Since 1942 UC Berkeley Social Welfare has offered the undergraduate major in Social Welfare leading to the Bachelor of Arts degree, under the auspices of the College of Letters and Science ("L&S").
The Social Welfare undergraduate major is a designated “group major” grounded in the liberal arts, rather than specialized training in the profession of social work. Students who successfully complete the major program are awarded the Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree.
UC Berkeley Social Welfare’s undergraduate major reflects our goal to provide UC Berkeley undergraduate students with a broad-based introduction to America’s social welfare problems and social policies within a social science context. The curriculum, as reflected in the core major courses, focuses both on the history and institutions of social work as a field of activity and on the welfare state as a collective enterprise addressing human need. Students gain knowledge of organized networks of public and private social services, and the basic practice methods associated with the social work profession. In doing so, students acquire the knowledge needed to understand, address, and actively participate in the amelioration of critical social problems in American Society.
Social Welfare is a popular major, and prerequisites and enrollment controls for required courses are in place to manage student demand. Students interested in declaring the Social Welfare major should:
- Thoroughly explore the Social Welfare field as a major, and become familiar with the curriculum and its required sequence.
- Complete the prerequisite entry requirements as soon as possible.
- Be aware of priority deadlines to declare the major, and file the Petition to Declare a Major as soon as all of the prerequisites have been completed.
Please see our online Undergraduate Major Student Handbook for complete information on requirements and resources for Social Welfare majors.
Social Welfare Major Advising
Our Undergraduate Advising Office is located in the Social Welfare Admissions, Advising, and Student Experience (AASE) Office in 101 Haviland Hall. Questions and requests for advising appointments should be sent by email to swugadvisor@berkeley.edu.
Spring 2026 Undergraduate Advising
Please email swugadvisor@berkeley.edu to schedule an appointment or use the link here. Spring 2026 appointments will be delivered either in-person or through zoom. If an in-person appointment is needed please indicate so during the in-person advising days.
How to Declare the Major: Non-Transfer Students
The next opportunity to submit a petition to declare Social Welfare as your major will be Spring 2026. The petition submission period will begin Wednesday, January 28th at 10am, and will close Wednesday, February 18th at 4pm. This does NOT apply to transfer students. If you are a transfer that started in Fall 2025 or starting in Spring 2026, please see the next sections for how to petition to declare as a transfer student.
Non-Transfer Students Admitted Spring 2023 or Prior
Social Welfare is a high-demand/impacted major, which means there are specific eligibility requirements that must be met without exception in order to declare the Social Welfare major. Students must meet the following requirements to be considered:
- Have completed all prerequisite entry requirements (see below) with a letter grade of C or better.
- Have a minimum GPA of 2.0.
- Have accrued less than 80 cumulative units, including work in-progress. *Please note that we do not count transfer units in this total.
Students are eligible to submit the Petition to Declare e-Form (Google Form) after they have completed all of the prerequisite entry requirements and received a letter grade for each course. Petitions must include unofficial transcripts and a 4-year program plan indicating how the applicant intends to complete the major requirements by their expected graduation date. For assistance with program planning, please make plans to meet with a major adviser. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.
Non-Transfer Students Admitted Fall 2023 and After
The College of Letters and Sciences has implented a new policy, regarding High-Demand Majors, for non-transfer students who start in Fall 2023 and future semesters. This new policy may require additional steps to be eligible for admission into the Social Welfare major. Please refer to the new policy here.
Students who indicated Social Welfare on their UC Berkeley application:
If you indicated Social Welfare as your major on your UC Berkeley application, please refer to the application steps above and fill out the application form. Applications will be approved if all admission requirements have been met.
Students who did not indicate Social Welfare on their UC Berkeley application:
Students who did not indicate Social Welfare as their major on their UC Berkeley application and are wanting to either declare as the primary major or looking to add Social Welfare as a second major, will need to go through the application process above. Admissions decisions will be based on remaining seats in the program for that particular semester. Admission decisions will be sent via email before Phase 1 enrollment for the upcoming Fall/Spring semester.
Enrollment Rules for Social Welfare Majors
The following enrollment rules are in effect for Social Welfare undergraduate majors and courses:
- Students must be declared in the major in order to enroll in the core classes. Social Welfare majors should plan to begin taking the core classes the semester after they are declared.
- Social Welfare majors must begin the core series by taking Social Welfare 110. Students may take SOCWEL 112 and 114 classes concurrently if offered during the same semester Seats in SOC WEL 112 and 114 are reserved for students who have completed SOC WEL 110.
- Currently, core classes are offered on the following schedule:
- SOC WEL 110: Fall and Spring
- SOC WEL 112: Fall and Spring
- SOC WEL 114: Fall and Spring
- SOC WEL Elective: At least one social welfare elective is offered each Fall and Spring term; offerings typically vary by term. For current class schedules and course descriptions, please consult the UC Berkeley Academic Guide.
- Courses from the Master List of Approved BASW Electives may be taken before being officially declared in the major. Please note, most of the departments from the elective list reserve seats for majors only during Phase I. Questions about enrollment in specific courses from this list should be directed to the major adviser(s) in those offering departments.
