University of California-Merced
Merced, CA
University of California-Merced is a public research university in Merced, California, a suburb of a midsize city, with 8,372 undergraduates. Engineering and psychology are its signature fields: together they make up 43% of its bachelor's degrees, about three times their share across the colleges we cover. 69% of students finish within six years, and former students who are working earn a median of $64,368 ten years after starting.
Part of the University of California: one application covers Berkeley · Davis · Irvine · Los Angeles · Merced · Riverside · San Diego · Santa Barbara · Santa Cruz.
University of California-Merced admitted 26,598 of 67,891 applicants for the fall 2023 entering class (39.2%).
- Acceptance rate
- 39.2%
- Fall 2023 class
- In-state tuition
- $15,623
- $49,823 out of state
- Paid after aid
- $11,983
- Average, students with aid
Every figure on this page is published by the college or a federal survey, compiled by GoodGoblin, and carries the source it came from. They describe the fall 2023 entering class, a read on the school, not a prediction about any one applicant.
What University of California-Merced is known for
Measured by the 1,885 bachelor's degrees it awarded in 2022–23, and what its graduates went on to earn.
Engineering
23.6%
of its bachelor's degrees: three and a half times the 6.9% share across the colleges we cover.
Psychology
19.4%
of its bachelor's degrees: two and a half times the 7.2% share across the colleges we cover.
- Research and Experimental Psychology36519.4% of degreesToo few graduates to publish
- Biology30816.3% of degrees$59,249About the $57,214 national median
- Computer Engineering21711.5% of degrees$102,575−6% vs $109,015 nationally
- Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods1879.9% of degreesToo few graduates to publish
- Mechanical Engineering1508.0% of degrees$95,040About the $92,135 national median
- Public Health1125.9% of degrees$56,393About the $58,808 national median
Source: the College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), field-of-study data. Degrees are bachelor's degrees awarded in 2022–23. Earnings are the median for 2017–18 and 2018–19 graduates, in 2024 dollars, working and not enrolled, four years after graduating. Shares across the colleges we cover count every bachelor's degree at the colleges with a page here.
The place
Where it is, how big it is, and how students live.
Setting
Suburb of a midsize city
Merced, CA
Undergraduates
8,372
Fall 2024
Type
Public
Doctoral university, high research activity
Living on campus
A quarter to half
of undergraduates live on campus
Students per faculty member
20 to 1
Fall 2024
International students
1%
of undergraduates, fall 2024
Source: the College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), including the Carnegie Classification and the federal locale code it publishes.
What stands out at University of California-Merced
Three things University of California-Merced published, ranked by how much each could change what you actually do, not by how impressive it looks. Every one describes a class that has already enrolled.
University of California-Merced reports that test scores are not considered at all.
That is the school’s own answer on the form it fills in every year. A score you send is not read as part of the decision here.
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
The admit rate fell from 66% to 39% between fall 2018 and fall 2023.
Both ends are measured rates for classes that have already enrolled: a rate that moved, not a forecast. The fall 2023 figure is the one at the top of this page.
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2018 to fall 2023
Families paid $11,983 on average after aid.
Averaged across students who received federal aid: the price after grants and scholarships, not the sticker price.
Source: the College Scorecard
Every figure, in full
The same measured fields on every one of these pages. Nothing is filled in where the school published nothing.
Acceptance rate
39.2%
26,598 admitted of 67,891 applicants
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
Where do you actually stand at University of California-Merced?
The figures on this page describe a class that already enrolled. GoodGoblin reads them against your own transcript, scores, activities and budget, then builds the balanced list, the essay plan and the deadline calendar around what it finds.
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What University of California-Merced costs
The published price first, then what students who received aid actually paid, by family income.
In-state tuition and fees for 2024–25 were $15,623 ($49,823 out of state), and the full in-state cost of attendance, with housing, food and books, was $39,665. After grants and scholarships, students who received financial aid paid $11,983 a year on average.
In-state tuition and fees
$15,623
2024–25 school year
Out-of-state tuition and fees
$49,823
2024–25 school year
Full cost, in state
$39,665
Tuition, fees, housing, food and books
Paid after aid
$11,983
Average, students who received aid
What students paid, by family income
Each bar is that figure as a share of the $39,665 full cost.
- Under $30k$7,945Typical public university: $10,013
- $30k–$48k$8,465Typical public university: $10,847
- $48k–$75k$11,557Typical public university: $13,703
- $75k–$110k$14,828Typical public university: $17,979
- Over $110k$28,734Typical public university: $22,475
Source: the federal College Scorecard. Tuition and cost of attendance are for the 2024–25 school year; colleges usually raise them each year. What students paid is the average net price for first-year students who received federal financial aid. Typical public university: the median across the 338 public universities on GoodGoblin, for in-state students, compiled by GoodGoblin from the same federal data.
Where it leads
Who finishes, who stays, and what they earn and owe afterwards.
Finish within six years
69%
Our colleges' median: 63%
Return for a second year
82%
Our colleges' median: 79%
Earnings after 10 years
$64,368
Our colleges' median: $57,440
Median debt at graduation
$16,144
Our colleges' median: $23,725
Source: the College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education). Six-year completion describes students who started in fall 2018; second-year return describes students who started in fall 2023; earnings describe students who started in 2009–10 and 2010–11, measured in 2020 and 2021, in 2022 dollars; debt describes federal loans of students who graduated in fiscal years 2020 and 2021. Medians are across the 1,034 colleges with a page here.
How the rate has moved
Two measured admit rates from the federal survey, the years apart it reports them. A rate that moved, not a forecast.
Between fall 2018 and fall 2023 the admit rate fell from 66% to 39%.
What University of California-Merced says it weighs
The school's own words, from the form it fills in every year. Ranked as it ranks them.
- Essayrequired
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
- Course rigorrequired
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
- GPArequired
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
Not considered
- Test scores
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
- Recommendations
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
- Class rank
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
- Legacy
Source: the federal IPEDS survey, fall 2023
Essays on this application
8 essay prompts on the application: you choose 4 to write.
Published deadlines
Each date is read from the college's own materials and re-checked on a schedule.
- Regular DecisionNovember 30, 2026
Verified July 11, 2026 · Source
More colleges on the record
Each of these pages carries the same measured figures and sources.
Other colleges in California
Closest acceptance rates in the same state.
- Charles R Drew University of Medicine and Science38.8%
- Occidental College39.9%
- Scripps College39.9%
- University of California-Santa Barbara38.2%
Colleges with a similar acceptance rate
Closest acceptance rates anywhere in the country.
The GoodGoblin College Data Report: five findings counted across 1,034 colleges ›
Build the list this school belongs on.
The figures on this page describe a class that already enrolled. GoodGoblin reads them against your own transcript, scores, activities and budget, then builds the balanced list, the essay plan and the deadline calendar around what it finds.
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