Finn Westley, an applied linguistics and education double major at UC Santa Cruz, wants to pursue a career in bilingual education. Double majoring while completing general education requirements on a condensed timeline is no easy feat. However, after only three years at UCSC, Westley is graduating this upcoming spring, contrary to the traditional undergraduate four-year timeline. 

“It definitely took a lot of planning and thinking. I took one summer class and then 20 credits a couple of quarters, so that helped,” Westley said. 

UC-wide data concerning the growing trend of the three-year pathways shows other UCs that also use the quarter system are tailing close behind UCSC in the fight for the top spot. UCSC currently holds the highest percentage of students on the three-year graduation track in the UC system, at 10.3 percent — about 450 undergraduate students each year.

Students credit the ability to handle the accelerated timeline with UCSC operating on the quarter system, a system vastly different from the semester schedule. 

Starting in 2016, all UC campuses created three-year graduation pathways for 10 of the top 15 respective majors. This initiative at UCSC has since expanded to encompass 33 of the 74 total majors offered. 

According to the UCSC advising website, three-year plans are best suited for students entering as a first year, who plan to complete a single major, who satisfy the entry-level writing requirement before their first quarter and who commit to enrolling in courses during summer quarter. 

Although these rigid standards are put forth by the university, it is still possible to graduate in three years if your academic plan does not fit these specific criteria. 

The three-year pathway is available to students in a variety of majors. UCSC lays out which majors are applicable here. 

However, you do not necessarily have to be on track for one of the listed majors above. Take cognitive science student Tiago Dziuk, for example. 

Dziuk considered pursuing a minor in theater, but wasn’t able to fit it into his three-year academic plan. Now with a little more than a year left, Dziuk feels that it’s difficult to take on more than what’s necessary to graduate.

“I do love this campus and the people. So it’s hard to know that I’m choosing to give away some of that time that I have here,” Dziuk said.

Tiago Dziuk aspires to work in computer human interaction, hoping to merge his interests in cognitive science with computer science. Mar. 3, 2026.

With its expedited timeline, the program best fits students coming into UCSC with credits already completed, whether through Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate or other accelerated high school programs. 

“[There’s] a mix of privilege involved with this,” Dziuk said. “I took 13 APs in high school, which is how I got the credits in order to be in the position I am.” 

It is more common for majors within the humanities or social science fields to be completed in three years, with more STEM disciplines taking more than the typical four years. 

Having to cut down a year of already fast-paced coursework on the quarter system can seem daunting, but for many students, the positives outweigh the negatives in regard to financial benefits. 

Students following three-year pathways don’t have to pay for a fourth year of tuition, housing and various other fees that fund a UCSC education. Savings per year roughly total $45,000 for full pay in-state students, and ​​$85,000 for full pay out-of-state students. 

For Dziuk, the savings are the cherry on top of an already positive academic experience. 

“The financial aspect is a bonus. I am doing this and I want to do this and the fact that I get to save money while doing this makes it even better,” Dziuk said. 

Even with all the positives of graduating a year early, it still means one less year on the campus UCSC students call home, along with time spent with friends and engaging with peers in coursework and extracurricular activities. For Finn Westley, the deciding factor was based on balance. 

“If money wasn’t a factor, I might have done four years and taken more exploratory classes or ‘just-for-fun’ classes,” Westley expressed. “[However], when I was looking at it, it felt like, ‘Why would I spend the tuition money if I don’t need to?’”