Applying
Students planning to enter the CSU can apply through the online application tool, Cal State Apply.
Due to the large number of applicants, some CSU campuses have higher standards (supplementary admission criteria) for particular majors or for students who live outside the local campus area. Campuses utilize local admission guarantee policies for students who graduate or transfer from high schools and community colleges that are historically served by a CSU campus in that region.
Admission Requirements
First-time Students
First-time students must meet the standards in each of the following areas:
- Graduate from high school or equivalent
- Complete required college preparatory coursework
- Earn suitable grades in college preparatory coursework
- Achieve a qualifying grade point average (GPA)
Transfer and Graduate Students
The majority of transfer students enter as upper-division transfers and must complete at least 60 semester or 90 quarter units and required GE before transferring. Students who have earned an Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) and are admitted to a similar bachelor’s program will be admitted to the CSU with junior status.
To apply for admission to graduate or postbaccalaureate studies, a student must:
- Earn a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution with at
least a 2.5 grade point average.
- Be in good academic standing while satisfactorily meeting
the professional, personal, scholastic and other standards for
graduate study.