Applying to UC Santa Cruz as a Transfer Student
UC Santa Cruz welcomes applications from non-U.S. transfer students! Many of our international transfer students come to us having studied for two years at a California community college.
Apply to UCSC by completing the online University of California application for admission. The application filing period is October 1-November 30 of the year before your planned fall enrollment. For fall 2025 admission only, we are offering a special extended deadline of December 2, 2024.
Admissions Requirements
All transfer applicants, both international and domestic, are reviewed using the same application and selection process.
You can find detailed information about the requirements and selection process on our Transfer Admission and Selection page.
If you have attended international and U.S. colleges or universities, both your international and U.S. courses and grades will be considered. You may also be required to demonstrate English proficiency if your first language and the language of instruction for all or most of your education is in a language other than English.
Your Academic Records
When you apply, you must report all international coursework whether completed in the USA or in another country. Your grades/exam marks should be reported as shown on your international academic records. Do not try to convert your coursework to U.S. grades or use an evaluation done by an agency. If your grades appear as numbers, words, or percentages, report them as such in your application. You may use the Additional Comments section of the application to explain anything that is unclear or confusing in your academic record. The online UC undergraduate application for admission and scholarships gives specific instructions based on your country's educational system. Please follow these instructions carefully.
Proof of English Proficiency
For instructions on how to satisfy UCSC's English Proficiency Requirement, please see our English Proficiency web page.
Additional Documents
Be prepared to send an unofficial copy of your academic records if requested. You would be notified by email, so please make sure you have a working email account and that email coming from @ucsc.edu is not filtered out.
UC campuses have articulation agreements with all of the community colleges in California that detail transferability of courses and application to major preparation and general education requirements. Although UC does not have written agreements with colleges and universities outside of California, there is valuable information on ASSIST and on the UC Office of the President website.
