UC Santa Barbara Acceptance Rate & Chances CDS VERIFIED
California (West) · 23,181 undergrads · ~37 avg class size · 17:1 student-faculty · $15,000/yr sticker
public Tier 3
Beachside R1. Physics (Nobel laureates), engineering, and economics. Famously good location and party scene.
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Stats below are CDS-based estimates from recent admissions cycles. Verify on the school's official site before making application decisions.
Acceptance rate
27.8%
most recent reported cycle
By application round
Regular Decision33.0%
State residency
In-state31.0%
Out-of-state20.0%
GPA range
3.9–4.18
middle 50% of admitted students (unweighted)
SAT mid-50%
Test-blind
does not consider SAT/ACT
ACT mid-50%
Test-blind
does not consider SAT/ACT
Median earnings (10-yr)
$74K
Federal data — 10 yrs after college entry, all majors combined
≈ 2.2 years of post-grad earnings cover 4 yrs of attendance
Career outcomes · 11 sources
Median graduate earnings · 2.2 yrs to pay back 4 yrs of cost · est. lifetime ROI $396K.
Earnings cross-referenced across 11 sources (College Scorecard, Opportunity Insights, Georgetown CEW, FREOPP, PayScale, and more).
Where this leads
Real career pipelines from this school, based on alumni outcomes and recruiting patterns.
- Tech/software engineering in LA/SF: strong pipeline, lower barrier than Stanford
- Entertainment/media production: LA proximity, film/TV studio recruiting, mid-career growth limits
- Finance in LA: regional wealth management and real estate finance, not NYC tier
- Climate tech and cleantech: strong STEM alumni network in coastal California
- Oil/energy sector: some petroleum engineering roles, but shrinking industry long-term