Division of Graduate Studies

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Prospective Students

Next Steps Towards Enrollment

Congratulations again on your admission to graduate study at UC Santa Cruz. We’re excited to have you join our vibrant community of students, scholars and researchers. In preparation for your enrollment, please review the following information and take any required action.

Included below is information on:

Official Transcripts

Incoming students are required to submit final, official transcripts from any institution of higher education from which they’ve earned a degree (bachelor’s degree or higher). In order for a transcript to meet this requirement, the transcript must arrive in its sealed, original university envelope and must state the degree earned, program of study, and date on which the degree was conferred.

Secure, electronic transmission of transcripts from institutions supporting such technology are also accepted from the following companies only:

Parchment, Credential Solutions, e-Scrip Safe, National Student Clearinghouse, OpenCerts, or World Education Services only.

If your school does not use one of these companies to deliver their e-transcripts, you must request a hard copy, official transcript (and degree certificate, if necessary) from your school. 

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**Students verifying degrees from non-U.S. schools must use a World Education Service course-by-course ICAP evaluation to meet the degree verification requirement.  More details available at gradadmissions.ucsc.edu.**

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If you are graduating from UCSC we will verify your degree internally – you should check your Application Status checklist to see if the “Official Degree” requirement is completed. If this has not been completed by the first week of classes, please email gradadm[at]ucsc.edu.

Failure to verify your degree(s) by the deadline will result in an enrollment hold on your student account and will prevent you from enrolling in courses for the next academic term, until verification has been completed. This applies to both bachelor’s and higher degrees. If you are graduating at the end of a term immediately preceding the UCSC quarter for which you have been admitted, you must obtain confirmation from your previous university that your degree requirements are completed and a degree conferral date; this information must be emailed directly (not forwarded) to Marissa Maciel at maciel[at]ucsc.edu. 

If your degree is not awarded (conferred) by the third week of classes, your enrollment at UC Santa Cruz, as well as all financial support, will be subject to cancellation if you do not provide evidence of graduation, and of satisfying any further conditions set by the department. 

We do not provisionally admit graduate students at UC Santa Cruz. You are required to provide a final transcript with degree certification to the Graduate Division at UC Santa Cruz. 

You are responsible for verifying any degrees stated as earned or in-progress on your application.

  • For students starting in Fall or Summer, enrollment holds will be placed for any degree not verified by October 19. 
  • Students starting in Winter, enrollment holds will be placed for any degree not verified by January 19.

>> Official transcripts for domestically earned (U.S.) degrees may be sent directly from the institution to the address below:

Degree Verification
Graduate Application Processing
UC Santa Cruz
1156 High Street
Santa Cruz CA 95064

>> Degrees earned outside of the U.S.; you must obtain a World Education Service (WES) course-by-course (ICAP) report and have that sent electronically to our division. See our website for complete instructions (https://www.gradadmissions.ucsc.edu/international-applicants).

To track receipt of your official transcripts, log onto your application status page at https://applygrad.ucsc.edu and scroll down to the Application Checklist. Items not completed will be listed as “Awaiting.” Completed checklist items will listed as “Received.”

Campus Email

You are encouraged to activate your campus email account as soon as possible:

  1. Log into CruzID Manager at https://cruzid.ucsc.edu using your CruzID and Gold password;
    • If you are setting up your account for the first time select “First Time user.” Follow the prompts to set up your Gold password.
  2. Click the link ‘Set CruzID Password’.
  3. Verify that your Password Recovery Email address accurate.
  4. Enroll in MFA by clicking on “Multi-Factor Authentication” from the CruzID Manager home page and follow the prompts. More information about enrolling in MFA can be found at https://its.ucsc.edu/mfa/index.html.

You will use your CruzID and password to access your campus email account (https://email.ucsc.edu), as well as the campus wireless network and several other systems on campus. Email is the campus’ primary method of communication and is used for most campus business, including financial aid and billing.

You are responsible for checking your campus email account or having mail forwarded to another account that you plan to check on a regular basis. For more information on campus email, visit https://its.ucsc.edu/email/index.html.

Residence Status

California residence status for tuition purposes is determined for most graduate students at the time of application, though some students are required to submit a Statement of Legal Residence (SLR) form. We advise that you view your residence status in the MyUCSC portal as soon as possible to determine whether you are required to complete this form. If the SLR is required, you must complete and submit it along with any required documentation by the deadline listed in your MyUCSC Student Center; Go to the Student Homepage, To Do List tile and click the link for the SLR.

Please note that if you are currently classified as a non-resident, you may be eligible to establish resident status within one year. It is your responsibility to take the steps necessary to do to so in a timely fashion and petition for a change in residence status should you be eligible.

For more information, visit https://registrar.ucsc.edu/fees/residency/index.html. 

Visa Application

Information for international students admitted for fall or summer, who need visa sponsorship from UCSC, will be forthcoming in late April and early May from the International Student Services & Programs office (ISSP). They will contact you if you indicated that you will need sponsorship from UCSC for an F1 or J1 visa. You will submit your I-20/DS-2019 request through the UCSC Visa Document Request Tool (VDRT), and you will receive further instructions and the link to use from ISSP. Please do not email them, as this delays their efforts to assist all incoming international students and scholars.

