UC Santa Cruz Acceptance Rate for Indian Students

Part of the University of California system, the University of California Santa Cruz is a public land-grant research university in Santa Cruz, California, United States. UC Santa Cruz is one of the best study abroad universities for international students as the UC Santa Cruz ranking has been consistent among the top 400 global universities for more than a decade now.

Students across the globe apply for UC Santa Cruz admissions. However, only a fraction of candidates secure enrollment due to the competitive nature of the university.

University of California Santa Cruz Acceptance Rate 2025

The University of California, Santa Cruz received over 71,600 applications for 2024-25, of which 47,000 applicants were offered the opportunity to enroll on the campus grounds.  

This data suggests that the UC Santa Cruz acceptance rate is 65.5%, pointing to moderately selective admission criteria of the university. With just 4,300 enrollments, the University of California Santa Cruz yield rate stands at 9.3%. 

University of California Santa Cruz Acceptance Rate for International Students

For Fall 2024, the University of California Santa Cruz received over 6,400 applications from international students, of which almost 5,000 students were admitted. However, only 200 students accepted the admission offer by the university. This suggests that the UC Santa Cruz acceptance rate for international students is 77%, making entry into UCSC rather easy for international applicants. 

As per official reports, about 3% of the student enrollments for 2024-25 accounted for international students. The number of UG international (nonresident) students enrolled at the University of California Santa Cruz campus stood at 544. Data on the other enrolled races and ethnicities is below for students’ reference. 

University of California Santa Cruz Acceptance Rate Trends

The applications received by the University of California Santa Cruz have increased by over 15,000 in the last few years. Consequently, the number of students accepted has also increased by over 18,000. It’s easy to observe that since the number of applications accepted has increased to a greater volume than applications received, the UCSC acceptance rate has increased significantly, by around 15% to be exact, which is good news for aspirants planning to apply to the University of California, Santa Cruz. 

University of California Santa Cruz Requirements for International Students

Listed below are the admission requirements to get into undergraduate and graduate programs:

UG

• High school records
• English proficiency proof and
• Other course-specific requirements.

PG

• Bachelor's degree
• Official academic transcripts;
• 3.0 GPA
• LORs
• Statement of purpose
• Financial documents
• Other course-specific requirements.

Note: Applicants with a three-year undergraduate degree must also hold a post graduate diploma, master’s degree, or a higher degree

Students with three-year degrees from India must also have been conferred:

• a Post Graduate Diploma (PGD) in the same field of study; or
• a Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM); or
• a master's degree, to be considered eligible for admission.

Tips to get selected at University of California Santa Cruz

Candidates must excel academically and meet all the UC Santa Cruz admission requirements for international students in order to secure enrollment.

Fulfilling the required Grade Point Average is one of the major entry requirements at University of California Santa Cruz, and international students must maintain a GPA of 3.0 - 3.5 or higher in order to boost their chances of getting admitted in the university. Other best practices include submission of high English language proficiency scores and staying active in the world outside classrooms.

UC Santa Cruz vs University of UC Santa Barbara Acceptance Rate