University of California Retirement Plan vs School Employees Retirement System of Ohio (SERS)
Side-by-side pension health comparison from DOL and public plan data
University of California Retirement Plan (B) and School Employees Retirement System of Ohio (SERS) (B) are close on the LakeQuality rubric. Funding ratios sit at 84% and 68% respectively — within a few points of each other.
With grades this close, the comparison turns on plan-specific factors: status (active vs frozen), participant maturity, sponsor financial health, and multi-year trajectory rather than the headline composite.
Verdict
University of California Retirement Plan has a stronger Pension Health Score of 78/100 (B) compared to School Employees Retirement System of Ohio (SERS) at 66/100 (B). Funding ratios differ by 15.6 percentage points (83.5% vs 67.9%). University of California Retirement Plan covers 305,000 participants.
| Metric | University of California Retirement Plan | School Employees Retirement System of Ohio (SERS) |
|---|---|---|
| Health Score Composite of funding ratio, trend, and PBGC risk | 78/100 (B)* | 66/100 (B) |
| Funding Ratio Assets as % of liabilities (100%+ is fully funded) | 83.5%* | 67.9% |
| Total Assets | $82.0B | $16.2B |
| Total Liabilities | $98.2B | $23.9B* |
| Unfunded Liability | $16.2B | $7.7B* |
| Participants | 305,000 | 218,000 |
| 1-Year Investment Return | 7.2%* | 5.3% |
| Plan Type | public | public |
| PBGC Risk Level | low | moderate |
| Sponsor | University of California | State of Ohio |
University of California Retirement Plan has a stronger Pension Health Score of 78/100 (B) compared to School Employees Retirement System of Ohio (SERS) at 66/100 (B). Funding ratios differ by 15.6 percentage points (83.5% vs 67.9%). University of California Retirement Plan covers 305,000 participants.