When looking at universities in the UK, one of the most popular institutions is University College London.
UCL is currently the biggest individual university in the UK, housing over 50,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students. With its wide variety of courses and international acclaim, it’s no wonder that over 100,000 people send applications to the university each year.
We can see that demand is high for places at UCL, but does the university have the supply to meet it? In this guide, we will explore the admissions statistics for the 2024/25 admissions cycle at UCL, including the offer and acceptance rates, to see how difficult it is to get a place at the UK’s biggest university.
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University College London Acceptance Rate - overall
Before we dig into the data, let’s understand what metrics we will be measuring. In UCL’s official admissions report for the 2024/25 admissions cycle, three figures are reported for each department: Applications, offers and places. While the first two are self-explanatory, UCL’s reporting of places is somewhat unclear, as there is no indication that all places were filled. For this guide, we will assume that places represented the number of accepted students in each department.
With these figures, we can calculate two crucial pieces of information; the offer rate and acceptance rate. These represent the percentage of applicants that were given an offer or ultimately enrolled on to a course. We would calculate these statistics like so:
Number of offer-holders/admitted applicants/Total number of applicants
Both sets of statistics are useful to consider, but for applicants, offer rates tend to be more critical. Securing an offer is often the most challenging part of the process and requires the most effort. While many factors can influence your chances during the application stage, once you’ve received an offer, the main hurdle that remains is meeting the required exam grades. You can learn more about how to use this information in our dedicated guide to making the most of university admissions data.
Firstly, let’s look at the undergraduate admissions statistics for UCL as a whole (postgraduate admissions will not be included in this guide). We’ll examine data from the past five years to see how admissions have evolved. Keep in mind that the year listed refers to the year of entry, not the year the application cycle started.
University College London Acceptance Rates (2020 - 2025)
2025
Applicants: 77,828
Offers: 26,253
Acceptances: 7,682
Offer Rate: 33.7%
Acceptance Rate: 9.9%
2024
Applicants: 79,082
Offers: 19,676
Acceptances: 7,001
Offer Rate: 24.8%
Acceptance Rate: 8.9%
2023
Applicants: 73,994
Offers: 21,221
Acceptances: 6,288
Offer Rate: 28.7%
Acceptance Rate: 8.5%
2022
Applicants: 58,362
Offers: 19,724
Acceptances: 6,049
Offer Rate: 33.8%
Acceptance Rate: 10.4%
2021
Applicants: 69,002
Offers: 23,908
Acceptances: 6,043
Offer Rate: 34.6%
Acceptance Rate: 8.8%
2020
Applicants: 50,628
Offers: 25,021
Acceptances: NA
Offer Rate: 49.4%
Acceptance Rate: NA
Bear in mind that some of these figures may not be accurate, as UCL’s admissions reporting didn’t maintain a consistent format until 2023.
From these figures, we can see that offer rates were consistently getting lower from 2020 to 2024, in line with the continual increase of applicants (excluding a drop in 2022, which may be misreported). However, this trend changed in 2025, when the university saw a drop in applications and an additional 6,500 offers sent out, a new high during this period. This increased the offer rate by nearly 10%, while acceptances and the acceptance rate also increased by a smaller amount.
As it currently stands, the university still receives far more applicants than it did five years ago, but success rates are now more in line with 2021/22 levels.
UCL vs Oxbridge - Acceptance Rates
As one of the UK’s top universities and a member of the G5 Universities, UCL is frequently compared to the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge, together known as Oxbridge. These are two of the most prestigious universities in the world, meaning they are also popular choices for applicants.
They’re also known for their highly competitive and rigorous admissions processes, but how do they compared to UCL?
Oxford Acceptance Rates 2024
Applicants: 23,061
Offers: 3,793
Acceptances: 3,245
Offer Rate: 16.4%
Acceptance Rate: 14.1%
Cambridge Acceptance Rates 2024
Applicants: 22,153
Offers: 4,760
Acceptances: 3,632
Offer Rate: 21.5%
Acceptance Rate: 16.4%
As you can see, both universities combined received fewer undergraduate applications than UCL and have far smaller cohort. Oxford and Cambridge’s course selection is much smaller than UCL, so these figures make sense considering how the universities each operate.
The offer and acceptance rates at Oxford and Cambridge are also very close, meaning a higher proportion of successful applicants end up confirming their place at the university when compared to UCL.
Speaking of success rates, we can see that UCL actually has a much lower acceptance rate than Oxford and Cambridge. While the offer rate was higher than either university, the final acceptance rate of 9.9% in 2025, which is roughly 4% lower than Oxford and over 6% lower than Cambridge.
However, this doesn’t mean Oxford or Cambridge are easy to get into, so you need to ensure you effectively prepare if you’re planning to apply to both Oxford and Cambridge. UCL has a more comparable acceptance rate to Imperial College London, though it is still lower by around 2%.
