Hi Roger. With all of the knowledge inside of your big brain, do you think you could rank the undergrad UC schools in increasing order of greatness?

Roger: UC Berkeley is the best! UCLA is second. The rest of them are just a big pile somewhere at the bottom of the list.

I have a 3.27 gpa, i got 110 on new sat and a 27 on act. I also recieved a 16 for SAT writing portion. I am Vice President of a club but wasnt able to do many activities at my school as i live very far away from my hgih school. I know i dont have the best chances, but would i be able to get into a UC?

Roger: Sure. Some of the UC’s will accept almost anyone that meets the stated minimum requirements.

hi roger,
I have a 3.96 UC gpa and 2120 SAT score, SAT MATH II:780; SAT Chem:750; part of PLTW engineering program, one time recipient of entrepreneurship award, Blue Belt in Martial Arts(got lot of medals in tournaments) , Self taught artist and received prize in art exhibition in abstract painting; Have done 8 AP/Honors courses so far and 4 In Progress in Senior year; Got a 5 in AP Calc AB and remaining 4 in AP Chem, AP Stat, AP Bio; Currently taking AP Comp Science, AP Calc BC, AP Micro;

I have applied for Comp Science in all UCs (not CSE or EECS). I love to go to UCLA. What are my chances? only weakness I think I have is my UC GPA because of so many AP/Honors I got some B's.

pl what are my chances to Berkley, UCLA and UCSD??

Roger: Pretty good, I guess? I’m a computer programmer, not a college counselor. I don’t know anything about college admissions. I feel like most of the CS majors I knew at UC Berkeley scored 800 on the SAT Math II and got all 5’s on their AP tests. But 12 AP courses sounds like way more than average.

3.1 gpa. aside from that i have 18 units in uc transferable community college credit. what are my chances to sb??? thanks roger

3.5 GPA
1400/1600 SAT
2 internships
prez 1 club

how are my chances at davis m80?

Hi Roger,
I have 4.05 UC GPA, and 1200 on the new SAT. I really didn't have chance to raise my GPA because I immigrated( asylee) to US in 11th grade, and didn't have honors classes in my sophmore year when I was in my country. However, I took 2 AP classes in my junior year, and 3 or 4 COMMUNITY COLLEGE CLASSES. I didn't have any sports extracurriclums, but I was president of two clubs. Also, I come in top 9 percent of my senior class. Do u think if I will be accepted to at least UC Davis? Do you think they should consider my exceptional circumstances?
Thanks.

Roger: You sure accomplished a lot in just 1.5 years of high school (assuming you’re a senior now?). I don’t know much about UC Davis, but I think you have plenty of extracurriculars with your clubs and community college classes, and if you wrote about your exceptional circumstances in your application’s written portion, it should definitely make your application stand out.

Hey Roger! Thanks for the useful calculator.
I have a 4.4 UC GPA and a 1370 on my SAT, I also have a great background in CS. Do you think Berkeley will accept me? Thank you!

Roger: As far as I can tell, UC Berkeley really doesn’t care whether applicants have any programming experience. Most students in CS/EECS start with no experience at all, and on the other hand, students with prior experience get rejected from Berkeley all the time. You can write about your background in CS in your application’s essay section, but unless you’ve done something that demonstrates general engineering excellence (for example, if you were president of your school’s robotics club) or you’ve accomplished things that are well beyond the reach of a typical first-year computer science student, it probably won’t make a difference. Your GPA and SAT scores seem pretty high though. You might get in just based on those.

Hi, I got my gpa at 3.8 and 1160 on the new SAT without essay. What is my chances to get into UCI, UCR, UCSB? Thank you so much!

Roger: Check out my response to “RT” below.

Hi Roger, I have a UC GPA of 3.65, and a 1330 on the new sat. I am applying as a biology major and would like to know what are my chances of getting into UCI, UCD, or UCB. I have taken 7 AP's in my sophomore and junior year alone. I have also played varsity tennis all four years and was the captain during my sophomore year of a very good team. I also have very strong essays that show my struggles. I would really like to attend UCI please let me know what are my chances.

Roger: Hey. So, I made this calculator in 2012 using data published in 2009. I haven’t applied to college in four years and I don’t know a thing about admissions at UC Irvine or UC Davis. If the UC’s ever bother to release an updated dataset that is at least as comprehensive as UC Statfinder was, then I’ll consider updating this calculator with the new SAT scoring system and fresh data. I’d be happy to answer questions about the UC application process (although my information may be out of date), but I don’t think I could tell you whether you’ll get into those schools. I’m a computer programmer, not a college counselor. Anyway, good luck!

