I cannot specifically speak about the political science program but it is one of the top ten most popular majors at UC Davis due to the proximity to the state capital and the presence of a respected on-campus Law school.
There are 811 undergraduates enrolled in the program as of 2024-25 so Freshman capacity is around 200 enrollees.
sorry for all the questions - the college admissions process is new to me - but do waitlists typically come out in waves or do some applicants hear back here and there randomly?
Depending upon the number of available spots there could be one or multiple waves of admits. Usually waitlisted admits are given about a week to respond so then if spots are still open after the first wave, then another wave will be posted.
Got waitlisted for CS. I’m confused on the role that alternate major plays. Shouldn’t my second major be considered? Will that happen if waitlist for CS doesn’t get cleared? or since Im waitlisted for my first major that means that alternate was not considered at all?
You are waitlisted based on your first choice major however it is possible your alternate major could be considered during the waitlist process. UC Davis occasionally admits into your alternate major but it will depend upon on your alternate major choice, if room is available and it is not guaranteed.
So what did you select for your alternate major?
You should choose an alternate major that is different from your primary choice so a different area of interest, to avoid a potential overlap in application review.
Alternate is Undeclared at College of Letter and Science. Do all UCs use alternate on a similar way? or some will prioritize an acceptance into Alternate major vs a waitlist in your first choice?
No, each UC campus will use the alternate major differently in the admissions and waitlist process.
UCLA and UC Berkeley only guarantee review of your Primary/First choice major for the initial admissions review while will other campuses will consider you alternate majors during the original admission process and during the waitlist process.
UC Berkeley does state they consider alternate majors in their waitlist and appeals process.
You are waitlisted based on your Primary/First choice major at all the campuses but as I stated some campuses will consider the alternate major when admitting off the waitlist.
My daughter was waitlisted for Microbiology. She wish she entered Biological Sciences (more general) as her first choice. Does it really matter?
Major choice is not considered for the College of Biological Sciences.
Thx! she was really surprised she didn’t get in UCD. Do you know how they pull bio applicants off waitlist if they are ranked on wl?
From the UC Davis waitlist FAQ’s;
Unfortunately, it is impossible to predict how many students might be admitted from the waitlist. The process is very specific to courses of study and the capacity of our campus to support all of our admitted students. Because of this, the list is not ranked and the number of offers extended will depend upon the number of spaces available and how many students we expect to accept the offer.
sorry I meant “Do you know how they pull bio applicants off waitlist if they are NOT ranked on wl?” Do AO read the whole application again or each waitlisted applicant has a score attached to his or her app?
Unfortunately only someone that works in admissions can answer that question.
Most UC’s state that waitlist admissions are a continuation of the regular admission process, with students on the waitlist considered based on their original application and whether their intended major fills enrollment gaps. Since UC Davis asks for updated grades I am sure that is another consideration.
@Gumbymom
do you think that WL kids are being offered spots based on whether or not kids from their HS gave up the spot or is it the whole WL pool?
In other words, say the child’s HS had 80 kids accepted and there was an estimated yield of 13 percent or 10 kids. If 12 kids decide to go to Davis, is the WL essentially closed for the kids from that HS? or if only 6 kids submit an SIR, is Davis going to try to fill with another 4 kids from the HS?
I wish grades matter much. Her GPA: 3.98 (UW) and 4.4 (W). Her brother got in UCD two years ago with much worse GPA but in a less selective major (Math). Her classmate got in bio major with much worse GPA but maybe better essays or ECs. You never know. Thanks for your thorough reply. Now it’s a waiting game.
Waitlists do not work that way. All colleges admit more students than will actually enroll and they use years of yield data to determine their initial admit rate.
After the May 1 enrollment deadline, they will then determine if there any spots available to fill and will go to the waitlist to fill in the gaps.
Based on their yield rates, a significant number of admitted students need to decline their enrollment before they utilize the waitlist.
According the the UCOP Data, UC Davis had 98,84 Freshman applicants in 2024, admitted 41,353 and enrolled 6,767.
i got waitlisted for data science at UC Davis and i opted into the waitlisted. I had to report my senior year grades and i had a c- in ap calc BC last semester. I am not sure if I should report it without explaining why I got a C- since i had some family issues that affected my grade. should i explain it even though it says i should only explain it if i had a d or f in class?
Note that the UC’s do not consider the +/- so it is a C. If you want to provide an explanation, I would assume you can but 1 C should not have a huge impact.
is it possible for uc davis to release some WL decisions in april? i am aware they started releasing in may last year as expected but also bc of the fafsa delay. but in 2023 they released a few in april so could they this year?
Yes, if they find the enrollment targets are not meeting expectations before May 1, they could pull from the waitlist earlier.