By major · Neuroscience

Where can your student actually get into neuroscience?

Neuroscience is one of the majors where the University of California publishes an admit rate for the program itself, and the spread is wide. In Fall 2025 that line ran from 15% at UC Berkeley to 96% at UC Merced, and at UC San Diego the same degree is reported under the name Neurobiology. A UC admits to the campus rather than to the major at most programs, so read these as what happened to the students who applied under that major name, not as a separate door into the department. Every number below is the college system's own reporting, assembled in one place.

At a glance · All states

129 colleges nationwide report a bachelor's neuroscience program in federal outcome data or a neuroscience admit rate in the UC/CSU data.
Hardest reported gate: University of California-Berkeley — Neuroscience, Fall 2025: 3,120 applied, 472 admitted (15%).
Highest reported admit rate into the program: University of California-Merced — 96% (983 applied, 942 admitted, Fall 2025).
Highest median earnings four years after the degree: Dartmouth College, $143,067.
Lowest average net price with aid: Princeton University, $6,128 per year.

Several California colleges on this page report no admit line for neuroscience at all; they are here because federal data shows the degree being awarded, and the admission decision on record is the campus decision. A missing line is not a sign the program is open, and no CSU campus reports a separate neuroscience admit rate in this data. Admits are not enrollees. At most UC programs students are admitted to the campus, not the major. This page as JSON → · Back to the 12 California colleges →

Hardest reported gate

15%

University of California-Berkeley
Neuroscience, Fall 2025: 3,120 applied, 472 admitted

Highest reported admit rate

96%

University of California-Merced
Neuroscience, Fall 2025: 983 applied, 942 admitted