Hi Roger,
is there a way I can find out how many kids a UC college will accept from a single high school? apparently, a teacher of mine says that Cal will accept up to 20 kids from my school, but I want to know what that number is for kids looking to be accepted into UCLA. thanks!

Roger: I’ve never heard of any limit like that, but if it exists, you can bet that the UC’s wouldn’t publish it anywhere.

Do you get entertained by reading some of these comments? I feel like most of these students are way more worried than they need to be. But thanks for making this though, it's really cool!

Roger: Sure, it’s entertaining.

Hey just wanted to say that I think it's cool that you are still responding to comments on here even though you don't need to. Thanks!

Roger: Haha. Glad to help!

If I have a 1.4 GPA, am I erble to get intu a good callage?

Hey Roger! So I read some comments below and saw one that was similar to my question. Ok so for me, someone I loved passed away which put me in depression and made my grades crap, with 1 D in calc and 2 Cs in ap lang (AP classes if that matters). If i get all As next semester and retake the course and get an A, will my chances of UCs fall? Thanks :)

Roger: I’m sorry to hear about that. I hope you’re doing okay. The UC’s will replace failing grades in your GPA if you retake the course (source). This policy would help fix your D grade, but not your 2 C grades, since those are passing grades. If your school allows you to retake your AP Lang course anyway, it’ll still appear on your transcript, just not your GPA. I hope this helps a bit.

Yo Roger,

wassup dude

I have a 4.2 GPA based on your calculator and have a 36 composite for the ACT. wut r my chanses of geting in2 Berkeley m80? if it helps, i have 8 APs and do soccer and badminton and frc robotics

thx dude

Roger: Pretty high, I suppose? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Can I get into UC Davis, barbara, irvine, or santa cruz for cs engineering with 4 Cs? Two of them are from APs

Roger: Sure you can.

Roger, I have a 3.6 GPA (rising)
I am currently taking AP CHEM, AP Stats, Precalc Honors, Physics Honors, English Honors, and History Honors.
I got a 1370 PSAT (630 eng and 740 math) All my classes are A right now.
I'm in the bay area and I'm planning on taking SAT II Math, Chem, and Physics
I'm also planning on taking the regular SAT sometime next semester.
Do you think I have a GOOD chance at getting into IVY colleges?
If not then...
Do you think I have a GOOD chance at getting to Berkely or UCLA?

Roger: Your guess is as good as mine.

what if i get all A's next semester?

hey roger,Im a junior and my grades fell where i have 2 As 2 Bs and 1 C bc I was facing depression after my grandfather passed away two months ago. And for sophmore year I had 5 As and 7 Bs. I want to got to either U.C Irvine or UC Davis in the business field. Any advice?

Roger: Well actually, it sounds like your grades aren’t much worse than they were last year. Except for that one C grade, your grades are basically the same.

Hey roger i have a question
What can i do because i have a 3.64 GPA but my test scores are horrible . On the new sat I got a 960 and on the act I got a composite score of 19. I am really looking forward to attending UC Irvine do you think that is a realistic dream?

Roger: It sounds like you’re not a senior yet. Have you considered taking the SAT/ACT again?

Hey, Roger. What exactly does "holy smokes" denote? Is it anything above 60%? The reason I ask is that many other college calculators have given me a 50-60% chance of getting into UCSD (3.95 UC GPA; 1520/1600 on the SAT); thus, this one seems rather optimistic. Thanks!

Roger: The models are bad at making useful predictions at their extremes (both high and low). “Holy smokes” is just a catch-all for one of the variables crossing exceeding a threshold on the high end.

Hi Roger,

Should i not even apply to any UC schools since my GPA is at 3.2?

Roger: Why wouldn’t you apply? The requirement is 3.0.

Hi Roger,

Since Berkeley and UCLA use the 10-12 weighted GPA vs the capped GPA, should I use that in the calculator? Thanks!

Roger: Good question! The answer is no, you should use your UC weighted and capped GPA for this calculator, since the calculator uses data about the weighted and capped GPA of past applicants, even for UC Berkeley and UCLA.

Um... I'm a senior with a 3.36 GPA from slacking off... but I did okay with the SAT (1480/1600) on my first and only try, and then I also did well on my only ACT test (composite of 35). The calculator says "no data" because the difference between my scores and GPA is too unbelievable. Can I still make UCI? I went to another calculator on the official UC webpage (http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/freshman/california-residents/admissions-index/)
and it said I at least made top 9% so i'm guaranteed some sort of UC school. How accurate is that calculator and what is it based upon?

