The UCLA campus consists of one college and 11 schools, most of which are subdivided into departments. The courses of instruction are administered within the departments.
The College of Letters and Science provides a broad, nonprofessionally oriented curriculum leading to both undergraduate and graduate degrees.
The schools provide training for specific professions and are authorized to grant professional degrees (e.g., Master of Business Administration, Doctor of Education, Master of Public Health). UCLA has 11 professional schools, four of which offer undergraduate degree programs: School of the Arts and Architecture, School of Engineering and Applied Science, School of Nursing, and School of Theater, Film, and Television.
Each college and school has its own degree requirements and is headed by a dean or provost who has final academic authority. Thus, when you attend UCLA, you are enrolled not only at the University of California, Los Angeles campus, but in a specific college or school within the University. Your academic life is governed by the college or school which houses your major.
UCLA offers Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) and Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degrees in a broad range of disciplines. In addition there are a number of special programs and minors which you may complete as an adjunct to your major. The bachelor's degree (you may earn only one) is the culmination of your undergraduate work; master's and doctoral degrees are earned in graduate study.
UCLA provides its students with a wide variety of academic assistance and personal support resources, but it is up to you to realize when you need help and to seek it out. It is also your responsibility to keep informed and to comply with the rules, regulations, and policies affecting your academic standing and your life as a UCLA student. Consult this catalog, the college and school announcements, and the Schedule of Classes for the information you need; watch for official announcements in the Daily Bruin and on campus bulletin boards. Meeting academic deadlines, monitoring your Study List for accuracy, completing prerequisites, and fulfilling degree requirements are all part of your academic duties as a student. Living up to your responsibilities will add immeasurably to the value and enjoyment of your education (also see Student Conduct in the Appendix of this catalog).
One of the most important decisions you will have to make in college is your choice of major -- the field of study which represents your principal academic interest and which possibly will contribute toward your career goals. Some students select their major at the time they fill out the University's application for admission. A far greater number, however, are undecided about their major.
If you are in the College of Letters and Science, you do not need to declare your major in your freshman year. The college allows you to attend with an undeclared major until the end of your sophomore year. In fact, if you are not certain of your specific academic goals, it is often wise to wait and explore the diversity of subject areas offered at UCLA. Enroll in introductory courses (usually numbered below 100) in a variety of disciplines to learn the scope and vocabulary of the major. It is not unusual for students to become enthusiastic about disciplines previously unfamiliar to them. With careful planning, such courses may also apply toward fulfilling college requirements for whatever major you choose. To narrow your choices further, carefully consider general college requirements, the description of courses offered in the major, and the departmental requirements for completing the program of study. Look at the books required for each course. Sit in on a few classes and talk with professors during their office hours. Discuss your interests and plans with a departmental counselor or faculty adviser, a college counselor, or advisers in the Placement and Career Planning Center.
A few words of caution: certain majors, especially in the arts, theater, film, television, engineering, and the sciences, require early declaration. Some have enrollment quotas and will allow application by new majors only during a specified term. Check with the departmental adviser for the majors that interest you.
In addition, each UCLA undergraduate is limited to between 208 and 216 quarter units, depending on the college or school, to complete the academic program and fulfill all degree requirements. So, if you wait to declare a major, don't wait too long. In any case, you must declare a major by the beginning of your junior year (90 quarter units).
When you are ready to declare your major, or if you wish to change from one major to another, pick up a Petition for Change of Major at the college or school office. There is no fee for this petition.
Every new student should obtain academic counseling before enrolling in classes at UCLA (counseling is required in the School of Engineering and Applied Science). Working with a tentative major in mind, you need to plan courses to satisfy all of the degree requirements while staying within the maximum number of units required for graduation. The Orientation program for new students will take you through a step-by-step process designed to insure you enroll in an effective program (see Orientation later in this section). If you cannot attend Orientation, see your college or school adviser or, if you have selected a major, make an appointment with your major department adviser before enrolling in classes.
In all campus units except the School of Engineering and Applied Science, you are required to earn a minimum of 180 units from all college-level coursework for the bachelor's degree at UCLA. A maximum of 208 units is allowed in the School of the Arts and Architecture, School of Nursing, and School of Theater, Film, and Television; in the College of Letters and Science a maximum of 216 units (228 for double majors and special programs) is allowed. In the School of Engineering and Applied Science, the minimum units allowed are between 180 and 200 (depending on the program); 213 maximum units are allowed.
