Cal Poly received 1,986 less applications for the 2020-21 academic year compared to 2019-20.
With fewer applications, the university was able to accept three percent more applicants than last year.
Of the 43,426 students not selected, 12,914 of these students had a GPA higher than a 4.0.
Number of Applications Cal Poly Received
Out of the total number of freshman applicants, Cal Poly selected 17,757 applicants with a target incoming class size of 4,950.
The College of Engineering selected 29 percent of applicants, making it the most difficult college to get into for freshmen.
Freshman Applicants Fall Quarter 2020
About 19 percent of Cal Poly applicants were transfer students. Cal Poly accepted 2,083 transfer students, but that number is expected to decrease to reach a target of 1,040 to enroll in the fall.
The Orfalea College of Business accepted 16 percent of students and was the toughest college for transfer students to get into. The College of Science and Mathematics and the College of Architecture and Environmental Design were the second hardest colleges to transfer into, accepting 17.1 percent and 17.6 percent of applicants, respectively.
Admissions for the 2021-2022 academic year will not be using ACT or SAT scores due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a California State University news release.
Students who apply during the fall 2021, winter 2022 and spring 2022 admission cycles are not required to submit SAT or ACT scores.