Physics

Letter of Intent

The letter of intent gives us additional information about your motivation and preparation to study physics in an advanced program. The letter should be written in essay format in your own words and should ideally not exceed two pages. Please address the letter to the CCS Physics Admissions Committee that consists of Physics faculty.

Your letter may include anything you feel is relevant to your application, however, please make sure to address the following prompts:

- What is your background in physics? (This is a great opportunity to discuss any extracurricular activities in Physics that you participated in).

- What is your background in mathematics, specifically calculus?

- Why are you interested in studying at the College of Creative Studies?

- What are your career goals at this point in your life?  What would you like to be doing ten years from now?

- Why are you interested in physics?  When did you first get interested in Physics? Who (if any) are your major influences?

Letters of Recommendation

Letters of recommendation are required for applications to CCS Physics. Please list at least two persons well-acquainted with your academic background and your ability in Physics. The CCS Online Application form will ask for your recommenders’ email addresses and will send them a prompt with a link. This link will direct recommenders to instructions for uploading letters.  We suggest notifying recommenders ahead of time that they should be expecting an email with instructions to upload their letter.  Please request that letters are saved and uploaded as a PDF in order to avoid formatting distortions. 

Transcripts

In addition to the copies you send to the UCSB Office of Admissions, there is a section on the CCS Online Application where you must upload copies of your transcripts from every high school and college you have attended. Transcripts do not need to be official, so a scan or picture of your transcripts may be uploaded (jpeg or PDF). If you are currently enrolled at UCSB, please upload a copy of your course history, which you can obtain using a screenshot from GOLD.  It is your responsibility to ensure that attachments uploaded to your application are clear and legible.

In addition to your transcripts, please upload a PDF listing all AP tests you have taken and all scores you have received for those tests.  Please also state the highest level of math you have completed (ex. AP Calculus AB or BC, IB Calculus, Calculus at City College, etc.).

Supplemental Application Materials

Although submitting supplemental materials is not required for Physics, it helps to give us a more complete idea of your skills and interests. If possible, submit examples of independent research, scientific reports or projects, or any other work that shows your ability and interests in Physics.