Physical Sciences at UC Santa Cruz
Physical Sciences is the 7th most common field at UC Santa Cruz: 226 graduates in 2023, or 4.9% of everyone who completed a bachelor's degree there that year. Nationally, 1.29% of bachelor's degrees are in this field, so it is far more concentrated at UC Santa Cruz (3.8x the national share). 39% of those graduates were women.
Is physical sciences competitive at UC Santa Cruz?
Colleges report one admission rate for the whole school; here is the bar you are actually measured against, and how the model treats this major.
UC Santa Cruz admitted 43,054 of 68,845 applicants for fall 2023 (66%). Colleges report admissions at the school level, not by major, so there is no published acceptance rate for physical sciences at UC Santa Cruz. CollegeCalcAI's published model treats "Physics / Chemistry" as more competitive than UC Santa Cruz's overall rate (multiplier 0.98 on the effective admit rate), so an applicant declaring this field is scored against a slightly higher bar.
How to apply to UC Santa Cruz for physical sciences
What readers look for from applicants who declare this field, at any selectivity.
- Chemistry and physics at the highest level, with calculus
- A lab or research experience, even a small one, described specifically
- Math depth matters as much as science grades here
- Run your odds with the major set: your estimate at UC Santa Cruz for physical sciences →
Where else to study physical sciences
Other colleges in California and at a similar selectivity that award bachelor's degrees in this field.
Every college ranked by physical sciences graduates: colleges that graduate the most physical sciences majors → · Physical Sciences colleges in California →
More majors at UC Santa Cruz
The other fields UC Santa Cruz graduates the most students in, 2023.
Questions about physical sciences at UC Santa Cruz
How many students major in physical sciences at UC Santa Cruz?
226 students earned a bachelor's degree in physical sciences at UC Santa Cruz in 2023, 4.9% of that year's 4,658 graduates (IPEDS completions, first majors).
Is physical sciences competitive at UC Santa Cruz?
UC Santa Cruz admitted 43,054 of 68,845 applicants for fall 2023 (66%). Colleges report admissions at the school level, not by major, so there is no published acceptance rate for physical sciences at UC Santa Cruz. CollegeCalcAI's published model treats "Physics / Chemistry" as more competitive than UC Santa Cruz's overall rate (multiplier 0.98 on the effective admit rate), so an applicant declaring this field is scored against a slightly higher bar.
What is the acceptance rate for physical sciences at UC Santa Cruz?
There is no official major-level acceptance rate; UC Santa Cruz reports one school-wide figure, 66%. Some programs (direct-admit nursing, engineering and business schools) select separately and can be more selective than the school overall. CollegeCalcAI's calculator applies its published per-major adjustment and shows your estimate for this school with the major set.
Is UC Santa Cruz known for physical sciences?
By output, physical sciences is the 7th most common field at UC Santa Cruz and far more concentrated there than at the average U.S. college (4.9% of graduates versus 1.29% nationally).
Source: U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS 2023 Completions (bachelor's degrees, first majors, CIP 2-digit series). Admissions counts: IPEDS 2023. Built 2026-09-19. Estimates from CollegeCalcAI are not predictions or guarantees.