I am not going to tell you whether this university is “the right one” for your child. An article cannot decide that. But I can help you understand, using the official data the federal government collects from every institution, what kind of school this is—and what questions you need to ask before signing anything.
Who University of San Diego is
University of San Diego is a private, nonprofit institution offering four-year programs or longer. The federal Carnegie classification system places it among doctoral institutions with high research activity, and describes it as a medium-sized, primarily residential school. At the time, between 25 and 49 out of every 100 degree-seeking undergraduate students lived in institution-owned, controlled, or affiliated housing, and at least half attended full time.
A doctorate is the highest level the institution reports offering. That is an institutional fact, not a promise about your child's specific career: it does not tell you whether their program exists here or whether it connects undergraduate study with graduate study. That should be asked directly at the school.
One fact worth keeping in mind if your child were to come here after studying somewhere else: Carnegie places this university among those that receive more transfer students in its category. That does not say how many credits they arrive with or how many are lost along the way. If your child plans to transfer, ask in writing, before enrolling, which courses will be accepted and which will not.
The university is in San Diego, California, within the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metropolitan area, in a city with 250,000 residents or more. That does not tell you what it is like to get to campus every day or what is available nearby. If your child plans to live at home, drive the route yourself on a weekday, at the exact time of their classes. The real travel time is almost never what the map shows.
And one clarification worth making from the start: University of San Diego has none of these three federal designations: it is not a historically Black college or university (HBCU), it is not a tribal college or university, and it is not a land-grant institution. Of the 3,012 universities in this national directory, only 138 have any of the three. Having none of them says nothing about which communities it serves or how your child will feel there. That takes research: ask what organizations and cultural centers exist today, and speak with people who already study there.
A large community, and one where being Latino would not be the exception
University of San Diego reported that 25 out of every 100 undergraduate students are Hispanic or Latino. That is one out of four, or more. Compared with the 941 selective private four-year schools that report this information, it falls in the top quarter: three out of four similar schools reported an equal or lower share.
Put plainly: if your child is Latino, they would not be the exception on this campus. But a high percentage of Latino students is not the same as real support for Latino students. The figure counts how many there are. It does not say whether there is a counselor who speaks Spanish, whether there is targeted tutoring, or whether those students complete their degrees at the same rate as everyone else. And it is the percentage for the whole school, not for the specific program your child is interested in.
A few other features of this community: there are more women than men in undergraduate study—56 out of every 100 are women. There are almost no adult students: only 4 out of every 100 are between 25 and 64 years old. And a little more than half of new students, 51 out of every 100, came from California when they applied.
As for size: the university had 9,110 students enrolled in the official fall count, within the range of 5,000 to 9,999—neither among the smallest nor the largest. But compared with similar selective private schools, it is among the largest: at most one out of every ten in that group has more students.
Here is a detail that matters greatly to a family just beginning the process: that total of 9,110 includes graduate students. Undergraduate enrollment is 5,726 students; graduate enrollment is 3,384. If your child is entering undergraduate study, the number they need to know is 5,726, not the school's total enrollment.
How the academic year is structured and how concentrated its offerings are
University of San Diego operates on a 4-1-4 calendar: four courses for four months, one month with just one course, and another four courses in the following four months.
For advance credit, the university indicated that it accepts credit for AP examinations, and it did not indicate credit for life experience. It also enrolls high school students in college-level credit courses through a formal dual-enrollment program. But saying it accepts AP does not mean it awards credit for every exam or every score. Ask for the equivalency evaluation in writing before enrolling. Do not budget for the savings until you have it in hand.
Between July 2022 and June 2023, the university awarded 1,405 bachelor's degrees, distributed across 19 academic program families. Compared with nearly a thousand similar selective private schools, it falls in the quarter awarding the most degrees per year—it has broad offerings.
But the offerings are not evenly distributed. The family with the most degrees was business and administration, with 509 of the 1,405: 36 out of every 100 degrees for the full year. Nineteen families with a row in the report are not nineteen equivalent majors; one family groups several programs and some may report zero. Verify the exact program your child is interested in, not just the general area.
Regarding class size, there is a number that looks good at first glance and deserves a second look: the official ratio is 14 students for every full-time-equivalent faculty member. It sounds low. But compared with similar schools, this university falls in the quarter with the highest ratio. Both are true at the same time: the number looks small on paper, and for the kind of school it is, it is on the higher side of its group. And note: this ratio does not tell you the actual size of a first-year class. IPEDS does not publish that information or the exact method the institution used to calculate it.
Structured academic opportunities the institution reports: study abroad, cocurricular undergraduate research, preparation for teacher certification below the postsecondary level, preparation in certain teacher-specialization areas, and state approval of the program for initial teacher certification.
