College Planning

The California State University (CSU) system was created in 1960 under the California Master Plan for Higher Education. The CSU draws its students from the top third of the state’s high school graduates and is California’s primary undergraduate teaching institution. Continuing to expand its educational scope and help meet California’s workforce demands for skilled professionals, the CSU offers independent doctor of education, doctor of nursing practice, and doctor of physical therapy programs at numerous campuses. To date, the CSU is the nation’s largest four-year public university system, with 23 campuses and eight off-campus centers. It educates approximately 474,600 students, employs more than 49,000 faculty and staff, and stretches 800 miles from Humboldt in the north to San Diego in the south.

About CSU | Application | How to Apply

The University of California opened its doors in 1869 with just 10 faculty members and 38 students. Today, the UC system includes more than 238,000 students and more than 190,000 faculty and staff, with more than 1.7 million alumni living and working around the world. Besides world-class classrooms and labs, UC has dozens of museums, concert halls, art galleries, botanical gardens, observatories and marine centers — academic resources, but also exciting gathering places for the community. Another half million people benefit from UC Extension’s continuing education courses and from Cooperative Extension’s agricultural advice and educational programs located throughout the state. Review these slides to get a better idea of how to present yourself on a UC application. These slides are provided directly by the UCs: UC Freshmen Admissions

UC Overview | Application | How to Apply

With 2 million students at 116 colleges, the California Community Colleges is the largest system of higher education in the country. California Community Colleges strive to provide you with life-changing opportunities and a clear path to your goals, whether it’s transferring to a four-year college or university or seeking the job-training skills that can help you move up the career ladder.

CA Community College Overview | Find a College | How to Apply

The Common Application (informally known as the Common App) is an undergraduate college admission application that applicants may use to apply to any of 693 member colleges and universities. College applicants usually use the Common App to apply for private schools such as USC, Stanford, University of Chicago, Caltech, Johns Hopkins, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, and Rice. You may also recognize some Ivy League names such as Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, University of Pennsylvania, and Yale. 

The Common App is great at keeping track of your application process for multiple schools all at once. High School seniors in the University track should create an account and explore their options in full, beyond the UC / Cal State systems. Get started with the video tour below.

College Search | Common Application | How to Apply

Students applying to colleges outside of CA and/or private CA Universities will need to check individual university websites for application deadlines. Students can also apply to over 700 colleges via the Common Application (Common App) which will reflect application deadlines. 

Please refer to this list of important dates throughout the school year. You will also find helpful links to online resources to help you prepare for the various upcoming exams and applications. The resource includes:

College application information

• • Includes application links, deadlines, and admission requirements

  • Includes UC, CSU, Common Application, and community college information

FAFSA links and deadlines

Standardized tests

• • Includes registration deadlines, registration links, and practice exam resources

  • Includes a checklist for the test day

  • Includes a comparison of ACT and SAT

  • Includes ACT and SAT information

Advanced Placement

• • Includes AP exam schedule