Highest earnings, 4 yrs out

$143,067

Dartmouth College
median, graduates of this program

Lowest net price with aid

$6,128

Princeton University
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-Berkeley CA · Public · Test-optional	Neuroscience Fall 2025: 3,120 applied, 472 admitted · admit GPA 4.17–4.28	15%	10%	$13,481	$45,619	—
University of California-Los Angeles CA · Public · Test-optional	Neuroscience Fall 2025: 2,902 applied, 492 admitted · admit GPA 4.21–4.30	17%	11%	$12,548	$38,614	$55,404
University of California-San Diego CA · Public · Test-optional	Neurobiology Fall 2025: 2,488 applied, 1,000 admitted · admit GPA 4.16–4.29	40%	27%	$12,470	$38,701	$61,799
University of California-Santa Cruz CA · Public · Test-optional	Neuroscience Fall 2025: 1,508 applied, 1,230 admitted · admit GPA 3.89–4.24	82%	82%	$17,890	$41,179	$69,027
University of California-Riverside CA · Public · Test-optional	Neuroscience Fall 2025: 2,040 applied, 1,790 admitted · admit GPA 3.82–4.22	88%	88%	$14,304	$38,942	$51,865
University of California-Merced CA · Public · Test-optional	Neuroscience Fall 2025: 983 applied, 942 admitted · admit GPA 3.64–4.20	96%	95%	$11,983	$39,665	—
Dartmouth College NH · Private nonprofit · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	6%	$29,519	$87,793	$143,067
Middlebury College VT · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	10%	$31,483	$85,880	$90,917
University of Southern California CA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	10%	$32,740	$90,300	$89,203
King's College PA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	93%	$23,093	$57,973	$83,705
University of New Hampshire at Manchester NH · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	87%	$9,992	$20,020	$78,722
University of New Hampshire-Main Campus NH · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	87%	$23,805	$35,537	$78,722
University of Pennsylvania PA · Private nonprofit · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	6%	$28,699	$89,028	$78,295
Binghamton University NY · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	38%	$21,620	$30,345	$77,478
Northeastern University MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	6%	$30,915	$84,641	$74,617
Indiana University-Bloomington IN · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	80%	$16,264	$28,801	$74,151
Emory University GA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	11%	$22,585	$83,622	$73,795
Central Michigan University MI · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	91%	$17,597	$30,681	$73,316
Duke University NC · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	7%	$29,612	$87,072	$73,140
University of San Diego CA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	47%	$30,365	$78,720	$72,910
University of Colorado Boulder CO · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	83%	$25,346	$37,684	$71,942
Columbia University in the City of New York NY · Private nonprofit · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	4%	$21,590	$89,472	$70,244
Boston University MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	11%	$24,402	$86,285	$68,888
Union College NY · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	44%	$34,561	$84,561	$68,666
George Mason University VA · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	89%	$17,915	$28,604	$68,546
Ohio State University-Main Campus OH · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	51%	$17,339	$30,305	$68,480
Brandeis University MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	35%	$35,736	$86,448	$68,179
Trinity College CT · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	34%	$34,832	$87,840	$67,115
University of St Thomas MN · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	85%	$29,155	$66,116	$66,868
Barnard College NY · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	8%	$28,800	$89,538	$66,787
Carthage College WI · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	84%	$26,565	$50,822	$65,733
University of Notre Dame IN · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	12%	$26,780	$83,271	$65,458
University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus PA · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	50%	$30,434	$38,105	$65,239
The University of Texas at Austin TX · Public · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	29%	$19,857	$31,247	$65,124
Temple University PA · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	83%	$28,198	$40,903	$64,063
Susquehanna University PA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	79%	$28,819	$75,410	$63,729
University of California-Davis CA · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	46%	$14,741	$41,238	$63,720
Wheaton College (Massachusetts) MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	71%	$29,822	$79,311	$61,194
Brigham Young University UT · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	69%	$15,564	$22,690	$60,065
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University VA · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	57%	$24,953	$36,951	$59,714
Vanderbilt University TN · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	6%	$15,846	$89,590	$59,575
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities MN · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	77%	$16,778	$30,061	$59,568
The University of Texas at Dallas TX · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	66%	$18,267	$29,807	$59,498
University of Delaware DE · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	65%	$17,799	$30,952	$59,009
University of Wisconsin-Madison WI · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	43%	$17,354	$28,679	$58,824
Coe College IA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	71%	$18,745	$67,372	$58,716
Loyola University Chicago IL · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	81%	$36,079	$67,408	$58,373
Michigan State University MI · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	84%	$19,680	$32,198	$58,046
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus OH · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	88%	$25,648	$32,171	$58,004
Grand Valley State University MI · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	95%	$16,317	$28,367	$57,842
University of Nevada-Reno NV · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	85%	$15,927	$25,786	$57,769
University of Illinois Chicago IL · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	78%	$10,974	$27,521	$56,869
Johns Hopkins University MD · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	8%	$18,809	$85,947	$56,324
Indiana University-Indianapolis IN · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	81%	$11,668	$23,316	$56,218
Washington State University WA · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	85%	$14,971	$27,648	$55,687
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor MI · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	18%	$13,138	$34,654	$55,436
University of Nebraska at Omaha NE · Public · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	87%	$13,441	$21,120	$55,043
Northwestern University IL · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	7%	$29,167	$91,250	$54,279
Syracuse University NY · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	42%	$38,793	$84,517	$54,088
Baylor University TX · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	51%	$41,104	$74,226	$53,927
University of Vermont VT · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	60%	$19,343	$35,649	$53,755
University of Arizona AZ · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	86%	$16,674	$29,423	$52,571
