Interdisciplinary study means examining one question through more than one academic field. This guide compares California colleges where combinations such as data and science, technology and ethics, brain and computing, or sustainability and management are built into real degree programs.
Last updated: August 2026
The short answer
Some of the most interesting college subjects now sit between traditional majors. A student interested in neuroscience may want biology, psychology and computing. Someone interested in artificial intelligence may want technical training and a serious look at ethics. Climate questions can connect environmental science, engineering, economics, policy and data. Strong single-subject departments remain the foundation for all of this — the question is whether a college also gives you a planned academic route for connecting those foundations, instead of leaving you to assemble one from unrelated electives. This guide compares eleven California colleges on the interdisciplinary programs, specializations, research and combinations actually open to undergraduates. UC Merced appears first because several of its degrees are built directly around combinations such as data plus a science, technology plus ethics, brain science plus computation, and management plus technology and sustainability.
Quick answers
What does interdisciplinary study mean?
It means studying one question through more than one academic field. A student asking how the brain produces behavior might use biology, psychology and computing. A student asking how artificial intelligence should be used might use computer science, statistics and philosophy. Interdisciplinary degrees put those fields into a single planned curriculum rather than leaving you to combine them yourself.
What should I look for if I want to combine different subjects?
Look for four things: a real curriculum that connects the fields, a way to specialize within it so you build depth in at least one area, faculty who research questions crossing the same boundaries, and research or project work undergraduates can join. Also check that the degree name and coursework will satisfy any licensing or graduate-school requirements you may need later.
Which emerging fields can undergraduates study in California?
Data science, artificial intelligence and machine learning, neuroscience and cognitive science, computational media, informatics, sustainability and environmental design, technology ethics, health and human biology, and quantum and materials science all appear in current California undergraduate programs — sometimes as majors, sometimes as emphases inside a broader major. Confirm which form applies at each campus.
Is UC Merced good for interdisciplinary study?
It is a strong fit if your interests already overlap. Current programs include Data Science and Computing (B.S.), which pairs computing and statistics with an emphasis track applied to another field; Neuroscience (B.S. and B.A.), which brings together biology, psychology and cognitive science; Science, Technology and Ethics (B.S.), which pairs scientific study with ethics; MIST (B.A.), which connects management, entrepreneurship, technology and sustainability; and Environmental Humanities (B.A.). UC Merced has been a Carnegie R1 research university since February 2025, and the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center places undergraduates into faculty research.
What is an emerging field?
An emerging field is an area of study or work that is growing quickly, changing because of new technology or discoveries, combining subjects that used to be studied separately, and creating new kinds of jobs, research and public questions.
Where emerging fields come from
Almost every emerging field grows out of established ones. Data science builds on mathematics, statistics and computer science. Neuroscience builds on biology, psychology and chemistry. Sustainable design builds on environmental science, engineering and social science. Technology ethics builds on philosophy alongside the science it examines. Studying an emerging field usually means learning a foundation well and then applying it to a newer question.
Examples you will see in California catalogs
Artificial intelligence and machine learning, data science and analytics, neuroscience and cognitive science, computational media, informatics, biotechnology and bioengineering, sustainable and environmental design, climate and water science, health technology, technology ethics, and quantum and materials science. Some are full majors; others are emphases, minors or research areas inside a broader degree.
Not every new major is an emerging field
Colleges add and rename programs for many reasons. A useful test is whether the subject itself is changing — new methods, new tools, new questions — and whether faculty are actively researching it. Newness on its own is not evidence of quality, and long-established majors such as physics, biology, history and mathematics remain excellent preparation for new work.
The words to be precise about
A major is your degree. A minor is a smaller set of courses in a second subject. An emphasis or track is a focus area inside a major. A domain or specialization is the field you apply a skill to. A research area is what faculty study, which may or may not have a matching degree. When you compare colleges, ask which of these each option actually is.
What do you want to combine?
Start from the pairing that already interests you. Each card lists the kinds of courses involved, a current UC Merced program built around that combination, and directions students often move toward. These are possible paths, not guarantees.
Data + science
If you like coding and statistics and also a science such as biology, chemistry, physics or environmental science: UC Merced's Data Science and Computing (B.S.) combines computing, statistics and mathematics with an emphasis track — including an applied mathematics track and, with faculty approval, a custom emphasis — so the skills get applied to a subject area you choose. Possible directions include scientific data analysis, research, computational science and environmental modeling.
Brain + behavior + computing
If you like biology, psychology, cognition and technology: UC Merced's Neuroscience major is offered as a B.S. and a B.A., with the B.S. placing more weight on physics and mathematics. A Computational, Perceptual and Cognitive Neuroscience emphasis is listed in the current catalog. Possible directions include neuroscience and cognitive research, computational neuroscience, health, and graduate or professional study.
Technology + ethics + society
If you find yourself asking whether something should be built, not only whether it can be: UC Merced's Science, Technology and Ethics (B.S.) is housed in Philosophy and builds both scientific literacy and ethical reasoning, with lower-division work in ethics alongside statistics and science coursework. Possible interests include artificial intelligence ethics, health technology, privacy, policy, science communication and research.
