On September 21, 2026, the University of California Office of the President published an article on the University of California website that addresses eight common admissions myths one by one. With two months left before the November 30 application deadline, 12th graders in the Irvine Unified School District (IUSD) are deciding on campuses and majors, and the article answers several of the questions parents ask most often.
Who is affected
The article applies to every first-year applicant to the University of California this year. Its key points are as follows:
- Admission is not out of reach. About 78% of California resident first-year applicants are admitted to at least one campus.
- Admission is not easy. Of the roughly 205,000 first-year applicants last year, more than half had a GPA above 4.0. Admission rates for popular majors such as engineering and business can be far lower than a campus’s overall admission rate.
- Every application is read. When a student applies to multiple campuses, each campus reads the application independently.
- No single person decides the outcome. Admission decisions are not made by any one reader or any one committee alone.
- Campuses do not share information. Each campus makes its own decision, and readers cannot see which other campuses an applicant applied to.
- There is no fixed formula. The University of California considers up to 13 factors. Academics are central, but no single factor determines the outcome.
- Applying for financial aid does not affect admission. The University of California does not consider a family’s ability to pay in admission decisions, and admissions staff cannot see financial aid applications.
What to do now
Choose campuses according to how competitive the major is. The same application is read independently at each campus, so different results across campuses are normal. Students applying to popular majors should include less competitive options in their campus list.
Apply for financial aid with confidence. The University of California states that the two processes are completely separate, so eligible families do not need to forgo financial aid out of concern that it will affect admission.
Use data to see results for the student’s own high school. The number of students from each Irvine high school admitted to each campus can be looked up in the University of California Infocenter; for instructions, see UC Admissions by High School: How to Use the Infocenter. For the full timeline, see UC Application Timeline: From August 1 to May 1. For EDUBUS application services, see College Admissions Planning.
Sources
- University of California: Myth-busting UC admissions (accessed September 30, 2026)
- CSS Profile Opens; Early Deadlines in NovemberThe 2027-28 CSS Profile opened October 1, and USC and Stanford ask early applicants to file in November. Fee waiver rules, both deadlines, and documents to prepare.
- California Class of 2026 SAT Average Is 1108College Board's Class of 2026 SAT report puts California's average at 1108, 63 points above the nation. Key figures and how Irvine applicants can use them.
- Common App Keeps Its Seven Essay PromptsCommon App keeps last year's seven essay prompts for 2026-27; the open topic was last season's top choice. The prompts and a drafting order for Irvine early applicants.
- Early Deadlines Split Between November 1 and 2November 1, 2026 is a Sunday, and the Common App grid updated September 25 puts some early deadlines on November 2. Dates for colleges Irvine students often apply to.