Roger: I don’t know much about UCI specifically, but the “guaranteed admission” thing doesn’t mean very much, because technically they can put you at any of the UC schools (you don’t get to pick). Most people who fall in the top 9% will get into multiple UC schools without relying on their guarantee. Good luck, and hope this helps.

Hi,
I wanted to know about my chances of getting into UC Irvine. I have a weighted gpa of 4.13 and unweighted gpa of 3.96. But my SAT score is extremely low 1030/1600. I do have some extracurriculars, not to mention I'm asian...do you think i have any chance of hearing back from uci? please let me know.
thanks,
shivi.

Roger: I went to UC Irvine once. I volunteered at a charity walk to raise money for Arthritis research. I thought the campus was nice and clean, but other than that, I don’t know a thing about the school. (Good luck!)

Hello! I've had a 4.67 cumulative for the past three years. This year due to a certain situation by gpa may drop to a 4.6 and my unweighted will no longer be a 4.0. I have many extracurricular activities and am ranked 1st in my class. My SAT Math II is a 770 and my SAT Chemistry is a 790. My AP exams scores are :
Calc AB-----5
Physics C: Mechanics-----4
Macroeconomics-----5
English Language-----4

I have a couple 3's as well. Do you think my chance to getting accepted to UCLA and UCBerkeley are still high even though I have this drop. I already submitted my application so I'm not exactly sure how to inform them of my circumstances.

Roger: You only need to notify the UC’s if you earn a “D” or “F” grade in a class. Otherwise, it will likely not affect your applications. Check out this FAQ for details.

does a 31% for ucla mean i'll most likely get waitlisted?

How accurate and recent are the data that are being used in the algorithms?
Also, what is the cap on the calculator for UC gpa? (or is there even one)

Roger: The data is from 2009. The UC Statfinder program was shut down soon after and there is no more publicly available data with the same granularity that it provided. The weighted and capped GPA’s (as reported by Statfinder) are limited to 8 semesters worth of honors points. Check out this UC GPA calculator for more information.

Hi
My son has one D on his transcript . ACT is 33 and GPA is 3.8. Will that D automatically prevent him from all the ucs?

Roger: He can repeat the course, and if he earns a C or higher, then the original grade will not be included in the GPA calculation (see this FAQ). However, I don’t think a deficient grade violates any actual admissions requirements. Keep in mind that if an applicant earns a D grade in their senior year, then they need to report it to UC admissions.

Hello Roger!

My UC GPA Capped and unweighted as calculated by your calculator is 4.24. I have a good SAT score of 1560/1600 (new sat). Currently I am a senior with all A's in my sophomore and junior year. Also my coursework includes about 10 AP courses. Do you think I have a good chance of getting into UCB EECS program given that I have EC's which include google science fair, leadership roles, volunteering hours and many other things I just can't recall.

Thanks!

Roger: Sounds like you’re well above average compared to most EECS admits. If you’re a girl or a non-Asian minority, that’s even better!

my only qualification is being chronically tired and fed up.
UCSB pls accept me.

Oh, and my school is a top 100 school in the nation, which is ultra competitive.

Hi,
I'm applying to EECS this year. I have perfect sat 2 Math 2 and Physics scores, but a low gpa (like a 3.6 unweighted). I also have a high SAT (2290) and have taken several AP and honors classes my junior year (4.2 weighted gpa), but had an illness that year that caused my gpa to tank that year. Should I mention that illness, if so, how would I mention it? Also, what do you think about my chances of getting into eecs given that my gpa is a 3.8 without Junior year?

Roger: The “Personal Insight” section of the UC application will give you a chance to talk about extenuating circumstances. I’ve never asked anybody about their high school GPA, but I’d say that your GPA is probably lower than the average Berkeley admit. You can still demonstrate your proficiency through AP and SAT II scores, so I’d say that if you can explain your low grades thoroughly, you’ll still have a good shot.

Roger you've made me 10 times happier God bless your soul.

Hi I need Chance and list of few good target school for computer science and engineering. First in UC , University of Cal campuses. PLEASE HELP, I am confused.

