends and cannot replace an analysis of individual majors. The more popular the intended major, the more important it becomes for students to plan their courses, activities, and application content in advance so that their preparation genuinely supports their academic direction.

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