By major · Linguistics
Where can your student actually get into linguistics?
Linguistics is a small major, and how hard it is to get in depends far more on the campus than on the subject. UCLA had 261 students apply naming linguistics and admitted 34, a 13% rate; Cal State San Marcos had 183 applicants and admitted 173, 94.5%. Most UC campuses admit students to the campus rather than to the major, so a UC number here describes what happened to the students who named linguistics, not a decision made by the linguistics department. The 18 colleges in California below come from the college systems' own reporting and the federal earnings data, assembled in one place.
At a glance · All states
- 108 colleges nationwide report a bachelor's linguistics program in federal outcome data or a linguistics admit rate in the UC/CSU data.
- Hardest reported gate: University of California-Los Angeles — Linguistics, Fall 2025: 261 applied, 34 admitted (13%).
- Highest reported admit rate into the program: California State University-San Bernardino — 100.0% (23 applied, 23 admitted, Fall 2025).
- Highest median earnings four years after the degree: Duke University, $88,098.
- Lowest average net price with aid: CUNY Queens College, $4,195 per year.
Every California public campus that reports a linguistics number reports it for first-year applicants, so this is not a major where a freshman enters as a pre-major and applies into the program later. A college with no row here is not an easier door; it means the system publishes no separate linguistics figure for it, and the campus decision is the one that applies. Admits are not enrollees. At most UC programs students are admitted to the campus, not the major. This page as JSON → · Back to the 18 California colleges →
Hardest reported gate
Linguistics, Fall 2025: 261 applied, 34 admitted
Highest reported admit rate
Linguistics, Fall 2025: 23 applied, 23 admitted
Highest earnings, 4 yrs out
median, graduates of this program
Lowest net price with aid
average for aid recipients, per year
Every college, one row each
Colleges with a reported gate into the program come first, hardest first; the rest are sorted by earnings. Program admit rate is the college system's own number for this major (UC Information Center, CSU Chancellor's Office). Net price is the average paid by aid recipients; full price is the cost of attendance. Earnings are federal College Scorecard medians four years after the degree.
| College | Gate into the program | Program admit rate |
Campus admit rate |
Net price with aid |
Full price |
Earnings 4 yrs out |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
University of California-Los Angeles
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 261 applied, 34 admitted · admit GPA 4.18–4.31
|
13% | 11% | $12,548 | $38,614 | $62,927 |
|
University of California-Berkeley
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 445 applied, 101 admitted · admit GPA 4.13–4.29
|
23% | 10% | $13,481 | $45,619 | $76,724 |
|
University of California-Santa Barbara
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 683 applied, 275 admitted · admit GPA 4.09–4.28
|
40% | 44% | $16,109 | $41,573 | $61,580 |
|
University of California-San Diego
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 198 applied, 92 admitted · admit GPA 4.11–4.28
|
46% | 27% | $12,470 | $38,701 | $55,776 |
|
University of California-Irvine
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Language Science
Fall 2025: 336 applied, 163 admitted · admit GPA 4.00–4.25
|
49% | 30% | $14,251 | $38,632 | — |
|
University of California-Davis
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 316 applied, 225 admitted · admit GPA 4.00–4.25
|
71% | 46% | $14,741 | $41,238 | $58,443 |
|
San Diego State University
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 143 applied, 111 admitted
impacted
Linguistics and Anthropology: 70.6%
|
77.6% | 34% | $15,364 | $27,780 | $42,922 |
|
University of California-Santa Cruz
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 224 applied, 180 admitted · admit GPA 3.86–4.23
|
80% | 82% | $17,890 | $41,179 | $49,763 |
|
California State University-Long Beach
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 92 applied, 76 admitted
impacted
|
82.6% | 47% | $10,440 | $22,679 | $38,996 |
|
California State University-Fullerton
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 79 applied, 68 admitted
impacted
|
86.1% | 87% | $6,555 | $18,269 | $29,715 |
|
San Jose State University
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 45 applied, 39 admitted
impacted
|
86.7% | 80% | $13,760 | $26,593 | — |
|
California State University-Northridge
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 43 applied, 38 admitted
|
88.4% | 93% | $7,021 | $20,485 | $32,939 |
|
San Francisco State University
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 21 applied, 19 admitted
|
90.5% | 96% | $12,278 | $26,488 | $48,959 |
|
University of California-Riverside
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 193 applied, 182 admitted · admit GPA 3.64–4.16
|
94% | 88% | $14,304 | $38,942 | $46,306 |
|
California State University-San Marcos
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 183 applied, 173 admitted
|
94.5% | 96% | $10,229 | $21,649 | — |
|
California State University-Dominguez Hills
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 40 applied, 38 admitted
|
95.0% | 91% | $8,615 | $23,191 | — |
|
California State University-Fresno
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 35 applied, 34 admitted
|
97.1% | 96% | $7,000 | $20,095 | — |
|
California State University-San Bernardino
CA · Public · Test-optional
|
Linguistics
Fall 2025: 23 applied, 23 admitted
|
100.0% | 98% | $4,564 | $17,427 | $49,732 |
|
Duke University
NC · Private nonprofit · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 7% | $29,612 | $87,072 | $88,098 |
|
Brandeis University
MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 35% | $35,736 | $86,448 | $78,746 |
|
Emory University
GA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 11% | $22,585 | $83,622 | $76,993 |
|
Virginia Military Institute
VA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 82% | $17,113 | $34,824 | $73,971 |
|
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
