They're Growing up, But They Still Need You
Enrolling at a university -- and perhaps leaving home in the process -- is a big step on your student’s path to adulthood. Their new journey will open an exciting array of new discoveries, ideas, and people, accompanied by new responsibilities and choices to make. Throughout the process, you will be an important source of support for your student. In some ways, they may need you now more than ever.
Is Your Student a Good Fit with UC Santa Cruz?
Are you or your student wondering if UC Santa Cruz is a good fit for them? We recommend looking at our Why UCSC? Page. Use this page to understand our campus’s unique offerings, learn how a UCSC education leads to career and graduate school opportunities, and meet some of the campus communities from the place your student will call home for the next few years. If you or your student wish to contact us directly, please go to our Contact Us page.
The UCSC Grading System
Until 2001, UC Santa Cruz used a grading system known as the Narrative Evaluation System, which focused on narrative descriptions written by the professors. However, today all undergraduates are graded on a traditional A-F (4.0) scale. Students may elect a pass/no pass option for no more than 25 percent of their coursework, and several majors further limit the use of pass/no pass grading. More information on grading at UC Santa Cruz.
Health & Safety
Your student’s well-being is our top priority. Find out more about campus programs concerning health and safety, fire safety, and crime prevention. UC Santa Cruz publishes an Annual Security & Fire Safety Report, based on the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Safety and Campus Crime Statistics Act (commonly referred to as the Clery Act). The report contains detailed information on the campus’s crime and fire prevention programs, as well as campus crime and fire statistics for the past three years. A paper version of the report is available upon request.
Student Records & Privacy Policy
UC Santa Cruz follows the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) to protect student privacy. To view the latest policy information on privacy of student data, go to Privacy of Student Records.
Parents of Applicants - Frequently Asked Questions
A: Your student’s admission status can be found on the portal, my.ucsc.edu. All applicants were provided a CruzID and CruzID Gold Password via email. After logging in to the portal, your student should go to “Application Status” and click on “View Status.”
A: In the student portal, my.ucsc.edu, your student should click on the link “Now that I’m Admitted, What’s Next?” From there, your student will be directed to the multi-step online process for accepting the offer of admission.
To view the steps in the acceptance process, go to:
A: For fall admission in 2025, the firm deadline is 11:59:59 p.m. on May 1 for first-year students and June 1 for transfer students. For winter admission, the deadline is October 15. Please encourage your student to accept the offer as soon as they have all the required information, and well before the deadline. Please note that the deadline for accepting the offer of admission will not be extended under any circumstances.
A: Once your student has accepted the offer of admission, please encourage them to continue checking the portal regularly for important information from the campus, including any “To Do” items that may be listed. Meeting the Conditions of Admission Contract, as well as any financial aid and housing deadlines, is critical and ensures your student’s continued status as an admitted student to the campus. It also ensures them access to any applicable housing guarantees. Important dates and deadlines.
A: Every admitted student is responsible for meeting their Conditions of Admission Contract. The Conditions of Admission Contract is always clearly articulated to admitted students in the MyUCSC portal and is available to them on our website.
Admitted students must review and agree to their Conditions of Admission Contract as posted in the MyUCSC portal.
Not meeting the conditions of admission may result in the withdrawal of an admission offer. In this case, please encourage your student to immediately notify Undergraduate Admissions by using this form. Communications should indicate all current grades received and the reason(s) for any drop in academic performance.
A: Information about an applicant’s admission is considered confidential (see the California Information Practices Act of 1977), so although we can speak in general terms with you about our admission policies, we cannot provide specific details about an application or an applicant’s status. If your student wishes to include you in a conversation or meeting with an Admissions representative, we are happy to speak with you at that time.
A: Yes! Our mandatory orientation program, Campus Orientation, carries university course credit and consists of completing a series of online courses (during June, July, and August) and full participation in Fall Welcome Week.
A: For this information, please see the FAQs for Information for First-Year Students Not Offered Admission and Information for Transfer Students Not Offered Admission.
A: For most admission periods, UCSC implements a waitlist in order to more effectively manage enrollments. Your student will not automatically be put on the waitlist, but will have to opt in. Also, being on the waitlist is not a guarantee of receiving an offer of admission at a later date. Please see the FAQs for the Waitlist Option.
Next steps