As you work toward a bachelor's degree, be aware that in addition to unit requirements there are three types of requirements which you must satisfy. The first type consists of Universitywide requirements which all undergraduates must satisfy; the rest vary depending on your major and the college or school which offers it.
(1) University requirements -- Subject A or English as a Second Language (ESL), and American History and Institutions;
(2) College or school requirements (e.g., credit and scholarship, English composition, general education requirements);
(3) Department requirements (courses in preparation for the major and in satisfaction of the major).
University requirements are described below. See the College and Schools section of the catalog for a description of the college or school requirements and the Curricula and Courses section for departmental requirements.
The University of California has established two requirements which all undergraduates must satisfy in order to graduate: Subject A or English as a Second Language (ESL), and American History and Institutions. It is your responsibility to see that these requirements are fulfilled.
Because proficiency in English composition is so important to successful performance in many courses, Subject A is the only requirement for graduation that you must satisfy before entering UCLA or during your first year in residence. You may meet this requirement by
(1) Scoring 3, 4, or 5 on one of the College Board Advanced Placement Tests in English OR
(2) Scoring 600 or better on the SAT II Subject Test in Writing OR
(3) Presenting transfer credit for an acceptable college-level course in English composition (passed with a grade of C or better) at another institution OR
(4) Passing the Subject A Examination. All freshmen from California high schools should have taken the Universitywide Subject A Examination in May 1995; others will take an examination at UCLA early in their first term.
If you do not meet the requirement in one of the ways described above, Academic Senate regulations require you to enroll in either English A or 2 (determined by performance on the Subject A Examination) as early as possible during your first year in residence. Each course must be taken for a letter grade and passed with a grade of C or better. If you receive a final grade of C - or less, you must repeat the course during your next term in residence. Satisfaction of the Subject A requirement is a prerequisite to English 3 and all subsequent English courses.
The English as a Second Language Placement Examination (ESLPE) is required of all entering UCLA students whose native language is not English and who have not otherwise satisfied the English as a Second Language (ESL) requirement. Neither the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) nor any other English proficiency test can be submitted or accepted in lieu of the ESLPE. Undergraduate students may take the ESLPE once only. Unauthorized retakes of the examination result in an invalid examination score.
First-Year Students -- Nonnative-speaking students who have taken the Subject A Examination are evaluated on the basis of their Subject A composition and informed if they need to sit for the ESLPE before the term in which they are to register. Results of both examinations are reviewed to determine which track (Subject A or ESL) is a more appropriate placement. If you are placed in the Subject A track, you may satisfy the Subject A requirement by following the guidelines listed above. If you are placed in the ESL track, you must complete the requirement by taking the designated courses through the ESL track.
Transfer Students -- Nonnative-speaking students with a grade of B or better in the English 3 and 4 equivalent courses at their transfer institution are exempt from the ESL requirement. Other students are notified that they must sit for the ESLPE and may be required to take one or more ESL courses beginning in their first term in residence at UCLA to satisfy the ESL requirement.
Results of the ESLPE are used to determine placement into the required sequence of ESL courses or exemption from the ESL requirement. In the case of a nonpassing score on the examination, you are placed in one or more of the credit-bearing courses -- English as a Second Language 33A, 33B, 33C, and 35. You must begin taking courses during your first term in residence at UCLA and must complete the courses in sequence with a grade of C or better (C - or a Passed grade is not acceptable). All units are applied toward graduation but cannot be applied toward general education requirements. Certain ESL courses fulfill major requisite requirements and provide upper division elective units.