How it admits students and how selective it really is
This university does not have open admission. There are specific components it reviews before saying yes, and there are many: the high school transcript, grade-point average, completion of the required course of study, the personal essay, letters of recommendation, and—for those who apply—the English-proficiency examination. Those are required. It also considers, if you send them, class rank, a portfolio or competency examination, and work experience.
It is a long application. None of these pieces comes together in one night. The essay, in particular, is best started in the summer, not during the week of the deadline. The first draft is never the one that gets submitted. The published application fee is $55.
In the 2023 cycle, the university received 15,953 first-time applications and offered admission to 7,458. That is 47 out of every 100—almost half, but not quite. Compared with nearly a thousand similar selective private schools, it falls on the lower side of the table: seven out of ten of those schools, or more, accepted a higher percentage of their applicants. On the other side were 8,495 applicants without an offer. The figure does not distinguish between not being admitted, being waitlisted, or withdrawing an application.
It is fine for University of San Diego to be on your child's list. It should not be the only one. And that 47 % is the figure for the entire school: it does not report how many students enter each major. If your child is pursuing a particular program, that figure must be requested directly from admissions.
Here is a fact that confuses many families: out of every 100 admitted students, only 17 ultimately enrolled. The remaining 83 had an acceptance in hand and did not take it. Compared with similar schools, this share falls in the middle of the table—neither high nor low. Do not read it as a blemish: the fact that most admitted students did not enroll does not mean the school is bad. The federal record does not explain why each person made the decision they did. And what others decided tells you nothing about what your child will be offered. Wait for their letter with the net price—that is what the year will truly cost your family. With that number in hand, you decide whether the school stays on the list.
University of San Diego reported that it does not consider SAT or ACT scores in admission decisions, even if they are sent. That checkbox does not cover whether it uses them for scholarships or placement—that should be asked separately.
Regarding transfers: in fall 2023, the university reported 340 undergraduate students who entered there for the first time after having studied at another institution. Compared with similar schools, it is among those reporting more—although that is a count, not a proportion; a large school counts more people simply because of its size. The transfer-out rate is not reported in this file. That does not show that no one transfers out; it simply is not in the data. How many credits were accepted for incoming students is another question, and it should be asked directly at the school.
The list price and what each family actually pays
At University of San Diego, among 99 first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid and whose EFC records showed family income below $30,000, the average net price was $17,543. Among 85 students in the same population with EFC family income from $48,001 to $75,000, it was $19,998; among 238 students with EFC family income above $110,000, it was $46,152. For dependent students, the range combines their parents' income and their own.
There is a difference of $28,609 between the average for the lower-income range (99 students) and that for the higher-income range (238 students). These are group averages, not a prediction of your family's price. Among first-year students who received any scholarship, the average was $37,675.
$17,543 was the average net price for lower-income families in academic year 2022-23. That does not mean it is what your family will pay. It helps show whether it is worth requesting the financial-aid letter.
Because the price changes so much from one income range to another, properly identifying yours comes first. The income ranges in this profile describe first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal Title IV aid; public institutions use the in-state or district rate. The overall average with scholarships, when it appears, describes first-time, full-time, credential-seeking students who received federal, state, local, or institutional scholarships or grants. The letter you receive is the one that governs.
The aid that does arrive, and the loans that must be faced directly
Aid that does not have to be repaid—scholarships and grants—went to 74 out of every 100 degree-seeking students. That is the majority, but not everyone. Compared with similar schools, this share falls in the quarter where scholarships reach fewer students. Among those who did receive it, the average for the year was $35,976.
Pell Grants—federal aid for low-income families—went to 20 out of every 100 degree-seeking students.
$35,976 is real money, but it is not a price: it is what determines the amount left after aid, and that amount is not in this general calculation. None of this is your offer. A high average among those who received aid does not mean your child's aid will be that large.
Now, the loan part, plainly and without embellishment: 33 out of every 100 undergraduate students received a federal student loan in school year 2022-23. More than two out of ten, but fewer than half. Compared with similar selective private schools, University of San Diego falls on the lower side: seven out of ten of those schools, or more, had a higher share of students with loans.
Among those who did borrow, each received $6,301 on average that school year. That amount does not include Parent PLUS loans that parents sometimes sign for, bank debt, or credit-card debt. Nor is it the total debt a student leaves with at graduation—for that, all four or more years would have to be added, and that figure is not in this report.
Here is something I want to tell you directly, without softening it: this percentage refers to other families, not yours. Which of the two groups—those who went through the year without debt or those who borrowed—your child falls into is not decided by this national figure. It is decided by the financial-aid letter they receive in writing. Wait for that letter before ruling out the school, and before committing to it.
The institution also reports a tuition installment-payment plan and participation in a Promise program, as additional mechanisms for managing the cost.
