The majority of students will never be charged the complete price tag of a school. Rather, they are presented a financial aid deal that includes a mix of loans, grants, scholarships, and possibly work-study opportunities. The sum total of attendance at University of California-Irvine can sound overwhelming, but bear in mind that many students get some type of financial aid.
What financing options does UC Irvine offer, and what will you qualify for? Keep scrolling for more information. Keep going to see how much school funding could be available to you.
Eligibility for aid and scholarships is driven mostly by your household’s income and need. The information provided on this page can help you determine how much aid you may receive from University of California-Irvine.
Colleges use loans, grants, scholarships and work-study to minimize what students actually pay out of pocket. Keep in mind that certain forms of assistance are more beneficial than others, and aid amounts differ from student to student.
Looking at the entering class at University of California-Irvine, 61% of new full-time first-years were awarded at least some aid around 4137 students).
| Type of Aid | % of Freshmen Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 55% | $23,110 |
| Institutional grants & scholarships | 45% | $10,594 |
| Federal Pell grants | 31% | $5,968 |
| State/local grants | 47% | $12,524 |
| Federal student loans | 20% | $4,457 |
Grants and scholarships are the most valuable form of aid because, unlike loans, they never have to be repaid. At UC Irvine, some 62% of undergraduates were awarded grant or scholarship aid averaging $21,866 (for some 18409 students).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 62% | $21,866 |
| Federal Pell grants | 36% | $5,720 |
| Federal student loans | 20% | $5,334 |
Title-IV recipients living on campus saw average grant aid of $24,381.
Need-based aid means lower-income families typically pay far less than the sticker price suggests.
| Family Income | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| $0 – $48,000 | $7,136 |
| $30,001 – $75,000 | $9,665 |
| Over $75,000 | $25,054 |
Each amount is the average cost remaining once grant aid is subtracted, by income band.
Net price is the average annual cost after grants and scholarships are subtracted from the published cost of attendance — the figure closest to what a typical aid-receiving student actually pays.
| Cohort | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| On-campus title-IV students | $14,251 |
| Off-campus title-IV students | $13,240 |
To get a personalized net price estimate, try UC Irvine’s official net price calculator: www.ofas.uci.edu/content/Calculator.aspx.
The middle student in the debt distribution at UC Irvine owes $13,820 of cumulative federal debt.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $13,820 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $15,000 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $159.02/mo |
At a typical 10-year repayment schedule, the median graduate would pay about the monthly figure above.
The numbers below show the full range, not just the middle of the distribution. The figures below chart the debt distribution at UC Irvine.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $3,997 |
| 25th percentile | $7,500 |
| 75th percentile | $23,200 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $28,458 |
How much a student borrows depends heavily on family income, first-gen status, and dependency.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $13,000 |
| Middle income | $13,300 |
| High income | $15,000 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $13,297 |
| Continuing-generation students | $15,000 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $13,727 |
| Independent students | $14,334 |
Federal data publishes pre-calculated indicators that summarize debt outcomes. UC Irvine.
Most undergraduate borrowing runs through the federal Stafford loan program. The totals below capture Stafford lending at UC Irvine:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 56900 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $1,114,498,890 |
If you are a veteran or active-duty service member, the GI Bill and DoD Tuition Assistance are the primary federal programs you can use at this school.
GI Bill volume
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| GI Bill recipients | 102 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $3,305,683 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $32,409 |
DoD Tuition Assistance activity
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| DoD Tuition Assistance recipients | 0 |
| Total DoD amount | $0 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.