Just wondering if there is a path, and how difficult it is, for a student accepted as Undeclared - Physical Sciences College of Letters and Science to take the required courses and declare Computer Science major in College of Letters and Science?
Q: I applied as undeclared, but I’ve already decided on a major. Can I take classes in that major? When can I declare?
A: Great! You can start taking classes towards your intended major right away. You can officially change your major after your first quarter at UC Davis, and once you have met the change of major requirements. To get started, meet with your intended major advisor to check your progress and make an academic plan.
And Change of Major Checklist:
It doesn’t say anything about required minimum GPA or if it’s competitive.
The Computer Science program is impacted, meaning that there are more students in our majors, minors, or who want to take our classes than there are spaces available. This makes it harder to get classes and transfer into our department than in non-impacted majors.
In order to be eligible to change to the Computer Science major, all students must meet the following requirements:
Complete the following courses with a C- or higher: (Starting in Fall 2023, a 3.0 cumulative GPA will be required in the following courses)
MAT 21A
MAT 21B
ECS 20
Choose one option:
(a) ECS 32A and ECS 32B and ECS 32C (offered in fall quarters) and ECS 34 (offered in winter quarters)
(b) ECS 36A and ECS 36B - starting Fall 2023, ECS 36C will also be required; starting Spring 2023, ECS 36 series will not be open to non-majors
Have an overall UC GPA of 3.0
Be a registered student and have completed at least one quarter (minimum of 12 units) at UC Davis
Be in good academic standing and meet minimum progress requirements
Starting Fall 2023 - Have received a letter grade for all courses required to change majors to CS (no P/NP allowed)
General Catalog - Computer Science, Bachelor of Science says “Before declaring a major in Computer Science, students must complete the following courses with an overall UC Davis grade point average of at least 3.000; a grade of C- or better required in all courses:” followed by a list of some courses.
Note that the listed ECS courses (36A and 36B, or 34) have prerequisites. The sequences are:
Thank you Gumbymom and ucbalumnus. Is overall UC Davis grade point average of at least 3.000; a grade of C- or better required in all courses in these courses only requirement? Or they also have limits on number of students they will accept?
Since they do state the major is impacted, I would contact the CS department and ask the question. If I meet all the requirements, am I guaranteed a spot?
The information specifically references the ability to get the required classes which can also be problematic in finishing the qualification requirements in a timely manner.
Compared to other UCs that state there is no pathway, that isn’t the case at Davis. It involves a lot of math and several very difficult classes, but it is possible.
MAT 21 is a more rigorous math series, intended for engineers. Most other STEM majors take the MAT 17 series. I’ve never heard students say that it they had difficulty enrolling in MAT 21. I hear more talk about it being a very difficult course and trying to figure out how to transfer to MAT 17 for the second quarter.
ECS courses may be limited to majors during the first pass but, if a student is patient and flexible, those classes don’t always fill. Look at the Class Search tool linked above. Choose either Spring or Winter Quarter under Term, then ECS under Course/CRN. You’ll see that, after two passes, there were still a few spots open. It appears that there were more spots left open in the winter than spring.
Not sure how much effect this will have on transferring into the now-former L&S CS major, but UCD is moving this major to the College of Engineering as of July 2023.
As of July 2023, the UC Davis Academic Senate and Provost have approved the Computer Science, or CS, major and minor to be moved from the College of Letters and Science to the College of Engineering.
eta: There is a section of the FAQ in the second link that addresses current UCD students wishing to change into the CS major. Looks like the GPA and P/NP requirements are more strict.