About us

#2
Best school for making an impact (2022)

#3
Global rank for research influence (2018)

#2
Most popular college for ecology & evolution (2021)

#11
Global rank in space science (2022)

#8
National rank for highest paid cell biology graduates (2022)

#19
National rank in Earth science (2022)

#22
National rank in cell biology & anatomical sciences (2022)

#37
National rank for Earth & environmental sciences research output (2022)

#25
Global rank in oceanography (2022)

~31,000
Science alumni making an impact on the world as of 2017

63%
Science alumni living and working in California as of 2017

24%
Alumni with a MCD Biology degree as of 2017

1
National Medal of Science

1
Nobel Laureate

1
Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences

12
National Academy of Sciences members

20
American Academy of Arts & Sciences members

2
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators

1
Bower Award & Prize for Achievement in Science

1
MacArthur Foundation Fellow

8
Packard Foundation Fellows

9
Academic departments dedicated to teaching and research

3
Professional graduate programs and training tracks

27
Undergraduate science degree programs

25
Graduate science degree programs

16:1
Undergraduate student to faculty ratio (2018)

.27:1
Master student to faculty ratio (2018)

3:1
Ph.D. student to faculty ratio (2018)

3.94
Admitted freshman average GPA (2018)

88.5%
Transfer students accepted from California (2019)

20.4%
Graduate degree acceptance rate (2019)

980
Bachelor degrees awarded annually (2018)

118
Graduate degrees awarded annually (2019)

3,895
Enrolled undergraduate students, 21% of the UC Santa Cruz undergraduate student body

582
Enrolled graduate students, 30% of the UC Santa Cruz graduate student body

35%
First-generation college student enrollment

60%
Women undergraduate student enrollment

49%
Women graduate student enrollment

64%
Undergraduate students who identify as nonwhite

39%
Graduate students who identify as nonwhite

31%
Undergraduate students who identify as Hispanic/Latino

95%
Transfer students accepted from California

55%
UC Santa Cruz received $689.8 million in sponsored research and development from 2013–19. During this time, the Science Division and our research institutes accounted for $376.43 million or 55% of the university’s total output.

$24.5m
According to the National Science Foundation, in 2017 UC Santa Cruz ranked 40th for research and development expenditures in “geosciences, atmospheric sciences, and ocean sciences.”

16th
According to the National Science Foundation, UC Santa Cruz is in the top 16.6 percentile for national research and development expenditures and in the top 11.8 percentile for federal research obligations as of 2017.

30%
Faculty and researchers in the Science Division were granted 29 patents, or 30% of the patients at UC Santa Cruz, for their groundbreaking research from 2013–18. See the full list of technologies available from the University of California.

#1
UC Santa Cruz is the top employer based in Santa Cruz County. The Science Division is one of the largest employers at UC Santa Cruz, with nearly 850 team members (~21% of all employees).

$29.6m
According to the National Science Foundation, in 2018 UC Santa Cruz ranked 50th for research and development expenditures in “physical sciences.”

$1.3b
According to the UC Santa Cruz 2011–12 Economic Impact Report, the campus generates $1.3 billion in economic activity within the greater Santa Cruz region.

$242m
According to the UC Santa Cruz 2011–12 Economic Impact Report, faculty and staff spent more than $242 million in the greater Monterey Bay area during 2011–12.

$178m
According to the UC Santa Cruz 2011–12 Economic Impact Report, students spent more than $178 million in the greater Monterey Bay area during 2011–12.