If you’re worried about getting into your top colleges choices in California, don’t fret. Many safety schools in California offer a solid education and a prestigious degree. And they have a spot in their freshman class for you, even if your stats aren’t perfect.
The best safety schools in California have high acceptance rates but still offer a prestigious and marketable degree. Several schools in the UC system fit these criteria, including UC-Riverside and UC-Santa Cruz, as do several quality private colleges such as Chapman and Pacific.
Table of Contents
- University of California, Riverside
- University of California, Merced
- University of the Pacific
- University of California, Santa Cruz
- Chapman University
- Whittier College
Getting into college is tough. Getting into college in California is tougher.
The acceptance rate at Stanford is 5%. UCLA and UC-Berkeley hover between 10 and 15%. Other UC schools that used to be safeties have become competitive in recent years.
UCSD, UC-Irvine, and UCSB admit less than half their applicants these days. So do the most popular Cal State schools, such as SDSU.
If these options don’t pan out, you shouldn’t get discouraged. California is a huge state with dozens of great colleges and universities — including many that would love to have you on their campus in the fall. Here are our top choices for California safety schools.
University of California, Riverside
- Location: Riverside, CA
- Acceptance rate: 65.8%
- Middle 50% SAT: N/A (test blind)
- Middle 50% ACT: N/A (test blind)
- Average high school GPA: 3.84
- In-state tuition: $13,104
- Out-of-state tuition: $44,130
- Graduation rate: 76.5% (within six years)
- Freshman retention rate: 88.2%
Sixty miles east of UCLA is another campus that is part of the UC system. The University of California, Riverside has about 22,000 undergraduates. It also has 3,500 graduate students.
It’s known as a commuter school, but that reputation is outdated. More than two-thirds of freshmen and one-third of upperclassmen live in campus housing. And many more live in private student housing right off campus.
The school offers more than 80 undergraduate majors across six colleges: engineering, humanities, natural and agricultural sciences, business, education, and public policy.
UC-Riverside had an acceptance rate of 65.8% for the class of 2025. It’s selective, but not brutally so, making it our top safety school in California. And the entire UC system is now test blind. That means you won’t need to submit an ACT or SAT score. In fact, even if you do, they won’t consider it or even look at it.
Like all UC campuses, though, Riverside prioritizes your high school GPA. The most recent incoming freshman class had an average GPA of 3.84. More than 90% ranked in the top 10% of their high school class. (We should note, though, that UC-Riverside claims in its common data set that it doesn’t look at class rank.)
University of California, Merced
- Location: Merced, CA
- Acceptance rate: 86.6%
- Middle 50% SAT: N/A (test blind)
- Middle 50% ACT: N/A (test blind)
- Average high school GPA: 3.51
- In-state tuition: $13,738
- Out-of-state tuition: $43,492
- Graduation rate: 71.6% (within six years)
- Freshman retention rate: 79%
Established in 2005, Merced is the newest campus in the UC system. It’s also the easiest to get into, with an acceptance rate of 86.6% for the class of 2025. It has around 8,200 undergraduates and 800 graduate students. It’s located in the San Joaquin Valley about 100 miles east of San Jose.
UC-Merced offers a smaller, more intimate learning environment. But it’s still a research powerhouse, and you still get a degree from the prestigious UC system. It’s also a residential campus. Eighty-seven percent of freshmen and half of all undergraduates live on campus.
Like all UC schools, Merced is test blind. It doesn’t look at standardized test scores even if you submit them. It has pledged to keep that policy in place until at least 2025. It also claims not to consider class rank.
The average high school GPA for the incoming fall 2021 class was a manageable 3.5. This makes it a viable option if you have an imperfect high school transcript. The school offers 25 majors and 25 minors.
University of the Pacific
- Location: Stockton, CA
- Acceptance rate: 79.3%
- Middle 50% SAT: 1120-1380
- Middle 50% ACT: 24-32
- Average high school GPA: 3.58
- In-state tuition: $26,459
- Out-of-state tuition: $26,459
- Graduation rate: 65.8% (within six years)
- Freshman retention rate: 84.5%
University of the Pacific is a mid-sized private school in Stockton. It has 3,300 undergraduates and 1,500 graduate students. It’s known for its unique preprofessional programs. The most popular is the five-year pharmacy program. This program allows you to complete your bachelor’s in two years and your PharmD in three years after that.
