Hello,
CA resident, and focusing on Psych major. Wanted to check how to find out about the admit rate data on CSU’s ? I want to find how hard it is to get into this major across CSU’s. thanks for the help in advance.
There is no one source for this information. You need to check each CSU’s website so see if that information is available and also how they admit. Admit rates are only one part of the puzzle since many if not most will not list the GPA required to be admitted to each major and how competitive the applicant major pool can be.
SJSU for example does show admit rates by major but they admit based on an impaction index calculation. If your Impaction index is above the set threshold for the applicant pool that year, then you have a very good chance at an acceptance.
SJSU impaction index calculation is the CSU GPA x 800. If you are a local applicant or have a fee waiver, then you can get additional points.
For Psychology, the Impaction threshold was 2520 so an applicant would need at least a CSU GPA of 3.15+ to be competitive.
Different CSU’s use different criteria for admission. CPP has their own index calculation and major thresholds.
https://www.cpp.edu/admissions/freshmen/freshman-student-profile.shtml
Cal Poly SLO has projection targets but not specific admit rates by major. They show the estimated # of applicants and estimated # of spots they hope to enroll but they do not list their actual admit rate by major.
Which CSU’s are you interested in researching?
Cal Poly SLO Target projections: https://content-calpoly-edu.s3.amazonaws.com/ir/1/images/2024-2025%20Cal%20Poly%20Enrollment%20Projections_0.pdf
SJSU: Workbook: apply_by_department_live
CSUF Fullerton admission by college and not by major: Apps, Admits, Enrolls - Assessment and Institutional Effectiveness | CSUF
Here is the data for San Diego State.
Thank you. We are interested in Cal Poly SLO for Psychology major. Do they also calculate GPA the same way as UC’s ?
No, Cal Poly SLO looks at grades for 9th- 11th grades. UCs only look at 10th and 11th for the GPA. Selection Criteria | Cal Poly
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Thanks, I see that it states "For the purposes of your application, we’ll consider your 9th-11th grade weighted GPA. That number is calculated from college-prep coursework as designated on your application. Weight is granted for courses designated as “honors,” “college-level,” “advanced placement” or “international baccalaureate” for up to eight semesters.
What courses between 9-11th are considered ? like A-G, or course related to the major declared on the application ? thanks !
They look at A-G courses, as I understand it. Definitely not just classes related to an intended major.
All A-G courses taken 9-11th grades are considered for the SLO GPA calculation but only Honors eligible courses taken 10-11th are given the extra Honors points up to 8 semesters. You can use the CSU GPA calculator and just add in 9th course grades. GPA Calculator | CSU
Note that the SJSU thresholds posted on the SJSU impaction web pages are those for the prior year admission cycle. Thresholds could change year to year, so this coming year threshold could be higher or lower, although the prior year threshold gives an idea of where it is likely to be near (e.g. psychology is not likely to be as competitive as computer science, but is likely to be more competitive than biology, physics, or sociology).
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The other thing to note is that if the CSU campus is not impacted for first time frosh, and your major is not listed as impacted at the campus, first time frosh applicants to that major at that campus should be admitted with minimum CSU eligibility (a-g course work with 2.5 recalculated GPA for California residents).
See Impacted Undergraduate Majors and Universities, 2024-25 | CSU to check for campus and major impaction. You can also check https://www.calstate.edu/attend/impaction-at-the-csu/Documents/ImpactedProgramsMatrix.pdf for major impaction (which lists Fullerton, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Pomona, Sacramento, San Diego, San Jose, San Luis Obispo, and Sonoma as having major impaction for psychology).
For campuses that are impacted at the campus level or where your major is impacted, you can check campus web sites for information, although the level of transparency varies (SJSU is one of the most transparent campuses in this respect, but some others give little or no information on how competitive each major is).