During the Washington program, all students pay UCSC registration fees to maintain their UCSC student status and earn 12-17 units for the quarter. Participants must be enrolled on a full-time basis (12 units) and must take two required courses (UCDC 194A/B).
Required Courses
- SEMINAR (UCDC 194A; 5 units; P/NP or Letter Grade; meets the Practice: Service Learning (PR-S) GE requirement)- All students are required to take one Seminar course. Seminars are taught 1 day a week for 3 hours. This seminar features group meetings and tutorial sessions related to the student’s internship placement. Click here for a list of past and current courses.
- INTERNSHIP (UCDC 194B; 7 units; P/NP only)- Students must work with their internship organization for 24-32 hours a week (an exception can sometimes be made for 20 hours). A wide variety of internships are available in ANY field! Students are responsible for finding their own internship, typically after selection into the UCDC program. Staff in Washington, D.C. will assist students in this process, providing guidance and internship leads. Upon acceptance to UCDC, participants will gain access to the UCDC Internship Database, containing active internship listings by internship sites that routinely hire UCDC interns. For more information check out the UC Washington Internship Site: https://www.ucdc.edu/internships
Optional Course
In addition, each student may choose to take an additional seminar course from a range of classes offered by faculty at UCDC. This is only recommended if you need to take more than 12 units to maintain degree progress. Click here for a list of past and current courses.
UCDC Prep Series
The UCDC Prep series is offered to prepare incoming UC students participating in the UCDC program with the knowledge, skills, and resources necessary to successfully begin the program. UCDC Prep includes live virtual sessions with UCDC staff and weekly emails with important updates, reminders, and internship leads -all of which are meant to help students stay on track for their arrival in Washington D.C.
This three-part series is intended to guide students through all the necessary steps to successfully prepare for their UCDC experience. The objectives of the series are as follows:
- Provide insight on how to search for and apply to a broad range of internships of interest
- Review best practices for putting together resumes and cover letters for internship applications.
- Improve internship interview skills.
- Review UCDC course offerings and prepare for course enrollment.
- Understand what resources, services and programs UCDC offers.
- Prepare students for living in DC which includes:
- The cost / the necessary budget
- Living at the UC Washington Center
- An understanding of city and the various experiences the city has to offer
- Provide a firsthand account of what it is like to participant in the UCDC program
You can learn more about the course here.
Requesting Academic Accommodations
If you require academic ADA accommodations and are affiliated with UCSC’s Disability Resource Center, please contact them to request that they send your accommodation letter to academics@ucdc.edu.
Enrolling in UCSC Courses Online While on the UCDC Program
While it is possible for students who meet the below criteria to take additional online courses at UCSC while on the UCDC Washington program, Global Learning does not recommend it. While in DC, students will be adjusting to a new academic and cultural environment, balancing a full-time course load, an internship, professional development activities, and a rigorous schedule. Adding courses online at UCSC that will be in a different time zone will be challenging.
A student can enroll in both UCSC courses and UCDC courses if they meet the following criteria:
- Be in good academic standing
- Have a 3.0 cumulative GPA or higher
Special approval from the UCDC Faculty Director is required, please email globallearning@ucsc.edu for more information.