R1 ResearchPublicHSILand-grant

University of California-Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, California·Public, 4-year or above·Far West
Acceptance
33.0%
-43.5pp vs R1 Research
6-yr Graduation
83%
+8.0pp vs R1 Research
Enrollment
26,133
peer median 32,171
Avg net price
$13,825
-$4.4k vs R1 Research
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About

The University of California, Santa Barbara is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an independent teachers college, UC Santa Barbara joined the University of California system in 1944. It is the third-oldest campus in the system, after Berkeley, and UCLA.

Admissions funnel

How selective is this institution, and how many admitted students choose to enroll?

Applied
110,259
110,259 candidates competed
Admitted
36,347
33.0% acceptance rate
Enrolled
5,008
13.8% yield

Outcomes & equity

Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.

Overall completion
83%+8.0pp vs R1 Research
4-year graduation
70%
6-year graduation (bachelor’s)
83%
Full-time retention
93%

Pell equity

4.0pp gap
Pell recipients
80%
Non-Pell
84%

Non-Pell students graduate at a 4.0-point higher rate than Pell recipients.

What families actually pay

What families actually pay, broken down by family income.

Net price by family income

Aid exceeds costFamily pays
$0–30k$7,745
$30–48k$8,910
$48–75k$11,398
$75–110k$16,839
$110k+$30,085

Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.

Avg net price
$13,825
-$4,401vs R1 Research median $18,226
Pell recipients
2.4%
Federal loans
20.2%

Academic programs

Top program areas ranked by completions.

Distinct CIP programs93
UndergraduateOffered
GraduateOffered

Top program families by completions

6,712 total
01Social Sciences
1,92728.7%
02Biological Sciences
77811.6%
03Mathematics
70810.5%
04Psychology
69510.4%
05Communication
67010.0%
06Visual/Performing Arts
4406.6%
07Natural Resources
4346.5%
08Physical Sciences
4236.3%
09Engineering
3925.8%
10Computer Sciences
2453.7%

Enrollment & demographics

Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.

Fall total
26,133
12-mo unduplicated
27,662
Undergraduate
24,660
Graduate
24,593

Gender split

Men
44%12,202
Women
56%15,460

Race / ethnicity composition

White
31.7%
Hispanic
26.0%
Asian
18.7%
Non-resident
9.8%
Two or more
8.8%
Unknown
2.7%
Black
2.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native
0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander
0.1%

Faculty

Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.

Student-to-faculty
17.0:1
Instructional staff (full-time equivalent)
1,112

UCB vs IPEDS peer group

The peer institutions UCB selected for federal comparison reporting.

GraduationRetentionSelectivityEnrollmentAffordabilityYield
This institutionPeer median

A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.

Carnegie
SubjectUniversity of California-Santa Barbara
83%33.0%26,133$13,825R1 Research
Auburn University
82%45.9%34,145$23,897R1 Research
Clemson University
87%38.3%29,077$22,112R1 Research
Colorado State University-Fort Collins
67%88.5%34,096$20,332R1 Research
George Mason University
68%87.5%39,766$18,287R1 Research
Georgia State University
53%55.4%34,944$15,931R1 Research
Iowa State University
75%88.7%30,380$18,165R1 Research
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College
66%73.3%41,705$20,015R1 Research
North Carolina State University at Raleigh
85%41.7%38,464$16,931R1 Research
Oregon State University
70%77.3%37,163$19,568R1 Research
Stony Brook University
76%49.0%26,689$18,430R1 Research
Temple University
75%80.4%29,640$29,219R1 Research
The University of Alabama
73%76.6%40,846$22,150R1 Research
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville
74%41.6%38,728$18,109R1 Research
The University of Texas at Dallas
76%65.1%29,886$17,435R1 Research
The University of Texas at San Antonio
53%86.8%35,770$11,234R1 Research
University at Buffalo
75%74.2%31,903$20,470R1 Research
University of Arkansas
71%74.3%33,610$17,525R1 Research
University of California-Riverside
76%76.4%26,384$13,707R1 Research
University of Colorado Boulder
74%78.1%38,799$21,480R1 Research
University of Connecticut
83%52.4%28,306$22,886R1 Research
University of Delaware
83%70.6%24,412$16,931R1 Research
University of Illinois Chicago
62%77.4%33,906$12,313R1 Research
University of Iowa
75%83.6%30,779$21,398R1 Research
University of Kentucky
71%92.9%34,709$17,218R1 Research
University of Massachusetts-Amherst
83%59.7%31,726$23,691R1 Research
University of Missouri-Columbia
75%78.5%31,543$19,889R1 Research
University of Nevada-Las Vegas
51%96.2%32,911$10,011R1 Research
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
91%15.3%32,438$12,983R1 Research
University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus
75%76.6%30,851$17,413R1 Research
University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus
85%58.1%35,724$30,074R1 Research
University of Utah
65%86.0%36,894$13,172R1 Research
University of Virginia-Main Campus
96%16.8%26,409$22,881R1 Research
Virginia Commonwealth University
63%92.6%28,464$19,452R1 Research
Washington State University
60%86.6%25,685$14,401R1 Research
West Virginia University
64%89.0%23,643$12,997R1 Research
Peer group median75%76.5%32,171$18,226

Institutional Research office

The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.

Office
Institutional Research, Planning & Assessment
Reports to Office of Budget & Planning
Address
1325 Cheadle Hall, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-2032

The mission of Institutional Research, Planning & Assessment is to provide high quality, accurate and timely statistical information and analytical studies to campus leaders and decision-makers in support of evidence-based planning, evaluation and assessment.

Visit IR office page
Team
7 members
  • Steven Velasco
    Director, Institutional Research, Planning & Assessment
  • Laurel Wilder
    Associate Director, Institutional Research, Planning & Assessment
  • Joshua Kuntzman
    Principal Assessment Analyst
  • Nancy Carrada Zuniga
    Survey Research Analyst
  • Yali Chen
    Data Administrator / Institutional Research Analyst
  • Yolanda Luo
    Institutional Research Analyst
  • Luis Cuarao
    Institutional Research Analyst

Documents & reports (4)

Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.

Notable alumni (21)

A curated list of alumni recognized for notable achievements across industries.

  • Jeff Henley
    Business
  • Elizabeth Gabler
    Entertainment
  • Carol W. Greider
    Science
  • Michael Douglas
    Arts, entertainment, and literature
  • Eric Roth
    Arts, entertainment, and literature
  • Steve Aoki
    Arts, entertainment, and literature
  • Jack Johnson
    Arts, entertainment, and literature
  • Gwyneth Paltrow
    Arts, entertainment, and literature
  • Josh Elliott
    Arts, entertainment, and literature
  • Harvey Levin
    Arts, entertainment, and literature
  • Angela Belcher
    Science
  • Logan Green
    Business
Showing 112 of 21
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