Bachelor’s to Master’s Transition
All five-year bachelor’s/master’s combined program students must complete the online Graduate Application in order to advance from undergraduate to graduate standing. You may begin your application after your Advancement and Curriculum Memos have been approved and submitted to the Graduate Division by your college advisor.
Note: Only current UCSB undergraduates who have (1) previously been accepted to a five-year combined degree (BS/MS) program, (2) completed the Advancement and Curriculum Memos, and (3) received confirmation of approval from the Graduate Division are eligible to proceed with the online application. Please see the main Five Year Degree Programs page for general information.
Completing your Application & Submitting Application Materials
Begin the UCSB Graduate Online Application at www.graddiv.ucsb.edu/eapp.
Identify yourself as a Five-Year Program participant by choosing your graduate major and the master’s degree option labeled Five-Year Program.
Answer Yes to the question Are you a current UCSB undergraduate? For example:
Report your education information and upload a copy of each set of transcripts in your online application. With your department’s approval, you may upload an unofficial copy of your transcripts, downloaded from GOLD.
Upload both of the required essays and your resume/CV to your online application. If your department already has these on file, you may upload copies of the same documents or contact your department to ask if your department may upload them for you.
If your program does not require the GRE, skip the Exam Scores section. If your program requires the GRE, self-report your scores in the online application and have your official scores sent to the UCSB Graduate Institution (GI) using institution code 4835. Please note that the Graduate Division does not receive scores that have been sent to the Undergraduate Institution (UI). The institution code is the same for the GI and the UI, but you must indicate that UCSB is a Designated Score Recipient instead of or in addition to your undergraduate institution. Please contact ETS directly if you have questions about this.
Three letters are required. Enter your recommenders' information in your online application. Your recommenders should upload their letters to the online application using the email link they receive when you save their information (indicate that you are not using a letter service).
OR if your department already has your letters on file, then you may work with the Staff Graduate Program Advisor (GPA) in your department to upload the existing letters to your application. In this case, you may indicate that you are using a letter service and then provide your department's contact email address as the Letter Service email in order to avoid a letter request being automatically sent to your recommenders (see example below).
If your department requires any additional materials, be sure to upload them to your application.
After submitting your application, be sure to also pay the application fee. Or, if you meet eligibility requirements, you may apply for a fee waiver within the online application.
After You Apply
Once your department has finished reviewing your complete application, they will submit a formal admissions recommendation to the Graduate Division. If approved, you will receive an email notification when your official decision letter is available. If you have not received a formal offer of admission from the Dean of the Graduate Division via the online application portal one week before the start of your advancement quarter, contact your department.
To move from undergraduate to graduate standing, you must formally accept your offer of admission to the graduate program by submitting a Statement of Intent to Register (SIR) via your eApp. If you are not admitted via your eApp and do not submit an SIR, you will not advance to graduate standing for that quarter.
Review the information on the Admitted Students web page. Though you will not need to complete all of the "Next Steps" for new graduate students (you already have a NetID, for example, so you do not need to create a new one), read each step to determine whether additional action is required. If you are not sure, please contact the individual office on campus directly with any questions.
Five-Year Program students are not typically required to submit final transcripts. Degrees, GPA, and coursework will be verified by the Graduate Division. Refer to your decision letter for details. We understand that students enrolled in a BS/MS or BA/MA or BA/MS program may not complete the undergraduate degree until after they have advanced to graduate standing. Your provisional admissions status will not impact your registration, but you must earn a bachelor’s degree in order to earn a master’s degree at UCSB.
Housing
Five-Year Combined Degree Program (Bachelor’s/Master’s) students who are interested in residing in campus housing either before or after advancing to graduate standing should submit a housing application for the continuing undergraduate housing process. BS/MS and other five-year program students are not eligible for San Clemente graduate housing. Students who need assistance securing housing in the community can utilize the Community Housing Services resources or visit their office upstairs in the UCen.
For more information contact UCSB Campus Housing.