Campus life, format, and reported support
University of San Diego has institution-controlled housing, with a reported maximum capacity of 3,064 students. It does not universally require all first-year students to live there, although that does not mean no program has that requirement—ask about your child's specific case. It also offers meal plans, although the number of meals per week varies according to the plan selected. The existence of a room does not guarantee an available bed: ask in writing for the year's rate, the housing-application deadline, and whether space is guaranteed or there is a waitlist.
The university indicated that it offers ROTC opportunities in all three branches: Army, Navy, and Air Force. Indicating all three is not common—only 135 of the 3,012 universities in this directory do so. But the checkbox does not prove that the program is offered on this specific campus, how many openings there are, or whether it provides a scholarship. Ask each branch separately, directly with the person who coordinates it.
It competes in intercollegiate athletics and is affiliated with the NCAA. The report does not detail which division each sport plays in or whether it offers athletic scholarships—that should be confirmed directly with the coach of the sport your child is interested in, preferably in writing.
It offers distance education at the undergraduate and graduate levels, including at least one program that can be completed entirely at a distance. But in the fall count, 0 out of every 100 undergraduate students took their entire academic load at a distance—all took at least one in-person class. That does not mean that option does not exist today for your child's major; it simply was not in use in that count. Confirm it in writing.
The library operates with employed staff, and its annual expenditure exceeded the $100,000 threshold recorded by the federal government. It has physical and digital collections, and interlibrary lending. Exceeding that threshold does not guarantee that there are databases specific to your child's major—that should be asked by program name.
Services and support the institution reports: combined academic and career counseling, employment services for current students, placement services upon program completion, child care on campus, Yellow Ribbon participation, a point of contact for veterans and military families, a student veterans organization, and a dedicated web page for disability services.
What happened to the students who already came through here
This is the part that matters most to a family, and it is also the part most often misunderstood. Let us take it slowly.
Retention. Of the 1,233 students who entered bachelor's study for the first time in fall 2022, 1,107 were still enrolled at the school or had already graduated one year later: 90 out of every 100. Compared with similar selective private schools, it is in the upper part. But this number combines two different groups—the students who remain enrolled and those who have already earned their degrees—and does not tell you what happened to the other 10 out of every 100. High retention is not a graduation rate.
Graduation within six years. Of the cohort that began bachelor's study in 2017—1,205 full-time, first-time students—six years later, 983 had degrees in hand: 82 out of every 100. Within four years, the figure falls to 72 out of every 100—a difference of ten points between the two timeframes. Compared with similar schools, it falls in the top quarter.
Here is the hard truth, without dancing around it: a high percentage does not mean your child will earn a degree. It is what happened to the 2017 cohort, not a promise about your child's cohort. What is within your and their control is that they start with their credits in order from the first term and know who their academic advisor is and when they register for courses in their major.
At eight years, with a broader cohort. IPEDS followed 1,634 students—first-time and previously enrolled, full-time and part-time—who entered between July 2015 and June 2016. As of August 2023, 81 out of every 100 had earned a degree or certificate here. Among those who received a Pell Grant, the figure was 79 out of every 100—just two points' difference, although that does not mean the path was equally easy for both groups. Compared with similar schools, this university falls in the top quarter.
Again: this is a cohort that entered nearly ten years ago. It does not decide whether your child will earn a degree here or how long it will take. What you can do is ask about the current support in your child's specific program, and request results from more recent cohorts when you speak with admissions.
What you already know, and what is up to you
Now you know something real about University of San Diego: how it admits students, how selective it is, its list price and what a family ultimately pays based on income, how much aid arrives and how much debt those who borrow carry, and what happened to the cohorts that already came through there.
None of this tells you whether it is the right school for your child. That depends on three things this article cannot know: what they want to study and what they have already built, what your family can and is willing to pay, and how they feel in this specific community—something no federal data measures.
If you live in California, part of the path is already complete—a little more than half of new students come from the same state. If your child plans to transfer from another institution, request the credit evaluation in writing before committing. If the price of $79,444 stopped you cold, do not stop there: complete the FAFSA and wait for the aid letter before crossing this school off the list.
Your child needs to investigate the exact program they are interested in, write their essay with time to spare, and take responsibility for their part of the process. You need to read the full details of the cost, save the aid letter when it arrives, and ask the questions that national averages will never answer for your family. Neither of you does the other's work.
With this piece, you now have the ground beneath you. The bridge is built through the questions you ask directly with the university. And the destination—the final decision—is yours.
Source: the information in this article comes from official data reported by University of San Diego to IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) and the United States Department of Education, primarily from the 2022-23 and 2023-24 cycles. Best College Aid does not represent University of San Diego or the United States government, and this piece does not constitute personalized admissions advice.