Greetings New First Year Students of Fall 2025!

Welcome to the UCI School of Humanities! As a new student, you are required to complete academic advising before enrolling in courses. All academic advising will be conducted in person throughout July and August. Below you will find helpful information and resources to help prepare you for academic advising, take necessary placement exams, and start a successful college career at UCI. We look forward to working with you this summer!

Summer Academic Advising
Student Parent Orientation Program (SPOP) is UCI’s summer orientation for incoming undergraduate students and will be hosted in person this summer. Through this program, you will receive information on academic life, campus resources, what to expect in the Fall Quarter and more. Click on the following link for more details about the first-year orientation programs: https://orientation.uci.edu/.

After accepting your admission offer to UCI, you will receive an email sent to your UCI email account from orientation@uci.edu with instructions on making a reservation for an orientation program and information about your reservation window. The orientation program you choose to make a reservation for will determine the date you receive academic advising and enroll in classes for the Fall Quarter. 

In mid-June, the School of Humanities FIRST-YEAR Advising/Registration 25-26 course will be added to your Canvas account. In this Canvas space, you will receive important information on the academic advising and registration process. Information on how to access your Canvas account, as well as other important resources, can be found here: https://sites.uci.edu/learnanywhere/.

Note for international students: International students are approved to complete an online web advising process different from SPOP. You will receive an email with more information on this process in early July.

Placement Testing
You may need to take a placement test. See the information below to help determine which exams to take before your advising session. You will be able to sign up for placement testing on the Testing Center website.

  • Writing: All students will receive a writing placement before enrolling in courses for the Fall Quarter. Writing placement considers scores such as AP, IB, SAT, ACT, and SBAC. More information on the writing placement process and when/where to submit official scores can be found here: https://testingcenter.uci.edu/programs/placement-testing/writing-placement/.
  • Language other than English: If you plan to enroll in any of the following language courses for the Fall Quarter, you must take a placement test this summer: Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Spanish or Vietnamese. The placement exams for French and German are optional but recommended.
  • Math and Science: Math and Physics classes are not specific requirements for Humanities majors but can be taken to meet portions of the General Education requirement. You only need to take those exams if you are interested in taking calculus or physics.

Not sure which test to take? If necessary, most Humanities majors take a language placement exam.

Community College/Other 4-Year College Courses

If you have taken ANY courses at a community college or other 4-year college, then you MUST send OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTS to UCI Admissions. If a community college course is UC accredited, it is possible that your coursework may be accepted for a general education course or a lower-division major requirement. Courses from another 4-year college or out-of-state community college may earn you units, but course equivalency is NOT automatic. A syllabus review may be required to determine credit.

Note that courses from a community college or a 4-year college will NOT waive you out of the specific school requirements of Humanities Core. All eligible first year students will need to enroll in Humanities Core. Eligibility will be determined at your SPOP session.

If you are interested in taking courses at your local community college, be sure to utilize the Assist website for articulation agreements. Feel free to contact alicetn1@uci.edu to review your proposed courses. 

UCI General Catalogue

The 2025-2026 UCI General Catalogue will be available online in mid-July. It contains valuable information about the campus, your academic field of interest, and UCI's policies and regulations. You are responsible for knowing and adhering to the policies contained in this Catalogue.

New Student Resources

Important Dates

  • July 1, 2025 – Deadline to submit official final transcripts, including high school and college transcripts, to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. 
  • July 15, 2025 – Deadline to submit official test scores to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions.
  • September 15, 2025 – Deadline to pay Fall Quarter fees. Fees must be paid to the Cashier's Office by September 15 to retain your seats in classes (postmarks do not apply). Review your ZOT Account online in late August.
  • September 25, 2025 – The first day of classes. Note this is a Thursday.