First Year Course Enrollment

Pick a class by major

If you have a proposed major, you can utilize the General Catalog to navigate to Bachelor’s Degrees to find more information including sample planners. Major departments will outline the first classes students will take in the major under fall quarter. If you haven’t already fulfilled the requirement through previous coursework or test scores, you can check to see if those classes are offered this summer to get ahead before fall. 

1. Open the Registrar Catalog and navigate to your major.
2. Click Requirements and Planners at the top right.
3. Scroll down to the Sample Frosh Planner.
4. Look at recommended fall (and winter) quarter classes. If it is offered over the summer, it could be a great choice.

Picking a class by General Education (GE) requirement

Taking a class to fulfill a needed General Education requirement is another good option for early-start students. All UCSC students must satisfy these requirements to graduate. Some GEs will be met automatically through your major classes [see example below].

1. Review the Campus Advising Course Highlights, many of which fulfill GE requirements.
2. Search courses by GE on our website. 

Video resources

Picking Summer Course by Major 
Selecting Course by GE
Bringing in AP Credit [2024-2025 AP-IBH Chart] (2025-2026 Chart Coming Soon).

Prerequisites/error messages

• UCSC students must meet the prerequisites for classes they enroll in. As a new admit, since your transcripts and test scores are not required by Undergraduate Admissions until later in the summer, you may need to take an extra step to show proof of completed prerequisites before you enroll in classes that require them.
• If you try to enroll in a class with prerequisites or restrictions and get an error message, don’t worry – this is common. Follow the next steps for “newly admitted students” or “UCSC Students” in the Class Notes section in Class Search (opens March 15 for Summer Quarter 2025) or email summeredge@ucsc.edu for support.