California residents have no shortage of phenomenal public institutions within the borders of their home state. UC Davis, for example, ranks in the top 40 national universities and in the top 10 public universities in the country. Of course, with all of this esteem and recognition comes an endless line of applicants. As a result, getting into a school like UC Davis has never been more challenging than in 2023. On the plus side, if you don’t end up becoming an Aggie as a freshman, another chance may await.  In fact, over 9,000 transfer applicants are offered that opportunity every year. This blog will share the UC Davis transfer acceptance rate as well as other essential pieces of information like the UC Davis transfer deadline, the requirements/checklist for applicants, the UC Davis transfer decision date, and much more.

UC Davis Transfer Acceptance Rate

Below we present the most current available UC Davis transfer acceptance rate as well as historical data.

In the fall of 2021, the UC Davis transfer acceptance rate was 50.4%. That year, UC Davis received 18,765 transfer applications and accepted 9,454 students.

When trying to get the complete picture of how difficult it is to transfer into a given school, it is important to also look at historical data. Many schools have wild fluctuations in transfer acceptance rate from year to year. Yet this is not the case here. As you can see, UC Davis has remained within a tight 50%-58% range over the past few years.

Historical transfer rates are as follows:

Year Acceptance Rate
2020 55.4%
2019 57.4%

 UC Davis Transfer Deadline

For every academic program, the UC Davis transfer deadline is November 30. The application window opens on August 1, so you can begin completing all materials at that time. The FAFSA deadline is March 2.

UC Davis Transfer Requirements

All students must submit the following items as part of their UC Davis application:

In addition to meeting the UC Davis transfer requirements, you’ll need to have achieved/earned the following:

UC Davis Transfer Acceptance by Major

Here are some of the transfer acceptance rates for some of the most popular majors at the University of California Davis:

Major Acceptance Rate
Biology 43%
Psychology 37%
Economics 59%
Sociology 69%
Communication 64%
Computer Science 28%

UC Davis Transfer GPA

According to the university, the minimum GPA to be eligible for admission is a 2.4. Those who hail from outside California have a higher 2.8 minimum requirement. However, it is important to understand that the mid-50% GPA range for enrolled students last year was 3.37-3.80.

University of California Davis Essays

Required UC Davis Essay:

Please describe how you have prepared for your intended major, including your readiness to succeed in your upper-division courses once you enroll at the university.

Choose 3 of the following 7 questions (in addition to the mandatory prompt above):

  • Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes, or contributed to group efforts over time.
  • Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side.
  • What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?
  • Describe how you have taken advantage of a significant educational opportunity or worked to overcome an educational barrier you have faced.
  • Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to overcome this challenge. How has this challenge affected your academic achievement?
  • What have you done to make your school or your community a better place?
  • Beyond what has already been shared in your application, what do you believe makes you a strong candidate for admissions to the University of California?

UC Davis Transfer Decision Date

The UC Davis transfer decision date will be communicated in late April.

Final Thoughts – UC Davis University Transfer Acceptance Rate

UC Davis does allow students to enter via the Transfer Admission Guarantee (TAG). However, the following programs are not accessible through TAG:

  • Engineering
  • Computer Science
  • Data Science

This school only admits transfer students at the junior level.

Directly from the admissions office, the “primary basis of our admission decision is your academic preparation and achievement. We will review your transferable GPA and courses—including those completed, in-progress and planned—as required by your major.”

If you are looking for information on how to apply to UC Davis as a first-year student, you may find the following blog to be of interest:

Those searching for application info on other institutions may wish to visit our Dataverse pages/blogs:

Dave has over a decade of professional experience that includes work as a teacher, high school administrator, college professor, and independent educational consultant. He is a co-author of the books The Enlightened College Applicant (Rowman & Littlefield, 2016) and Colleges Worth Your Money (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020).