University of California, Santa Cruz

The University of California, Santa Cruz (UC Santa Cruz or UCSC) is a distinguished public land-grant research university. Part of the ten-campus University of California system, UC Santa Cruz sits on the edge of the coastal community of Santa Cruz near Monterey Bay. The university's expansive main campus covers 2,001 acres of rolling, forested hills with views of the Pacific Ocean.

UC Santa Cruz was established in 1965 with a foundational vision to revolutionize undergraduate education through progressive, cross-disciplinary programs, innovative teaching methods, and contemporary architecture. This vision is embodied in its residential college system, inspired by the Oxbridge collegiate university model, which comprises ten small colleges that foster a close-knit community environment for learning.

As of Fall 2022, UC Santa Cruz enrolls approximately 17,500 undergraduate and 2,000 graduate students across its ten residential colleges. Besides the main campus, the university operates several satellite facilities, including the Coastal Science Campus, the Westside Research Park in Santa Cruz, and the Silicon Valley Center in Santa Clara.

UC Santa Cruz boasts a faculty that includes Nobel Prize laureates and recipients of the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences, along with 12 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 28 members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and 40 members of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The university has also produced nine Pulitzer Prize-winning alumni, with a total of 11 Pulitzer Prizes awarded.

The university holds a prestigious classification among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and is a member of the Association of American Universities, underscoring its commitment to high-level research and academic excellence.