This requirement is based on the principle that a U.S. citizen attending an American university should understand the history and public institutions of the U.S. under the federal and state constitutions. Candidates for a bachelor's degree must satisfy the requirement in American History and Institutions by one of the following methods:
(1) Completing a year's course in American history or American government, or a one-year combination of both, in high school with an average grade of B or better OR
(2) Completing any one of the following UCLA courses with a grade of C or better, or a grade of Passed:
Afro-American Studies M104A, M104B, M158A, M158B, M158C
Asian American Studies M153
Chicana and Chicano Studies M159A, M159B
Economics 183
English 80, 85, M104A, M104B, 115A, 170A, 171A, 171B, 173B, 173C, 174B, 174C
Geography 136
History 6A, 6B, 6C, 7A, 7B, 145A, 145B, 146A, 146B, 147A, 147B, 147C, 148A, 148B, 148C, 149A, 149B, 150A, 150B, 150C, 151A, 151B, 152A, 152B, M153, 154A, 154B, 154C, 154D, 155A, 155B, 156A through 156H, 157A, 157B, M158A through M158E, M159A, M159B, 160A, 160B, 161, 162, 163, 164
Political Science 40, 114A, 114B, 140A, 140B, 140C, 142A, 143A, 145B, 145C, 146A
Equivalent courses completed in UCLA Extension or at another college institution, and accepted by the Board of Admissions, may be used to fulfill the requirement OR
(3) Presenting a satisfactory result of the requirement, by examination, as administered at another college or university within the state OR
(4) Scoring 500 or better on the SAT II Subject Test in American History OR
(5) Scoring 3, 4, or 5 on the College Board Advanced Placement Test in American History.
Candidates for an instructional credential, but not for a degree, must take one of the following courses: History 7A, 7B, 151A, 151B, Political Science 145B, or 145C.
Students attending the University on an F-1 or J-1 visa may petition for exemption from this requirement by showing proof of temporary residence in the U.S.
For more information on this requirement, contact the undergraduate History Department counselor in 6248 Bunche Hall (310-825-3720).
The grades A through C and Passed denote satisfactory progress toward the bachelor's degree. The grades C - through D - yield unit credit but may not satisfy certain scholarship requirements. Even when they do, they must be offset by grades of C + or better in other courses.
In order to qualify for a bachelor's degree in any college or school at UCLA, you must earn at least a C (2.0) average in all courses taken at any University of California campus. If you fail to maintain this level, you may be placed on academic probation or may become subject to dismissal.
A petition is a piece of paper representing your need or desire to be excepted from any standard rule or regulation in the University. It is the only way to obtain formal approval from the department, the college or school, the Registrar, or whoever has authority over your particular request. Some petitions carry a small fee; others are free.
An approved petition for a waiver or substitution in degree requirements represents an agreement between you, your college or school and, in some cases, the department chair, granting you an exception from the existing regulations.
Petitions are also used at UCLA to change your college/school or major, take more or fewer units than regulations permit, make changes to your Study List after URSA processing ends, remove an Incomplete grade, or obtain credit by examination. In addition, you may petition for concurrent enrollment, double major, or waiver of scholarship requirements. Petitions for most of these exceptions are available from your college/school or department; consult the Schedule of Classes for details about procedures.
You will be placed on probation if your overall grade-point average falls between 1.5 and 1.99 or if you do not earn at least a 2.0 GPA in any one term. While you are on probation, you may not take any course on a Passed/Not Passed basis, and you may have to limit your Study List to 12 units.
Your probation will end at the close of a regular term if you have attained a C (2.0) average for the term and a cumulative C average in all University work. If you do not end probation within two terms, you will become subject to dismissal.
You will be subject to dismissal from the University under any of the following conditions:
(1) If your grade-point average in any one term is less than 1.5 OR
(2) If you do not earn at least a C (2.0) average in any term when you are on probation OR
(3) If you do not end probation within two terms.
If you are subject to dismissal, your transcript will carry that notation. You should make an appointment with your college or school counselor. Depending on your situation, you will be given conditions for continuation, or you will be dismissed from the University.
Your college or school counselor can explain the conditions for readmission if you wish to return to the University after dismissal (see Readmission earlier in this section).
The undergraduate curriculum at UCLA is designed as a four-year curriculum. In order to graduate in four years, you need to complete at least 45 units during each academic year, not just the 36 required for "minimum progress." In the absence of special circumstances justifying slower progress, you should plan to complete 45 units per year, in an arrangement of courses appropriate to your needs. Consult your college or school counselor if you have questions or need advice.
Each college and school enforces minimum enrollment or minimum progress regulations. You may be subject to disqualification for failing to meet minimum progress requirements. Check with your college or school counselor.Read the degree requirements section under each college and school for specific Study List limits. See the Academics section of this catalog for information on concurrent enrollment, credit by examination and credit from other institutions, and special studies (199) course limitations.