Did you get into Cal Poly? Here’s everything to know as acceptances go out

Cal Poly should soon be sending out acceptance letters to prospective students, and we know plenty of you out there have questions about the process.

To help you out, The Tribune has compiled a list of everything we know about what it takes to get into Cal Poly, the San Luis Obispo university’s most competitive majors, how many people applied to start next fall and more.

Have other questions not answered here? Reach out to reporter Kaytlyn Leslie at kleslie@thetribunenews.com and we will try to answer them for you.

Happy acceptance letters season, everyone!

How many people applied to Cal Poly this year? How many usually get in?

Cal Poly once again received a record number of applications for its upcoming fall class.

In February, the university said 78,947 students applied for a spot this year — a 5.5% increase over 2023, when the university received 74,571 applications, and 12% above the 69,429 students who applied in 2022, according to the Cal Poly Institutional Research data dashboard.

The university ultimately admitted 21,619 students in 2023, with 6,619 admitted students accepting the university’s offer.

The previous year, the university admitted 20,440 students, but only 6,430 accepted.

Read more in our story here:

Cal Poly SLO applications soar to another new record

When will Cal Poly SLO acceptance letters be sent out?

On Monday, a Cal Poly spokesperson declined to disclose whether the university has already begun sending out acceptance letters, but Cal Poly has previously said it plans to notify all applicants about whether they were admitted, rejected or waitlisted by April 1.

The notices will be visible through applicants’ Cal Poly portal, and those who were admitted will have until May 15 to accept or reject their application.

Read more in our story here:

Did you apply to Cal Poly? Here’s when acceptance letters will be sent

What happens if I’m on the waitlist?

Once the university has an idea how many admitted students will accept their offers, it will begin filling additional space from the waitlist, up until July 15.

According to Cal Poly’s admissions website, students on the waitlist will be considered for admission if there are any openings in their major.

“There are no ‘rankings’ on the waitlist, and only the application materials that were reviewed initially will be used in any waitlist decisions,” the website says.

If you are an eligible California resident who has been waitlisted or denied admission to Cal Poly, you could potentially be redirected to a non-impacted California State University campus.

The CSU will inform students of available campuses via email, according to the admissions website.

I didn’t get in. Can I appeal the decision?

Almost nine in 10 Cal Poly applicants will not get the answer they were hoping for and will receive a rejection email instead, the university told The Tribune in years past.

But, you don’t necessarily have to take that first no for an answer. Students who are not admitted have a two-week window to appeal an admissions decision — though the likelihood of the rejection being overturned is very low.

“We review every application for maximum consideration,” Cal Poly’s website describing the appeal process says. “For an appeal to have merit, it must contain new, serious and compelling information that clearly shows you to be academically stronger than had been earlier evidenced. Neither grades received in the current academic year nor mistakes made on the application are a basis for an appeal or the reversal of a decision.”

Rejected students who appeal the university’s decision will hear back within three weeks of Cal Poly receiving their appeal application, according to the website.

Read more in our story here:

Did you get rejected from Cal Poly SLO? You can still get in — here’s how

What are the most competitive majors to get into at Cal Poly?

Cal Poly is notoriously tough to get into, but more so in some majors compared to others.

In Fall 2023 — the most recent data available — there was room for just 8% of the nearly 57,000 freshman who applied to attend.

The gap between acceptance rate and space available accounts for the university’s expected yield, or how many students actually enroll over how many are accepted.

Of those students, about one third of them vied for a spot in just 10 of the university’s 63 majors.

The major that had the fewest number of spaces available compared to the number of freshman applicants was psychology, with room for just 2% of the applicant pool that year, according to the university’s data. That was followed by software engineering, kinesiology, marine sciences and aerospace engineering.

To see the full list of the most competitive majors for freshmen, and the most competitive for transfers, read our story here:

What are the 10 most competitive majors to get into at Cal Poly?

Meanwhile, to read more about acceptance rates by program, read out story here:

How tough is it to get into Cal Poly? Compare acceptance rates by major

How much does it cost to go to Cal Poly? Is financial aid available?

Cal Poly has a reputation as the most expensive public university in California once financial aid is accounted for.

According to the university’s admission’s website, an incoming fall 2024 freshman could be expected to pay between $31,251 and $36,081 for the academic year.

That includes tuition, fees, books and materials, cost of housing, transportation and more.

The listed costs do vary depending on whether the student intends to live at home or in the residence halls and which college they are admitted to. For a full breakdown, check out Cal Poly’s student costs analysis here.

Though the university has a reputation for priciness, there are financial aid options available.

Newly admitted students will receive information in their My Cal Poly portal or email inbox indicating any scholarships they have been awarded from the university. Those can be based on academic achievement, athletic ability, geographical location, departmental and community involvement, areas of study or financial need, among other factors, according to Cal Poly’s scholarship website.

Students may also qualify for federal and government state financial aid, university programs that might offset costs and grants like the State University Grant or Education Opportunity program.

For more information on financial aid options, read our story here:

Cal Poly is California’s most expensive public university. Here’s a guide to financial aid

How successful are Cal Poly students at getting jobs after graduation?

Nine out of 10 Cal Poly alumni found jobs, enrolled in graduate studies or were otherwise engaged after graduating, a 2023 university report showed.

According to Cal Poly’s Career Services Graduate Status Report in September, 91% of Cal Poly graduates from the 2021-22 graduating class were “positively engaged” after graduation, with the vast majority working or attending graduate schools in California.

“Employers tell us time and again that they seek to hire Cal Poly graduates because our grads are ready day one,” Amie Hammond, executive director of Cal Poly Career Services, said in a news release.

Read more in our story here:

9 out of 10 Cal Poly alumni start jobs, graduate studies after leaving school, report says