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.
Science & Technology Studies Major and Minors
Science & Technology Studies Major and Minor Options
The STS department offers 1 major and 2 minors:
How to Declare the Science & Technology Studies Major
- There are no specific courses required to declare the STS major. However, we recommend you take Intro to STS (STS 01) to assess your interest in the subject.
- Create a degree worksheet in OASIS for the STS major. Input all courses you have completed towards the major and courses you are scheduled for. You do not need to input courses you plan to take.
- Submit a Change of Major form in OASIS under the Forms & Petitions tab.
Major Requirements for Science & Technology Studies
Science & Technology Studies AB
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.
Minor Requirements for Science & Technology Studies
Data in Society Minor
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.
History and 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.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the difference between the Major Worksheets, University Catalog, and OASIS Degree Worksheets?
We recommend you use all 3 tools in conjunction with each other to plan your major requirements and courses.
The Major Worksheets are a PDF layout of the major requirements and are publicly available.
Benefits: includes more course options to complete your major requirements called “substitutions”. These are internally approved courses from our faculty. Another benefit is that it includes course prerequisites.
Limitations: does not have course descriptions and does not have a way to track your major degree progress.
The OASIS degree worksheets are interactive and are only available for current students. They are most often used to check major degree progress.
Benefits: you can plug in courses you have completed or are scheduled for. It pulls courses directly from your record. Includes substitution options.
Limitations: does not include course descriptions or course prerequisites.
The University Catalog, which is a university wide tool which has information on majors, courses, and more. This tool is publicly available.
Benefits: includes course descriptions
Limitations: only updated once a year, and the information may be out of date. Does not include substitutions. Does not have a way to track your major degree progress.
- How many classes can I overlap between STS and my other major?
There is no limit to overlapping lower division courses (001-099) between majors.
Students may only overlap 20% of upper-division units (001-199) between two majors. This is typically 8 units (2 courses), but could be more or less depending on which two majors you are pursuing. Please consult with a major advisor.
How to Calculate Overlap Allowance Between 2 Majors1. Find the minimum # of upper division units for each major. You can find this information in the University Catalog.
2. Identify the major that has the fewer minimum # of upper div units and multiply by 0.20.
3. The result you get is the number of overlap units allowed.
Example - Philosophy AB General and Psychology AB General Overlap
The minimum number of upper division units for the Philosophy AB General major is 36.
The minimum number of upper division units for the Psychology AB General major is 40.The Philosophy major has fewer minimum upper division units (36).
36 multiplied by 0.20 = 7.2. Therefore, the student can overlap 7 units between the two majors, which could be one 4-unit class, or a both 4-unit and 3-unit class.
Find the overlap policy on the College of Letters and Science website.- How many classes can I overlap between my major and the Data in Society or History & Philosophy of Science Minor?
- Students can only overlap 1 course (lower or upper division) between a major and a minor.
- Can I P/NP any of the classes I need for my STS major?
- We will accept P/NP grades for the STS major requirements. However, there are 3 other considerations for P/NP grading.
1. All students under the College of Letters and Science are subject to a Limitation on Credits for Units Graded P.
1/4 Pass/No Pass Unit Rule for College of Letters and Science Students
Only 1/4 of your total UC Davis units can be taken as self-elected P/NP (meaning courses where you choose P/NP instead of a letter grade). This does not count courses that have P/NP grading only.
1/3 Pass/No Pass Unit Rule for all UC Davis Students
Only 1/3 of your total UC Davis units can be taken as self-elected P/NP and P/NP grading only courses.
2. Some graduate programs may not accept P grades for prerequisite coursework or will view a P grade as the lowest possible equivalent (C-)
3. If the course you want to P/NP is a prerequisite for another course, please check if that course requires a specific letter grade.
Also, read repeating courses with P/NP grades. - How do I declare the Data in Society or History & Philosophy Minor?
- After you complete at least one upper division course toward the minor with a grade of C or above, submit a Minor Declaration Form in the Forms & Petitions tab in OASIS.