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| How do I apply? |
UC Santa Cruz requires online applications to be considered. Applicants who qualify under the Americans with Disabilities Act, will be provided access to a hardcopy version of our application. If you feel you are unable to apply online, please email Bunny Perez at beperez@ucsc.edu, or call (831) 459-4975. |
| What materials are required to apply? |
You need an email address to use the online system. A complete application consists of:
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| Where do I send hard copy materials? |
The online application is designed so that most required items, including your statement of purpose, letters of recommendation, writing samples and resumes, can be submitted online. Please use the online features whenever possible and do not send paper copies of material that has been submitted online. All of your paper documents will be scanned and saved digitally so that they can be viewed electronically by your admissions committee. To assist us in processing your application, please do not bind, glue or laminate your documents. Be sure to include your name, birth date and the department to which you are applying with every document. Mail hardcopy materials to: UC Santa Cruz For additional materials requested by the department, please check their website for information about where to send materials. Unsolicited material sent to Graduate Application Processing will not be included in the review materials and will be discarded. |
| Why do I need an email address? |
The online system requires the email address as an identifier and a means of communication. Also, we will send letters of admission and denial via email. We will also send you other important information via email. |
| What are my options for completing the online application if I have limited internet access? |
There are several things you can do if your internet access is limited. You can
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| May I submit my application online before it is complete? How do I know if you have received all my supporting materials? |
You cannot make any changes to your application after submission. You can, however, submit your application online before you send us all the supporting materials. The deadlines listed are for submission of all documents. You are strongly advised to submit your application and supporting materials well in advance of the official deadlines. There is no guarantee that materials received after the deadline will be collated with your application. |
| May I send the statement of purpose separately? |
Your Statement of Purpose needs to be included in your online application. |
| How do I determine whether or not additional materials are required? |
Go to the website of the UC Santa Cruz department to which you are applying. Any additional (often referred to as “supplemental”) materials required to complete the application package will be listed. |
| Where do I send additional materials requested by the department to which I am applying? |
Check the department’s website for information about required additional materials and where to send them. |
| Do I apply to the Division of Graduate Studies as well as the department? Do I need to submit two sets of materials? |
" No" to both questions. You submit only one application, and only one copy of each transcript. |
| May I apply to more than one department or program of study just in case I’m not accepted to my first choice? |
No, you may apply for admission to only one UCSC graduate program each academic year. |
| What is the application fee and can it be deferred or waived? |
Fees cannot be deferred, but a waiver of fee is possible due to financial hardship. Please be aware that fee waivers are extremely limited and only apply to US citizens and permanent residents with a financial hardship or who participate in a qualifying program. International applicants do not qualify for application fee waivers. The programs for which a fee waiver is accepted are: CAMP, CBSE-RMI, CFAO-RIM, CSU PRE-DOC, LSAMP, MARC, MBRS, MCNAIR, MIRT, PROJECT 1000, STEPS, SURF, SURF-IT or UC LEADS. If you believe you qualify for a program fee waiver, answer 'Yes' to Preliminary Question 5, "Do you qualify for a fee waiver based on financial hardship or participation in a qualifying program? " and answer the questions on the Fee Waiver Authorization Page. If you believe you qualify for a fee waiver based on financial hardship, complete and return the “Request for Application Fee Waiver” form and answer 'Yes' to Preliminary Question 5, "Do you qualify for a fee waiver based on financial hardship or participation in a qualifying program?" We will inform you of our decision. Please do not send a check for the application fee if you are requesting a fee waiver. |
What
test scores are required and when do I submit them?
