Quad

Head-to-head

Key differences

The biggest gaps between these schools, largest first.

  1. 1

    U. California-San Diego's grants cover 34% of its full price on average, vs. 27% at U. California-Irvine

    Aid generosity
  2. 2

    U. California-San Diego costs about $3.8K less per year on average than U. California-Irvine ($29,689 vs. $33,527, all students)

    Average cost, all students
  3. 3

    U. California-Irvine has 4 pts more first-gen students than U. California-San Diego (44% vs. 40%)

    First-generation students
  4. 4

    U. California-San Diego grads earn $4.2K more ten years out than U. California-Irvine's ($84,943 vs. $80,735)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs
  5. 5

    U. California-San Diego graduates 2 pts more of its students than U. California-Irvine (90% vs. 87%)

    Graduation rate
  6. 6

    U. California-San Diego is a bit larger (34,948 vs. 30,197)

    Undergrads

The shape of each school

Each axis is a national rank among 4-year colleges; further out = more of it.

SelectivityTest scoresSizePell shareFirst-genDiversity

Hollow dots at the center mean that measure isn't reported.

Who's hardest to get into

U. California-San Diego admits 27%, U. California-Irvine 29%; U. California-San Diego's yield is higher, at 20%.

Acceptance rate
U. California-San Diego27%
U. California-Irvine29%
Quad's selectivity
  • U. California-San DiegoHighly selectivefrom CaliforniaVery selectivefrom other states
  • U. California-IrvineVery selective
SAT middle 50%
U. California-San DiegoTest-blind
U. California-IrvineTest-blind
How they read a recordfirst-years at 3.75+
  • U. California-San DiegoRigor and GPA very important85%
  • U. California-IrvineGPA, school record, rank, and prep program required

Who's on each campus

U. California-San Diego is a bit larger than U. California-Irvine (34,948 vs. 30,197 undergrads); U. California-Irvine has the larger Pell share.

Undergrads
U. California-San Diego34.9K
U. California-Irvine30.2K
Pell Grant share
U. California-San Diego34%
U. California-Irvine36%

Majors and faculty

Cognitive Science leads at U. California-San Diego, and Biology/Biological Sciences at U. California-Irvine; both have 19 students per faculty member.

Students per faculty member
U. California-San Diego19 to 1
U. California-Irvine19 to 1
Most popular majorshare of graduates
  • U. California-San DiegoCognitive Science, General9%
  • U. California-IrvineBiology/Biological Sciences, General10%

What each costs

U. California-San Diego costs about $3.8K less a year than U. California-Irvine on average, and its grants cover the larger share of its price.

Average cost, all students
U. California-San Diego$29.7K
U. California-Irvine$33.5K
Aid generosity
U. California-San Diego34%
U. California-Irvine27%

What each pays off

U. California-San Diego's former students earn more, a median $84.9K ten years after enrolling; both graduate more than 80% within six years.

Median earnings, 10 years
U. California-San Diego$84.9K
U. California-Irvine$80.7K
Graduation rate
U. California-San Diego90%
U. California-Irvine87%

How each has changed

Applications grew at both; both got more selective.

Applications, 10-year change
  • U. California-San DiegoGrowing+83%
  • U. California-IrvineGrowing+84%
All the numbersEvery figure for these colleges in one table, with differences highlighted.
Sources for this comparisonEvery dataset and year behind the numbers in this comparison; tap any ⓘ for one number's source

Figures are the newest each college has published; years can differ between colleges. Each value's ⓘ shows its source and year. Why