Setting Small City-Suburban Student Body % In-State: % Out-of-State: % Women: % Men: Total Undergrads % Living Off-Campus: % African American % Native American % Asian American % Latino % Caucasian % International 96% 4% 54% 46% 15,125 NR* 3% 1% 22% 17% 50% 1% Cost Tuition—In-State Tuition—Out-of-State Room and Board $8,890 $22,701 $13,641

Admissions Test Scores (Middle 50%—first year student) SAT Critical Reading SAT Math SAT Writing ACT Composite Average High School GPA % Freshmen in Top 10% of Class % Applicants Admitted # of Students Applied # of Students Admitted # of Students Enrolled Regular Application Deadline Early Decision Deadline 510-630 530-640 510-630 22-27 3.54 96% 73% NR NR NR 30 November NR Admissions Office 1156 High Street Santa Cruz, CA 95064 ucsc.edu

Do you sometimes have to remind yourself to stop what you're doing and go have some fun and adventure? If you've been a go-getter from day one, but think it's finally time to let it all hang out, the University of California—Santa Cruz has a beach blanket, pair of hiking boots, and a volleyball (among a lot of other recreational gear) with your name on it. In fact, according to Outside magazine, UCSC ranked number one out of 40 colleges "that turn out smart grads with top-notch academic credentials, a healthy environmental ethos, and an A-plus sense of adventure."

A Seat of Neo-Bohemian Culture
UCSC is known for its counter-culture attitude and student political activism. So much so that Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir said that UCSC is "a seat of neo-Bohemian culture." It's no surprise then, that the University library houses the Grateful Dead archives in a room nicknamed Dead Central. It's the ultimate braniac-Deadhead's dream: to attend UCSC and live near a showcase of the band's memorabilia, which includes stage props, original documents, and tie-dyed T-shirts.

UCSC's 2,000 acres of rolling, tree-lined hills overlooking the Pacific Ocean, is located 75 miles south of San Francisco at the edge of the coastal community of Santa Cruz. Academically, undergraduates have a wide range of options. The University offers 63 majors, 35 minors, and 52 concentrations in the fields of arts, engineering, humanities, physical and biological sciences, and social sciences. Popular undergraduate majors include art, business management, economics, molecular and cell biology, and psychology. But for all its size—UCSC consists of ten small colleges—72 percent of upper-division courses and 58 percent of lower-division courses have fewer than 30 students.

Strong Natural Science Research Component
Though UCSC was founded as a liberal arts-oriented school, it swiftly acquired a very strong natural science research component with the appointment of plant physiologist Kenneth V. Thimann. UCSC's faculty includes two members of the Institute of Medicine, 21 members of the Academy of Arts and Sciences, and 11 members of the National Academy of Sciences.

*NR—Not Reported

1.  Emory University	14.  Smith College
2.  Vassar College	15.  Univ. of Notre Dame
3.  Univ. of Pittsburgh	16.  The Ohio State University
4.  Goucher College	17.  Earlham College
5.  Reed College	18.  Chapman University
6.  Hunter College	19.  Warren Wilson College
7.  Univ. of Michigan	20.  Univ. of California—Santa Cruz
8.  Hampshire College	21.  Stanford University
9.  Berklee School of Music	22.  Univ. of Texas—Austin
10.  Pepperdine University	23.  Middlebury College
11.  Brown University	24.  New York University
12.  Univ. of the South—Sewanee	25.  Univ. of Chicago
13.  Elon University