You can learn more about the acceptance rates at Oxford and Cambridge in our dedicated guides:
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UCL Acceptance Rates - A-Z
Now that we’ve seen the overall admissions statistics for UCL, let’s dive into the statistics for each individual department. We don’t have data for individual courses, so the following figures combine the admissions statistics for all courses under each department.
We’ll explore the figures for the past two years of admissions, and all of the data is sorted by the 11 faculties at UCL, so we’ll also see which faculty is the most competitive. Let’s begin:
UCL Arts and Humanities Acceptance Rates
UCL’s Faculty of Arts and Humanities teaches a variety of subjects relating to culture, language and art. It’s a fairly popular faculty, so let’s explore its acceptance rates:
UCL Arts and Sciences BASc Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,110
Offers: 695
Acceptances: 201
Offer Rate: 62.6%
Acceptance Rate: 18.1%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 920
Offers: 485
Acceptances: 198
Offer Rate: 52.7%
Acceptance Rate: 21.5%
UCL SELCS Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,316
Offers: 1,022
Acceptances: 224
Offer Rate: 77.7%
Acceptance Rate: 17.0%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,106
Offers: 804
Acceptances: 195
Offer Rate: 72.7%
Acceptance Rate: 17.6%
SELCS stands for the School of European Language, Culture and Society. The department has some of the highest offer rates in the whole university, but acceptances are far lower, indicating that many students either do not select UCL as their main choice or do not meet the required grades for entry.
UCL SSEES Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,839
Offers: 921
Acceptances: 255
Offer Rate: 50.1%
Acceptance Rate: 13.9%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,819
Offers: 580
Acceptances: 228
Offer Rate: 31.9%
Acceptance Rate: 12.9%
SSEES stands for the School of Slavic & Eastern European Studies. Although far more popular with applicants than the SELCS, this department has a far lower offer rate (less than half of SELCS) despite seeing a major jump in 2025. However, the acceptance rates are very close to each other.
UCL English Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 767
Offers: 351
Acceptances: 112
Offer Rate: 45.8%
Acceptance Rate: 14.6%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,052
Offers: 288
Acceptances: 103
Offer Rate: 27.4%
Acceptance Rate: 9.8%
UCL European Social and Political Studies BA Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 601
Offers: 323
Acceptances: 104
Offer Rate: 53.7%
Acceptance Rate: 17.3%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 668
Offers: 256
Acceptances: 90
Offer Rate: 38.3%
Acceptance Rate: 13.5%
UCL Information Studies Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 217
Offers: 103
Acceptances: 22
Offer Rate: 47.5%
Acceptance Rate: 10.1%
Be aware that no admissions data was reported for Information Studies at UCL prior to 2025.
UCL Slade School of Fine Art Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,110
Offers: 71
Acceptances: 50
Offer Rate: 6.4%
Acceptance Rate: 4.5%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,128
Offers: 70
Acceptances: 45
Offer Rate: 6.2%
Acceptance Rate: 4.0%
Slade teaches both Fine Art and Fine Art & Technology at UCL, but the department is one of the most competitive not only in the entire university but also across all G5 universities. With an acceptance rate of just 4.5%, there are only a handful of other courses at UCL that are more competitive, so be prepared for a challenging application if you wish to study Fine Art at UCL.
UCL Greek and Latin Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 292
Offers: 257
Acceptances: 60
Offer Rate: 88.0%
Acceptance Rate: 20.5%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 359
Offers: 278
Acceptances: 65
Offer Rate: 77.4%
Acceptance Rate: 18.1%
In 2024, Greek & Latin was the least competitive undergraduate department in the whole of UCL, while it was the second least competitive course of 2025. Although the offer rate was exceedingly high, this didn’t translate to many actual places filled, as the acceptance rate was far more average each year.
UCL Hebrew and Jewish Studies Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 31
Offers: 27
Acceptances: 12
Offer Rate: 87.1%
Acceptance Rate: 38.7%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 85
Offers: 50
Acceptances: 11
Offer Rate: 58.8%
Acceptance Rate: 12.9%
In 2025, Hebrew & Jewish Studies was the least popular department at UCL, receiving just 31 applications across its five courses, a massive drop from the previous year. Only 12 students were ultimately enrolled, making it the smallest cohort in the university. It also had the highest acceptance rate of any course at UCL this year, meaning it was both not in demand and fairly easy to be admitted to.
UCL Philosophy Acceptance Rate
2027 Entry
Applicants: 617
Offers: 375
Acceptances: 90
Offer Rate: 60.8%
Acceptance Rate: 14.6%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 723
Offers: 308
Acceptances: 90
Offer Rate: 42.6%
Acceptance Rate: 12.4%
Overall Acceptance Rate 2025
Applicants: 7,900
Offers: 4,145
Acceptances: 1,130
Offer Rate: 52.5%
Acceptance Rate: 14.3%
UCL Bartlett (Built Environment) Acceptance Rates
UCL’s Bartlett Faculty of the Built Environment specialises in architecture and urban studies. It’s a fairly small faculty, with two of its four subjects only being introduced in 2024.
