Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

How many schools do you know that have hiking trails on campus and a pier on the Pacific Ocean? Well, that’s Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, our top-ranked university that also happens to be an outdoor adventurer's paradise. Students can hike to the famous Cal Poly “P” and study marine biology on a 3,000-foot pier in San Luis Obispo Bay on the same day. When students actually make it back to campus they walk the same halls as well-known engineers, athletes and entertainers like astronaut Robert L. Gibson, football coach John Madden and comedian "Weird Al" Yankovic.

California Polytechnic State University is a public university founded in 1901 with a current enrollment of around 20,000 students and a main campus that spreads across 1,300 acres of picturesque hills. Cal Poly is best-known for its engineering and agriculture programs. At Cal Poly’s College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences students learn about everything from avocados to the anatomy of a cow. The Cal Poly Department of Engineering is the most popular major on campus and features aerospace, computer and biomedical engineering programs where students follow the school’s motto, “Learn by Doing”. In total the school offers nearly 30 degrees, including those in the Orfalea College of Business and College of Architecture and Environmental Design.

The school also has a vibrant arts scene with theatre and dance productions from students and a Performing Arts Center that hosts touring shows, performers and speakers. Cal Poly’s eclectic student-run radio station 91.3 KCPR was named the top college radio station by Great Value Colleges.

But the fight to be apart of the Cal Poly experience is tough. Tens-of-thousands apply every year but the school’s acceptance rate is under 30 percent with an average grade-point-average above 4.0. With everything the school has to offer, it’s not hard to see why so many students want to go to college in SLO CAL.