Technology + business + sustainability
If you like technology and also want to understand organizations, money and environmental decisions: UC Merced's Management of Innovation, Sustainability and Technology (MIST, B.A.) — a management degree centered on new technology and environmental questions — covers leadership and organizations, entrepreneurship, finance, policy, data analytics, technology management and sustainable innovation. It sits in the School of Engineering's Department of Management of Complex Systems.
Environment + people + culture
If you care about environmental problems and are also drawn to history, literature, ethics and community: UC Merced's Environmental Humanities (B.A.) is organized around environmental literatures and cultures, environmental research, and environmental collaboration and community. It is a humanities route into the same questions engineers and scientists work on.
Data + policy, business or behavior
If you want analysis applied to decisions rather than to laboratory science: UC Merced's Data Science and Analytics (B.A.) offers emphases confirmed in the current catalog including Business Analytics and Policy Analytics. Check the current catalog for the full emphasis list for your entry year.
Physics + computing, engineering or quantum science
If you like physics and want a specific direction within it: UC Merced's Physics B.S. sits in a department whose research includes quantum information and computing, biophysics and soft matter, materials and plasmonics, and ultrafast lasers, so senior projects and research placements can lean technical, computational or applied. Emphasis names change between catalog years, so confirm the current options for your entry year.
Health + science + technology
If you are interested in health but also in the science and technology behind it: UC Merced students combine routes such as Neuroscience, bioengineering, public health and data coursework, and can join faculty health research through the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center. If you are aiming at a health profession, check the specific prerequisite courses that programs require before you choose a combination.
- UC Merced — Data Science and Computing program, emphasis tracks
- UC Merced — Neuroscience, B.S. and B.A.
- UC Merced catalog — Computational, Perceptual, and Cognitive Neuroscience Emphasis, B.S.
- UC Merced Philosophy — Science, Technology and Ethics major
- UC Merced — Management of Innovation, Sustainability and Technology (MIST)
- UC Merced — Environmental Humanities, B.A.
- UC Merced catalog — Business Analytics Emphasis, B.A.
- UC Merced catalog — Policy Analytics Emphasis, B.A.
- UC Merced — Physics undergraduate major
- UC Merced — Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center
How can you tell whether an interdisciplinary program has real depth?
Interdisciplinary programs vary widely. These seven checks separate a designed curriculum from a loose collection of courses, and they work on any campus.
Does it have a real curriculum?
Ask to see the four-year plan. A well-built program has required courses that connect the fields on purpose, in an order that makes sense, rather than a menu of electives from several departments.
Will I build depth in at least one area?
Connecting fields should not mean learning a little about each. Look for a sequence that takes you to upper-division work in at least one subject, so you graduate with something you know well.
Are faculty actually working in the area?
Read faculty pages and lab sites, not only the program page. If professors publish and teach in the combination, the courses stay current and there is somewhere to do the work.
Is there research or project work attached?
Ask which labs, capstones or studios relate to the program, whether undergraduates join them, and in which year students usually start.
Can I explain what skills I will graduate with?
If you cannot finish the sentence 'I can do ___', the program may need a clearer answer. Good ones name the skills plainly: statistical modeling, laboratory technique, writing and analysis, programming, design.
Does it lead to the next step I care about?
Ask where recent graduates went — jobs, graduate programs, professional schools. Ask the department, not only the admissions office.
Will the degree satisfy any requirements I may need?
This matters most for engineering licensure, health professions, teaching credentials and other credentialed fields. Confirm that the specific degree name and coursework meet the requirements before you commit to a combination.
Why combine fields?
Many kinds of work already ask people to understand more than one type of problem. These are directions a combination can support — not promises about jobs or pay.
Data + biology
Can support paths toward bioinformatics, health data analysis and scientific research, where the questions are biological but the evidence arrives as large datasets.
Technology + ethics
Can prepare students for policy work, technology governance, compliance, responsible technology roles and research, where someone needs to understand the system and the effects on people.
Neuroscience + computing
Can support computational neuroscience, brain and behavior research, health technology and graduate study, where models and experiments are used together.
Sustainability + management + technology
Can support sustainability work, operations, technology management, entrepreneurship, and roles in public agencies and private organizations that have to weigh cost, technology and environmental effects at once.
New and expanding academic options at UC Merced
Recent additions matter here because they show which combinations the university chose to build. Newness alone is not evidence of quality; the useful part is the fit with what you want to study.
2025: three majors at the meeting point of science, technology and people
Neuroscience, Science, Technology and Ethics, and Communication and Media all debuted in Fall 2025. Two of the three are directly relevant to this page: Neuroscience brings biology, psychology and cognitive science together, and Science, Technology and Ethics pairs scientific coursework with ethical reasoning.
2025: new engineering degrees
The School of Engineering added several majors for Fall 2025, including Aerospace Engineering. For students combining fields, the engineering catalog is worth reading next to the natural sciences catalog, because pairings such as bioengineering and data coursework live across both.
2026: Liberal Studies, B.A.
A new Liberal Studies B.A. launches in Fall 2026 through the School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts, drawing from the social sciences, humanities and arts, and oriented toward elementary and early-childhood education, community leadership and social-impact work. It is a reminder that connecting fields is not only a STEM idea.
2026: flexible routes from STEM degrees into teaching
In April 2026 UC Merced described new flexible routes that let students keep a STEM degree while moving toward teaching, which is useful if your interests combine a science with education. Ask the department how the route fits into your major's four-year plan.
