Advising Index

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Program
387 Thimann Laboratories
UC Santa Cruz,
Santa Cruz, CA 95064
Phone: 831.459.4143
Fax: 831.459.1568
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DECLARING YOUR MAJOR

Students often think that because they selected a major on their application to the university that they have already declared the major. The application information you provided let us know that you were interested in biology, it did not declare you a biological sciences major. To declare you will have to go through the formal declaration process.

Is Biological Sciences the major for you? We recommend you complete at least one introductory biology course before declaring the major. This introduction to the discipline helps students decide if they want to continue with the degree program or pursue an alternate program. If you need further assistance in selecting a major, the Career Center has assessment tools and services available to all students.

Do not wait until the deadline. The declaration process has many steps that can take 2-5 days to complete; you will likely end up running around campus in a mad panic to get signatures and waiting in long lines at the advising office if you wait until the deadline to declare. Start the declaration process the quarter before you intend to declare to ensure you complete the process by the deadline.

Start the declaration process by... Downloading a Declaration of Major form and meeting with a college advisor.

Departmental Instructions: Biological Sciences consist of two academic departments, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology (EEB) and Molecular, Cell & Developmental Biology (MCDB). Each department sponsors a subset of degree programs, both departments co-sponsor the general biology major. Each department has its own declaration process. Please follow the appropriate instructions for your EEB or MCDB sponsored majors.

QUESTIONS: Contact BioAdvising