Learning About Majors and Career Fields

There are many ways to approach  your search for a fulfilling major at UCSC. As you may know, one of the goals of First Year Advising is that you will have a Proposed Major at the end of your first year. 

• You can find a complete list of UCSC majors along with their related career fields here. 
• For the steps involved in choosing and qualifying for a major, click here.
• As you find majors that interest you, check out the major’s Major Advising Summary for a sample first year plan, skills important for success in the major, and to learn of any qualification requirements.
• To explore majors using the Academic Cluster Information that allows you to browse through academic interest areas, click here.

If you find yourself unable to narrow your potential majors down to 2 or 3 choices, you may want to start by thinking in a larger way about what general academic areas interest you. Try looking at the majors offered by each academic Division at UCSC.

• ARTS: Do you like to study human expression through the arts? Check out the majors offered by the Arts Division.
• HUMANITIES: Does the idea of studying how we understand, document, and process the human experience appeal to you? You may be interested in the majors offered by the Humanities Division.
• SOCIAL SCIENCES: Are you curious about societies, nations, policies, and the individuals that form them? Check out the Social Sciences majors.
• PHYSICAL & BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES: Do you have an interest in the structures and patterns of living creatures, environments, and the physical world? Explore the majors offered by the Division of Physical and Biological Sciences majors.
• ENGINEERING: Do you think well quantitatively and want to learn how to measure, design, and numerically describe ideas and objects? Check out the majors in the School of Engineering.