- UC Merced News — three new majors meet at the crossroads of communication and science (Fall 2025 launch)
- UC Merced News — UC Merced adds several new engineering majors
- UC Merced News — new Aerospace Engineering major
- UC Merced News — new Liberal Studies major expands paths to degree completion (April 2026)
- UC Merced News — flexible routes from STEM degrees to teaching and beyond (April 2026)
- UC Merced News — UC Merced marks 20th year with new academic programs (August 2025)
Best options for students who want data or computing connected to another field
All three let a student learn computing and statistics and then apply them to a chosen subject area, through a documented structure rather than an informal arrangement.
1)UC Merced
Data Science and Computing (B.S.) combines computing, statistics and mathematics with an emphasis track applied to another subject area, including an applied mathematics track and a custom, faculty-approved emphasis. Data Science and Analytics (B.A.) is a separate degree with emphases including Business Analytics and Policy Analytics for students who want analysis pointed at decisions and organizations.
2)UC Berkeley
The Data Science major asks every student to choose a domain emphasis — a second field the data work is applied to — from a long published list that includes areas such as science, technology and society. It is one of the most fully developed versions of this model in the state.
3)UC San Diego
Cognitive Science is built across anthropology, computer science, linguistics, neuroscience, philosophy, psychology and sociology, and the B.S. is organized into specializations, so a student can take a computational route through a subject that is human at its core.
Top options for students who want science studied alongside human questions
These programs treat the effects of science and technology on people as academic work in its own right, taught next to the technical material rather than after it.
1)UC Merced
Science, Technology and Ethics (B.S.) is housed in Philosophy and builds scientific literacy and ethical reasoning together, with introductory ethics alongside statistics and science coursework. Environmental Humanities (B.A.) approaches environmental questions through literature, culture, research and community collaboration, and MIST adds policy and sustainability to technology and management.
2)Stanford University
Symbolic Systems integrates computer science, linguistics, mathematics, philosophy, psychology and statistics around how minds and machines represent and process information. Human Biology combines biological science with behavioral, social and cultural study of people.
3)Pomona College
Science, Technology and Society examines how scientific and technical work shapes society and how society shapes it, and Environmental Analysis runs across the Claremont Colleges so students can approach environmental questions from science, policy or humanities directions in a small-college setting.
Strong options for students who want degrees in newer combinations of fields
Newer is not automatically better. These three are here because the combination is a designed degree with its own department or program behind it, which is what gives it depth.
1)UC Merced
Neuroscience (B.S. and B.A.) and Science, Technology and Ethics (B.S.) both debuted in Fall 2025, MIST (B.A.) sits in the School of Engineering's Department of Management of Complex Systems, and a Liberal Studies B.A. drawing from the social sciences, humanities and arts launches in Fall 2026. Each has a home department and a required sequence.
2)UC Santa Cruz
Computational Media is its own department inside Baskin Engineering, combining technical computing with design and interpretive study of games, interactive media and creative software — a full department rather than a track inside computer science.
3)UC Irvine
Informatics (B.S.) in the Donald Bren School studies how people actually use computing systems, combining software design with human-centered and organizational study, with specializations published in the campus catalog.
What should you look for if your interests cross more than one field?
Eight questions to ask at every campus. Each shows what UC Merced currently documents, with the source, so you can see the standard of evidence to ask for elsewhere.
Does the college offer programs that actually combine subjects?
Ask for the degrees that were designed around more than one field, and read their required courses. What this gets you is a planned curriculum instead of an attempt to invent your own degree out of unrelated electives.
Several current degrees are built this way: Data Science and Computing (B.S.), Neuroscience (B.S. and B.A.), Science, Technology and Ethics (B.S.), Management of Innovation, Sustainability and Technology (MIST, B.A.) and Environmental Humanities (B.A.). Each is a full major with its own required sequence, not a label attached to an existing department's course list.
Can I apply one skill to different subject areas?
Ask whether a technical skill such as data science can be pointed at a subject you choose, and how that choice is recorded on the degree. What this gets you is the ability to use the skill in biology, environmental science, materials or another field you care about.
Data Science and Computing (B.S.) is the clearest example: students take computing, statistics and mathematics and then follow an emphasis track applied to another subject area, with an applied mathematics emphasis in the current catalog and a custom, faculty-approved emphasis available. Check the current emphasis list for your entry year, since tracks are added and revised.
Can I study both the technical and the human side of a problem?
Ask which courses handle the effects of a technology on people, and whether they are required or optional. What this gets you is preparation to judge not only whether something can be done, but what it does once it exists.
Science, Technology and Ethics (B.S.) is designed for exactly this: housed in Philosophy, it builds scientific literacy alongside ethical reasoning, with introductory ethics required next to statistics and science coursework. MIST adds policy and sustainability alongside technology and management, and Environmental Humanities examines environmental questions through literature, culture, history and community work.
Do newer fields here have real academic depth?
Ask whether an emerging subject is a full major, an emphasis, a minor or a research area — and how many upper-division courses exist in it. What this gets you is a curriculum with substance behind the name.
Neuroscience is a full major in two degree forms, with a Computational, Perceptual and Cognitive Neuroscience emphasis in the current catalog and a Center for Interdisciplinary Neuroscience behind it. Data Science and Computing and Data Science and Analytics are separate full majors with their own emphasis structures. Science, Technology and Ethics is a B.S. with a defined lower-division sequence.
