UC Santa Cruz Acceptance Rate & Chances CDS VERIFIED
California (West) · 18,000 undergrads · ~37 avg class size · 17:1 student-faculty · $15,000/yr sticker
public Tier 4
Median earnings (10yr)
$68K
CDS-based estimates from recent admissions cycles. Verify on the school's official site.
72.7% is the average applicant's shot. Your odds depend on your GPA, scores, and hooks. See where you actually stand.
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Career outcomes · 10 sources
Median graduate earnings · 2.4 yrs to pay back 4 yrs of cost · est. lifetime ROI $172K.
Earnings cross-referenced across 10 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 in SF Bay Area and Silicon Valley: strong CS pipeline, especially startups and mid-tier firms.
- Applied ML and data science: better than finance recruiting, alumni network in Bay Area labs.
- Environmental science and marine biology: proximity to Monterey Bay, strong regional nonprofit and government placement.
- Game development: decent pipeline to smaller studios in Bay Area, not AAA-tier talent magnet.
- Biotech in San Diego: moderate network there, but limited compared to Berkeley or UCSD hometown advantage.
About UC Santa Cruz
Quirky redwood campus. Strong in marine biology, astronomy, and game design. Less competitive than other UCs.
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