UCLA Acceptance Rate and What It Takes to Get In

Last updated: November 7, 2026

The UCLA acceptance rate is about 10.8% for students who entered in fall 2026: UCLA admitted 15,903 of 146,692 first-year applicants, according to the University of California's admit data. The year before, UCLA admitted 13,659 of 145,085, about 9.4%. UCLA receives more first-year applications than any other university in the country, and its rate changes widely by school, from about 0.5% in Nursing to about 24% in Music. Below you will find UCLA's own numbers, the GPA ranges of admitted students, how UC reads an application, and the eight personal insight questions.

About 146,000 students apply to UCLA, and most of them have near-perfect grades. The difference is in what they did with those grades. Show me what UCLA readers notice →

UCLA acceptance rate for fall 2026

The University of California publishes a "snapshot of the admitted first-year class" for each campus. For UCLA, fall 2026:

• Applicants: 146,692
• Admits: 15,903
• Acceptance rate: 10.8% (our calculation: 15,903 ÷ 146,692)

That is about 1 admit for every 9 applicants. Applications rose by about 1.1% from fall 2025, but UCLA admitted about 2,200 more students, so the rate went up.

UC warns readers to "be cautious in drawing conclusions from this information" and to use it "as a general guide to selectivity and not as a predictor of your chance for admission."

How the UCLA acceptance rate changed

UCLA's own first-year profiles, with our rate calculations:

The applicant pool has stayed near 146,000 for five years. The rate moves with the number of admits UCLA chooses. In fall 2025, 6,553 of the 13,659 admitted students enrolled, a yield of about 48%.

UCLA acceptance rate by school

You apply to a major, and each school admits its own class. UCLA's fall 2025 profile, with our calculations:

Engineering is the hard path for most STEM students. In fall 2024, Samueli admitted 1,875 of 35,057, about 5.3%. The arts schools also review auditions or portfolios, so their pools are self-selected. Choose the major you can already show work in, because the major you choose decides which pool reads your file.

UCLA GPA: what admitted students had

UCLA calculates all GPAs from courses in grades 10 and 11. For fall 2025 admits:

• Weighted GPA: median 4.61, middle 50% 4.44 to 4.78. This "fully weighted" GPA adds a point for every UC-approved honors, AP, IB or college course, up to 5.00.
• Unweighted GPA: median 4.00, middle 50% 3.95 to 4.00.

The median weighted GPA of admits rose from 4.54 in fall 2021 to 4.61 in fall 2025. UC's fall 2026 snapshot lists a middle range of 4.20 to 4.30. That range is lower because the snapshot uses a different GPA calculation, so do not compare the two numbers directly.

The minimum GPA to be eligible for UC is 3.0 for California residents and 3.4 for nonresidents, in the 15 required "A-G" courses. Eligibility is not admission. At UCLA, half of admitted students had an unweighted 4.00. Use the high school GPA calculator to see where you stand, and see weighted vs unweighted GPA.

Half of UCLA's admits had a 4.00 unweighted GPA. When grades tie, the file is decided by what you did that no transcript can show. Send me the PhD mentors' playbook →

Does UCLA require the SAT or ACT?

No. UCLA "will not consider SAT or ACT scores" in admission decisions, and the other UC campuses follow the same policy. This puts more weight on the transcript, the activities list and the personal insight questions.

How UCLA reads an application

UC uses "comprehensive review." The UC system lists 13 factors, and each campus decides how to weigh them. They include:

• Your GPA in A-G courses and the number and rigor of courses beyond the minimum.
• Your senior-year program and grades.
• "Outstanding work in one or more special projects in any academic field of study."
• Special talents, achievements and awards.
• Improvement in academic performance over time.
• Your achievements in the context of your school and your life experiences.

UC says it looks at "how hard you've worked to take advantage of the opportunities you've had." Note the factor about special projects. A research question you investigate for months, with a real result, is exactly that. It also gives you a strong answer to personal insight question 6, about an academic subject that inspires you. See does research help college admissions.

