The University's Undergraduate Admissions Office conducts the process of undergraduate admissions. Applications for admission to undergraduate status are available at the Office of Undergraduate Admissions website.

Hard copy applications are also available from:

Office of Undergraduate Admission and Relations with Schools
110 Sproul Hall
University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA 94720-5800

There is a $60 nonrefundable application fee ($70 for international nonimmigrant applicants). For entry to the fall (freshman applicants) and spring (transfer applicants only) semesters, completed applications are to be filed from November 1 to November 30. Late applications will not be considered. Both fall and spring admits will come from this one application cycle. Underrepresented applicants are encouraged to prepare for and apply to the major. Advising is available in the Undergraduate Office. There are also various student groups in the college involved in recruiting and counseling.

Non-California Residents

All applicants are welcomed, but the requirements are more stringent for those who are not residents of California. Applications from outside the United States must be submitted early in the application period because of the time required for delivery of overseas mail. Applicants from other countries should consult the Berkeley International Office website.

Students who intend to enter the College of Environmental Design as an architecture, landscape architecture, or urban studies major must include in their secondary school education the University's A-G requirements.

Tests required for admission:

• SAT I or ACT and
• 2 SAT II completed in Writing and Mathematics Level I, IC, or IIC and
• 1 SAT II completed in English literature, foreign language, science or social studies.
   

Transfer Applicants and Intercampus Transfers

The University’s requirements for admission to transfer students vary according to the applicant’s high school record. Applicants to the Urban Studies major must meet the University’s minimum eligibility requirements listed in the General Catalog and the admission packet. Applicants must also meet the minimum eligibility requirements listed below; however, satisfaction of minimum entrance requirements does not guarantee admission to the major. Since the major has a limited number of admission slots, the faculty admissions committee must make a difficult choice among many qualified candidates.

The department’s policy is to admit transfer students at the junior level only, with preference for students with a GPA of 3.0 or higher. No grade may be below a C- in the prerequisite course work. The prerequisites include University requirements, college breadth requirements, and lower-division environmental design requirements. Applicants are also expected to write a 750-word essay explaining their interest in the major. The essay is an important part of the admissions process.

California community college students should be aware that the Intersegmental General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC) does not satisfy the major prerequisite requirements for this college. The normal range of transfer semester units is 60 to 70. No student with more than 80 semester units of transfer credit from a four-year school will be admitted into the major. A maximum of 18 units of freshman/sophomore-level Urban Studies & Planning and Environmental Design coursework may be transferred.

The following requirements of the major must be taken at Berkeley:

• ENV DES 100
• CY PLAN 110
• 2 Urban Studies and Planning courses
• 2 CED Urban Studies breadth courses including the Urban History requirement
• 2 Interdisciplinary Urban Studies courses including the International requirement
   

Change-of-Major Applications: Within CED

Students currently in the College of Environmental Design who wish to transfer to the Urban Studies major must meet the following admissions requirements.

In keeping with new campus-wide rules, change-of-major applicants to the Urban Studies major must have a 2.0 minimum overall GPA. They must also have a 3.0 minimum GPA in the Urban Studies courses that would have completed prior to application. Applicants are also expected to write a 750-word essay explaining their interest in the major. The essay is an important part of the admissions process.

Satisfaction of minimum entrance requirements does not guarantee admission to the major. Since the major has a limited number of admission slots, the faculty admissions committee must make a difficult choice among many qualified candidates. Applications will be accepted starting the first week of classes and reviewed throughout the semester.

Change-of-College Applications

Students registered at the University of California, Berkeley, who wish to transfer into the Urban Studies major must wait at least one year from the time of their admission to Berkeley before changing colleges. Change-of-college applicants must meet the following admissions requirements.

In keeping with new campus-wide rules, change-of-college applicants to the Urban Studies major must have a 2.0 minimum overall GPA. They must also have a 3.0 minimum GPA in the Urban Studies courses that would have completed prior to application. Applicants are also expected to write a 750-word essay explaining their interest in the major. The essay is an important part of the admissions process.

Satisfaction of minimum entrance requirements does not guarantee admission to the major. Since the major has a limited number of admission slots, the faculty admissions committee must make a difficult choice among many qualified candidates. Applications will be accepted starting the first week of classes and reviewed throughout the semester.