Research · CSU admissions · October 2026
Every impacted major and campus at the California State University
As of October 2026: The CSU's impaction list holds 65 entries, and at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, CSU Fullerton, CSU Long Beach, San Diego State and San Jose State every undergraduate program is impacted.
The table lists every program the CSU marks as impacted, campus by campus; impaction means more applicants than seats, not a low admit rate.
Analysis: Test Prep Gurus (High School Reach, highschoolreach.com), October 2026. Figures and the table may be quoted with attribution to Test Prep Gurus.
The findings, in plain English
Some campuses are impacted in every program. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, CSU Fullerton, CSU Long Beach, San Diego State and San Jose State are impacted in all programs. The extra rules apply to every applicant there, whatever the major. The table carries one entry for each, reading ALL undergraduate programs.
Nursing is impacted at more campuses than any other named program. Nursing pre-licensure is listed for CSU Bakersfield, CSU Channel Islands, CSU East Bay, CSU San Bernardino, CSU San Marcos, Cal State LA, Chico State, Fresno State, Sacramento State and Stanislaus State. CSU East Bay and Fresno State list the RN-to-nursing degree too. No other named program comes close.
Cal Poly Pomona and Fresno State name the most majors. Cal Poly Pomona lists Aerospace Engineering, Architecture, Biology, Computer Science, Psychology and more. Fresno State lists Agricultural Business, Animal Science, Liberal Studies, Mechanical Engineering and Social Work. Both screen by major in science, engineering and agriculture.
Every impacted CSU major and campus
All 65 entries, listed by campus.
| Campus | Impacted program |
|---|---|
| CSU Bakersfield | Nursing Pre-Licensure |
| CSU Channel Islands | Nursing Pre-Licensure |
| CSU East Bay | Nursing (RN-to-Nursing Degree) |
| CSU East Bay | Nursing Pre-Licensure |
| CSU Fullerton | ALL undergraduate programs |
| CSU Long Beach | ALL undergraduate programs |
| CSU Northridge | Art |
| CSU Northridge | Music |
| CSU Northridge | Music (Professional Performance) |
| CSU San Bernardino | Nursing Pre-Licensure |
| CSU San Bernardino | Social Work |
| CSU San Marcos | Business Administration |
| CSU San Marcos | Electrical Engineering |
| CSU San Marcos | Nursing Pre-Licensure |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Aerospace Engineering |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Agricultural Biology and Plant Science |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Animal Health Sciences |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Animal Science |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Architecture |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Architecture and Environmental Design |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Biochemistry |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Biology |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Biophysics |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Biotechnology |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Chemistry |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Civil Engineering |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Computer Engineering |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Computer Science |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Electrical Engineering |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Environmental Biology |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Finance |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Landscape Architecture |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Mechanical Engineering |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Mechanical Engineering Technology |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Physics |
| Cal Poly Pomona | Psychology |
| Cal Poly San Luis Obispo | ALL undergraduate programs |
| Cal State LA | Nursing Pre-Licensure |
| Chico State | Art |
| Chico State | Music |
| Chico State | Nursing Pre-Licensure |
| Fresno State | Agricultural Biology and Plant Science |
| Fresno State | Agricultural Business |
| Fresno State | Animal Science |
| Fresno State | Biology |
| Fresno State | Civil Engineering |
| Fresno State | Computer Engineering |
| Fresno State | Electrical Engineering |
| Fresno State | Enology |
| Fresno State | Food Science |
| Fresno State | Liberal Studies |
| Fresno State | Liberal Studies and Teacher Credential (Blended) |
| Fresno State | Management |
| Fresno State | Mechanical Engineering |
| Fresno State | Nursing (RN-to-Nursing Degree) |
| Fresno State | Nursing Pre-Licensure |
| Fresno State | Social Work |
| Fresno State | Viticulture |
| Sacramento State | Business Administration |
| Sacramento State | Design |
| Sacramento State | Graphic Design |
| Sacramento State | Nursing Pre-Licensure |
| San Diego State | ALL undergraduate programs |
| San Jose State | ALL undergraduate programs |
| Stanislaus State | Nursing Pre-Licensure |
The CSU's own impaction designations, as published on calstate.edu and current in August 2026 for the next application cycle. An entry reading ALL undergraduate programs means every undergraduate major at that campus is impacted. Impaction describes applicants per seat in a program, not an admit rate; the rates sit in our table of the hardest CSU majors.
What impaction changes for an applicant
A campus calls a program impacted when more qualified students apply than it has seats. The campus then sets extra rules for that program. Those rules can be a higher GPA, certain courses, a portfolio or audition, or an early filing window.
Two things follow. A student who meets the CSU's general rules can still be turned down by an impacted program. And at a campus impacted in all programs, those extra rules apply no matter which major the student picks.
Impacted is not the same as hard to get into
The list says nothing about the admit rate. Some impacted programs take a small share of their applicants. Others take most of them. Impaction is about applicants per seat in one program, not about how picky the campus is overall.
The list also moves. A campus can add a program or drop one between cycles. A program can be handled one way for first-year students and another way for transfers. Our table of the hardest CSU majors carries the rates beside the flag.
What a family should do with this
Find the campus in the table, then the major. If the campus reads ALL undergraduate programs, plan for extra rules whatever the major is.
Then read the campus's own rules for that program. They differ by campus and they change between cycles. A portfolio deadline or a required course is easy to miss and hard to fix late.
Last, build the list with impaction in mind. The same major is impacted at one campus and open at another. A student who applies only to impacted programs has a thinner list than the count of applications suggests.
Questions parents ask
How many CSU programs are impacted?
The CSU's impaction list holds 65 entries, and at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, CSU Fullerton, CSU Long Beach, San Diego State and San Jose State every undergraduate program is impacted.
What does impacted mean at a Cal State?
A campus calls a program impacted when more qualified students apply than it has seats.
Can my student be turned down by an impacted major even if they meet CSU requirements?
A student who meets the CSU's general rules can still be turned down by an impacted program.
Method & sources: The list is the CSU's own designation of impacted undergraduate programs, as published on calstate.edu and current in August 2026 for the next application cycle. Impaction describes a program with more qualified applicants than available seats, and it carries no admit rate. Campuses impacted in all undergraduate programs appear as a single entry rather than one per major. Entries are listed by campus, then by program.
This brief as data: /research/csu-impacted-majors-2026.json. Free for editorial use with attribution to Test Prep Gurus (High School Reach).
Related: Nursing programs in California · Business administration programs in California · The hardest majors to get into at the CSU · Transfer admit rates by major at the CSU