- UC Merced — Neuroscience, B.S. and B.A.
- UC Merced catalog — Computational, Perceptual, and Cognitive Neuroscience Emphasis, B.S.
- UC Merced — Center for Interdisciplinary Neuroscience
- UC Merced — Data Science and Computing, B.S.
- UC Merced — Data Science and Analytics, B.A.
- UC Merced — Science, Technology and Ethics, B.S.
Can research cross the same boundaries as the academic program?
Ask for two or three current projects where people from different fields work on the same question. What this gets you is a chance to see how the combination behaves on a real problem, which is usually more instructive than a course description.
Current examples: the Mi3 Lab works on artificial intelligence and computer vision applied to transportation safety; the research behind Project Nexus, California's first solar-over-canal pilot commemorated in April 2026, combined solar energy with water supply; Amazon Research Awards announced in March 2026 fund computer science and engineering work on making AI computing more efficient. UC Merced has been a Carnegie R1 university — very high research spending and doctorate production — since February 2025.
- UC Merced — Mi3 Lab (machine intelligence, interaction and imagination)
- UC Merced News — California's first solar canal project moves from a UC Merced lab to the real world (April 2026)
- UC Merced News — Amazon funds research into making AI more efficient (March 2026)
- UC Merced — Research Week 2026 marks one year as an R1 university
- Carnegie Classifications
Can I combine a major with a minor or a second field?
Ask which minors are open to your major, how many units they add and whether they fit a four-year plan. What this gets you is a second way to connect interests without changing your primary degree. Not every pairing fits in four years, so ask an adviser for the specific combination you have in mind.
The current majors and minors catalog lists the available minors and the school each belongs to, including a Data Science and Computing minor alongside the major. Science, Technology and Ethics is one of the programs that welcomes students adding a second field. Confirm any combination with an academic adviser before you count on it.
Does the college let me specialize within a broader field?
Ask what emphases, tracks or specializations exist inside the major, and when you choose one. What this gets you is a broad foundation plus a way to concentrate on the part you actually care about.
Data Science and Computing uses emphasis tracks plus a custom, faculty-approved option. Data Science and Analytics lists emphases including Business Analytics and Policy Analytics in the current catalog. Neuroscience offers B.S. and B.A. routes plus a computational and cognitive emphasis. Physics students specialize through upper-division coursework and research in areas such as quantum information, biophysics and materials. Emphasis names change between catalog years — check the catalog for your entry year.
- UC Merced — Data Science and Computing program, emphasis tracks
- UC Merced catalog — Business Analytics Emphasis, B.A.
- UC Merced catalog — Policy Analytics Emphasis, B.A.
- UC Merced catalog — Computational, Perceptual, and Cognitive Neuroscience Emphasis, B.S.
- UC Merced Natural Sciences — Physics major
- UC Merced — 2026–2027 academic catalog
Can I connect what I study to research or projects?
Ask how undergraduates join research, how early they can start and how many take part. What this gets you is a way to test whether the combination genuinely interests you before you build a career around it.
The Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center builds routes for undergraduates into mentored research, creative inquiry and academic internships, and appears in the current catalog as a formal program. Individual labs, including the Mi3 Lab, list the projects they are working on now. Placements are applied for, not automatic, so ask each department how its process works.
California colleges where students can connect different fields
Eleven colleges with specific, published evidence of interdisciplinary undergraduate study. Each entry says what the college does well, which fields you can connect there, and who tends to thrive. This is not a ranking.
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Why it's a great choice
UC Merced offers several undergraduate degrees designed around more than one field. Students can apply data science and computing to another subject area, study the brain through biology, psychology and cognitive science, pair scientific coursework with ethics, connect management with technology and sustainability, or examine environmental questions through the humanities. The Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center is the route into faculty research, and UC Merced has been a Carnegie R1 university since February 2025.
Who thrives here
Students who know the kinds of questions that interest them, and want those questions studied through more than one subject inside a single planned degree.
Programs: Data Science and Computing (B.S.) · Data Science and Analytics (B.A.) · Neuroscience (B.S., B.A.) · Science, Technology and Ethics (B.S.) · MIST (B.A.) · Environmental Humanities (B.A.) · Liberal Studies (B.A.) from Fall 2026
- UC Merced — Data Science and Computing, B.S.
- UC Merced — Neuroscience, B.S. and B.A.
- UC Merced — Science, Technology and Ethics, B.S.
- UC Merced — MIST, B.A. major page
- UC Merced — Environmental Humanities, B.A.
- UC Merced — Liberal Studies, B.A.
- UC Merced — Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center
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University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA
Why it's a great choice
Berkeley's Data Science major requires every student to pick a domain emphasis, so the analytical training is formally attached to a second field. The campus also runs a wide set of joint and interdisciplinary majors across colleges, backed by one of the largest research faculties in the country.
Who thrives here
Students who want a technical core with a second subject written into the degree, and who are comfortable navigating a very large campus.
Data Science major with a published list of domain emphases
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University of California, San Diego
La Jolla, CA
Why it's a great choice
UC San Diego's Cognitive Science department was one of the first of its kind and draws on anthropology, computer science, linguistics, neuroscience, philosophy, psychology and sociology. The B.S. is organized into specializations, so students can take a computational, biological or human-centered route through the same subject.