Housing

Information about university housing, including Graduate Student Housing and Family Student Housing, can be found on the UCSC Housing website.

Students interested in finding rental housing in the off-campus community are encouraged to utilize the rental listings and other helpful online resources at communityrentals.ucsc.edu.

An online Renters Workshop is also available to help students optimize their rental search and provide valuable tips for first-time renters.

The Places4Students.com rental listing site contains off-campus rentals in the communities surrounding UCSC, as well as roommate profiles of UCSC affiliates who are looking for off-campus housing. Viewing of rental listings and roommate profiles is restricted to UCSC affiliates so this is a great resource for all UCSC students.

Financial Aid

If you have not already submitted a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), or Renewal FAFSA, to the federal processing center, please complete the form at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov as soon as possible. Much of our student support funding is need-based, and we can award those funds only to students who have demonstrated financial need by filing the FAFSA. (This is not required to redeem any financial support you were awarded as part as your admission. It also does not assume that you will qualify for need-based aid.) If you are applying for a Federal Loan, UCSC’s Financial Aid Office will notify you of the outcome separately. Note: International students are not eligible for federal student aid, so they should not fill out the FAFSA.

Undocumented students who meet AB540 requirements may choose to fill out the California Dream Act Application, via the California Student Aid Commission (CSAC). The California Dream Act Application is used to apply for state financial aid, such as the Cal Grant and the Middle Class Scholarship as well as institutional aid from colleges like the Blue and Gold Scholarship or the State University Grant (SUG). More information is available through the CSAC.

Student Health Services

Located on McLaughlin Drive across from College Nine and John R. Lewis College, the Student Health Center provides quality health care focused on the particular needs of students. All registered students have access to the Student Health Center regardless of their insurance plan, as services are partially supported by their Student Services fee. Care is provided by board-certified physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants. Students can be seen by appointment or, in cases of acute illness or injury, on the same day at the Same Day Clinic. In case of emergencies, either during the day or after normal operating hours, please call 911.

In addition, the Student Health Center offers counseling and psychiatry services, nutritional counseling, health promotion, X-ray, laboratory, optometry and pharmacy services on site. The center is open weekdays during the regular academic year. For summer services and hours, visit the Student Health Center’s web site.

For more information, visit the Student Health Center web site (https://healthcenter.ucsc.edu/), or e-mail healthcenter@ucsc.edu.

IMMUNIZATION AND TUBERCULOSIS SCREENING REQUIREMENTS: All new incoming UC students are required to obtain specific vaccines and tuberculosis (TB) screening before you arrive on campus. Compliance with this requirement will be tracked by student’s submission of an online Immunization form and TB Risk screening. These forms must be submitted securely online at the Health e-Messenger site https://studenthealth.ucsc.edu/. To achieve compliance YOU MUST ENTER YOUR DATA VIA THE Health e-Messenger site; faxing or emailing your records does not meet compliance.

Additionally, all new incoming students are asked to complete a Personal Health History Questionnaire. For more information about UCSC Student Health Services and the very specific UC immunization requirements, please visit https://healthcenter.ucsc.edu/information/uc_vaccines.html

STUDENT HEALTH INSURANCE: To ensure that emergencies and other health care costs do not interfere with a student’s education, all University of California students are mandated by the UC Regents to carry health insurance. A comprehensive and affordable program specifically designed for students is available through the university via the University of California Student Health Insurance Plan (UC SHIP). All students are automatically enrolled in UC SHIP and billed quarterly through their student account, unless they choose to waive this coverage by providing proof of suitable insurance by the specified deadline.

For detailed information regarding insurance coverage and the waiver process, visit https://healthcenter.ucsc.edu/billing-insurance/index.html. For students who successfully waive UC SHIP, it is recommended that students and families consider adding CruzCare which provides access to the Student Health Center for illness and injuries and covers in-house laboratory tests and X-rays, for a quarterly flat fee. Fees will be assessed for most visits for students without UC SHIP or CruzCare.

Title IX Training Requirement

Students are required to complete Title IX Sexual Harassment and Sexual Violence Training. You will be contacted about specific training requirements and deadlines by the Title IX office, delivered to your UCSC email account.

Enrollment

Important: You should bookmark and refer to the UCSC Academic Calendar for all enrollment deadlines. New calendars are released typically in May or June.

For students starting in Winter: Enrollment for new graduate students begins in November. Contact your department for further information regarding enrollment.

For students starting in Summer:

  • Education Master’s students should contact Esperanza Zamora about their enrollment requirements.
  • Students starting in summer for Graduate Student Research appointments should inquire with their faculty advisors about any necessary enrollments.
  • Students arriving early for the Graduate Preparatory Program (GPP) language skills course will be given infomation by the International Student Services & Programs (ISSP) office in late April or early May.

For students starting in Fall: New student enrollment for the fall quarter begins in June. Contact your department for further information regarding enrollment.

If you have questions about the information above, you may contact the following departments or individuals:

IN THIS SECTION

Last modified: Oct 08, 2024