Appeal Process

Students who are informed they are not eligible to declare the major may appeal this decision by submitting a letter to the Physics Department office and meeting with a faculty adviser.

Within 15 days of receipt of the appeal, after consulting with the faculty adviser, the department chair will either admit the student into the major, finalize the denial of admission or specify further conditions for admission, and notify the student and their college of the decision.

Appeal Guidelines:

All appeals must contain the following information at the top of the appeal letter:

• Full name
• Student ID number
• Major you wish to declare
• Unofficial UCSC transcript (attached)

Address the appeal to the “Physics Department Chair” and be sure to convey yourself in a polite and professional manner.

In the body of your appeal letter, explain the extenuating circumstances that influenced your academic performance and address how you intend to improve your academic performance in the future.

Appeals should be submitted via email to the department chair CCing both physicsadvising@ucsc.edu, and your college advising office, by the appeal deadline for the quarter in which you did not qualify. Appeals can be sent as an attachment or written directly into the body of the email.

Please note that the information you share in your appeal or with your advisers will be kept private and shared only with campus officials as required to serve you in an advising capacity or process your appeal. However, in limited circumstances, including those related to potential harm to yourself or others, sexual assault, and abuse, we may be required by law to report incidents you disclose to other need-to-know offices on campus such as the Title IX Office and/or University of California Police Department. If you are in need of support for any issues, please see the list of confidential and/or support resources.