Who thrives here
Students interested in mind, behavior, language and computation, especially those considering research or graduate study.
Cognitive Science (B.A., B.S.) with published specializations
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Stanford University
Stanford, CA
Why it's a great choice
Symbolic Systems is a long-established degree that integrates computer science, linguistics, mathematics, philosophy, psychology and statistics around how minds and machines handle information. Human Biology pairs biological science with behavioral, social and cultural study, and students commonly take courses across schools.
Who thrives here
Students drawn to questions about intelligence, language or human health that need both technical and humanistic training.
Symbolic Systems (B.S.) and Human Biology
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University of California, Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA
Why it's a great choice
Data Theory is run jointly by statistics and mathematics for students who want the reasoning behind data methods, not only their use. Human Biology and Society, based in the Institute for Society and Genetics, combines biological science with the social and ethical questions that come with it.
Who thrives here
Students who want quantitative depth or a science-and-society combination inside a large research university.
Data Theory; Human Biology and Society (B.A., B.S.)
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University of California, Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz, CA
Why it's a great choice
Computational Media is a full department inside Baskin Engineering, combining programming and systems work with design and the study of games, interactive media and creative software. Environmental and marine science programs give the campus a second strong cross-field area.
Who thrives here
Students combining computing with design, narrative or environmental work who want project-based courses.
Computational Media as its own engineering department
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University of California, Irvine
Irvine, CA
Why it's a great choice
Informatics in the Donald Bren School studies how people actually use software and computing systems, combining technical design with human-centered and organizational study. Specializations are published in the campus catalog, and the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program is a well-established route into faculty projects.
Who thrives here
Students who want to build technology and understand the people using it.
Informatics (B.S.) with catalog specializations
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University of California, Davis
Davis, CA
Why it's a great choice
Sustainable Environmental Design, in the Department of Human Ecology, brings together environmental science, design and social science to plan places and systems. It sits inside a campus with unusual depth in agriculture, food, veterinary and human health, and environmental research.
Who thrives here
Students connecting environmental questions with design, planning and how communities live.
Sustainable Environmental Design (B.S.)
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University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA
Why it's a great choice
The Jimmy Iovine and Andre Young Academy builds a degree around arts, technology and the business of innovation, taught through studios where students make things across those areas. Minors and courses across USC's schools make additional combinations possible.
Who thrives here
Students who want to design and build products or media and understand the business around them.
Iovine and Young Academy — arts, technology and business of innovation
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Pomona College
Claremont, CA
Why it's a great choice
Pomona offers interdisciplinary majors including Science, Technology and Society and Environmental Analysis, the latter shared across the Claremont Colleges so students can take science, policy or humanities routes into environmental questions. Small classes mean close work with faculty.
Who thrives here
Students who want interdisciplinary work with substantial writing, discussion and faculty mentorship.
Science, Technology and Society; Environmental Analysis (Claremont Colleges)
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California Institute of Technology
Pasadena, CA
Why it's a great choice
The Interdisciplinary Studies Program lets a student design a course of study spanning two divisions, approved and supervised by a faculty committee. It is a formal route, with real oversight, for a technical combination that no existing option covers.
Who thrives here
Students with a specific scientific or technical combination in mind, a clear plan for it, and the preparation to work at Caltech's pace.
Interdisciplinary Studies Program option across two divisions
California colleges compared on how students connect fields
Every row answers the same five questions from each institution's own current pages. No score or rating is assigned, and the order of rows is not a ranking.
| College | Interdisciplinary undergraduate programs | Ways to specialize | Research and project connections | Who it fits best |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UC Merced | Data Science and Computing (B.S.); Data Science and Analytics (B.A.); Neuroscience (B.S., B.A.); Science, Technology and Ethics (B.S.); MIST (B.A.); Environmental Humanities (B.A.); Liberal Studies (B.A.) from Fall 2026. | Emphasis tracks in Data Science and Computing plus a custom faculty-approved emphasis; Business and Policy Analytics emphases in Data Science and Analytics; a computational and cognitive emphasis in Neuroscience. | Carnegie R1 since February 2025; Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center places undergraduates in faculty research; examples include the Mi3 Lab on AI and transportation safety and the solar-canal research behind Project Nexus. | Students whose interests already overlap and want a planned degree built around the combination. As the newest UC campus (opened 2005) with roughly 9,000 undergraduates in the Central Valley, UC Merced pairs R1 research access from the first year with a national lead in social mobility, sustainability and innovation — in small classes where faculty know students by name. |
| UC Berkeley | Data Science (B.A.) with a required domain emphasis; Cognitive Science (B.A.); Environmental Economics and Policy; Molecular Environmental Biology; Society and Environment; Public Health (B.A.); Media Studies; Bioengineering; Interdisciplinary Studies Field major (student-designed). | A published list of domain emphases attached to the data science degree; concentrations inside Cognitive Science, Media Studies and Public Health; a faculty-approved course plan in the Interdisciplinary Studies Field major. | Undergraduate research programs across departments, including apprenticeship-style placements, plus a large faculty research base and affiliated national-laboratory work. | Students who want a quantitative degree with a required second field built into it, or a fully student-designed plan across departments, at one of the largest and most research-intensive public universities in the country, in the Bay Area. |