UCL Architecture Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 3,109
Offers: 385
Acceptances: 232
Offer Rate: 12.4%
Acceptance Rate: 7.5%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 3,152
Offers: 365
Acceptances: 210
Offer Rate: 11.6%
Acceptance Rate: 6.7%
UCL Environment, Energy and Resources Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 273
Offers: 134
Acceptances: 40
Offer Rate: 49.1%
Acceptance Rate: 14.7%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 207
Offers: 67
Acceptances: 30
Offer Rate: 32.4%
Acceptance Rate: 14.5%
UCL Planning Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 581
Offers: 182
Acceptances: 60
Offer Rate: 31.3%
Acceptance Rate: 10.3%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 695
Offers: 158
Acceptances: 55
Offer Rate: 22.7%
Acceptance Rate: 7.9%
UCL Sustainable Construction Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 139
Offers: 85
Acceptances: 30
Offer Rate: 61.2%
Acceptance Rate: 21.6%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 161
Offers: 67
Acceptances: 30
Offer Rate: 41.6%
Acceptance Rate: 18.6%
Overall Acceptance Rate 2025
Applicants: 4,102
Offers: 786
Acceptances: 362
Offer Rate: 19.2%
Acceptance Rate: 8.8%
UCL Brain Sciences Acceptance Rates
The Faculty of Brain Sciences specialise in key areas of research and study relating to the human mind. Its course selection isn’t too extensive but covers vital topics, especially in the field of psychology.
UCL Ear Institute Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 90
Offers: 55
Acceptances: 18
Offer Rate: 61.1%
Acceptance Rate: 20.0%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 110
Offers: 43
Acceptances: 18
Offer Rate: 39.1%
Acceptance Rate: 16.4%
UCL Linguistics Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 280
Offers: 233
Acceptances: 50
Offer Rate: 83.2%
Acceptance Rate: 17.9%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 277
Offers: 150
Acceptances: 45
Offer Rate: 54.2%
Acceptance Rate: 16.2%
UCL Neurology Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 277
Offers: 69
Acceptances: 20
Offer Rate: 24.9%
Acceptance Rate: 7.2%
Be aware that no admissions data was reported for Neurology at UCL prior to 2025.
UCL Psychology Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 2,428
Offers: 423
Acceptances: 169
Offer Rate: 17.4%
Acceptance Rate: 7.0%
For entry requirements of this course, check out our dedicated UCL Psychology Entry Rerquirements Guide.
2024 Entry
Applicants: 2,815
Offers: 301
Acceptances: 139
Offer Rate: 10.7%
Acceptance Rate: 4.9%
UCL Psychology and Language Sciences Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 279
Offers: 157
Acceptances: 52
Offer Rate: 56.3%
Acceptance Rate: 18.6%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 297
Offers: 130
Acceptances: 52
Offer Rate: 43.8%
Acceptance Rate: 17.5%
Overall Acceptance Rate 2025
Applicants: 3,354
Offers: 937
Acceptances: 309
Offer Rate: 27.9%
Acceptance Rate: 9.2%
UCL Engineering Sciences Acceptance Rates
As one of the top subjects in the UK, it’s no surprise that UCL’s Engineering faculty is so large and receives so many applicants per year. But how difficult is it to get into one of the courses there? Let’s find out:
UCL Biochemical Engineering Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 518
Offers: 426
Acceptances: 90
Offer Rate: 82.2%
Acceptance Rate: 17.4%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 486
Offers: 319
Acceptances: 90
Offer Rate: 65.6%
Acceptance Rate: 18.5%
UCL Chemical Engineering Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,403
Offers: 459
Acceptances: 147
Offer Rate: 32.7%
Acceptance Rate: 10.5%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,153
Offers: 468
Acceptances: 140
Offer Rate: 40.6%
Acceptance Rate: 12.1%
UCL Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 701
Offers: 382
Acceptances: 105
Offer Rate: 54.5%
Acceptance Rate: 15.0%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 730
Offers: 425
Acceptances: 100
Offer Rate: 58.2%
Acceptance Rate: 13.7%
UCL Computer Science Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 5,549
Offers: 633
Acceptances: 210
Offer Rate: 11.4%
Acceptance Rate: 3.8%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 5,167
Offers: 575
Acceptances: 200
Offer Rate: 11.1%
Acceptance Rate: 3.9%
Computer Science is one of the top degrees in the UK currently, and was UCL’s most popular department in 2024. With over 5,000 applications received, the course is also one of the most competitive, with an acceptance rate of only 3.8%. This is the joint lowest acceptance rate for a standard course at UCL.
The course is notoriously difficult to get into at most UK universities, but UCL will be introducing a brand new admissions test – the Test of Academic Reasoning for Admissions – which may bring the offer rate down.