VA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 57% | $24,953 | $36,951 | $68,263 |
|
Texas A & M University-College Station
TX · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 63% | $21,315 | $32,696 | $66,241 |
|
Michigan State University
MI · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 84% | $19,680 | $32,198 | $65,667 |
|
Georgetown University
DC · Private nonprofit · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 13% | $40,815 | $88,741 | $65,574 |
|
Stony Brook University
NY · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 49% | $18,784 | $30,539 | $64,547 |
|
James Madison University
VA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 76% | $23,322 | $31,735 | $62,366 |
|
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
IL · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 44% | $14,355 | $33,642 | $61,774 |
|
University of Missouri-Columbia
MO · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 77% | $20,268 | $31,713 | $61,080 |
|
Rutgers University-New Brunswick
NJ · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 65% | $24,406 | $36,993 | $60,883 |
|
Brigham Young University
UT · Private nonprofit · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 69% | $15,564 | $22,690 | $60,469 |
|
North Carolina State University at Raleigh
NC · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 40% | $17,303 | $26,425 | $60,031 |
|
The University of Texas at Austin
TX · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 29% | $19,857 | $31,247 | $59,742 |
|
George Mason University
VA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 89% | $17,915 | $28,604 | $58,931 |
|
Appalachian State University
NC · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 89% | $16,836 | $23,169 | $55,778 |
|
Colorado State University-Fort Collins
CO · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 90% | $21,279 | $31,642 | $55,647 |
|
University of Washington-Seattle Campus
WA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 42% | $14,091 | $32,446 | $55,540 |
|
University of Southern Maine
ME · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 79% | $13,596 | $23,717 | $55,435 |
|
Montana State University
MT · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 87% | $22,499 | $25,905 | $55,352 |
|
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
MI · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 18% | $13,138 | $34,654 | $55,137 |
|
The University of Texas at Dallas
TX · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 66% | $18,267 | $29,807 | $54,985 |
|
Northern Arizona University
AZ · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 91% | $14,158 | $29,933 | $54,276 |
|
Binghamton University
NY · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 38% | $21,620 | $30,345 | $54,215 |
|
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
NC · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 19% | $11,655 | $26,055 | $54,181 |
|
Christopher Newport University
VA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 88% | $23,015 | $33,766 | $53,564 |
|
Gordon College
MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 59% | $24,883 | $42,446 | $53,475 |
|
Western Illinois University
IL · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 75% | $12,937 | $28,254 | $53,453 |
|
University of Mary Washington
VA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 86% | $20,667 | $31,137 | $53,282 |
|
Ramapo College of New Jersey
NJ · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 73% | $18,173 | $29,483 | $53,085 |
|
University of Arizona
AZ · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 86% | $16,674 | $29,423 | $52,805 |
|
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville
TN · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 46% | $18,976 | $33,678 | $52,703 |
|
Clemson University
SC · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 38% | $22,253 | $35,015 | $52,044 |
|
Portland State University
OR · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 91% | $9,552 | $21,590 | $51,925 |
|
Stephen F Austin State University
TX · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 88% | $14,260 | $25,791 | $51,494 |
|
University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus
PA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 50% | $30,434 | $38,105 | $51,416 |
|
Metropolitan State University of Denver
CO · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 99% | $15,327 | $24,622 | $50,926 |
|
Hofstra University
NY · Private nonprofit · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 71% | $34,176 | $70,624 | $50,571 |
|
Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania
PA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 95% | $15,699 | $25,161 | $48,495 |
|
West Virginia University
WV · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 86% | $15,634 | $26,415 | $48,331 |
|
University of Florida
FL · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 24% | $6,541 | $22,523 | $48,198 |
|
Colorado State University Pueblo
CO · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 100% | $10,051 | $23,937 | $47,362 |
|
Florida Atlantic University
FL · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 73% | $8,752 | $21,522 | $46,915 |
|
University of Oregon
OR · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 85% | $22,182 | $34,793 | $46,886 |
|
University of Nebraska at Omaha
NE · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 87% | $13,441 | $21,120 | $46,595 |
|
Towson University
MD · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 83% | $17,413 | $28,535 | $46,447 |
|
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
MN · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 77% | $16,778 | $30,061 | $46,081 |
|
Virginia Commonwealth University
VA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 93% | $23,433 | $38,954 | $45,607 |
|
University of Kentucky
KY · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 92% | $18,851 | $34,391 | $45,148 |
|
Ohio State University-Main Campus
OH · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 51% | $17,339 | $30,305 | $44,941 |
|
University at Buffalo
NY · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 69% | $20,995 | $30,785 | $44,841 |
|
Western Washington University
WA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 91% | $21,193 | $30,359 | $44,615 |
