Prospective Students

Prospective students

We welcome all students to explore the UC Santa Cruz Creative Technologies major.

Please use these links to jump to the section relevant to you:

Current UCSC students looking to change majors or add the CT major

Former UCSC students seeking readmission with the CT major

Frosh applicants to UCSC

Transfer applicants to UCSC

Current UCSC students looking to change majors or add the CT major

Thank you for your interest in changing majors to CT, or adding CT as a second major!

CT coursework is intended to be taken in the junior and senior years (see Sample Planners). Therefore, students move through the program in cohorts that begin in junior year. The CT program follows a relatively inflexible, sequential 2-year curriculum.

It is important to meet with the CT advisor early on if you are interested in changing majors to CT or adding CT as an additional major.

Check out our page on Major Qualification for more information about declaring the CT major.

Current Frosh or Sophomores:

It is best if you decide to change majors to CT or add it as an additional major by spring of your sophomore year so you can complete the major coursework in a timely manner.

If you are interested in pursuing CT, please make an appointment with the CT advisor via Slug Success or by emailing creative@ucsc.edu in order to discuss a pathway forward.

Current Juniors or Seniors:

Due to CT’s inflexible, sequential 2-year curriculum, you will most likely need to extend your time to graduation if you would like to change majors to CT or add CT as an additional major if you are already a junior or senior.

If you are still interested despite potential delays to your graduation time, please make an appointment with the CT advisor via Slug Success or by emailing creative@ucsc.edu in order to discuss a pathway forward.

Former UCSC students seeking readmission with CT as a major

Please feel free to email the CT advisor at creative@ucsc.edu to request a meeting to discuss readmission.

Frosh applicants to UCSC

For general UCSC admissions information, please visit admissions.ucsc.edu. We also suggest bookmarking Important Dates to Know which highlights important admissions deadlines. Also feel free to explore our Creative Technologies-specific Admissions page.

Students interested in majoring in Creative Technologies are encouraged to speak with the CT advisor early in their academic career. Due to the rigid nature of the courses, students move through the program in cohorts beginning their junior year. Incoming frosh do not need to satisfy any requirements prior to arriving at UCSC.

During the first two years, students should complete their general education requirements and major qualification requirements. Instruction in coding, 2D drawing, 3D modeling, and/or audio design is encouraged.

Transfer applicants to UCSC

For general UCSC admissions information, please visit admissions.ucsc.edu. We also suggest bookmarking Important Dates to Know which highlights important admissions deadlines. Also feel free to explore our Creative Technologies-specific Admissions page.

Creative technologies is a non-screening major. Transfer students planning to apply to UC Santa Cruz with this major are not required to complete specific major preparation courses for consideration of admission.

Transfer students who have not taken any in-person courses at a UC campus prior to beginning the CT major are required to take at least six credits of in-person UC courses per quarter for a minimum of three quarters after transferring to UCSC, for a total of 18 in-person credits completed during their time as an enrolled UC student. Transfer students may fulfill this requirement by taking in-person colloquium and elective courses in their first year after transferring.

Recommended coursework:

To establish foundational knowledge and practices in arts and/or design prior to the major, the following courses are recommended prior to transfer:

• Coursework in programming, 2D drawing, 3D modeling, or sound design.
• At least one course in a justice-related topic, including but not limited to: courses in critical race and ethnic studies (or similar), indigenous studies, labor studies, disability and accessibility, feminist studies, gender studies, and/or courses on postcolonial or decolonizing practices.
• At least one course in critical art and media studies, including but not limited to: courses in the dissemination and interpretation of contemporary media; visual and aural culture studies; film studies; documentary or archive studies; media history; relationships between media, power, and representation; and critical studies of journalism, social media, or popular culture.

Planning for general education:

Due to the availability of online courses outside of Creative Technologies, students are encouraged to complete the UCSC general education requirements in one of three ways:

1. Complete the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) from a California Community College.
2. Complete the general education requirement from another University of California campus, if transferring from another UC.
3. Complete equivalent courses at another institution to apply toward the general education requirements at UCSC.

If students have not completed the general education requirements, they should ensure, prior to transferring, that they have completed coursework that satisfies the Ethnicity and Race (ER), Scientific Inquiry (SI), Statistical Reasoning (SR), and Composition (C) general education requirements. The Creative Technologies curriculum satisfies the remaining GE requirements.