University of California-Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz, California · Also known as UC Santa Cruz · Website
$68,396
median earnings, 10 years after starting
$68,396
median earnings, 10 years after starting
University of California-Santa Cruz is a public 4-year college in Santa Cruz, California with 17,940 undergraduates and 1,998 graduate students. Its average net price after grants is $17,890 a year (tuition and fees $16,005 in-state, $50,205 out-of-state). It admits 66% of applicants and 75% of students finish within 6 years. Former students earn a median $68,396 a year 10 years after they started, and graduates leave with a median $16,666 in federal student loans.
Updated Oct 10, 2026 · June 2026 data
Net price
$17,890
US median $17,138
Tuition in-state
$16,005
Out-of-state $50,205
Admission rate
66%
US median 78%
Completion rate
75%
Within 6 years, US 58%
Median debt
$16,666
About $177 a month
Earnings at 10 years
$68,396
Rank 423 of 5,094 in the US
Cost
What a year costs: posted prices and the average after grants
Net price by family income
Average yearly cost after grants, for students who get aid
- Net price
- $17,890
- Tuition in-state
- $16,005
- Tuition out-of-state
- $50,205
- Cost of attendance
- $41,179
- Students with a need-based grant
- 32%
- Students with federal loans
- 28%
- Net price, family income under $30K
- $8,717
- Net price, family income $30K to $48K
- $10,613
- Net price, family income $48K to $75K
- $14,418
- Net price, family income $75K to $110K
- $18,986
- Net price, family income over $110K
- $33,323
Net price is what students who get aid pay on average after grants.
Tuition and net price by year
School years 2015-16 to 2024-25. The year on the chart is the year the school year starts.
Yearly cost
Tuition and fees went from $13,461 in 2015-16 to $16,005 in 2024-25.
Admission, completion and retention
Share of applicants admitted, of students who finish and of first-year students who come back
Admission and students
- Admission rate
- 66%
- Undergraduates
- 17,940
- Graduate students
- 1,998
- Part-time students
- 2.9%
- Women
- 53%
- Students per teacher
- 22
- Completion rate
- 75%
- Retention rate
- 88%
- Highest degree
- Graduate degree
- Programs
- 135
- Endowment
- $165.0M
- Other
- Hispanic-serving
Earnings and debt
Compared with the medians of the colleges of its state, of colleges of the same kind and of all US colleges
Median earnings 10 years after starting rank 423 of 5,094 US colleges and 69 of 494 in California (1 = highest).
| Measure | College | CA median | Same kind | US median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net price | $17,890 | $20,161 | $12,792 | $17,138 |
| Tuition in-state | $16,005 | $8,086 | $8,626 | $11,837 |
| Admission rate | 66% | 76% | 83% | 78% |
| Completion rate | 75% | 64% | 46% | 58% |
| Retention rate | 88% | 80% | 76% | 75% |
| Median debt | $16,666 | $11,537 | $19,500 | $13,271 |
| Earnings after 6 years | $49,716 | $36,048 | $43,105 | $35,656 |
| Earnings after 10 years | $68,396 | $41,472 | $50,314 | $40,813 |
Best-paid programs
Median earnings 1 year after graduation
Same kind: US public 4-year colleges. Earnings and debt are medians of former students who received federal student aid. 75% of borrowers lowered their balance within 3 years. 72% earn more than a typical high school graduate 6 years after starting.
