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About the Division

The study of human relationships in society is the focus of the Division of Social Sciences.

As social, economic, political, and technological changes transform global society, social scientists are tackling extremely complex issues, from racism, economic inequity, educational reform, and governance to environmental degradation, international trade and finance, transnationalism, the challenges of emerging worlds, and how the human mind works.

About the Division of Social Sciences

  • Largest Academic Division on the UC Santa Cruz Campus
    • Eight Academic Departments
    • Two Residential Undergraduate Colleges
    • 8 Ph.D. Programs
    • 25 Undergraduate Degree Programs
  • Largest Enrollments on UC Santa Cruz Campus
    • Awards 45% of Total Bachelor Degrees
    • Awards 22% of Total Ph.D. Degrees
  • 5,885 Undergraduate Students
  • 443 Graduate Students
  • 166 Full-time Faculty
  • 100 Full-time Staff
  • UC Santa Cruz ranks #26 in U.S. News and World Report's 2019 list of public national universities.

Offering many interdisciplinary collaborations and several graduate programs at the master's level emphasizing professional training (economics and education), students experience a comprehensive and rigorous education that prepares them for productive careers and further academic pursuits. Faculty are conducting leading-edge research in their fields, frequently working with students in research clusters linking departments and research centers. A recent study ranked the Division of Social Sciences at UCSC 1st in the nation among public universities for the quality of its research productivity.

The Institute for Social Transformation, rooted in the Social Sciences Division, supports innovative scholarship that changes the world. We act as a critical intellectual and social hub, connecting scholars across UC Santa Cruz and partners beyond the university. Together, we’re developing research-based solutions to urgent problems with a focus on social justice, environmental regeneration, democratic revitalization, and equity, access, and opportunity for all. 

College Nine and John R. Lewis College are formally part of the Division of Social Sciences. College Nine's theme is international and global perspectives and John R. Lewis College's theme is social justice and community. Both colleges are an important part of the division's undergraduate educational mission.

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