California State University-Sacramento: A Parent's Guide to Admissions, Cost & Outcomes
Carson, California · Public · Open access · CDS 2024-2025
California State University-Sacramento is a public university in Carson, California that admits about 91% of applicants, making it a open access school. The average family pays about $3,659 a year after financial aid, which matters more than the published sticker price. It is best known for Business Administration, Management and Operations, Psychology, General and Sociology, its largest undergraduate programs by number of graduates. Its most recent Clery Act report shows roughly 3.3 criminal offenses per 1,000 students.
California State University-Sacramento is a public institution located in Carson, California. For the most recent reporting cycle, California State University-Sacramento admits the majority of qualified applicants, with an overall admission rate of 91%. The average net price after grants and scholarships is $3,659 per year, which is the figure most families actually pay rather than the published sticker price. For parents weighing whether California State University-Sacramento is realistic for their teenager, the most useful planning step is comparing your child's current GPA and most recent SAT or ACT against these admitted-student ranges — not the headline acceptance rate alone.
What GPA does my child need for California State University-Sacramento?
California State University-Sacramento has a broadly accessible admissions profile, and most students who complete a standard college-prep curriculum with a 3.0 GPA or higher are competitive for admission. Parents tracking their child's GPA toward this tier of school can use Solyo's free calculator to see weighted, unweighted, and college-recalculated numbers side by side.
What does California State University-Sacramento weight in admissions?
California State University-Sacramento reports the following factor importance in its Common Data Set (2024-2025). These are the criteria the admissions committee weighs when reviewing applications.
- • Rigor of secondary school record
- • Class rank
- • Academic GPA
- • Application essay
- • Work experience
SAT and ACT scores California State University-Sacramento typically admits
Many applicants to schools in this tier submit test scores, though the policy varies by year — check the latest test-optional status before deciding.
- • Test-blind: California State University-Sacramento does not consider SAT or ACT scores in admission decisions, even if submitted.
- • Policy detail: Not Considered
How much does California State University-Sacramento actually cost?
Published tuition is $7,064 for in-state students and $18,944 for out-of-state, before grants and scholarships. Room and board adds roughly $16,886 annually. After need-based and merit aid, the average family pays a net price of $3,659 per year — the number that actually matters for budgeting. Roughly 61% of students receive Pell Grants, a useful indicator of how much need-based aid the school distributes.
| In-state tuition | $7,059 |
| Out-of-state tuition | $16,563 |
| Average net price (after aid) | $3,659 |
| Application fee | $7 (waivers available) |
Application deadlines and early decision data for California State University-Sacramento
| Regular deadline | page 4 |
| Notification date | - |
| Reply deadline | May 1 |
| Rolling admissions | Yes |
| Offers Early Decision | Yes |
Will my child graduate from California State University-Sacramento?
Retention and graduation rates are the most overlooked numbers in college planning, but they predict actual outcomes far better than acceptance rate. They tell you whether admitted students stay and finish on time.
Most popular majors at California State University-Sacramento
The most popular undergraduate programs at California State University-Sacramento, measured by the number of students who actually graduate each year, are Business Administration, Management and Operations, Psychology, General and Sociology. Across all programs, California State University-Sacramento confers roughly 2,467 bachelor's degrees a year. Graduates of its Business Administration, Management and Operations program report a median income of about $61,910 five years after entering college. Major popularity is a practical signal of where a school concentrates its teaching strength and where your child will find the deepest course offerings and peer community.
| Major | Graduates / year | Median earnings (5 yrs out) |
|---|---|---|
| Business Administration, Management and Operations | 591 | $61,910 |
| Psychology, General | 576 | $51,375 |
| Sociology | 286 | $50,994 |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections | 249 | $54,596 |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods | 243 | $43,988 |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities | 190 | $42,981 |
| Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing | 181 | $122,899 |
| Health Services/Allied Health/Health Sciences, General | 151 | — |
Is California State University-Sacramento safe? Campus crime & safety
In its most recent Clery Act report (2024), California State University-Sacramento disclosed 41 total criminal offenses across its campus and surrounding public property, about 3.3 per 1,000 students. That figure includes 6 violent offenses and 3 reported sexual assaults or VAWA offenses. Per-1,000-student rates matter more than raw counts when comparing schools, because larger universities mechanically report more incidents. Under the federal Clery Act, every college that receives federal aid must publish these numbers annually.
Other colleges in California parents ask about
- Stanford University4% acceptance
- University of California-Berkeley12% acceptance
- University of California-Los Angeles9% acceptance
- University of Southern California10% acceptance
- University of California-Davis42% acceptance
- University of California-Irvine26% acceptance
- University of California-San Diego25% acceptance
- University of California-Santa Barbara63% acceptance
How parents track GPA toward selective schools like California State University-Sacramento
Solyo helps parents track grades pulled directly from school emails, calculate GPA the same way colleges like California State University-Sacramento recalculate it, and ask an AI college counselor specific questions about their teen's odds. The platform is built for parents — not students — and turns what's usually a fragmented planning process into a single dashboard.
Common questions parents ask about California State University-Sacramento
What GPA do I need for California State University-Sacramento?
California State University-Sacramento has a broadly accessible admissions profile, and most students who complete a standard college-prep curriculum with a 3.0 GPA or higher are competitive for admission.
What SAT or ACT score does California State University-Sacramento typically admit?
California State University-Sacramento does not publish standardized test ranges in the most recent reporting cycle. Test-optional policies have made scores less universally required, but submitting strong scores still helps when available.
How much does California State University-Sacramento actually cost after financial aid?
The average net price at California State University-Sacramento after grants and scholarships is $3,659 per year. That figure is more useful for budgeting than the published sticker price, because it reflects what families actually pay after aid is applied.
Is California State University-Sacramento realistic for my child?
Compare your teen's current unweighted GPA and most recent SAT or ACT against the ranges above. If both numbers fall inside the school's middle-50, California State University-Sacramento is a target school. If both fall below the 25th-percentile mark, treat it as a reach and balance the application list accordingly.
What is the acceptance rate at California State University-Sacramento?
California State University-Sacramento accepts about 91% of applicants out of roughly 16,860 who apply each year. It admits the majority of qualified applicants.
Is California State University-Sacramento test-optional?
California State University-Sacramento is test-blind: it does not consider SAT or ACT scores in admission decisions, even if you submit them.
What is the graduation rate at California State University-Sacramento?
About 0% of students at California State University-Sacramento graduate within four years. 71% of freshmen return for sophomore year. Graduation rate predicts real outcomes better than acceptance rate.
What does California State University-Sacramento look for in applicants?
California State University-Sacramento rates course rigor, class rank, GPA and the application essay as "very important" in its Common Data Set. These are the factors the admissions committee weighs most heavily when reviewing an application.
Is California State University-Sacramento a public or private school, and where is it located?
California State University-Sacramento is a public institution located in Carson, California.
What are the most popular majors at California State University-Sacramento?
The largest undergraduate majors at California State University-Sacramento by annual graduates are Business Administration, Management and Operations, Psychology, General and Sociology. The school awards about 2,467 bachelor's degrees a year in total. These figures come from federal IPEDS completion data.
Is California State University-Sacramento safe? What is its campus crime rate?
California State University-Sacramento reported 41 total criminal offenses in its most recent Clery Act disclosure (2024), roughly 3.3 per 1,000 students. Compare the per-1,000 rate rather than the raw total, since larger schools report more incidents.
Data sourced from the 2024-2025 Common Data Set submitted by California State University-Sacramento, the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS, and Clery Act campus safety disclosures. Solyo extracts admissions data from official Common Data Set publications and refreshes it annually.