Santa Clara University
Santa Clara, California
- Private nonprofit
- City
- 6,552 undergrads
- Admit rate
- 48%Source: College Scorecard
- Average net price
- $36,116per year, after grantsSource: College Scorecard
- Graduation rate
- 88%within 6 yearsSource: College Scorecard
- Median earnings
- $117,19310 years after startingSource: College Scorecard
What's special
Santa Clara University is California's oldest operating institution of higher learning.
Getting in
- Admit rate
- 48%About 5 in 10 applicants get in.Source: College Scorecard
- Test policy
- Test-optionalScores are considered if you send them, but not required.Source: College Scorecard
- SAT (middle 50%)
- 1350–1490Reading + math, enrolled first-years who sent scoresSource: College Scorecard
- ACT (middle 50%)
- 31–33Composite, enrolled first-years who sent scoresSource: College Scorecard
From Santa Clara University's own report
These numbers come from the school's Common Data Set for 2025–26, a standard report colleges publish about their applicants and first-year students. Open the report.
54% had a 3.75 or higher. The average was 3.72. Schools count GPA differently (weighted or not), so compare ranges loosely.
- Admit rate in this report
- 48%9,592 admitted of 20,032 first-year applicants
- Early decision admit rate
- 76%467 admitted of 611. Early decision is binding: you commit to attend if admitted.
- SAT, middle 50%
- 1330–1470First-years who sent scores
- ACT, middle 50%
- 29–33First-years who sent scores
- Top 10% of their class
- 47%74% were in the top quarter.
Early applicants often include recruited athletes and students who knew this was their first choice, so a higher early rate doesn't mean applying early raises any one student's odds by that much.
Where you'd stand
Enter your numbers to see where they'd fall among Santa Clara University's first-year students. This isn't a prediction: it shows how you compare with students who enrolled, using the sources linked below.
Leave out anything you don't have. Your numbers stay in this browser and fill in on other school pages. See my list
Sources: Santa Clara University Common Data Set 2025–26. Test ranges describe enrolled students who sent scores.
What it really costs
Most families pay less than the sticker price. Net price is what's left after grants and scholarships.
- Average net price
- $36,116full-time first-years who got grant aidSource: College Scorecard
- Total cost of attendance
- $84,261sticker price incl. housing, per yearSource: College Scorecard
- Tuition
- $63,513Source: College Scorecard
After you enroll
- Graduation rate
- 88%first-time, full-time students finishing within 6 yearsSource: College Scorecard
- Came back for year two
- 94%full-time first-year studentsSource: College Scorecard
- Median earnings
- $117,19310 years after starting, for students who got federal aidSource: College Scorecard
- Median debt at graduation
- $19,500federal loans, students who finishedSource: College Scorecard
Students
- Undergraduates
- 6,552Source: College Scorecard
- Receive Pell grants
- 14%a sign of economic diversitySource: College Scorecard
- First-generation students
- 17%parents didn't go beyond high schoolSource: College Scorecard
Similar schools
Similar, and easier to get into
- Chapman University Orange, CA — admits 65%
- Point Loma Nazarene University San Diego, CA — admits 84%
- Elon University Elon, NC — admits 66%
- California Baptist University Riverside, CA — admits 85%
Also worth a look
- University of San Diego San Diego, CA — admits 52%
- University of Rochester Rochester, NY — admits 40%
- George Washington University Washington, DC — admits 47%
- Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, NJ — admits 48%
- Southeastern University Lakeland, FL — admits 53%
- Elon University Elon, NC — admits 66%
Where these numbers come from
Every number on this page comes from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard page for Santa Clara University, which draws on what the school reports to the federal government and on federal student aid and tax records. We last pulled the data on November 4, 2026. Different measures cover different years; here's how each one works.
Spot something wrong? Report a data error.