The UC personal insight questions

UCLA has no supplement of its own. Every UC applicant answers 4 of 8 personal insight questions, in up to 350 words each. Word for word, from UC Admissions:

1. "Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes or contributed to group efforts over time."
2. "Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side."
3. "What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?"
4. "Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced."
5. "Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement?"
6. "Think about an academic subject that inspires you. Describe how you have furthered this interest inside and/or outside of the classroom."
7. "What have you done to make your school or your community a better place?"
8. "Beyond what has already been shared in your application, what do you believe makes you a strong candidate for admissions to the University of California?"

All questions count equally, so choose the four where you have the most specific story. Write plainly. A reader who meets one concrete example remembers more than a reader who meets a list of traits.

Question 6 asks how you went past the classroom in a subject you love. Imagine an answer built on research you did with a PhD mentor. Help me build that answer →

UCLA application dates for fall 2027

The UC application covers all nine undergraduate campuses:

• August 1, 2026: the application opens.
• October 1 to November 30, 2026: the filing period. The final deadline is November 30.
• October 1, 2026: the FAFSA and the California Dream Act Application open.
• March 2, 2027: the deadline for the FAFSA, the Dream Act Application and the Cal Grant GPA Verification Form.
• March 2027: most campuses release decisions. Some may release them earlier.
• May 1, 2027: the deadline for admitted students to submit the Statement of Intent to Register (SIR).

UC has no early decision or early action. The fee is $80 per campus, or $95 for international applicants. UC waives the fee for up to four campuses for qualified students. For other colleges' dates, see college application deadlines.

UC lists "outstanding work in one or more special projects" as a review factor. Few applicants can point to one. Show me how to build mine →

Is UCLA almost an Ivy League school?

No. UCLA is a public university, and the Ivy League is a group of eight private universities. By selectivity, UCLA is close to the Ivies. In fall 2025, UCLA admitted about 9.4%, and Cornell, the Ivy with the highest rate, admitted about 8.4%. For UCLA Engineering, the rate was 6.8%. See the Ivy League schools.

How much does UCLA cost?

UCLA's 2026-27 cost of attendance for a student in a residence hall:

• California residents: $45,500, including $16,430 in university fees.
• Nonresidents: $84,770, including $39,270 in nonresident supplemental tuition.

Four years cost about $182,000 for a resident and about $339,000 for a nonresident at these rates, before aid (our calculation; costs usually rise each year). In the fall 2025 class, 26% were first-generation college students, and 73% of UCLA students graduate with no loan debt.

Frequently asked questions

What GPA do you need to get into UCLA? UC sets a 3.0 minimum (3.4 for nonresidents), but admitted students have far more. In fall 2025, the middle 50% of admits had a weighted GPA of 4.44 to 4.78 and an unweighted GPA of 3.95 to 4.00.

Is UCLA harder to get into than Harvard? No. Harvard admitted about 3.7% for the Class of 2030, and UCLA about 10.8% for fall 2026. See the Harvard acceptance rate. UCLA's nursing school, at about 0.5% in fall 2025, is the exception.

What is the UCLA out-of-state acceptance rate? UCLA's profile does not split its rate by residency. UC sets a higher minimum GPA for nonresidents, 3.4 against 3.0.

Is UCLA or USC harder to get into? For fall 2026, UCLA admitted about 10.8% and USC about 12.6%. See the USC acceptance rate.

Can I apply early to UCLA? No. UC has one filing period, from October 1 to November 30.

Sources

• UC Admissions, UCLA first-year admit data (fall 2026)
• UCLA Admission, First-Year Profile
• UCLA Admission, First-Year Profile 2024
• UC Admissions, How applications are reviewed
• UC Admissions, Personal insight questions
• UC Admissions, Dates and deadlines
• UC Admissions, Apply now (fees and waivers)
• UCLA Admission, Tuition and fees

About learnSTEM

All bright students reach a point where school stops challenging them. learnSTEM provides that challenge: the space to explore a field of their choice, guided by a world-class PhD mentor from a top-20 university, completely one-on-one and on your own schedule. Students finish with a passion for a new subject, a research project they are proud of, and a clear sense of what they want to pursue next.

See if you qualify for the STEM Research Program → · Questions about eligibility? Contact us →

"Doing the research also helped me orient what I might want to study later on." — learnSTEM student