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For GRE requirements see: http://graddiv.ucsc.edu/admissions/reqs.php It takes approximately 10 days to receive test scores on the computer based tests and six weeks to receive the scores on the paper based tests. If you know your (GRE or TOEFL) scores, report them in your application. Your self-reported GRE score will suffice for review purposes until we receive the official score reports from ETS. Please do not send paper copies of your scores; only the scores reported by ETS are considered official. Note to International students: Because we need the official TOEFL score in order to admit you to the program, please make sure that your official report has been sent by ETS by the deadline. It is strongly recommended that you complete testing at least four to six weeks before your application deadline to allow sufficient time to receive official test scores from ETS. |
| What if my previous school(s) won’t send transcripts directly to me? |
Some institutions do not release transcripts directly to students. If this is the case, request that your transcripts be forwarded directly to: UC Santa Cruz |
| I attended (or I am currently attending) UC Santa Cruz, do I need to order a transcript? |
Yes. Undergraduate and graduate records are kept separately, so you must request a transcript from the Office of the Registrar even if you attended/are attending school here as an undergraduate. |
| I participated in an Education Abroad program. Do I need a transcript from this school? |
You only need a transcript from the EAP school abroad if your home institution did not include your courses and grades on your transcript. |
| Where do I, or my recommender, send letters of recommendation that cannot be submitted online? May my recommender(s) send their letters by email or FAX? |
We now require all applicants to register their reviewers for online letters of recommendation. Please note: Because the online recommendation feature does not allow the recommender to save and edit the letter text, we advise that the recommender complete their letter in a word processing software program (MS Word, Notepad, WordPerfect, etc.) and either paste the text or upload the document into the online recommender submission form. We do not accept letters of recommendation by fax or email. |
| May I submit more than three letters of recommendation? May letters be on recommenders' letterhead instead of the UCSC form? |
You may submit up to five letters if you wish. We require that your recommenders use the online form. |
| What if I want to waive access to review letter(s) of recommendation? (Where can I get a waiver of access form?) |
The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974 does give students, once admitted and enrolled, the right to inspect their records, including letters of recommendation. The FERPA gives important rights, including:
Because the FERPA gives students these rights, neither UCSC nor other institutions or organizations can require you to waive these rights. In fact, we discourage you to waive these rights; it is neither in your interest nor in ours. The following are factors you may want to consider in making the decision to waive or retain access to your letters of recommendation:
If you decide to waive access to a letter, please use our form: Download the Waiver of Access form at http://graddiv.ucsc.edu/student_affairs/PDF/RecWaiverForm.pdf and send it to us with the letter If the letters are submitted online, the waiver forms should be mailed to: UCSC, Graduate Application Processing, 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95064. |
| I have additional relevant academic material (book, magazine article, videotape, award certificate, etc) that I would like the review committee to see. How do I include it with my application? |
If you have website links available to material you would like the review committee to see, please provide the links on your resume, or in the space for additional information. For all other materials, please check the department’s website to find out which materials they will accept and where to send them. Please do not send unrequested materials to Graduate Application Processing. We will not process items that are not required by your department. |
| How will I know if you have received all the materials I’ve sent? What if you did not receive all the material I sent you? |
After you submit your application, you will receive an email with your UCSC User ID and password. You can use your ID and password to log in to the UCSC student portal. If you have sent material that is not displayed in the Portal: If you mailed the document yourself, allow 5-10 business days for mailing and processing time. If the item was sent directly to us by another source, contact the source to confirm if and when it was sent. If your inquiry did not solve the problem, send us an email at gradadm@ucsc.edu to inquire about your missing document. Include in email:
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| Can I review the content of my file? |
Your online application will be available for review after it is submitted. Supporting materials, i.e. transcripts and letters of recommendation, are not available to applicants. The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 does give students, once admitted and enrolled, the right to inspect their records. |
| Will you give information on the status of my file to my parents, spouse, or friend while I'm out of the country? |
File information is provided only to the applicant unless you give permission to release information on your file to a specific person. You can request to give this permission in the field for additional information on the application. If you have already submitted your application, send an email to gradadm@ucsc.edu. |
| When will decisions on my admission to UC Santa Cruz be made? |
You will be notified by email in March as to whether
or not you have been admitted for graduate study at UC Santa Cruz.
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| My recommender wants to edit the letter online. How can that be done? |
The letter of recommendation is saved in pdf format. That means it cannot be edited, but as long as the letter has not been submitted, it can be replaced by another letter. After online submission, the letter cannot be replaced, but a new letter can be submitted for you. If your recommender feels the letter should be replaced after submission, please ask your recommender to contact: Email: embarksupport@custhelp.com |
| What if I have questions that are not answered? |
Questions related to your online application process, system issues, technology challenges (e.g. login problems or browser problems), please contact: Email: embarksupport@custhelp.com Questions regarding university policy and questions about your application that are not answered through the website, please contact the Division of Graduate Studies: Email: gradadm@ucsc.edu Specific questions about the program or the evaluation of your application should be directed to the individual departments. |
| How do I Reactivate my old application? |
Applicants have the option of reactivating an application from last year. You will need to submit a new application and fee, but you may use any or all of your supporting materials such as test scores, transcripts and letters of recommendation. Please note, we keep application materials for only one year, so if you applied two or more years ago, you will need to submit all your supporting materials again.
If you created an online application last year, access your Embark account, and all of your 2008 application information will be there. Please review the entire application before submitting for Fall 2009, as some pieces are not brought over (i.e. Statement of Purpose essay, Writing Samples) and we have made changes to the residency questions. Also, no letters of recommendation are brought forward from the previous year. Once you have submitted your 2009 application, contact gradadm@ucsc.edu and specify which supplemental materials (transcripts, letters of recommendation, etc.) you wish to apply to your 2009 application.
