Santa Cruz, California · Public · 4-year · Small city
Overview
Located in Santa Cruz, California, University of California-Santa Cruz is a public four-year institution. Its campus is in a small city. It enrolled 19,938 students in fall 2024, including 17,940 undergraduates and 1,998 graduate students. It is a land-grant institution. It holds the Carnegie R1 designation for very high research activity. It is part of University of California.
University of California-Santa Cruz offers bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and doctoral degrees across 111 programs. Its largest programs by number of graduates are Computer Science, Behavioral Sciences, and Business/Managerial Economics. It awarded 5,280 degrees and certificates in 2024-25.
88% of full-time first-year students return for a second year. The student-to-faculty ratio is 22 to 1.
Key figures
19,938
Students enrolled
88%
First-year retention
5,280
Degrees and certificates awarded, 2024-25
111
Programs and majors
22:1
Student-to-faculty ratio
Free, no obligation
Request information about University of California-Santa Cruz
Tell us which programs interest you and we will reply with details on this school and others like it.
Tell us the programs you are considering and when you want to start.
We reply by email with schools and programs that fit what you told us.
We use your details only to respond to your request.
Delivery modes
CampusHybrid
Program levels
BachelorMasterPhD
Programs and majors offered 111
Graduate counts are degrees and certificates awarded in each program between July 2024 and June 2025. Largest fields are listed first.
Retention is for students who started in fall 2023 and returned in fall 2024.
First-year retention, full-time students
88%
First-year retention, part-time students
31%
Student-to-faculty ratio
22:1
Degrees and certificates awarded
Awards conferred between July 1, 2024 and June 30, 2025.
Bachelor's degrees
4,655
Master's degrees
392
Doctoral degrees (research)
233
Enrollment
Students, fall 2024
19,938
Undergraduates, fall 2024
17,940
Graduate students, fall 2024
1,998
Full-time, fall 2024
97%
Students over the full 2024-25 year
21,424
Undergraduates, 2024-25
19,317
Graduate students, 2024-25
2,107
Full-time, 2024-25
94%
Size category
10,000 to 19,999 students
Student body
Share of all students enrolled during 2024-25. Small groups can round to zero and are not listed.
Women
52%
Men
48%
White
31%
Hispanic or Latino
27%
Black or African American
2%
Asian
23%
Two or more races
8%
International (U.S. nonresident)
6%
Race or ethnicity unknown
2%
Online and flexible learning
Distance education in 2024-25.
Students studying fully online
2%
Students taking some online courses
66%
Campus and services
Setting
Small city
Academic calendar
Quarter
Part of
University of California
Carnegie classification
Doctoral Universities: Very High Research Activity
Research designation
Research 1: Very High Spending and Doctorate Production
Athletic association
NCAA
Athletic conference
Division III Independents
Chancellor
Cynthia Larive
Services and opportunities
Study abroad, Undergraduate research, Teacher certification, Academic and career counseling, Student employment services, On-campus day care, Accepts AP credit
For veterans and service members
Credit for military training, Dedicated veterans contact, Student veteran organization