The University of San Diego (USD) is a private Roman Catholic institution known for its scenic coastal campus and strong academic programming. Over the last few admission cycles, USD has seen consistent year-over-year growth in application volume, indicating rising popularity among prospective undergraduates. However, this growth in applications has been met with fluctuations in student yield, leading to intriguing shifts in the university’s overall acceptance rate as admissions officers navigate an increasingly unpredictable applicant pool.

University of San Diego Class of 2030 Admissions Statistics (Predicted)

Based on recent applicant trends and historical institutional data, our analysis predicts that the University of San Diego's acceptance rate for the Class of 2030 will be approximately 49%.

This estimation stems from the steady, linear growth in USD's applicant pool. Over the past three cycles, total applications climbed from just over 14,300 to more than 17,000. Assuming this trajectory holds, we expect the Class of 2030 application volume to have exceeded 18,000. While a larger applicant pool typically drives acceptance rates down, USD has recently experienced noticeable drops in applicant yield—the percentage of admitted students who actually enroll. To ensure a full freshman class of around 1,100 to 1,200 students in the face of lower yield rates, the admissions office will likely have to extend offers to a wider portion of the applicant pool, keeping the overall acceptance rate hovering just below the 50% mark.

Please note: Official Class of 2030 data is not yet available. We will update this section with the official admissions sankey diagram once the University of San Diego publishes its latest Common Data Set.

University of San Diego Class of 2029 Admissions Statistics

For the Class of 2029, the University of San Diego received a record 17,010 applications. Ultimately, USD admitted 8,909 students, resulting in an overall acceptance rate of 52.38%.

A deeper look into the Class of 2029 data reveals a highly unusual and fascinating admissions cycle, primarily driven by waitlist activity. USD initially played it safe, putting 3,885 students on the waitlist, of which 1,986 accepted a spot. However, because the final enrolled class size dropped to 1,104 students (a yield rate of just 12.4%), the university was forced to rely heavily on its waitlist. In an extraordinarily rare move, USD admitted 1,441 students off the waitlist—a 72.5% waitlist admission rate. This indicates that the initial acceptance rate for the Class of 2029 was considerably lower, but waitlist action ultimately inflated the final acceptance rate to over 52%.

The gender breakdown for the Class of 2029 applicant pool was as follows:

• Women: 10,697 applied, 5,646 admitted (52.8% acceptance rate)
• Men: 6,311 applied, 3,262 admitted (51.7% acceptance rate)

Historical Acceptance Rate

Over the past few cycles, the University of San Diego's acceptance rate has demonstrated mild volatility rather than a strict downward trend.

• Class of 2027: 52.6% (14,334 applications)
• Class of 2028: 46.8% (15,921 applications)
• Class of 2029: 52.4% (17,010 applications)

The sharp dip for the Class of 2028 occurred because USD successfully yielded a larger incoming class (1,245 students) while maintaining a much tighter waitlist strategy—admitting only 102 waitlisted applicants that year. However, as applicant behavior changed in the most recent cycle, USD had to correct course by admitting more students overall to meet institutional enrollment goals.

For future applicants, this historical data reveals that while it is becoming statistically harder to be admitted in the initial regular decision wave due to soaring application volumes, a spot on the University of San Diego waitlist is highly active and presents a very genuine secondary opportunity for admission.