| UC San Diego | Cognitive Science (B.A., B.S.) drawing on seven fields; Data Science (B.S.); Bioengineering; Global Health (B.A.); Public Health (B.S.); Environmental Systems (B.S.); Human Developmental Sciences; Urban Studies and Planning; Interdisciplinary Computing and the Arts (B.A.). | Specializations inside the Cognitive Science B.S., including computational and design routes; concentrations in Environmental Systems, Public Health and Human Developmental Sciences. | Undergraduate research placements, a campus research conference and honors research; biology, health and neuroscience research nearby. | Students who want cognitive science studied as its own seven-field discipline, at a coastal R1 of about 34,000 undergraduates with strong nearby health, neuroscience and ocean research. |
| Stanford University | Symbolic Systems (B.S.); Human Biology; Science, Technology and Society; Earth Systems; Management Science and Engineering; Urban Studies; Individually Designed Major. | Concentrations within Symbolic Systems, Human Biology, Earth Systems and Management Science and Engineering; an approved individual plan for the designed major. | Faculty research assistantships and funded undergraduate research grants across all schools. | Students who want flagship cohort programs like Symbolic Systems plus cross-school freedom from year one, at a private university of roughly 8,000 undergraduates in Silicon Valley. |
| UCLA | Data Theory (statistics and mathematics together); Human Biology and Society (B.A., B.S.); Cognitive Science (B.S.); Computational and Systems Biology; Environmental Science (B.S.); Global Studies; Linguistics and Computer Science; Design | Media Arts. | Concentrations in Computational and Systems Biology and Environmental Science; course pathways within Human Biology and Society, Global Studies and Cognitive Science. | Undergraduate research centers with funding, scholar programs and placement support across sciences, humanities and social sciences. | Students who want two quantitative disciplines fused in one degree (Data Theory), or a structured society-and-biology track with defined pathways, at a large urban R1 in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. |
| UC Santa Cruz | Computational Media (B.S., B.A.) as its own department; Cognitive Science; Bioengineering; Robotics Engineering; Global and Community Health; Environmental Studies combined majors with biology, earth sciences or economics; Art and Design: Games and Playable Media. | Concentrations within Computational Media and the combined Environmental Studies degrees; concentrations in Bioengineering and Cognitive Science. | Project-based courses, faculty research placements and field stations in computing, games, marine science and environmental science. | Students who want computing treated as a creative and storytelling medium, where combined majors are the default. A mid-size coastal campus of about 18,000 undergraduates set among redwoods, north of Monterey Bay. |
| UC Irvine | Informatics (B.S.) combining software with human-centered study; Cognitive Sciences; Data Science (B.S.); Game Design and Interactive Media (B.S.); Business Information Management; Public Health Sciences; Earth System Science. | Specializations published in the campus catalog for Informatics, Cognitive Sciences and Public Health Sciences. | Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program with a campus symposium, fellowships and faculty-mentored projects. | Students who want to study how people actually use technology, not just how to build it, at a suburban Orange County R1 of about 30,000 undergraduates with a dedicated school of information and computer sciences. |
| UC Davis | Sustainable Environmental Design (B.S.) in Human Ecology; Cognitive Science (B.A., B.S.); Science and Technology Studies; Global Disease Biology; Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems; Environmental Science and Management; Biotechnology; Human Development. | Tracks within the design degree, emphases in Biotechnology and Environmental Science and Management, and concentrations in Cognitive Science. | Undergraduate Research Center conferences and funding; agriculture, environment, veterinary and health research across the campus. | Students drawn to environment, food and agriculture questions, at a large college-town campus of about 32,000 undergraduates with field stations and applied research land rare among these peers. |
| USC | Iovine and Young Academy degree in arts, technology and the business of innovation; Computer Science and Business Administration (B.S.); Cognitive Science; Environmental Studies; Global Health; Health and Human Sciences; Narrative Studies; Interactive Media and Games; individual student-designed major. | Studio and project sequences within the academy; emphases in Environmental Studies and Interactive Media; minors and progressive degrees across schools. | Studio projects, cross-school collaborations and funded undergraduate research and creative work with faculty. | Students who want to mix creative work, technology and business across separate schools with studio-based learning, at a private university of about 21,000 undergraduates in downtown Los Angeles. |
| Pomona College | Science, Technology and Society; Environmental Analysis shared across the Claremont Colleges; Cognitive Science; Neuroscience; Public Policy Analysis paired with a subject field; Media Studies; American Studies; student-designed special major. | Concentrations within each interdisciplinary major, and a required disciplinary pairing in Public Policy Analysis. | Close faculty mentorship, funded summer research and a senior thesis or project in every major. | Students who want interdisciplinary study in seminar-sized classes with a required senior thesis and a named faculty mentor throughout, at a liberal arts college of roughly 1,700 undergraduates in the Claremont consortium. |
| Caltech | Interdisciplinary Studies Program option: a custom major designed with a faculty committee across two divisions; Bioengineering; Computation and Neural Systems; Geobiology; interdisciplinary minors including information and data sciences, environmental science and engineering, and control and dynamical systems. | The student's own approved course plan is the specialization; declared tracks and options inside the divisions. | Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships and deep laboratory access from the first years. | Students with a precise, advanced technical combination and the preparation to start laboratory research from year one, at one of the smallest research universities in the country — about 230 undergraduates — in Pasadena. |
Programs and specializations are drawn from each institution's own current pages, read in August 2026, and each list names examples rather than every option. Requirements change each year; confirm the current catalog for your entry year before you rely on any of this.
