Sophia Alvarado
Social Media & Marketing Director
With over 25 percent of its undergraduate student population identifying as Hispanic, UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) earned federal recognition as a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) in 2015. HSIs are defined as nonprofit, degree-granting postsecondary institutions that have at least 25 percent Hispanic undergraduate enrollment. In 2015, Latine students made up 27 percent of the UCSB undergraduate student population. According to UCSB records, for the 2024–2025 academic year, Latine students made up 28 percent of UCSB’s undergraduate population, as well as 40.7 percent of first year admits from low income families. This means that in one decade, UCSB’s Hispanic population only went up one percent.
HSI
UCSB was the first institution in the Association of American Universities to be an HSI. Among the 600 HSIs nationwide, UCSB is also a part of the 22 universities classified as a Hispanic-Serving Research Institution. This is a designation for Research 1 institutions for high research activity that meet rigorous standards.
UCSB is also a member of the Alliance of Hispanic Serving Research Universities and was granted the title of a Fulbright HSI leader in 2024, the fourth year in a row. The Fulbright program is the U.S. government’s “flagship international academic exchange program.” A Fulbright HSI leader demonstrates the power that HSIs have as destinations for international scholars.
How is this addressed on campus?
Being an HSI means having access to grants and funding opportunities for UCSB that are designed to support Hispanic students’ academic success. It is also designated to make UCSB more inclusive and to promote diversity on campus by developing new programs for students, such as the Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies, the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, and the Latin American and Iberian Studies Program.
The Opening New Doors to Accelerating Students Student Center (OSC) is an academic resource center dedicated to first-generation college students. The OSC is funded by the Department of Education Title V HSI grant. At UCSB, the OSC promotes the success of first-generation college students and provides mentoring and academic support for students to connect with faculty and peers.
Are Hispanic students satisfied?
The question of how Hispanic students at UCSB feel that our school is managing as an HSI is different according to each student’s individual experience. These perspectives are based on their engagement with UCSB’s Hispanic community and whether they feel represented.
According to the UCSB research guide about the Latine community, many students claim to be happy and satisfied with the Hispanic community that UCSB offers. Marisol Hernandez stated that “the Chicanx/Latinx community at UCSB truly offers a sense of home.”
There are still improvements that can be made so that UCSB can become more inclusive and supportive of the Hispanic community. Many incoming college students get intimidated by the predominantly white population at UCSB. To discontinue this, UCSB could partner with more local schools to introduce and educate incoming students about the resources that are available for Hispanic and Latine students.
As an HSI, UCSB has a lot of resources available for Hispanic students, but there can always be improvements. UCSB must ensure that there are strong financial aid packages and scholarships available for students from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds in order for UCSB to be accessible to Hispanic students, especially those from low income families.