UCL Electronic and Electrical Engineering Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,770
Offers: 388
Acceptances: 120
Offer Rate: 21.9%
Acceptance Rate: 6.8%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,673
Offers: 290
Acceptances: 120
Offer Rate: 17.3%
Acceptance Rate: 7.2%
UCL Integrated Foundation Years Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,231
Offers: 49
Acceptances: 42
Offer Rate: 4.0%
Acceptance Rate: 3.4%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,468
Offers: 33
Acceptances: 32
Offer Rate: 2.2%
Acceptance Rate: 2.2%
UCL offers integrated foundation years in engineering, but getting a place is extremely difficult. The results for 2024 show that only 2.2% of the applicants for this foundation year actually got a place, though this rose to 3.4% in 2025. Despite the increase in acceptance rate, this department is the most competitive in the whole university.
UCL School of Management - IMB Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,591
Offers: 282
Acceptances: 127
Offer Rate: 17.7%
Acceptance Rate: 8.0%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,594
Offers: 235
Acceptances: 125
Offer Rate: 14.7%
Acceptance Rate: 7.8%
UCL School of Management - Management Science Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 970
Offers: 211
Acceptances: 90
Offer Rate: 21.8%
Acceptance Rate: 9.3%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,493
Offers: 191
Acceptances: 90
Offer Rate: 12.8%
Acceptance Rate: 6.0%
UCL Mechanical Engineering Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 3,201
Offers: 701
Acceptances: 214
Offer Rate: 21.9%
Acceptance Rate: 6.7%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 2,643
Offers: 548
Acceptances: 200
Offer Rate: 20.7%
Acceptance Rate: 7.6%
UCL Medical Physics Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 161
Offers: 135
Acceptances: 28
Offer Rate: 83.9%
Acceptance Rate: 17.4%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 115
Offers: 67
Acceptances: 22
Offer Rate: 58.3%
Acceptance Rate: 22.0%
UCL Medical Physics - Biomedical Engineering Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 849
Offers: 423
Acceptances: 105
Offer Rate: 49.8%
Acceptance Rate: 12.4%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 735
Offers: 291
Acceptances: 75
Offer Rate: 39.6%
Acceptance Rate: 10.2%
UCL Security and Crime Science Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 252
Offers: 87
Acceptances: 25
Offer Rate: 46.0%
Acceptance Rate: 13.2%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 266
Offers: 135
Acceptances: 60
Offer Rate: 50.8%
Acceptance Rate: 22.6%
UCL Science, Technology, Engineering and Public Policy Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 189
Offers: 87
Acceptances: 25
Offer Rate: 46.0%
Acceptance Rate: 13.2%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 157
Offers: 46
Acceptances: 15
Offer Rate: 29.3%
Acceptance Rate: 9.6%
Overall Acceptance Rate 2025
Applicants: 18,385
Offers: 4,336
Acceptances: 1,363
Offer Rate: 23.6%
Acceptance Rate: 7.4%
UCL Institute of Education Acceptance Rates
The UCL Institute of Education – or Faculty of Education and Society – covers more than just teaching courses, as you’ll find faculties dedicated to Media, Psychology and Social Science here too.
UCL Culture, Communication and Media Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 720
Offers: 211
Acceptances: 80
Offer Rate: 29.3%
Acceptance Rate: 11.1%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,158
Offers: 189
Acceptances: 80
Offer Rate: 16.3%
Acceptance Rate: 6.9%
UCL Education, Practice and Society Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 574
Offers: 303
Acceptances: 130
Offer Rate: 52.8%
Acceptance Rate: 22.6%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 837
Offers: 269
Acceptances: 130
Offer Rate: 32.1%
Acceptance Rate: 16.6%
UCL Learning and Leadership Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 299
Offers: 146
Acceptances: 30
Offer Rate: 48.8%
Acceptance Rate: 10.0%
Be aware that no admissions data was reported for Learning and Leadership at UCL prior to 2025.
UCL Psychology and Human Development Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 529
Offers: 215
Acceptances: 85
Offer Rate: 40.6%
Acceptance Rate: 16.1%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 614
Offers: 186
Acceptances: 85
Offer Rate: 30.3%
Acceptance Rate: 13.8%
UCL Social and Historical Sciences Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,315
Offers: 509
Acceptances: 156
Offer Rate: 38.7%
Acceptance Rate: 11.9%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,396
Offers: 367
Acceptances: 135
Offer Rate: 26.3%
Acceptance Rate: 9.7%
Overall Acceptance Rate 2025
Applicants: 3,437
Offers: 1,384
Acceptances: 481
Offer Rate: 40.3%
Acceptance Rate: 14.0%
UCL Law Acceptance Rates
This faculty primarily manages UCL’s Law (LLB) course, and it happens to be the most competitive course/department at the university.