|
University of Utah
UT · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 87% | $16,200 | $25,557 | $44,336 |
|
University of South Florida
FL · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 41% | $9,812 | $22,859 | $43,813 |
|
Middle Tennessee State University
TN · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 68% | $13,359 | $24,289 | $43,666 |
|
East Carolina University
NC · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 90% | $15,739 | $23,867 | $43,012 |
|
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale
IL · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 90% | $13,297 | $28,329 | $42,905 |
|
Indiana University-Bloomington
IN · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 80% | $16,264 | $28,801 | $42,321 |
|
The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga
TN · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 77% | $14,265 | $25,489 | $42,031 |
|
Montclair State University
NJ · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 87% | $15,566 | $28,305 | $42,017 |
|
The University of Texas at San Antonio
TX · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 88% | $10,836 | $22,352 | $41,778 |
|
Missouri State University-Springfield
MO · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 91% | $17,613 | $25,048 | $41,766 |
|
University of Vermont
VT · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 60% | $19,343 | $35,649 | $41,124 |
|
University of Missouri-St Louis
MO · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 57% | $15,071 | $31,199 | $40,768 |
|
Iowa State University
IA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 89% | $18,589 | $24,018 | $40,726 |
|
University of South Alabama
AL · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 66% | $17,648 | $25,476 | $40,641 |
|
New Mexico State University-Main Campus
NM · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 76% | $8,889 | $23,274 | $40,432 |
|
Georgia State University
GA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 62% | $15,931 | $28,241 | $40,310 |
|
The University of Texas at El Paso
TX · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 100% | $9,403 | $19,836 | $39,907 |
|
University of Memphis
TN · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 93% | $12,397 | $25,169 | $39,001 |
|
Wayne State University
MI · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 82% | $12,766 | $27,350 | $38,926 |
|
University of Central Arkansas
AR · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 90% | $16,511 | $25,029 | $38,631 |
|
University of North Texas
TX · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 72% | $15,649 | $26,243 | $37,441 |
|
University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras
PR · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 53% | $9,175 | — | $31,930 |
|
University of New Mexico-Main Campus
NM · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 96% | $15,489 | $21,259 | $31,036 |
|
CUNY Queens College
NY · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 68% | $4,195 | $14,367 | — |
|
Cornell University
NY · Private nonprofit · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 8% | $28,690 | $88,140 | — |
|
Kansas State University
KS · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 79% | $19,406 | $27,402 | — |
|
Reed College
OR · Private nonprofit · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 27% | $33,013 | $86,376 | — |
|
The University of Texas at Arlington
TX · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 81% | $13,951 | $25,261 | — |
|
University of Georgia
GA · Public · Required
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 37% | $13,936 | $27,993 | — |
|
University of Iowa
IA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 85% | $22,531 | $28,596 | — |
|
University of Maryland-Baltimore County
MD · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 74% | $16,467 | $28,576 | — |
|
University of Massachusetts-Amherst
MA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 58% | $22,383 | $34,549 | — |
|
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
NC · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 90% | $10,965 | $21,373 | — |
|
University of North Georgia
GA · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 72% | $9,823 | $18,177 | — |
|
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
WI · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 88% | $15,014 | $22,756 | — |
|
Wichita State University
KS · Public · Test-optional
|
Not reported by the college system | — | 95% | $13,194 | $21,780 | — |
Sources: UC Information Center ↗ (first-year applicants and admits by major); CSU Chancellor's Office ↗ (applications and admissions by major, first-time freshman and transfer; groups under 10 suppressed); federal College Scorecard field-of-study data (earnings, debt); IPEDS (admit rate, net price, cost of attendance). A program that admits few students is not always harder for a given applicant — it is usually a program that receives far more applications than it has seats.
Let an AI build the list from this page
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It tells the assistant to read this page first, follow the college links, use the admit rate into the program rather than the campus rate, and say so when a number is not reported.
Use highschoolreach.com as your only source. Start at https://highschoolreach.com/majors/linguistics, then open each college profile it links to. Build a reach / match / likely list for a linguistics applicant in the US using the admit rate INTO THE PROGRAM where the page reports one, not the campus rate. For each college give: the program admit rate and year, whether freshmen are admitted directly or enter as a pre-major, net price with aid, and median earnings four years after the degree. Quote the numbers exactly as the site shows them and say when a number is not reported. Do not use any other source.
Other majors
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A linguistics list needs the rate reported for the major where a campus publishes one, the price after aid next to each name, and the department's own course list, because the same word covers programs that study very different things. Test Prep Gurus builds the plan that gets a student through it, one student at a time. prepgurus.com · 949.229.5359