Science & Technology Studies Major Requirements

Jump to:  STS Major  |  Data in Society Minor |  HPS Minor

The interdisciplinary field of Science and Technology Studies (STS) examines science, technology, and medicine in relation to social, political, and cultural contexts. It combines the history and philosophy of science; the anthropology and sociology of science; science and law; science policy; studies of innovation and high-tech industries; critical data studies; literature and science; science journalism; and media studies of science.

The STS major at UC Davis offers students a broader understanding of science than is available in most traditional science majors, and it is especially suitable for students in the humanities and social sciences who are interested in interpreting science, technology, and medicine as parts of society. The major features lower-division and upper-division courses focusing on the relations of science and society, and it also includes advanced training in one or more fields of the natural sciences or engineering sciences. STS is a fully interdisciplinary program designed to address the challenges of our increasingly high-tech world.

  • Eligibility to declare a major in Science & Technology Studies (current students)
  • 1.  Save your progress toward the major on a Degree Worksheet in OASIS
    2. No courses are required in order to declare; however, if you have taken courses toward the major, you must have a combined 2.0 GPA in those courses.  

    While no courses are required to declare STS, students are strongly recommended to complete Intro to STS (STS 001) before declaring the major.
  • Declaring multiple majors
  • Current students, not in their first term, may apply for a double major using the Change of Major form in OASIS. You will be accountable for the STS eligibility requirements listed above, in addition to eligibility requirements for the other major you wish to declare. Students may not overlap more than 20% of upper division coursework between any two majors—20% is usually two courses, but not always. Low-unit majors, like humanities majors, may only allow for one course to overlap. Find the overlap policy on the College of Letters and Science website.
  • Eligibility requirements for prospective transfer students
  • Prospective transfer students should refer to requirements set by Admissions. 
  • Pass/No Pass Grade Policy
  • The STS Program has no policies against taking major courses with a P/NP grading option. Students are free to elect a P/NP grading option for their major courses. However, students are still subject to the P/NP policy outlined in the College Unit Requirements set by the College of Letters and Science.

    The College Unit Requirements limit the total number of P graded units that can count towards graduation. 
    → Self-elected P graded units, switched from a letter grading option, cannot exceed one-fourth of your total units earned in residence at UC Davis
    → All P graded units, automatic and self-elected, cannot exceed one-third of your total units earned in residence at UC Davis 

    The Office of the University Registrar provides more information about repeating courses with P/NP grades. 

Major Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts in Science & Technology Studies

UC Davis degree requirements for a Bachelor of Arts include major requirements, general education, and other degree requirements, such as foreign language. Refer to the College of Letters and Science for more information about your non-major degree requirements.  

Note: In 2019, the STS major adopted many changes to its requirements. If you were admitted to UC Davis prior to Fall 2019, you may choose to complete the former version of the major.

Minor Options from the Science & Technology Studies Department

Minors are optional at UC Davis and can be useful in helping students reach the required total of 180 units for graduation. The University will not allow students to overlap more than one upper division course between a major and a minor. Find the overlap policy on the College of Letters and Science website.

Minor Requirements for Data in Society Minor

NEW minor as of Winter 2024!

The Data in Society minor provides students with skills to work with and think critically about data in a variety of academic, administrative, and industrial domains. Courses in the minor teach students to use computational methods (primarily in R) to explore, manipulate, analyze, and visualize numeric and textual data with a critical awareness of the provenance of the data, the choices made in data collection, the questions that can and cannot be answered with any given data set, and the implications of all of these issues for analytic outcomes. Students will learn how to communicate about data in written, oral, and visual media with data scientists and with diverse sets of stakeholders. The minor is administered by the Science and Technology Studies Department.

  • Minor Worksheet (pdf)
  • University Catalog (coming soon)
  • OASIS Degree Worksheet (coming soon)

Minor Requirements for History & Philosophy of Science Minor

The interdisciplinary minor in the History & Philosophy of Science invites students to examine historical and contemporary problems in a variety of scientific disciplines, and to explore concepts and procedures basic to science and how they have evolved. The minor is sponsored by the Program in Science & Technology Studies.