College Intel
Colleges by state

Colleges in California

Every California college College Intel tracks, with admit rates and enrollment from the US Dept of Education College Scorecard. Application deadlines come from each school's own admissions pages and are shown where we've researched them.

83Colleges tracked
66%Avg. admit rate
9Under 20% admit
31With researched deadlines

California college guide

How California students get into and pay for UC and CSU: Cal Grant and the Middle Class Scholarship, UC admit rates and GPAs for California high schools, how UC and CSU admissions work, and transfer paths.

Cal Grant deadlineMarch 22027, FAFSA or CA Dream Act App (Sept. 2 for community college)Cal Grant A at UC$15,588Per year, 2026-27 amountsCal Grant A income limit$151,800Family of four, 2027-28Middle Class Scholarship income limit$262,000Family income, dependent students, 2027-28UCLA admit rate8.9%California high school applicants, fall 2025National Merit cutoff220Selection Index, class of 2027

Paying for college

  1. Cal Grant 2027-28: Income Limits, Award Amounts, and the March 2 Deadline Explained
  2. Cal Grant Income Limits 2027-28: $151,800 for a Family of Four (Cal Grant A), $79,800 for Cal Grant B
  3. Cal Grant A vs. B vs. C: GPA Requirements, Award Amounts, and Which One You'll Get

UC admissions by high school

  1. UC Acceptance Rate by High School, Fall 2025: The 30 California Schools That Send the Most Applicants
  2. UCLA Acceptance Rate by High School, Fall 2025: Which California Schools Sent the Most Admits
  3. UC Berkeley Acceptance Rate by High School, Fall 2025: Berkeley High Sent the Most Admits

Getting into a UC

  1. How UC Admissions Actually Works: Filing Period, PIQs, and What's Genuinely Different
  2. California's UC Guarantee: Your Freshman Year Grades Don't Count at All
  3. The UC "Major Penalty": Why a Competitive Major Gets Even Harder at the Hardest Campuses

CSU, transfer, and costs

  1. CSU vs. UC: The Real Difference Between California's Two Public University Systems
  2. Which CSU Campuses Are Hardest to Get Into? The Real Admission Rates
  3. What CSU 'Impacted Majors' Actually Means, and Why It Isn't the Same at Every Campus
All 26 California guide articles

Paying for college

  1. Cal Grant 2027-28: Income Limits, Award Amounts, and the March 2 Deadline Explained
  2. Cal Grant Income Limits 2027-28: $151,800 for a Family of Four (Cal Grant A), $79,800 for Cal Grant B
  3. Cal Grant A vs. B vs. C: GPA Requirements, Award Amounts, and Which One You'll Get
  4. Cal Grant GPA Verification and Entitlement vs. Competitive Awards: How to Make Sure You Get It
  5. California Middle Class Scholarship 2027-28: Income Limit Rises to $262,000

UC admissions by high school

  1. UC Acceptance Rate by High School, Fall 2025: The 30 California Schools That Send the Most Applicants
  2. UCLA Acceptance Rate by High School, Fall 2025: Which California Schools Sent the Most Admits
  3. UC Berkeley Acceptance Rate by High School, Fall 2025: Berkeley High Sent the Most Admits
  4. UC Admitted GPA by High School, Fall 2025: Why a 4.2 Is the Norm at UCLA and Berkeley Almost Everywhere
  5. Private High Schools and UC Admissions, Fall 2025: Do Private School Students Get In More Often?

Getting into a UC

  1. How UC Admissions Actually Works: Filing Period, PIQs, and What's Genuinely Different
  2. California's UC Guarantee: Your Freshman Year Grades Don't Count at All
  3. The UC "Major Penalty": Why a Competitive Major Gets Even Harder at the Hardest Campuses
  4. UC Berkeley Business and Public Health Acceptance Rate: Both Harder Than Computer Science
  5. UCLA Accepted vs. Rejected Applicants: GPA and Extracurriculars From 152 Real 2026 Decisions
  6. UC Berkeley Accepted vs. Rejected Applicants: What 154 Real 2026 Decisions Show
  7. UCSD Accepted vs. Rejected Applicants: GPA and Activities in 115 Real 2026 Decisions
  8. UC Irvine Accepted vs. Rejected Applicants: GPA, Research and the Waitlist in 88 Real 2026 Decisions
  9. Why UC Professors Are Pushing to Bring Back the SAT
  10. California's National Merit Semifinalist Cutoff, Class of 2027: Where 220 Actually Ranks

CSU, transfer, and costs

  1. CSU vs. UC: The Real Difference Between California's Two Public University Systems
  2. Which CSU Campuses Are Hardest to Get Into? The Real Admission Rates
  3. What CSU 'Impacted Majors' Actually Means, and Why It Isn't the Same at Every Campus
  4. CSU's Direct Admission Program, Explained: Getting In Before You Apply
  5. UC TAG vs. CSU ADT: How California's Two Transfer Guarantees Actually Differ
  6. UC Out-of-State Tuition by Campus (2026-27): All 9 Campuses Compared

All 83 California colleges

Showing 83 colleges, most selective first. Tuition is the published rate before financial aid, for the year shown.