Where does UC Merced fit for students whose interests cross fields?
The case rests on specific degrees rather than a general claim. Data Science and Computing (B.S.) teaches computing, statistics and mathematics and then asks the student to choose an emphasis track applying that work to another subject area, with an applied mathematics track in the current catalog and a custom, faculty-approved emphasis for students whose interest does not match an existing track. Neuroscience is offered as a B.S. and a B.A., bringing biology, psychology and cognitive science together, with the B.S. carrying more physics and mathematics. Science, Technology and Ethics (B.S.) is housed in Philosophy and builds scientific literacy and ethical reasoning side by side, with introductory ethics required alongside statistics and science coursework. MIST — Management of Innovation, Sustainability and Technology (B.A.) — sits in the School of Engineering's Department of Management of Complex Systems and covers leadership and organizations, entrepreneurship, finance, policy, data analytics, technology management and sustainable innovation.
There are also defined ways to focus once you are inside a field. Data Science and Computing uses emphasis tracks; Data Science and Analytics (B.A.) lists emphases including Business Analytics and Policy Analytics in the current catalog; Neuroscience lists a Computational, Perceptual and Cognitive Neuroscience emphasis; and Physics students concentrate through upper-division coursework and research in a department working on quantum information, biophysics and soft matter, and materials. That structure lets a student move from 'this broad field interests me' to 'this is the part of it I want to study,' which is the step that makes a degree feel like yours. Emphasis names change between catalog years, so confirm the current list for your entry year.
Research at UC Merced tends to cross the same boundaries the degrees do. The Mi3 Lab applies artificial intelligence and computer vision to transportation safety. The research behind Project Nexus, California's first solar-over-canal pilot commemorated in April 2026, connected solar energy with water supply. Amazon Research Awards announced in March 2026 fund computer science and engineering work on making AI computing more efficient. UC Merced has been a Carnegie R1 university — the classification for very high research spending and doctorate production — since February 2025, and the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center is the formal route for undergraduates into mentored research, creative inquiry and academic internships. Placements are applied for, so ask departments how and when.
Human questions get the same standing as technical ones here. Science, Technology and Ethics treats the ethics of new technology as academic work with its own coursework, and Environmental Humanities (B.A.) is organized around environmental literatures and cultures, environmental research, and environmental collaboration and community. A Liberal Studies B.A. drawing from the social sciences, humanities and arts launches in Fall 2026. UC Merced fits best for students whose interests already overlap. Instead of choosing between data and biology, technology and ethics, or sustainability and management, students can find programs designed around those connections — while still building real depth in a foundation subject.
How to compare colleges when your interests cross fields
Take this to campus visits, information sessions and department emails.
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Does the college offer an actual program connecting the subjects I care about?
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Can I specialize within that program, and when do I choose?
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Can I apply one skill, such as data science, to another subject?
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Can I add a minor or second field, and does it fit a four-year plan?
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Are faculty researching questions that cross those areas right now?
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Can undergraduates join related research or projects, and in which year?
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Will I still build enough depth in my primary field?
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Are there courses covering both the technical and the human side of the topic?
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Can I explain, in one sentence, what skills the program will give me?
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Does the degree support the career, credential or graduate program I may want?
Frequently asked questions
- What is interdisciplinary study?
- Interdisciplinary study means examining one question through more than one academic field. Instead of studying only biology or only psychology, a student studying the brain might use both, plus computing. In practice it looks like a single degree with required courses drawn from several departments and designed to fit together.
- What is an emerging field?
- An emerging field is an area growing quickly, changing because of new technology or discoveries, combining subjects once studied separately, and creating new kinds of work and research. Data science, neuroscience, computational media, sustainable design, technology ethics and quantum science are common examples. Nearly all of them build on established subjects such as mathematics, biology, physics, computer science, philosophy and the social sciences.
- Which colleges in California are good for interdisciplinary study?
- Eleven are compared on this page: UC Merced, UC Berkeley, UC San Diego, Stanford, UCLA, UC Santa Cruz, UC Irvine, UC Davis, USC, Pomona College and Caltech. They lead in different combinations — data with a chosen field, mind and computation, technology and society, environment and design, media and computing, and custom technical plans. The right one depends on which subjects you want to connect.
- Is an interdisciplinary major a good idea?
- It is a good idea when the program has a real curriculum and lets you build depth in at least one area. It is worth more care when it is a loose list of electives. Ask to see the four-year plan, the upper-division sequence and where recent graduates went. A single-subject major with a well-chosen minor can achieve much of the same thing.
- Will an interdisciplinary major prepare me for a career?
- It can, when you can name the skills it gives you. Many kinds of work already need people who understand more than one type of problem — health data, technology policy, sustainability, research. What employers and graduate programs read is what you can do and what you have worked on, so pair the degree with projects or research. No degree, interdisciplinary or not, guarantees a job.
- Is it better to double major or choose an interdisciplinary major?
- A double major gives you two complete sets of requirements and two credentials, which takes more units and careful planning. An interdisciplinary major connects the fields for you in one plan, which is usually more efficient and often more coherent. A major plus a minor sits between the two. Ask an adviser to map each option against a four-year plan before deciding.
