Santa Maria High School
901 South Broadway, Santa Maria, CA 93454View on map
- Public
- Santa Maria
- 793 seniors
- 3,094 students
Santa Maria High School is a public high school in Santa Maria (Santa Maria Joint Union High) with 793 seniors. In fall 2025, 80% of its 167 University of California applicants were admitted, compared with a county median of 75%. Its students applied most often to UC Santa Barbara (UCSB), UC Merced, and UC Davis (UCD). 30% of the class of 2023 completed the A–G courses UC requires.
UC admit rate
80%
133 of 167 applicants, fall 2025
Seniors admitted to a UC
17%
133 of 793 seniors
Seniors who applied to UC
21%
167 of 793 seniors
UC Los Angeles (UCLA) admit rate
5.3%
4 of 76 applicants, fall 2025
UC Berkeley (Cal) admit rate
11%
8 of 70 applicants, fall 2025
Campus by campus, fall 2025
The share of this school's applicants each campus admitted, beside the campus's rate for everyone else. Hardest campus first.
University of California
Santa Maria High School applicants did better than all California applicants at 2 of 9 campuses, about the same at 3 and worse at 4.
- Los Angeles4 pts lower
5%
4 of 76 admitted
This school5%All CA10%
Admitted students' average GPA — (all applicants 3.89)
- BerkeleyAbout the same
11%
8 of 70 admitted
This school11%All CA13%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.23 (all applicants 3.81)
- Irvine10 pts lower
13%
10 of 80 admitted
This school13%All CA22%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.09 (all applicants 3.85)
- San Diego12 pts higher
37%
21 of 57 admitted
This school37%All CA25%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.10 (all applicants 3.70)
- Santa BarbaraAbout the same
35%
37 of 106 admitted
This school35%All CA32%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.14 (all applicants 3.72)
- Davis9 pts higher
46%
39 of 85 admitted
This school46%All CA37%
Admitted students' average GPA 4.04 (all applicants 3.71)
- Santa Cruz12 pts lower
59%
49 of 83 admitted
This school59%All CA71%
Admitted students' average GPA 3.98 (all applicants 3.69)
- RiversideAbout the same
88%
49 of 56 admitted
This school88%All CA87%
Admitted students' average GPA 3.82 (all applicants 3.75)
- Merced5 pts lower
91%
83 of 91 admitted
This school91%All CA96%
Admitted students' average GPA 3.71 (all applicants 3.67)
Fall 2025. A student admitted to several campuses counts once at each one. All CA is the campus’s admit rate that fall for applicants from every California high school. Within 3 points counts as about the same. GPA is the UC-calculated GPA (weighted, capped).
California State University
Santa Maria High School applicants did better than the campus overall at 1 of 5 campuses, about the same at 4.
- San Luis Obispo15 pts higher
45%
63 of 140 admitted
This school45%Overall30%
- NorthridgeAbout the same
90%
47 of 52 admitted
This school90%Overall93%
- SacramentoAbout the same
95%
59 of 62 admitted
This school95%Overall94%
- ChicoAbout the same
94%
81 of 86 admitted
This school94%Overall94%
- FresnoAbout the same
99%
108 of 109 admitted
This school99%Overall96%
Fall 2025. A student admitted to several campuses counts once at each one. Overall is the campus’s admit rate for all its applicants, from federal IPEDS data (fall 2023, the latest published). Within 3 points counts as about the same.
Where graduates go
Class of 2023 (585 graduates), the latest published by fall 2025, within 12 months of graduating.
Any college
69%
404 of 585 graduates
UC or CSU
17%
99 graduates
Community college
51%
298 graduates
| Destination | Graduates | Share |
|---|---|---|
| UC | 38 | 7% |
| CSU | 61 | 10% |
| CA private college | 4 | 1% |
| Out of state | 3 | 1% |
| Community college | 298 | 51% |
| Not enrolled | 181 | 31% |
| Enrolled in college | 404 | 69% |
| Total | 585 | 100% |
How each student group compares
Compare college-going across student groups
- Gender: Female, Male
- Race & ethnicity: Hispanic or Latino, White
- Student need: Low-income, English learners, Homeless, Students with disabilities
Advanced Placement
9
AP courses offered
2023–24 school year · US Dept. of Education Civil Rights Data Collection
29
AP class sections
Counts every section taught, so it is larger than the number of different AP courses.
19% of students are in AP courses
2024–25 school year · California School Accountability Report Card
22%
of graduating seniors passed at least two AP exams or courses
152 of 689 graduates
A score of 3 or higher on exams or a C- or better in courses. Not comparable with the exam-only share.
2025–26 school year · California Department of Education (College/Career Indicator)
7%
of graduating seniors scored 3 or higher on at least two AP exams
53 of 762 graduates
2023–24 school year · California Department of Education (College/Career Indicator)
Subject areas
- English: 9 classes
- Foreign language: 11 classes
- Mathematics: 2 classes
- Science: 1 class
- Social science: 6 classes
Academic context
State test (CAASPP), juniors tested in 2026, and the share of low-income students. A–G is the class of 2023. The tick is the county median.
- Juniors meeting the English standard 43%County median 52%
- Juniors meeting the math standard 19%County median 23%
- Juniors exceeding the English standard 13%County median 18%
- Juniors exceeding the math standard 7%County median 7%
- Low-income students 92%County median 58%
- Graduates completing courses 30%County median 48%