Profile: A senior in high school at the moment, and here are the stats:

Weighted GPA: 3.74 (student at top 50 school in nation, I am in CA, OOS is OK)
UC GPA 3.9
Unweighted GPA: 3.5/4.0

Always taken all Hons Class, AP class 7 inclusing AP comp Science, AP Physics, AP Stat, AP Calc AB and Cal BC( doing outside my school)
Class Rank: School does not rank

ACT Composite: 36/36
- English: 36
- Math: 35
- Reading: 36
- Science: 35
- Writing: 35

Subject Tests:
-Math Level 2: 800

ECs and Accomplishments:

Boy Scout since Elem School, EAGLE Scout.
Community service 150 + hrs
High schools debate to many tournanaments for 3+ year
Deka in high School 2 years, Got state level award
FTC Robitics since middle school, won tournament prizes
2 month Summer internship in a IT Service company in computer networkng.
Other activity like Hackathon,

What is my chances to get into a good Engineering school , I can see that my GPA ls low, I was not that focused on GPA ,
Was a so called GATE student, my ACT first attempt 36/36 is only what obviously there show as outstanding, other than that pushed hard , like taking AP Micro Econ and AP Macro Econ by self study in Jr yr and got 5/5

Roger: I don’t think I’ll be able to give you an answer. I’m a computer programmer, not a college admissions counselor. But based on what you wrote, I think it’s fantastic that you’re participating in robotics and internships and hackathons outside of school. If you write about that in your personal statements, I’m sure it’ll make your application stand out. Good luck!

Hi Roger! Im an out of state student right now, and i noticed there is an updated definition of the UC Approved honors. Does this also apply to out of state students or does it still only apply to in state? For example: I have 3 AP's right now but practically everything else is an honors course. If some of my honors courses follow the new definition, can I report those for my weighted GPA? Also, I go to the 11th best public school district in the United States (we are super competitive and our honors curriculum is about equal to other districts AP curriculum) so would that play a factor in admission as well?

Roger: It’s not very clear how UC-approved honors courses work for out-of-state students, since the UC’s only publish honors course lists for California high schools. It may be the case that your honors courses won’t count when calculating the weighted GPA. But you can be sure that UC admissions will have information about the curriculum and student body at your specific high school that they’ve collected over the years. Admissions are supposedly determined holistically, so I don’t think you should read into GPA’s too much. If you went to a competitive high school and chose a rigorous workload, it’ll show in your transcript.

I am a senior. My gpa for 9th grade was 2.83 both sem, 10th grade was 4.2 both sem, 11th grade was 4.0 both sem. I had a 2190 as my SAT score and my PREDICTION for this year for me is 4.0. I was in the 75th percentile for my ACT Composition. My predicted C/M gpa is 3.75. I have less than a 10% chance for UCLA, but I have a lot of Extra curricular I have designed an app, two very nice functional websites that have helped me earn 22k in revenue, I know 5 coding languages, and I interned at a hospital for 2 years. I have also been a President for 2 major clubs. And was apart of many clubs with many volunteer hours. I am on Varsity Tennis and Wrestling. I just wanted to know if that raises my chances since UCLA is my dream school. Thanks! PS i also have over 194k subs on youtube and this year I am going to try my hardest and get 400k subs!

Roger: Hmm, hard to say. Maybe if you cure cancer and invent a time machine, you’ll have a chance.

Can you modify the calculator to include the new SAT format?

Roger: Great question. Check out my response to James (Jun 30th 2016 at 8:54PM) for a detailed answer.

Seriously don't sweat this website. You're going to be fine. According this calculator I had a frowny face for UCLA & Cal and was admitted into both as well as all the other UC schools I applied to (albeit off the wait list at cal, and wait listed at Davis [I didn't opt to take their wait list offer, so who knows if I could have been an Aggie] ). My deviance from the model isn't rogerhub's fault: his calculations can only be as accurate as the data he utilizes. Qualitative components of your application, writing ability, and your story all play a part and are not statistically measurable. So these are your chances if you're just another brick in the wall . . . don't be a barrier to your own success. Most of all don't let this fracture your dreams, instead let it inspire you to build a foundation of passion that will help you tower above other applicants who LET themselves be just a number.

Roger: Congrats on getting into all those schools!

My daughter goes to Calhigh. I used your GPA calculator. If I give 'A' in each of the courses for the 24 semesters with a maximum of 8 Honors/AP classes, the total comes out to be 4.30. Yet the University says the minimum weighted GPA is 4.39. Can you help me understand?

Roger: The calculator on this page uses the “weighted and capped GPA”. This is different from a normal weighted GPA, because the weighted and capped GPA can only include up to 8 semesters worth of honors points, whereas a normal weighted GPA can include any number of honors points. There’s some more explanation on the GPA calculator page that might help.

Hi! I am wondering about the difference between the UC GPA and the regular school GPA. For example, I saw that the UCSB has an average weighted GPA as 3.9 on their website. I am not sure if that is the UC GPA or the regular school GPA.
I have this question because your website shows I have 50% of getting into the UCSB, however, my UC GPA is only 3.66, which should be way lower than the average of the UCSB GPA which is shown on it's website.