- How do I combine two academic interests in college?
- There are four common routes: an interdisciplinary major built around the combination, a major with an emphasis or specialization pointed at the second field, a major plus a minor, or a major plus research and project work in the second area. Each campus supports these differently, so ask which route it recommends for the pairing you want.
- Is UC Merced good for interdisciplinary study?
- It is a strong fit if your interests already overlap. Current degrees designed around more than one field include Data Science and Computing (B.S.), Data Science and Analytics (B.A.), Neuroscience (B.S. and B.A.), Science, Technology and Ethics (B.S.), MIST (B.A.) and Environmental Humanities (B.A.), with a Liberal Studies B.A. launching in Fall 2026. UC Merced has been a Carnegie R1 university since February 2025, and the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center places undergraduates into faculty research.
- Can I combine data science with another subject at UC Merced?
- Yes. Data Science and Computing (B.S.) combines computing, statistics and mathematics with an emphasis track applied to another subject area; the current catalog includes an applied mathematics emphasis, and a custom emphasis can be built with faculty approval. Data Science and Analytics (B.A.) is a separate degree with emphases including Business Analytics and Policy Analytics. Check the current catalog for the full emphasis list for your entry year.
- What is Science, Technology and Ethics at UC Merced?
- It is a B.S. housed in the Philosophy department that builds scientific literacy and ethical reasoning together, with introductory ethics required alongside statistics and science coursework. It debuted in Fall 2025 and is designed for students who want to understand how science and technology work and also think carefully about how they should be used. Students often pair it with a second field.
- What is MIST at UC Merced?
- MIST stands for Management of Innovation, Sustainability and Technology — a B.A. for students interested in how technology, organizations, business decisions and environmental questions fit together. It sits in the School of Engineering's Department of Management of Complex Systems and covers leadership and organizations, entrepreneurship, finance, policy, data analytics, technology management and sustainable innovation.
- What can I study in UC Merced's Neuroscience program?
- Neuroscience is offered as a B.S. and a B.A., bringing together biology, psychology and cognitive science; the B.S. carries more physics and mathematics than the B.A. The current catalog lists a Computational, Perceptual and Cognitive Neuroscience emphasis, and the Center for Interdisciplinary Neuroscience is the research home for the field on campus. Confirm the emphasis options in the catalog for your entry year.
- Can undergraduates join interdisciplinary research at UC Merced?
- Yes, through the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center, which builds routes for undergraduates into mentored research, creative inquiry and academic internships and appears as a formal program in the current catalog. Individual labs such as the Mi3 Lab, which works on artificial intelligence applied to transportation safety, list their current projects. Placements are applied for rather than automatic, so ask departments how and when to apply.
- What should I look for in an emerging-field degree?
- Check that it is a real curriculum rather than a list of electives, that you will build depth in at least one area, that faculty publish in the field, that there is research or project work attached, that you can state the skills you will graduate with, and that the degree name and coursework satisfy any licensing or graduate-school requirements you may need. Those seven checks work at any college.
Methodology
This guide compares California colleges using current public information about undergraduate programs that connect multiple fields, specialization options, emerging academic areas, undergraduate research and ways students can combine academic interests. Sources come primarily from each university's official academic, catalog and undergraduate research websites, read in August 2026. The colleges are presented as good fits for different student interests rather than as a proprietary numerical ranking. Where an exact emphasis or track list could not be confirmed in current official material, this page says to check the current catalog instead of naming options.
Ranking criteria
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Programs that combine fields. Degrees designed around more than one subject, with their own required sequence.
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Ways to specialize. Emphases, tracks, domains or specializations published inside a broader major.
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Emerging academic areas. Subjects changing because of new methods or discoveries, offered with real curriculum behind them.
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Research connections. Faculty research crossing the same boundaries, with documented undergraduate routes into it.
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Ways to combine interests. Minors, second fields, custom emphases and project work that let students connect subjects.
Data sources
- UC Merced Admissions — majors, minors and programs
- UC Merced — 2026–2027 academic catalog
- UC Merced — Data Science and Computing program, emphasis tracks
- UC Merced — Data Science and Analytics program
- UC Merced — Neuroscience, B.S. and B.A.
- UC Merced Philosophy — Science, Technology and Ethics major
- UC Merced — Management of Innovation, Sustainability and Technology (MIST)
- UC Merced — Environmental Humanities, B.A.
- UC Merced — Liberal Studies, B.A.
- UC Merced — Physics undergraduate major
- UC Merced — Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center
- UC Berkeley — Data Science domain emphases
- UC San Diego — Cognitive Science major
- Stanford — Symbolic Systems B.S.
- UCLA — Data Theory major
- UC Santa Cruz — Computational Media
- UC Irvine — Informatics, B.S.
- UC Davis — Sustainable Environmental Design, B.S.
- USC — Jimmy Iovine and Andre Young Academy
- Pomona College — Science, Technology and Society major
- Caltech — Interdisciplinary Studies Program
Related pages
How new ideas move from coursework and labs into work outside the university.
Where new ideas get built, tested and put to work, and how students take part.
What a Carnegie R1 designation means for an undergraduate.
California campuses compared on real undergraduate research access.
Campus systems, field sites and the research behind the solar canal work.