Pacific has an acceptance rate of 79.3% and a middle 50% SAT range of 1120-1380. This makes it a solid safety school in California for a range of students. Its tuition is higher than most in-state options, but it’s still low for a private university. And with its endowment of over $600 million, Pacific is able to give strong financial aid.
Pacific is a good safety school option if your high school grades and class rank make UC schools a reach. Only 33% of its fall 2021 incoming class ranked in the top 10% of their high school class. About 66% ranked in the top 25%.
The campus at Pacific is residential. Nearly half of Pacific students of all class years live in dorms and on-campus apartments.
University of California, Santa Cruz
- Location: Santa Cruz, CA
- Acceptance rate: 58.9%
- Middle 50% SAT: N/A (test blind)
- Middle 50% ACT: N/A (test blind)
- Average high school GPA: 3.63
- In-state tuition: $14,640
- Out-of-state tuition: $45,666
- Graduation rate: 78.1% (within six years)
- Freshman retention rate: 88.6%
The University of California, Santa Cruz is less than an hour south of San Jose. It’s situated in an ideal location for STEM students wanting to break into Silicon Valley. Plus its engineering and computer science departments are highly ranked. So, it’s a logical safety school for Stanford, UC-Berkeley, and Santa Clara hopefuls.
UC-Santa Cruz has an acceptance rate near 60% and an average high school GPA of 3.63. It’s a realistic admit for students who are above average but not perfect.
UC-Santa Cruz offers a true residential college experience. Almost all freshmen and half of upperclassmen live on campus.
The school offers more than 60 majors. As a bonus, it’s surrounded on three sides by state parks and is less than 15 minutes from the beach.
Chapman University
- Location: Orange, CA
- Acceptance rate: 60.4%
- Middle 50% SAT: 1223-1400
- Middle 50% ACT: 26-31
- Average high school GPA: Not reported
- In-state tuition: $30,145
- Out-of-state tuition: $30,145
- Graduation rate: 79.7% (within six years)
- Freshman retention rate: 91.9%
Chapman University is located in Orange County in the heart of SoCal. It’s a mid-sized private university with 7,600 undergrads and is a good safety school for USC hopefuls.
Several colleges comprise the university. These include engineering, business, education, health sciences, humanities, and science and technology.
Chapman’s middle 50% test score ranges are above average but not elite. The school doesn’t report high school GPA on its common data set because of the different ways schools weigh GPAs. But fewer than 30% of incoming students ranked in the top 10% of their high school class. This makes it a good safety for bright students with strong test scores but a few slip-ups in high school.
Chapman has an endowment of more than $500 million. So, it can afford to give generous scholarships and financial aid. The school’s endowment of
Whittier College
- Location: Whittier, CA
- Acceptance rate: 72%
- Middle 50% SAT: 1050-1220
- Middle 50% ACT: 21-27
- Average high school GPA: 3.53
- In-state tuition: $48,924
- Out-of-state tuition: $48,924
- Graduation rate: 68% (within six years)
- Freshman retention rate: 76%
Whittier College is a traditional liberal arts college with about 1,600 students. It’s located in the city of Whittier, about 15 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles. It has an acceptance rate of 72% and manageable test score midranges. If you’re looking at LACs but your stats put the Claremont Colleges or Occidental out of reach, Whittier might be for you.
Despite its modest admissions standards, Whittier packs an academic punch. A high percentage of its graduates get accepted to law, business, and medical school. Others attend graduate school in various fields. Whittier students who enter the workforce right out of college do well too. The average time to break even on the cost of a Whittier education is 4.1 years. That’s low for a private college.
As a residential liberal arts college, Whittier has abundant housing, and most students live in it. Its endowment of $143.4 million as of June 2021 is large for a school its size. This enables Whittier to offer high levels of financial aid and merit scholarships.