2025 Entry
Applicants: 4,577
Offers: 590
Acceptances: 205
Offer Rate: 12.9%
Acceptance Rate: 4.5%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 5,034
Offers: 407
Acceptances: 195
Offer Rate: 8.1%
Acceptance Rate: 3.9%
UCL Life Sciences Acceptance Rates
The Faculty of Life Sciences is another of UCL’s STEM faculties, with this one focusing on biological studies.
UCL Biochemistry and Biotechnology Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,027
Offers: 426
Acceptances: 90
Offer Rate: 82.2%
Acceptance Rate: 17.4%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,051
Offers: 299
Acceptances: 100
Offer Rate: 28.4%
Acceptance Rate: 9.5%
UCL Biological Science Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,147
Offers: 410
Acceptances: 103
Offer Rate: 35.7%
Acceptance Rate: 9.0%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,191
Offers: 387
Acceptances: 100
Offer Rate: 32.5%
Acceptance Rate: 8.4%
UCL Biomedical Science Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,940
Offers: 552
Acceptances: 134
Offer Rate: 28.5%
Acceptance Rate: 6.9%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 2,075
Offers: 465
Acceptances: 130
Offer Rate: 22.4%
Acceptance Rate: 6.3%
UCL Human Sciences Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 217
Offers: 140
Acceptances: 39
Offer Rate: 64.5%
Acceptance Rate: 18.0%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 239
Offers: 125
Acceptances: 35
Offer Rate: 52.3%
Acceptance Rate: 14.6%
UCL Neuroscience Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 657
Offers: 293
Acceptances: 74
Offer Rate: 44.6%
Acceptance Rate: 11.3%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 832
Offers: 144
Acceptances: 60
Offer Rate: 52.3%
Acceptance Rate: 14.6%
UCL Pharmacology Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 581
Offers: 157
Acceptances: 44
Offer Rate: 27.0%
Acceptance Rate: 7.6%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 612
Offers: 100
Acceptances: 40
Offer Rate: 16.3%
Acceptance Rate: 6.5%
UCL School of Pharmacy Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 2,092
Offers: 517
Acceptances: 200
Offer Rate: 24.7%
Acceptance Rate: 9.6%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 2,202
Offers: 480
Acceptances: 200
Offer Rate: 21.8%
Acceptance Rate: 9.1%
Overall Acceptance Rate 2025
Applicants: 7,661
Offers: 2,451
Acceptances: 702
Offer Rate: 32.0%
Acceptance Rate: 9.2%
UCL Mathematical and Physical Sciences Acceptance Rates
The Faculty of Mathematical and Physical Sciences teaches the subjects featured in its name, as well as Chemistry and a variety of more specialised STEM subjects. UCL’s Natural Sciences courses are also housed in this faculty, although there is some content overlap with the Faculty of Life Sciences.
UCL Chemistry Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,597
Offers: 880
Acceptances: 200
Offer Rate: 55.1%
Acceptance Rate: 12.5%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,695
Offers: 532
Acceptances: 170
Offer Rate: 31.4%
Acceptance Rate: 10.0%
UCL Earth Sciences Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 739
Offers: 381
Acceptances: 95
Offer Rate: 51.6%
Acceptance Rate: 12.9%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 644
Offers: 334
Acceptances: 90
Offer Rate: 32.5%
Acceptance Rate: 8.4%
UCL Mathematics Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 3,164
Offers: 1,273
Acceptances: 270
Offer Rate: 40.2%
Acceptance Rate: 8.5%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 3,061
Offers: 896
Acceptances: 253
Offer Rate: 29.3%
Acceptance Rate: 8.3%
UCL Natural Sciences Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 972
Offers: 552
Acceptances: 130
Offer Rate: 56.8%
Acceptance Rate: 13.4%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 904
Offers: 467
Acceptances: 125
Offer Rate: 51.7%
Acceptance Rate: 13.8%
UCL’s Natural Sciences course is far less popular than the degree taught at Cambridge, which has consistently been one of the most popular courses at the university. However, Cambridge only offers Natural Sciences, while UCL teaches individual sciences as well.
UCL Physics and Astronomy Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 1,952
Offers: 996
Acceptances: 226
Offer Rate: 51.0%
Acceptance Rate: 11.6%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,925
Offers: 649
Acceptances: 201
Offer Rate: 33.7%
Acceptance Rate: 10.4%
UCL Risk and Disaster Reduction Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 349
Offers: 181
Acceptances: 74
Offer Rate: 51.9%
Acceptance Rate: 21.2%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 265
Offers: 174
Acceptances: 74
Offer Rate: 65.7%
Acceptance Rate: 27.9%
UCL Science and Technology Studies Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 400
Offers: 304
Acceptances: 89
Offer Rate: 76.0%
Acceptance Rate: 22.3%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 239
Offers: 166
Acceptances: 55
Offer Rate: 69.5%
Acceptance Rate: 23.0%
UCL Statistical Studies Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 3,713
Offers: 500
Acceptances: 165
Offer Rate: 13.5%
Acceptance Rate: 4.4%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 3,346
Offers: 461
Acceptances: 161
Offer Rate: 13.8%
Acceptance Rate: 4.8%
Overall Acceptance Rate 2025
Applicants: 12,886
Offers: 5,067
Acceptances: 1,149
Offer Rate: 39.3%
Acceptance Rate: 8.9%
UCL Medical Sciences Acceptance Rates
The Faculty of Medical Sciences houses UCL’s Medical School, which is one of the university’s most popular departments due to its Medicine degree. The faculty also contains departments dedicated to the study of infection, surgery and cancer.
