University of California-Santa Cruz

What are the graduation rates for students at University of California-Santa Cruz?

IPEDS figures for UC Santa Cruz show a 61% four-year graduation rate and a 75% six-year graduation rate. These measures follow a defined cohort of first-time, full-time students seeking bachelor's degrees; they do not describe every transfer student, part-time student, or graduate student.

The gap between the two rates illustrates why an extra year matters in cost planning: some students complete a degree after the four-year point. UCSC's reported first-year retention rate is 88%, meaning most students in the measured cohort returned the following fall, but retention is not a graduation measure. These statistics describe past groups rather than an individual student's likelihood of finishing on a particular schedule.

What is the earning potential for graduates at University of California-Santa Cruz?

College Scorecard field-of-study figures report earnings measured one year after completion for graduates included in its federal-aid-based data. They are program-level outcomes for measured graduates, not starting-salary offers or promises about what every alumnus will earn. The reported median varies considerably by field.

For example, the one-year figure is about $75,200 for computer engineering and $63,000 for computer science. It is about $41,500 for economics and $29,100 for biology. Differences can reflect occupation, geography, further study, and which graduates have reportable earnings. A biology graduate entering additional education, for instance, may have a different short-term earnings pattern from a graduate entering full-time work.

Students comparing programs should treat one-year earnings as one limited indicator. It does not capture all graduates equally, establish that the major caused an earnings difference, or account for borrowing, later career growth, or the value of further education.