GPA and test scores
Is there a minimum GPA for admission?
MC: There is a minimum — 3.0 for California residents and 3.4 for students coming from outside of California. We calculate your GPA using just the A–G courses taken between the summer after 9th grade through the summer after 11th grade. But we always let students know that, to be competitive, you should go above and beyond those minimums.
RP: While campuses admit from across the GPA range, it’s important to look at the average admit GPA for the campus you want to go to in order to have a sense of what the level of competition is. The averages at most campuses are much higher than the minimum. Most students applying to the University of California aren’t just meeting the minimum. They’re eager learners. They’ve gone beyond the minimum requirements. They’ve taken more honors, AP, IB and college-level courses that really raise their GPAs.
If you’re looking to bump up your GPA, which is better, taking AP classes or taking dual enrollment classes at a California Community College?
RP: We don’t have a preference, other than wanting students to choose the path they are most passionate about. Instead of trying to game the system, take the courses that are truly interesting to you.
If you find that the dual enrollment course in American history seems more interesting to you than AP U.S. History, no one on the admissions side is going to care about that. But we are going to be happy to hear more about your interest in history. There are a lot of options, and I think it’s really up to the student in conversation with their counselors and their parents to take courses that excite them.
How about test scores?
RP: We do not consider SAT or ACT scores in the admission process. But other test scores like AP, IB and A Levels, those are all part of the review. Keep in mind, they are not the be-all and end-all of the review because again, it’s holistic. That said, for some of our more competitive programs, an AP or IB score can give us some information about a student’s strength in a particular area. For example, a passing exam score in Calculus or Physics AP for an Engineering major can be added value in your application.
Financial aid
Do you consider a student’s financial aid request when making admissions decisions?
RP: UC admissions is need blind, which means that we do not consider a student’s ability to pay when we are making admission decisions. The person reading your application is never going to know whether or not you applied for financial aid. We’re not considering whether you can pay because it’s just not the way we do business. We’re not here to make money. We’re here to enrich minds, teach, conduct research and provide a public service. So that’s what we’re about.
In fact, UC has some of the best financial aid anywhere. At UC Davis alone, we give out three-quarters of a billion dollars in financial aid every year. If you’re worried about your ability to pay for a UC education, it’s important to note that most students do not pay the published “sticker” price. Most California residents with a family income of under $100,000 pay no tuition at all. We don’t want cost to be the barrier, so we want you to apply, even if you’re not sure about your ability to afford it. Submit the FAFSA or the California Dream Act application, whichever applies to you, and let’s see where we can come together on cost and make this more affordable.
There is a place in the application where we collect information about family size and your parents’ educational backgrounds, careers and family income, but that is for context and determining fee waiver eligibility, and it’s entirely optional. It’s not going to make or break your application one way or the other.
Free UC application resources
Does UC offer help with the application?
RP: There are a lot of folks out there who have found ways to monetize the college admissions process. But we are committed to providing advice you can trust for free. You can call our offices, you can email us, ask us questions, come to our workshops and really get your questions answered. We dive deep on them. Sometimes they’re really big programs with thousands of students attending, but sometimes they’re small workshops and you can get some very personal attention.
Wherever you live, we also have dedicated territory managers you can reach out to. So I’ve got people who handle Southern California and the very northern part of the state and everywhere in between. Those folks are there to help answer your questions. And the same is true for every UC campus. You should be able to get your questions answered for free, so use us as a resource.