Admission to the University of California, San Diego

Students who are interested in pursuing a major within the Department of Physics must first be admitted to the University of California, San Diego. Prospective students who are interested in applying to the University of California, San Diego should read the information below and should also visit the UC San Diego Admissions website to review eligibility and admission requirements. All questions related to university admission should be directed to UC San Diego Admissions.

Admission to UC San Diego within a Physics Major

Because of the number of students interested in the undergraduate physics programs and the limited resources available to accommodate this demand, the university has declared all majors and specializations in the Department of Physics as capped. All prospective students must indicate on the UC application if they wish to major in physics. Admissions decisions are made by the UC San Diego Office of Admissions and not by the Physics Department.

Admission directly into a physics major is limited for freshmen. All potential freshmen must indicate on the UC application if they wish to major in physics. Students will be selected by the UC San Diego Office of Undergraduate Admissions based on the students’ holistic review scores and availability in the Department of Physics. For further information regarding freshman admission to UC San Diego, please see First-Year Admission. After arriving at UCSD, and having enrolled in courses, freshman students who are admitted to UC San Diego in a major outside of the physics department may apply to a physics major via the capped major application process during an open application cycle. For more information, see the Physics Capped Status webpage.