Berkeley and Los Angeles: twin peaks stand side by side
The history of the UC system began in 1868. In 1868, the Governor of California signed the Organic Act establishing the first University of California in Oakland, and in 1873, the campus was moved to Berkeley, and UC Berkeley was born – not only the founding school of the UC system, but also a global landmark on the academic map.
In 2026, UC Berkeley was ranked 15th in the nation and 1st in public by U.S. News. It has a computer science acceptance rate of just 4%. Its alumni and professors have produced more than 30 Nobel Prize winners. It’s solidly in the top 15 globally in the QS World University Rankings.Berkeley’s ethos is sharp and hardcore – it’s the kind of place where you could walk on campus and bump into a future Nobel Prize winner at any time.
UCLA, on the other hand, offers another possibility. Founded in 1919 and ranked 17th nationally and 2nd publicly by U.S. News in 2026, UCLA boasts 125 undergraduate majors. From film and television arts to medical research, from basketball courts to laboratories – UCLA’s ethos is diverse and vibrant. If Berkeley is a serious academic sanctuary, UCLA is a city of culture that never sleeps. Rewriting a life with a University of California Diploma
From San Diego to Davis: each one unique
Further south, UC San Diego (UCSD) was founded in 1960. 2026 U.S. News ranked 29th nationally and 6th publicly. Its campus sits on 1,976 ac res of La Jolla’s coastline.UCSD is world-renowned for its biomedical, neuroscience, and marine sciences. It has a median starting salary of $160,000 for computer science graduates.
Head north to UC Davis – founded in 1905 and ranked 32nd nationally and 9th publicly by U.S. News in 2026. It’s #1 in the nation for agronomy, veterinary medicine and environmental science. It was also the greenest campus in the nation for ten years in a row. The Wall Street Journal ranked it as the No. 2 public university in the nation. Davis’ ethos is idyllic and inclusive – for those who want to do their college work in quiet.
UC Irvine (UCI) was founded in 1965, and its 2026 U.S. News ranking tied Davis for 32nd in the nation and 9th in the public sector. UCI is located in Irvine, one of the top ten safest cities in the United States, adjacent to the ‘Silicon Valley of Southern California’, surrounded by Apple, Google and other technology giants, UCI’s computer science, criminology and public health strength is outstanding.
UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) was founded in 1944 and was ranked 40th in the nation and 14th in the public sector by U.S. News in 2026. It is among the top in the world for physics, materials science and chemical engineering. The campus is right on the Pacific coast – the only public university in the nation with a private beach. ucsb has produced eight Nobel Prize winners.
Young Power: From Santa Cruz to Merced
Founded in 1965, UC Santa Cruz (UCSC) was ranked 88th nationally and 43rd publicly by U.S. News in 2026. It is located near the San Francisco Bay Area, just 40 minutes from Silicon Valley. It has outstanding strengths in astrophysics, marine biology and environmental research.
UC Riverside (UCR) was founded in 1954 and was ranked 75th nationally and 36th publicly by U.S. News in 2026. But what really makes it stand out is another ranking: 1st in the nation for social mobility-meaning that no other U.S. university does more to help students from low-income families change their lives through education than UCR.
Founded in 2005, UC Merced (UCM) is the youngest branch of the UC system. 2026 saw it break into the U.S. News Top 25 National Public Universities for the first time (No. 25) and No. 57 nationally overall. It was ranked in the national public top 25 just 20 years after its founding – a pace that is rare in the entire history of American higher education.
There is another special school – UC San Francisco (UCSF). It does not enroll undergraduates and focuses solely on graduate education and medical research in the health sciences. UCSF is ranked 16th in the nation in the 2026 U.S. News Global Rankings. It is the ‘most dedicated’ in the UC system.
One System, One Spirit
Ten campuses, ten personalities. But they share the same spirit.
UC system unified management of admissions, sharing of academic resources. 2026, UC continues to implement the Test-Blind policy – does not look at the SAT / ACT scores. International students are required to have a minimum weighted GPA of 3.4, and one set of application materials can be used to apply to multiple campuses at the same time.
What’s more, UC is one of the largest engines of social mobility in the U.S. 84% of undergraduates are California residents.UC Riverside is ranked #1 in the nation for social mobility, and UC Merced is #3. As UC President James B. Milliken says, ‘Our campuses provide life-changing education to students from all walks of life, opportunities that benefit them, their families and their communities.’
The story of UC teaches us that there is one system that can accommodate ten completely different possibilities. Whether you want to study black holes or make wine, start a business or go into politics, write code in Silicon Valley or surf the coast – there’s always a branch campus in the UC system waiting for you.
