Congratulations on your admission to the Master of Computer Science at the University of California, Irvine! The following information will help answer some of the questions most often asked by new students. Please visit https://grad.uci.edu/admissions/admitted-students/index.php for a list of things you will need to complete as a newly admitted student at UCI.
ADDITIONAL SKILLS
Students who are lacking necessary skills to do well in the program should make every effort to take community college classes in the summer to fill holes in their knowledge, or to take Coursera or EdX classes. There is an excellent on-line book on Discrete Mathematics offered by Zybooks. The code for an independent student is dmSIALR25SO. Students can try out the first chapter without purchasing the book to see if it will meet their needs.
ACTIVATE YOUR UCInetID (AND EMAIL ACCOUNT)
Every admitted UCI student is assigned a UCInetID, which grants you access to many of UCI’s electronic services and serves as your email account. In order to activate your UCInetID, you will need your eight-digit student identification number, your date of birth, and the last four digits of your Social Security number (international students are exempt from this last requirement). You may activate your UCInetID at www.activate.uci.edu.
Your UCI email will NOT work until you have enrolled in fall courses.
ADMISSION PROVISIONS
If you have been admitted provisionally to UCI, your admission does not become final until the specific requirements explained in your offer letter are met; for example, completion of your undergraduate degree program, or submission of official GRE scores.
If you are graduating at the end of the term immediately preceding your quarter of matriculation at UCI, you may register pending receipt of a final, official transcript. (If you are graduating from UCI, request from the Registrar’s Office that a final copy of your undergraduate record be sent to Graduate Division. Be sure to check the box labeled “Hold for Degree” on the transcript request form). The ICS Graduate Office would also like an official copy for your student file.
A HOLD will be placed on your registration if you do not provide evidence of the degree (or clear any other admission provisions) by the end of the first quarter of admission.
You will need to follow up with the Student Affairs office in 352 Computer Science Bldg. 1 to confirm that your provisional acceptance has been removed.
Please understand that a new admit letter will not be generated once you’ve cleared your provision. However, Graduate Division will send an email confirmation. Please keep a copy for your records.
ENROLLMENT AND FEE PAYMENT
The deadline to enroll in classes and pay fees is September 17, 2018 at 5:00pm
Enrollment:
Registration opens for new graduate students on June 11th.
Please visit the Registrar’s website for information on enrolling in classes and paying fees and tuition. From this site, you may access the searchable schedule of classes.
Fees:
You will receive a computerized billing statement (commonly referred to as a Zotbill) from campus billing services to pay your fees and tuition. If you will be receiving financial support in the form of a fellowship or academic employment, your fees may be payable by electronic fee payment as part of the registration process. You will be subject to a service charge if you register late (the School will NOT pay late fees for students receiving fellowships). Fees for the 18-19 Academic Year.
Campus billing services offers a plan – called PACE – that allows for payment of quarterly fees in installments over a three-month period.
FREE APPLICATION FOR FEDERAL STUDENT AID
**Not applicable for International Students**
If you have received a School fellowship, please note that some sources of department support come from a source that requires you to complete and submit a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) form. Please complete this form no later than March 3, 2018. You can access the electronic version of the form at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov.
GRADUATE STUDENT HEALTH INSURANCE
Students in the program are NOT covered under the Student Health Insurance Program (SHIP). Although health insurance is considered mandatory, students may either purchase SHIP for a fee or they may use their own insurance.
HOUSING
If you are interested in on-campus housing, please visit www.housing.uci.edu/grad for applications and other housing information. You may apply for on-campus housing after submitting a positive SIR.
You can also check out local off-campus housing information (Irvine). If you have transportation to campus, surrounding communities such as Costa Mesa, Santa Ana, and Tustin are conveniently located and generally more affordable than off-campus housing in Irvine.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS
Please review information for new students on the International Center site.
If you have not done so already, you should begin preparing to obtain a student visa immediately. You will be notified by the ICS Graduate Office about what supporting documents are required. The staff at the UCI International Center is available to help you with answers to immigration, visa and passport questions, and employment regulations.
The New International Graduate Student Orientation will take place on Thursday, September 20th at the UCI Bren Events Center.
As a reminder, a copy of your admit letter can be found in your TRACKER account. As mentioned above, it is a good idea to keep copies of your SIR email, receipt of your positive SIR, the SLR email, and confirmation the SLR has been completed. Some students like to take copies to their embassy appointment. If you need an official letter confirming enrollment, you’ll need to contact UCI’s Registrar’s Office at http://www.reg.uci.edu/services/verifications/. As an alternative, you can print out your WebReg window.
NEW STUDENT ORIENTATIONS
The date for UC Irvine New Graduate Student Orientation is September 21, 2018. You will receive more information from Graduate Division about this optional event.
RESIDENCY (SLR)
The Statement of Legal Residence is used to make a determination of residence classification for tuition purposes. All students are required to file a SLR form with the Office of the Registrar regardless of whether the student expects to be classified as a California resident or not (you must complete a new SLR even if you attended UCI as an undergraduate student).
It is very important to complete your SLR in a timely manner. You cannot enroll in classes before your SLR is completed, received and processed by the University.
UCI’s Residence Officer sends out an email to all admitted students who also indicated, via their SIR, that they accept the admission offer. This email requests that you complete and submit your SLR online and provides you with your UCI Student ID Number and your “Application ID Number.” Please note that the “Application ID Number” is different than your “Electronic Application ID Number,” so be sure to use the Application ID Number you receive in the email regarding the SLR.
Please keep a copy of the SLR email and receipt of your SLR confirmation for your records. International students may like to take a copy to their embassy appointment.
STATEMENT OF INTENT TO REGISTER (SIR)
When you are admitted to UCI, you will receive an email providing the URL, username, and password for the online Statement of Intent to Register (SIR) submission system. You must complete and submit electronically the SIR form to indicate you accept the offer of admission and intend to enroll at UCI. It is in your best interest to submit this form as soon as possible because UCI Graduate Division cannot formally admit you until they receive your completed SIR. You also must submit your SIR in order to apply for housing and enroll in classes. By submitting your SIR in a timely manner, you can initiate (or even complete) a number of administrative processes required for newly admitted students even before you arrive in Irvine.
Please keep a copy of the SIR email and the receipt of your positive SIR for your records. International students may like to take a copy to their embassy appointment.