Roger: This calculator uses the UC Weighted and Capped GPA. According to UCSB’s Freshman Profile, the average admit’s GPA is 3.92~4.23 (25th and 75th percentile). However, this is a weighted and uncapped GPA, which can include any number of honors course points. So, your weighted GPA would be higher than a 3.66.

Sorry about messaging you so many times xD. The reason I calculated a 3.68 is that I only calculated the grades I got during sophmore year and junior yeaer. which was 5 As and 7Bs in sohpmore year, then all As in junior year( 5 classes). SInce I heard that the UC grades only count sophmore and Junior year, thats what I put (PS the 3.68 is my unweighted, whoops xD )

Roger: You should count 2 semesters per year-long course, since there are two semesters in a school year.

Ohhh. That's probably why. But what do they mean when they ask for the total number of semesters for ap and such?

If I have a 3.68, then if I get a full score on my SAT, they said my chances for UCLA are unknown. I was a mc and a leader for my division for a outside high school humane organization, a leader for Helpers For Homeless, a Red Cross secretary, and been to a few debate and buisness competitions. Do you personally think they will accept me xD. Thank you for the response xD. Oh and if I get 5s on all 5 of my A.Ps and 800 on Sat 2. Thanks I know this is a mouthfull but I want to make sure :)

Roger: Are you sure your weighted and capped GPA is a 3.68? I think anybody who gets a full score on the SAT has a good chance at getting into UCLA. Good luck!

Okay so this is my situation: I'm going into senior year with a 3.2 gpa. I have 24 units from classes I took at community colleges and I have a 4.0. Will this help me get into a UC like SD or SB? Or should I just go to community college and transfer in one or two years? Please help roger. Thanks

Roger: I think you’re asking the wrong person. Anyway, I think it doesn’t hurt to apply anyway, right? If those 24 units are transferrable, they’ll definitely help you with the 2-year community college transfer plan. Hope this helps!

UC GPA would ever give me a good shot at UCSB.
http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/campuses/files/freshman-profiles/freshman_profile_santa_barbara.pdf
and
http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/campuses/santa-barbara/freshman-profile/index.html
put me on the side about even applying there. Could you tell me why a 3.56 UC GPA / 33 ACT / undeclared major / asian / male / out-of-state profile makes me an "extremely qualified candidate?"
Thank you!

Roger: The GPA on that page is not capped, I believe. This calculator asks for your capped GPA.

Hey Roger!
I know you say not to be encouraged or discouraged by this tool, but man, I can't help but instill even a bit of hope in myself after getting back a "Holy smokes!" for UCSB. I'm still in disbelief, though: even with a 33 ACT, I would never think a 3.56

Hey Roger,

Can you add an option for the new SAT. Thank You!

Roger: (Copied from my response to another visitor’s comment.) Great question. I’d like to be able to update this calculator, but the UCOP has shut down StatFinder, which was the admissions statistics database that was used to make this calculator. The easiest way to create an admissions calculator would be to compute models over the entire dataset of every UC applicant. But unfortunately, there aren’t any schools today that would release that kind of information to the public. First of all, it’d be an invasion of privacy and probably a FERPA violation. But additionally, most schools (especially publicly-funded schools like those in the UC system) want people to believe that their admissions process is holistic/qualitative (based on each candidate’s personal story) rather than quantitative (based on GPA and test scores). Admissions calculators fundamentally undermine the “holistic” application ideal, because their underlying assumption is that your admission is determined entirely by your GPA and test scores. So, even when schools do release statistics about their admissions decisions, they usually put them in PDF documents and infographics, to make them more difficult to analyze in bulk with computer programs. The bottom line is that I probably will not be updating this calculator, unless new data about UC admissions becomes available, because there’s currently no data available to use.

Do the transcript grades have to be US level? (meaning 90-100% = A and so on)
What if you haven't taken any SATs yet? (I'm only in grade 10)

Roger: I think you should use your letter grades. It doesn’t matter what your percentage grades are.

Hey Roger,
I was just wondering if you think I could get into UCLA with a 4.5 gpa and 2130 SAT score, I am also ranked 27 out of 608 in my class. I am also a sealbearer in CSF, involved in NHS, Captain of the girls tennis team, President of red Cross Club at School, currently in an internship with Red Cross, shadow a nurse in the surgical field, and I am also a member of ACS. I also tutor at Kumon math and reading three days a week. I have been in varsity tennis for four years and will also have 60 college units, aka my AA degree in liberal arts from community college before I graduate high school. Is there anything else I should do to help me get into UCLA?
-Nikki

Roger: Are you a California resident? It sounds like your test scores and extracurriculars are great. I think you’ll have no problem getting into UCLA. But don’t take my opinion too seriously. I don’t actually know very much about college admissions.