UCLA Admission Requirements for International Students 2027: Acceptance Rate, Tuition, Scholarships and Deadlines

UCLA admission requirements for international students start with the University of California application, which you submit between 1 and 30 November 2026 for fall 2027 entry. You report your grades yourself, answer four Personal Insight Questions, and self-report an English test if your schooling was not in English. UCLA does not consider the SAT or ACT at all. Money is the hard part: UCLA states that it does not award scholarships or financial aid to undergraduates who are not US citizens or permanent residents, so international students pay the full cost, about $84,770 for 2026-27.

UCLA is also one of the hardest public universities to get into from abroad. For fall 2026 it received 24,728 international applications and admitted about 8% of them, compared with about 11% of all 146,693 applicants. It is tied at No. 20 among National Universities and tied No. 1 among public universities in the U.S. News 2027 edition. Every figure below comes from UCLA or University of California sources checked on 29 October 2026, unless another source is named.

UCLA ranking

U.S. News released its 2027 Best Colleges edition on 21 September 2026. UCLA is tied with UC Berkeley at No. 20 among National Universities and the two share first place among public universities (#20 National Universities, U.S. News 2027 edition). For an international applicant the rank matters less than two facts it hides: UCLA has more applicants than almost any university in the US, and it admits a smaller share of international applicants than of applicants overall.

UCLA acceptance rate and class profile

UCLA’s international admission guide gives a fall 2026 profile, and its 2025-26 Common Data Set covers the class that entered in fall 2025.

The UC Office of the President’s preliminary fact sheet counts 15,903 first-year admits to UCLA for fall 2026: 9,109 Californians, 4,793 students from other US states and 2,001 international students. For fall 2025, UCLA’s 2025-26 Common Data Set reports 145,086 applicants, 13,659 admits (about 9.4%) and 6,553 enrolled first-years, with international or nonresident students making up 8.4% of the first-year class.

An average TOEFL of 114 among admitted international students tells you how strong the English bar is in practice, far above any published minimum.

UCLA tuition for international students: 2026-27 cost of attendance

UCLA’s Financial Aid and Scholarships office lists this 2026-27 budget for an undergraduate in university housing:

California residents pay $45,500, so the supplemental tuition is the whole difference. UC uses cohort tuition, which means students entering in fall 2027 will pay the 2027-28 cohort rate. UC has not published that yet, and each new cohort so far has paid more than the one before. UCLA also notes the 2026-27 fees may not be final.

For your visa, UCLA’s international page says students entering in fall 2026 had to show at least $80,739 in available funds, and it recommends another $5,000 for personal costs, emergencies and summer. The minimum normally goes up each year.

UCLA scholarships for international students

UCLA’s international page is blunt: UCLA does not award scholarships or financial aid to undergraduates who are not US citizens or permanent residents. There is no CSS Profile, ISFAA or institutional aid form for you to file. Its admission guide adds that SAT and ACT scores are not considered for scholarships either.

What UCLA suggests instead is outside funding: scholarship search sites such as IEFA, International Scholarships and International Student, and your home country’s government or consulate. In practice, international students at UCLA are funded by family, sponsors, employers or government scholarship schemes from home. If you need significant aid, apply to UCLA only alongside colleges that do fund international students; our list of the best American scholarships for international students is a good starting point.

UCLA admission requirements for international students: the application

Academic eligibility

You must have finished secondary school and not enrolled in a regular session at any college or university. Students with a bachelor’s degree, or 130 quarter units or more of transferable college work, cannot apply as first-years. Submit your secondary records showing subjects and grades, plus any national or government certificates you have earned. Some countries have extra requirements, which UCLA lists by country. Do not send college coursework at this stage.

Application parts

1. UC application: one form for all nine UC undergraduate campuses. UCLA does not use the Common App.
2. Self-reported academic record: enter your courses and grades as they appear on your records.
3. International external exams: enter results such as A-levels, IB or national exams in the “International External Exams” section.
4. Personal Insight Questions: four of eight, up to 350 words each.
5. Application fee: $95 per campus for international applicants; UC fee waivers do not apply to international students.
6. English test: self-reported on the application by January.
7. Supplemental application (some majors only): required for the School of the Arts and Architecture, the Herb Alpert School of Music, the School of Nursing, and the School of Theater, Film and Television.

There are no letters of recommendation for most UCLA majors, and there is no interview.

Testing policy

UCLA does not consider SAT or ACT scores for admission, for scholarships or for English proficiency. You can still use AP, IB and other external exam results, which UCLA reads as part of your academic record.

English requirements

You must test if your secondary education was not in English and you have had fewer than three years of English-language instruction. UCLA publishes “competitive” scores, not bare minimums:

These are well above the UC-wide minimums (TOEFL 80 or 4.5, IELTS 6.5, Duolingo 115). UCLA does not accept TOEFL MyBest scores or superscores, and tests must be taken by the application deadline. TOEFL scores sent to one UC campus are shared with all your UC campuses, but IELTS and Duolingo results must be sent to each campus separately, and Duolingo scores must include your UC application ID. If English is not your first language, you may also have to sit UCLA’s English as a Second Language Placement Examination just before your first term.

UCLA deadlines for fall 2027 entry

UCLA has no Early Action or Early Decision. UC does not state a time zone for the 30 November deadline, so submit at least a day early from outside California.