UCL Cancer Institute Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 264
Offers: 181
Acceptances: 30
Offer Rate: 68.6%
Acceptance Rate: 11.4%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 356
Offers: 106
Acceptances: 30
Offer Rate: 29.8%
Acceptance Rate: 8.4%
UCL Division of Infection and Immunity Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 67
Offers: 47
Acceptances: 18
Offer Rate: 70.1%
Acceptance Rate: 26.9%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 98
Offers: 58
Acceptances: 22
Offer Rate: 59.2%
Acceptance Rate: 22.4%
UCL Division of Medicine Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 815
Offers: 595
Acceptances: 164
Offer Rate: 73.0%
Acceptance Rate: 20.1%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 745
Offers: 432
Acceptances: 145
Offer Rate: 58.0%
Acceptance Rate: 19.5%
UCL Medical School Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 2,885
Offers: 596
Acceptances: 334
Offer Rate: 20.7%
Acceptance Rate: 11.6%
Despite being one of the most popular degrees in the UK, UCL’s Medical School saw a large drop in applications in 2025. Despite this, more offers were sent out, leading to a far higher offer rate and an improved acceptance rate.
2024 Entry
Applicants: 3,585
Offers: 503
Acceptances: 334
Offer Rate: 14.0%
Acceptance Rate: 9.3%
UCL Surgery and Interventional Medicine Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 348
Offers: 197
Acceptances: 78
Offer Rate: 56.6%
Acceptance Rate: 22.4%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 389
Offers: 220
Acceptances: 68
Offer Rate: 56.6%
Acceptance Rate: 17.5%
Overall Acceptance Rate 2025
Applicants: 4,379
Offers: 1,616
Acceptances: 624
Offer Rate: 36.9%
Acceptance Rate: 14.2%
UCL Population Health Sciences Acceptance Rates
UCL’s Faculty of Population Health Sciences is by far the smallest faculty in the University, being the only one to have under 1,000 applications in 2025. There are two separate undergraduate degrees taught within this faculty, and neither saw very many applications, which naturally led to the faculty also giving the fewest offers and the lowest number of places.
2025 Entry
Applicants: 206
Offers: 175
Acceptances: 32
Offer Rate: 85.0%
Acceptance Rate: 15.5%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 202
Offers: 102
Acceptances: 30
Offer Rate: 50.5%
Acceptance Rate: 14.9%
UCL Social and Historical Sciences Acceptance Rates
The last faculty at UCL is the Faculty of Social and Historical Sciences. This faculty is somewhat similar to the Arts and Humanities faculty, but this one covers History, Economics, Geography and more.
UCL Institute of Americas Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 219
Offers: 195
Acceptances: 67
Offer Rate: 89.0%
Acceptance Rate: 30.6%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 198
Offers: 119
Acceptances: 60
Offer Rate: 60.1%
Acceptance Rate: 30.3%
UCL Anthropology Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 333
Offers: 242
Acceptances: 80
Offer Rate: 72.7%
Acceptance Rate: 24.0%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 424
Offers: 212
Acceptances: 65
Offer Rate: 50.0%
Acceptance Rate: 15.3%
UCL Institute of Archaeology Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 444
Offers: 355
Acceptances: 95
Offer Rate: 80.0%
Acceptance Rate: 21.4%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 454
Offers: 277
Acceptances: 75
Offer Rate: 61.0%
Acceptance Rate: 16.5%
UCL Economics Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 4,251
Offers: 1,285
Acceptances: 345
Offer Rate: 30.2%
Acceptance Rate: 8.1%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 4,124
Offers: 697
Acceptances: 297
Offer Rate: 16.9%
Acceptance Rate: 7.2%
UCL Geography Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 875
Offers: 627
Acceptances: 154
Offer Rate: 71.7%
Acceptance Rate: 17.6%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,060
Offers: 398
Acceptances: 145
Offer Rate: 37.5%
Acceptance Rate: 13.7%
UCL History Acceptance Rate
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,133
Offers: 891
Acceptances: 220
Offer Rate: 78.5%
Acceptance Rate: 19.4%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 1,241
Offers: 694
Acceptances: 145
Offer Rate: 55.9%
Acceptance Rate: 16.0%
UCL History of Art Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 341
Offers: 269
Acceptances: 74
Offer Rate: 78.9%
Acceptance Rate: 21.7%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 333
Offers: 158
Acceptances: 63
Offer Rate: 47.4%
Acceptance Rate: 18.9%
UCL Political Science Acceptance Rate
2025 Entry
Applicants: 3,345
Offers: 902
Acceptances: 190
Offer Rate: 27.0%
Acceptance Rate: 5.7%
2024 Entry
Applicants: 3,290
Offers: 580
Acceptances: 170
Offer Rate: 17.6%
Acceptance Rate: 5.2%
Overall Acceptance Rate 2025
Applicants: 10,941
Offers: 4,766
Acceptances: 1,225
Offer Rate: 43.6%
Acceptance Rate: 11.2%
That covers the admissions statistics for every department within UCL. As we can see, a common theme is departments giving out far more offers than available spaces, so it’s important to know that an offer from UCL is far from a guarantee of a place on your chosen course.
