<p>For someone who’s competitive for Stanford, I’d say schools ranked about 30 and beyond can be considered either a safe match or safety. For Californians, that would be all Cal States and all UCs except Berkeley and UCLA (yes, even UCSD can be a safety, especially if you’re an ELC student). Of course, certain schools you might be just a “match” at while other schools are safeties for you, since different schools have different admissions. But generally, I’d say they can be considered safeties if you’re competitive for Stanford, and by “competitive,” I mean a high GPA (3.8+), strong SAT scores (2100+), some ECs that show a passion/focus and leadership, some good awards/honors, good essays, etc.</p>