How to write UCLA’s Personal Insight Questions

The eight questions cover leadership, creativity, a talent, an educational opportunity or barrier, a significant challenge, a favourite academic subject, service to your community, and what makes you a strong candidate. You answer four, each up to 350 words, and UC treats all questions equally.

UCLA readers see tens of thousands of answers, so the ones that stand out are short, concrete and personal. Choose questions that let you show four different sides of yourself instead of four versions of the same achievement. International applicants should use one answer to explain their context: how your school system works, what resources you had, what you had to do outside school to learn. Write in plain English; a reader cares more about what you did than about polished phrases.

A sample opening, for illustration only, for the community service question: “Every Saturday I translate pharmacy labels for the Tamil-speaking families on our street, because the clinic only prints them in English.” From there, say what you learned, what you changed, and how it connects to what you want to study at UCLA.

What happens after you apply to UCLA

1. Update your record: add new English or external exam results through the UC application.
2. Supplemental applications: if your major needs one, meet the school’s own deadline and audition or portfolio dates.
3. Decision: first-year decisions arrive in late March 2027.
4. Accept by 1 May 2027: submit your Statement of Intent to Register and deposit.
5. Prove funding and get your visa document: show at least the minimum funds (about $80,739 for fall 2026 entry, higher for 2027), then apply for your F-1 visa. Make sure you have health insurance in place for your whole enrolment.

Common mistakes international applicants make with UCLA

• Expecting a scholarship: UCLA gives no scholarships or aid to international undergraduates.
• Sending SAT scores to help: UCLA ignores them completely.
• Aiming for the UC minimum English score: UCLA’s competitive bar is IELTS 7.5 and Duolingo 135.
• Forgetting the supplemental application: arts, music, nursing, theatre and film majors need one.
• Not sending IELTS or Duolingo scores to each campus: only TOEFL is shared across UC campuses.
• Underestimating the funding proof: the visa minimum is over $80,000 for one year.

Costs nobody covers at UCLA

Because there is no aid, every cost is yours. On top of the $84,770 budget, plan for flights, visa and SEVIS fees, off-campus rent in Los Angeles after your first year, transport in a car-dependent city, summer living costs and yearly increases. UCLA itself recommends keeping an extra $5,000 for personal costs and emergencies.

Majors, campus and city

UCLA’s campus is in Westwood, on the west side of Los Angeles. Undergraduates join the College of Letters and Science or one of the professional schools, including the Samueli School of Engineering, the School of the Arts and Architecture, the Herb Alpert School of Music, the School of Nursing and the School of Theater, Film and Television. Economics, psychology, biology, computer science and the film and arts programmes attract large numbers, and Los Angeles gives you access to the entertainment, technology and health industries.

Graduate admissions at UCLA

Graduate applications are made to individual programmes through UCLA’s Graduate Division, and professional schools such as the Anderson School of Management and the School of Law run their own admissions. Graduate students can receive fellowships and assistantships from their departments, unlike undergraduates, but the amounts and availability for international students differ by programme.

UCLA compared with similar universities

If you apply to UCLA, you can add other UC campuses on the same application for $95 each, including UC San Diego and UC Irvine.

Who should apply to UCLA

Apply if your grades are close to the top of your school, your English is near-native, and your family or sponsor can pay about $85,000 a year without aid. UCLA is a strong choice for students aiming at film, the arts, health sciences or careers in California.

Skip it, or treat it as a long shot, if you need any financial aid at all, because UCLA will not provide it. Put that application fee toward a college that funds international students instead.

FAQ on UCLA admission requirements for international students

What is the UCLA acceptance rate for international students?

About 8% for fall 2026, from 24,728 international applicants, according to UCLA’s international admission guide. The overall rate was about 11%.

Does UCLA give scholarships to international students?

No. UCLA does not award scholarships or financial aid to undergraduates who are not US citizens or permanent residents.

How much is UCLA tuition for international students?

For 2026-27, university fees are $16,430 plus $39,270 nonresident supplemental tuition. The full cost with housing, food and insurance is $84,770.

What IELTS score does UCLA require?

UCLA lists IELTS 7.5 as competitive, along with TOEFL 5 on the new scale (above 100 on the old scale) and Duolingo 135.

Sources and updates

Requirements, English scores, the no-aid policy and the funding minimum come from UCLA Undergraduate Admission’s international applicants page and its 2026 International Admission Guide, which also gives the fall 2026 international profile and the 2026-27 cost estimate. The detailed cost of attendance is from UCLA Financial Aid and Scholarships. Application dates, PIQ format and fees come from the University of California admissions site, and admit counts by residency from the UC Office of the President’s fall 2026 fact sheet. Fall 2025 figures are from UCLA’s 2025-26 Common Data Set. The ranking is from the U.S. News 2027 edition as reported by UC’s newsroom. Last checked 29 October 2026.

Jude Chinecherem

I am Jude Chinecherem, a final-year MBBS student at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I know what it feels like to want an education your family cannot afford. When my parents could not pay for my schooling, I had to learn how to find scholarships and work the system out on my own, with nobody to guide me. I came out the other side, and now I share everything I learned so the next student does not have to figure it out alone. This is the advice I wish someone had given me back then.