Programs
135 fields of study and credentials, with graduates, debt and earnings
| Field of study | Graduates | Median debt | Earnings 1 yr | Earnings 4 yr | US median 4 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Computer ScienceBachelor's | Bachelor's | 658 | $16,499 | $75,150 | $123,422 | $107,009 |
| Psychology, GeneralBachelor's | Bachelor's | 499 | $18,902 | $30,730 | $59,948 | $50,706 |
| Business/Managerial EconomicsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 280 | $16,519 | $52,029 | $82,064 | $77,981 |
| Biology, GeneralBachelor's | Bachelor's | 215 | $20,500 | $37,651 | $65,036 | $57,214 |
| SociologyBachelor's | Bachelor's | 192 | $15,679 | $28,495 | $55,338 | $52,657 |
| Cell/Cellular Biology and Anatomical SciencesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 178 | $18,534 | $45,088 | $69,849 | $66,697 |
| Linguistic, Comparative, and Related Language Studies and ServicesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 175 | $16,740 | $21,793 | $49,763 | $49,984 |
| Film/Video and Photographic ArtsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 173 | $15,692 | $23,614 | $45,815 | $43,765 |
| Natural Resources Conservation and ResearchBachelor's | Bachelor's | 167 | $18,487 | $29,152 | $55,240 | $55,012 |
| EconomicsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 159 | $18,017 | $50,518 | $76,382 | $82,686 |
| Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population BiologyBachelor's | Bachelor's | 153 | $17,589 | $25,810 | $49,821 | $48,842 |
| Political Science and GovernmentBachelor's | Bachelor's | 141 | $16,703 | $31,882 | $65,890 | $63,293 |
| Design and Applied ArtsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 132 | Withheld | Withheld | $66,333 | $51,490 |
| Non-Professional Legal StudiesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 126 | $17,883 | $36,941 | $66,244 | $61,959 |
| Computer EngineeringBachelor's | Bachelor's | 125 | $23,434 | $79,969 | $124,641 | $109,015 |
| AnthropologyBachelor's | Bachelor's | 124 | $16,035 | $23,152 | $52,315 | $46,676 |
| Cognitive ScienceBachelor's | Bachelor's | 123 | $18,981 | $35,384 | $72,125 | $81,496 |
| Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group StudiesBachelor's | Bachelor's | 120 | $19,500 | $31,140 | $55,798 | $51,710 |
| Fine and Studio ArtsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 115 | $19,500 | $21,106 | $40,156 | $41,367 |
| HistoryBachelor's | Bachelor's | 104 | $18,100 | $33,081 | $60,519 | $50,680 |
| MathematicsBachelor's | Bachelor's | 96 | $19,050 | $40,798 | $59,214 | $69,562 |
| Computer/Information Technology Administration and ManagementBachelor's | Bachelor's | 92 | $20,020 | $55,773 | $94,589 | $85,063 |
| Social and Philosophical Foundations of EducationBachelor's | Bachelor's | 70 | - | Withheld | Withheld | - |
| Biomathematics, Bioinformatics, and Computational BiologyBachelor's | Bachelor's | 58 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | $86,713 |
| Physical Sciences, GeneralBachelor's | Bachelor's | 58 | Withheld | Withheld | Withheld | - |
In the area
- Jobs, pay and new homes: the county of Santa Cruz and California on Local Economy
- More colleges: All colleges in California
- Homes: Homes for sale in California
Questions and answers
How much does University of California-Santa Cruz cost?
$17,890 a year is the average net price at University of California-Santa Cruz after grants and scholarships. Tuition and fees are $16,005 for in-state students and $50,205 for out-of-state students, and the full cost of attendance with housing, food and books is $41,179. Families earning under $30,000 pay $8,717 on average.
What is the acceptance rate at University of California-Santa Cruz?
66% of applicants are admitted to University of California-Santa Cruz. The median admission rate of colleges in California is 76%.
How much do University of California-Santa Cruz graduates earn?
$68,396 a year is the median pay of former University of California-Santa Cruz students who work, 10 years after they started ($49,716 after 6 years). That ranks 423 of 5,094 US colleges and 69 of 494 in California. Its best-paid program one year after graduation is Computer Engineering (Master's) at $120,756.
How much student debt do University of California-Santa Cruz graduates have?
$16,666 is the median federal student loan debt of University of California-Santa Cruz graduates, about $177 a month over 10 years. The median across US colleges is $13,271. 28% of undergraduates take out federal loans.
What is the graduation rate at University of California-Santa Cruz?
75% of first-time, full-time students at University of California-Santa Cruz finish within 6 years. 88% of first-year students come back for a second year. The median of public 4-year colleges is 46%.
What are the most popular majors at University of California-Santa Cruz?
Computer Science (658 bachelor's graduates), Psychology, General (499 bachelor's graduates), Business/Managerial Economics (280 bachelor's graduates) had the most graduates in the newest year, out of 135 programs.
Official public data, June 2026 release. Net price is for first-time, full-time students who get aid. Completion counts first-time, full-time students who finish within 150% of the normal time. Debt and earnings are medians of students who received federal student aid, measured a few years after they left, in the dollars of the year measured; earnings count former students who work and are not enrolled, including those who did not finish.