William & Mary VA · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	33%	$19,096	$43,035	$52,161
Western Washington University WA · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	91%	$21,193	$30,359	$51,508
Georgia State University GA · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	62%	$15,931	$28,241	$51,367
Saint Edward's University TX · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	84%	$25,578	$66,719	$50,936
Rhode Island College RI · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	81%	$9,478	$17,454	$48,514
Tulane University of Louisiana LA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	15%	$39,949	$87,004	$48,464
Allegheny College PA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	58%	$22,940	$71,348	—
Amherst College MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	10%	$23,367	$87,640	—
Arizona State University Campus Immersion AZ · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	90%	$14,967	$30,111	—
Arizona State University Digital Immersion AZ · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	64%	—	—	—
Augustana College IL · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	68%	$22,736	$63,553	—
Boston College MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	16%	$41,704	$89,493	—
Bowdoin College ME · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	8%	$14,398	$85,100	—
Brown University RI · Private nonprofit · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	5%	$25,184	$87,648	—
Bucknell University PA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	32%	$40,766	$83,756	—
Colgate University NY · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	12%	$28,786	$87,070	—
Colorado State University-Fort Collins CO · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	90%	$21,279	$31,642	—
Connecticut College CT · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	38%	$36,175	$84,623	—
Creighton University NE · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	72%	$31,568	$63,423	—
DePaul University IL · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	74%	$30,902	$63,052	—
Dickinson College PA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	43%	$37,607	$82,902	—
Drew University NJ · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	69%	$24,280	$65,301	—
Emmanuel College MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	81%	$26,706	$65,252	—
Fordham University NY · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	56%	$44,338	$82,762	—
Hamilton College NY · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	12%	$28,985	$84,230	—
Harvard University MA · Private nonprofit · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	4%	$19,066	$85,540	—
Lake Forest College IL · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	59%	$28,673	$70,655	—
Lehigh University PA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	29%	$36,931	$80,856	—
Macalester College MN · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	28%	$32,149	$82,991	—
Massachusetts Institute of Technology MA · Private nonprofit · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	5%	$20,111	$82,730	—
Mercer University GA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	66%	$23,847	$58,204	—
Miami University-Oxford OH · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	82%	$28,384	$38,757	—
Mount Holyoke College MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	38%	$26,441	$84,926	—
Muhlenberg College PA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	64%	$28,905	$77,270	—
New York University NY · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	9%	$37,050	$84,374	—
North Central College IL · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	58%	$21,044	$57,219	—
Northern Michigan University MI · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	70%	$14,085	$27,841	—
Nova Southeastern University FL · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	73%	$30,371	$56,692	—
Oberlin College OH · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	33%	$38,645	$87,404	—
Ohio Wesleyan University OH · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	51%	$20,897	$68,424	—
Pomona College CA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	7%	$19,285	$85,300	—
Princeton University NJ · Private nonprofit · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	4%	$6,128	$84,040	—
Purdue University-Main Campus IN · Public · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	50%	$14,600	$24,591	—
Rhodes College TN · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	50%	$28,585	$71,136	—
Saint Louis University MO · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	82%	$24,398	$71,932	—
Santa Clara University CA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	44%	$50,062	$82,026	—
Smith College MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	20%	$27,579	$86,030	—
St Lawrence University NY · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	58%	$28,651	$82,000	—
Stonehill College MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	73%	$33,016	$72,714	—
The College of Wooster OH · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	54%	$23,458	$75,656	—
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville TN · Public · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	46%	$18,976	$33,678	—
Trinity University TX · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	28%	$23,464	$68,224	—
University of Alabama at Birmingham AL · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	88%	$18,749	$28,145	—
University of California-Irvine CA · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	30%	$14,251	$38,632	—
University of Chicago IL · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	5%	$14,860	$90,360	—
University of Kentucky KY · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	92%	$18,851	$34,391	—
University of Miami FL · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	18%	$37,244	$86,078	—
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill NC · Public · Required	Not reported by the college system	—	19%	$11,655	$26,055	—
University of Scranton PA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	84%	$32,568	$69,552	—
University of Washington-Seattle Campus WA · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	42%	$14,091	$32,446	—
University of Wisconsin-River Falls WI · Public · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	82%	$14,054	$19,781	—
Ursinus College PA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	87%	$30,536	$76,815	—
Vassar College NY · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	18%	$39,343	$87,419	—
Wartburg College IA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	99%	$32,908	$64,359	—
Washington University in St Louis MO · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	12%	$21,786	$88,488	—
Wellesley College MA · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	14%	$25,496	$86,290	—
Westminster University UT · Private nonprofit · Test-optional	Not reported by the college system	—	69%	$27,094	$57,616	—

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/neuroscience, then open each college profile it links to. Build a reach / match / likely list for a neuroscience 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.

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A neuroscience list needs the program's own admit line where a college publishes one, the campus rate where it does not, and the price and the earnings sitting next to both. Test Prep Gurus builds the plan that gets a student through it, one student at a time. prepgurus.com · 949.229.5359