For application purposes for first-time freshman, pre-Pub Aff is housed in Letters & Sciences, so it’s whatever the general acceptance rate is (L & S doesn’t admit by major). To become a Pub Affairs major, you later apply to Luskin & declare the major. You have to complete the right pre-reqs etc. just like any other major. My son is considering a minor in Pub Aff but he knows lots of students who are majoring in it, and I think they like it (and it’s not arduous to get into the major once you are at UCLA). So in terms of acceptance rate, I would just assume the overall acceptance rate of between 8 & 9% for UCLA.
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I don’t think a distinction was made with L&S in admissions because the major is sufficiently new that until recently there were more places than qualified applicants (it only started in 2017). Quite a few PoliSci pre-majors (including my S18) changed into PubAff during freshman year. Declaring the major didn’t require any specific minimum GPA, it was a qualitative assessment but my S wasn’t aware of any significant numbers being unable to declare it. He enjoyed the practical nature of the major, although many of the senior capstone internship placements were disappointing, and most students in Luskin are considerably less quantitative than Econ majors. There’s a tendency amongst some professors to push students towards either political activism or non-profit/government jobs.
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My son is working on his UCLA alumni scholarship essays and I’m trying to figure out if the scholarship readers have access to applicants original UC essays or other aspects of their original application like extra curriculars, etc? Are alumni scholarship awards based solely on the alumni scholarship essays? The UCLA doesn’t provide a lot of info
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The Alumni Scholarship association is separate from the admissions committee. I was in the zoom meeting this past weekend and representatives from the Alumni Scholarship association said they don’t have access to applications.
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Thanks! It seems a little crazy that they base scholarships on just those essay prompts but this whole college process feels crazy so I guess it fits right in!! 
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I forget exact wording but the alumni scholarship app has a note in it saying that you can essentially recycle UC app material since they will not have access to it.
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They actually also ask for activities and awards. So, it’s essays, awards and activities that they see – no GPA, Classes or Test Scores or original app.
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Do you know if those awards can be used for just tuition or applied to R&B as well?
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Tuition only!
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Not strictly true. It’s credited to your quarterly bill, which includes tuition and on campus housing/meal plan. So it’s fungible if you have other stacking scholarships/aid (eg tuition exchange that must be applied to your tuition). And I think any excess balance is refundable in cash, eg if you are living off campus. What I don’t know is how it interacts with instate need-based aid.
Son just received another you belong at UCLA email. It is making him so excited but do these emails connect in any way to admissions or are they simply for marketing purposes.
Thanks to anyone that can help.
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100% marketing. Take none of it to mean anything regarding admission. Alas. 
The UCs release late, so they are conscious of needing to keep themselves top of mind when competing against schools that have admitted students already.
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They don’t mean anything.
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Does anyone know when UCLA decisions will be released?? Thanks
I have posted this several times already. Historically the 3rd Friday of March decisions have been posted but not confirmed.
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Thank you for your help.
I knew it may be the third week in March. I just wanted to know if any updates occurred with a more specific date.
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I think it depends on major. Nursing requests this.
I forgot to list Nursing on my original reply but the poster also stated UCSD which does not have a Nursing major so probably related to a Design/Art/Music type major.
Correct-I was referencing UCLA
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Hey! I applied to UCLA Theater with an emphasis on Acting and they sent a congratulations email with them asking me to interview. My interview is already complete, but does anyone know how this information relates to admissions? Do you have to get accepted to the school first, then you get accepted to the specific major, or does the major have to accept me first and then they send the OK to admissions and they take it from there? Does anyone know the process with that? I know our admissions are much different than regular and I am just confused. Thank you!
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