With so much data to unpack, you will likely have some questions about the different departments, so let’s review these statistics to highlight some crucial information next.
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UCL Admissions Statistics - What Can We Learn?
With so much data, it can be hard to determine which departments are the largest, the most popular or the most competitive. Let’s answer these questions now!
UCL's Most Popular & Least Popular Departments
When considering the most and least popular departments at UCL, we will be looking at which ones had the most and least applications in 2025. This will typically influence the size of the faculty in general, but there are cases where demand for a course will far outweight the available places, so looking at applications gives us a better idea of which ones applicants are more interested in.
Most Popular UCL Departments
Firstly, let’s look at the departments with the most applications:
Most Applications UCL 2025
| Departments | Applications |
|---|---|
| Computer Science | 5,549 |
| Law | 4,577 |
| Economics | 4,251 |
| Statistical Sciences | 3,713 |
| Political Science | 3,345 |
For the most part, these are all very self-explanatory and unsurprising, as Computer Science, Law and Economics are three of the most popular degrees in the UK currently.
UCL’s Statistical Sciences department primarily teaches Data Science and Statistics, alongside combinations with Economics, Management and more. While these two subjects are typically two of the most popular in the UK, there is a growing demand for them, as well as lots of different variants to help boost the application rate further.
In previous years, UCL Medical School was also featured in the top five, but 2025 saw a large decline in applications for this department. Instead, Political Science takes its place, which has steadily been increasing its demand for the last few years.
Least Popular UCL Departments
Now let’s look at the inverse and see which departments were less popular at UCL in 2025.
Least Applications UCL 2025
| Departments | Applications |
|---|---|
| Hebrew & Jewish Studies | 31 |
| Division of Infection & Immunity | 67 |
| Ear Institute | 90 |
| Sustainable Construction | 139 |
| Medical Physics | 161 |
None of these departments are surprising to see as the least popular at UCL, as they mostly focus on niche subjects that are spun-off from more popular degrees like Medicine, History and Languages. All of these departments also had the smallest final cohorts, meaning they accepted the least amount of applicants (though the order is slightly different to the list above).
Hebrew & Jewish Studies has been the least popular department for several years in a row now. Despite having so few applications in 2024, there were fewer than half of the applicants in 2025, one of the sharpest proportional declines of any department at the university.
UCL's Most Competitive & Least Competitive Courses
Next, let’s consider how competitive these departments are. Since we don’t have data for individual courses, it’s important to remember that some of this data may have been influenced by a specific course with an abnormally low or high offer/acceptance rate. However, it’s still valuable to know roughly what you should expect from your department.
Hardest UCL Courses To Get Into
Let’s start with the most competitive departments. We’ll look at both offer and acceptance rate, as these figures can sometimes be wildly different within a department if it gives out far more offers than it has places for:
Lowest Offer Rates UCL 2025
| Departments | Applications | Offers | Offer Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slade School of Fine Art | 1,110 | 71 | 6.4% |
| Computer Science | 5,549 | 633 | 11.4% |
| Architecture | 3,109 | 385 | 12.4% |
| Law | 4,577 | 590 | 12.9% |
| Statistical Sciences | 3,713 | 500 | 13.5% |
Lowest Acceptance Rates UCL 2025
| Departments | Applications | Acceptances | Acceptance Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Computer Science | 5,549 | 210 | 3.8% |
| Statistical Sciences | 3,713 | 165 | 4.4% |
| Law | 4,577 | 205 | 4.5% |
| Slade School of Fine Art | 1,110 | 50 | 4.5% |
| Political Science | 3,345 | 190 | 5.7% |
For these lists, we excluded UCL’s Foundation Year department, as the entry requirements for these courses differ from standard departments. In 2025, it had an offer rate of 4.0% and an acceptance rate of 3.4%.
As we can see, the departments featured here remain fairly consistent, with only one entry changing between lists (Architecture and Political Science). While the offer rates are fairly in line with a typical course at Oxford or Cambridge, the lowest acceptance rates are extremely low, with none of the top five being over 6%.
In terms of the departments featured here, there are some surprising entries, especially the Slade School of Fine Art. Despite having less than 1/4 of the applicants for Law or Computer Science, it has the lowest offer rate across the whole university for an undergraduate department.
