University of
California-Santa Cruz
Public Research University in Santa Cruz, CA. Six-year graduation rate 75%. Median 10-year earnings $68,396.
Ten-year median earnings of $68,396 are the headline number here, and they are strong ones. The six-year graduation rate of 75% is well above average and the clearest sign this school holds onto its students. Debt at graduation runs to a median of $16,666, neither a bargain nor a burden. Mobility is where this school separates itself: 2.8% of students move from the bottom income quintile to the top.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ Debt-to-income ratio 0.24 — healthy (below the 0.40 threshold)
- ✓ Graduation rate 75% — well above the national average
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Admissions
An acceptance rate of 66% puts University of California-Santa Cruz on the accessible end — a realistic target for a broad range of applicants. 71,722 students applied, a pool deep enough to make the acceptance rate meaningful. Only 9% of admitted students enroll — the great majority of admits go elsewhere or nowhere.
Test score bands (middle 50% of submitters)
These bands describe the enrolled first-years who submitted a score, not the entering class. Where most students apply test-optional the submitters are a self-selected, higher-scoring group.
| Test | 25th–75th percentile | Submitted |
|---|---|---|
| SAT Evidence-Based Reading | — | — |
| SAT Math | — | |
| ACT Composite | — | — |
IPEDS Admissions · 2024
Apply at University of California-Santa Cruz →Academics
75% of students finish within six years, putting completion well above the national norm. 88% of full-time first-years return for a second year — a healthy figure. Retention and graduation track closely, so most of the attrition shows up in the first year rather than after it. The part-time picture is harder: 31% return, against 88% full-time. The student-faculty ratio is 22:1 — typical, which in practice means large lectures early and smaller classes in the major.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 17,812 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price after grant aid is $18,059 a year — mid-range for a four-year institution. The income table below is the number that matters — $8,717 at $0–30k versus $33,323 at $110k+. Grant aid reaches 61% of students at an average of $21,866. Federal borrowing reaches 28% of students.
Entering first-year students
A different, smaller group than the rates above: full-time students in their first year of college anywhere. The grant series here also excludes the "other sources" counted in the all-undergraduate figure, so the two are not comparable.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · 4,365 students
Net price by family income
The same students as the headline above, limited to those who received Title IV federal aid — a narrower group, with a lower overall average. IPEDS publishes no combined figure across these bands, so they should not be averaged into one.
| Family income band | Average net price |
|---|---|
| $0–30k | $8,717 |
| $30–48k | $10,613 |
| $48–75k | $14,418 |
| $75–110k | $18,986 |
| $110k+ | $33,323 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 5,052 of these 17,812 students, totalling $28,957,737 — an average of $5,732 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Santa Cruz County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.
HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026
Veterans & GI Bill
VA GI Bill Comparison Tool (Veterans Affairs GIDS)