The purpose of the Education Department’s instructional programs is to prepare all students—both undergraduates and graduates—to engage in the analysis and integration of educational theory, research, and practice for an increasingly diverse society. Our commitment is built around four interrelated domains: 1) schools, families, and communities; 2) teacher education and teacher development; 3) language, literacy, and learning; and 4) mathematics and science education. Foundational to our programs is an acknowledgment of the social, cultural, and political contexts in which all aspects of education occur.

The Education Department offers a doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) program for students who have exemplary academic preparation as well as experience working in educational settings. We offer a master's level/teaching credential (MA/C) teacher-preparation program; an education major, Education, Democracy and Justice B.A.; and we have two vibrant undergraduate education minor tracks, the education minor and the STEM education minor, that serve more than 300 undergraduates each year.

Undergraduate Program

The UC Santa Cruz undergraduate courses in education engage students in histories of educational thought and philosophy, the politics and economics of education, multiple approaches to learning theory and teaching pedagogy, and contemporary issues of cultural and linguistic diversity in education.

The state of California does not allow academic majors in education that lead to a teaching credential. Instead, UC Santa Cruz offers an undergraduate major in education and two minors in education for students who are considering a career in teaching or who hold a more general interest in educational studies. Please note that the major and minors in education do not provide a California Teaching Credential. Additionally, please note that the UC Santa Cruz teaching credential program is a graduate program and coursework taken in the major or minor cannot be substituted for credential requirements, except in specifically designated pathways.

In addition to students with a general interest in educational studies, the undergraduate major in education is an option for students considering a career in K-6 teaching and planning to enter a credential program after undergraduate degree completion. Students in other majors who are considering a career in K-6 or 7-12 teaching should start planning in their junior year. Find out more about K-12 school teaching careers here.

Graduate Programs

The master of arts (M.A.) in education and California teaching credential program prepares prospective teachers to work with California’s culturally and linguistically diverse student population. Students in this program earn a master’s degree and are eligible to apply for a Preliminary California Credential upon completing a 12-month, five-quarter program comprised of two summers and one academic year. Graduates of the program are prepared to teach English language learners enrolled in K–12 public schools. The program also offers the Bilingual Authorization (in Spanish) for primary language instruction or dual language immersion instruction in a K–12 setting.

The goal of the Ph.D. in education is to support graduate students in becoming creative scholars who engage in research focused on the educational needs of students from linguistic and cultural groups that have historically not fared well in our nation’s public schools. To achieve this goal, this program provides students with grounding in the varieties of interdisciplinary theorizing, research methods, and applications needed to advance the study of learning and teaching for diverse student populations. The courses and research experiences are closely related to practice in K-12 classrooms and informal settings. Students in this interdisciplinary program apply tools and perspectives from education, anthropology, linguistics, philosophy, psychology, sociology, cognitive science, and cultural historical activity theory. The program integrates theory and practice to examine learning and teaching within the multiple contexts of classroom, school, family, and community. Graduates of this program will be qualified to teach and to conduct the kinds of educational research demanded by tenure-track positions in research and regional universities. Graduates may also work in non-university based institutions that focus on teacher professional development, curriculum development, and related areas of educational research and development.