Many of these departments focus on one subject and teach only a handful of courses and course variants for undergraduates. Statistical Sciences is an exception to this, offering seven unique courses. Computer Science and Law each teach just one Bachelor’s degree, suggesting that these could be the most competitive courses in the entire university. Since Law is a full faculty, this also makes it the most competitive faculty in the entire university.
These are all popular degrees, so you’ll need to ensure you’ve properly prepared your application to be competitive within the top 5% of applicants to be successful
Easiest UCL Courses To Get Into
If you’re applying to any of the departments above, you’re going to have a very difficult application process. However, if you’re applying for one of the following departments, you’ll have a much better chance of getting your offer, though you’ll still need to put the work in to ensure you’re considered appropriate for your course.
Highest Offer Rates At UCL 2025
| Departments | Applications | Offers | Offer Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Institute of Americas | 219 | 195 | 89.0% |
| Greek & Latin | 292 | 257 | 88.0% |
| Hebrew and Jewish Studies | 31 | 27 | 87.1% |
| Population Health Sciences | 206 | 175 | 85.0% |
| Medical Physics | 161 | 135 | 83.9% |
Highest Acceptance Rates At UCL 2025
| Departments | Applications | Acceptances | Acceptance Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hebrew and Jewish Studies | 31 | 12 | 38.7% |
| Institute of Americas | 219 | 67 | 30.6% |
| Division of Infection and Immunity | 67 | 22 | 26.9% |
| Anthropology | 333 | 80 | 24.0% |
| Security and Crime Science | 252 | 60 | 23.8% |
Compared to the most competitive UCL departments, there’s a lot more variance between the offer and acceptance rates here, with only two departments appearing on both lists.
There are no major departments featured here, with the most popular on either list being Anthropology. Compared to 2024, these top success rates were higher than those of the previous year, where the highest offer rate was 77.4% and the highest acceptance rate was 30.3%.
Looking at the faculties, Population Health Science had the highest offer and acceptance rates, at 85.0% and 15.5%. This department teaches just one course that isn’t very competitive, which explains this result.
Offer and Acceptance Divide
As we’ve seen, there can often be a large difference between the number of offers given and the number of available places, both in percentages and in real terms. Which departments have the largest divides? Let’s find out:
| Departments | Applications | Offers | Offer Rate | Acceptances | Acceptance Rate | % Divide |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population Health Sciences | 206 | 175 | 85.0% | 32 | 15.5% | 69.4% |
| Greek and Latin | 292 | 252 | 88.0% | 60 | 20.5% | 67.5% |
| Medical Physics | 161 | 135 | 83.9% | 28 | 17.4% | 68.5% |
| Linguistics | 280 | 233 | 83.2% | 50 | 17.9% | 65.4% |
| Biochemical Engineering | 518 | 426 | 82.2% | 90 | 17.4% | 64.9% |
We can see that the departments with the largest divides are typically the ones that are the least competitive for both offers and places. However, over a third of UCL departments have a divide of over 20%, showing that it’s fairly standard practice to give more offers than needed at the university.
As for why this may be happening, there are several options. Firstly, applicants may just not be getting the grades that they need to be admitted. It’s not uncommon, and UCL mostly provides conditional offers with fairly high entry requirements.
However, another key factor is the alternative options available for applicants. UCL is one of the most popular and prestigious universities in the UK, but it’s not the only option in many cases. The other G5 Universities in the UK are equally as recognised (if not more so), so UCL may not be every applicant’s first choice.
Applicants who are able to get an offer from Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial or LSE will very likely be given an offer from UCL as well, based on the strength of their application. However, when looking at the divide between offers and acceptances at these universities, the gaps are usually less extreme, especially at Oxbridge.
While these divides are also not extreme for every UCL course, there is generally a higher proportion of offers that don’t lead to a place versus its G5 counterparts. These universities have equally strict grade requirements, so this could indicate that many applicants view UCL as a second choice.
Despite this, UCL is still the largest university in the UK and seems to have no difficulty filling places on each of it’s courses.
We hope this guide has helped you to understand the chances of success that an average applicant has at UCL. Remember that UCL is a member of the Russell Group, which are universities that are notorious for being more competitive than a standard university, so be sure to check out the other acceptance rates in the group.
While these statistics indicate how the previous cohorts did, remember that this data isn’t a prediction for your admissions cycle. Things can change at any time, so the only way to ensure you have the best chances of success is to build your application and become as competitive as possible for your course. Scoring well in any required admissions tests and writing a compelling Personal Statement will boost your chances of getting your offer.
This is tough to do alone, but our UCL Programme is available to help you get through the Personal Statement, admissions test and interviews like a pro. We’ve spent over ten years getting students into Oxbridge, Imperial, UCL and more, so you can trust that our techniques work! Book a free consultation to learn more about the enrolment process today.
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