University of California—San Diego

Colleges University of California—San Diego

UC San Diego

UC San Diego

www.ucsd.edu

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location students adm. int’l. fresh grad GPA ACT SAT TOEFL
San Diego, CA 33,096 24% 14% 94% 72% 3.9 30 1370 83

University of California–San Diego is a public institution that was founded in 1960. The 1,976-acre campus is located in the vibrant southwestern city of San Diego alongside the Pacific Ocean in the La Jolla community. Established near the pre-existing Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego is the southernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California, and offers over 200 undergraduate and graduate degree programs. All freshmen are eligible for guaranteed on-campus housing for two years, but they are not required to live on campus. The layout of the main campus centers on the iconic Geisel Library, which is roughly surrounded by eight residential colleges of Revelle, Muir, Marshall, Warren, Roosevelt, Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth, in addition to the School of Medicine. The eight colleges maintain separate housing facilities for their students and each college’s buildings are differentiated by distinct architectural styles. UC San Diego is affiliated with UC San Diego Health, which is consistently ranked among the top health care systems in the nation for advanced specialty care.

Academics

UC San Diego consists of 12 undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools as well as eight undergraduate residential colleges. UCSD is classified among R1 Doctoral Universities: Very High Research Activities. UCSD utilizes a quarter-based academic calendar, which gives students the chance to explore a broad range of shorter classes. Undergraduates learn side-by-side with researchers, artists, activists, and experts, extending their academic experience well beyond the classroom. Research Experience and Applied Learning (REAL), or “learning by doing,” is a way to find opportunities to practice your classroom knowledge in real-world settings. UCSD’s Library is ranked among the nation’s top 25 public academic libraries. The student-faculty ratio at UCSD is 19:1, and the school has 45% of its classes with fewer than 20 students. Popular majors include Computer Science, Economics, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and Anatomy.

Special Highlights

EducationCorps. The EducationCorps Program encourages UC San Diego students to get involved in their community by sharing their time and skills with youth. Our mission is to improve education equity in San Diego by supporting learning, promoting a college going culture, and improving attitudes towards school at underserved K-12 schools in our local community.

The Basement. The Basement is UC San Diego’s campus-wide innovation and entrepreneurial hub dedicated to supporting all students. Alumni, postdocs, faculty, staff and community members can also connect with The Basement through its various open access event programs. In alignment with UC San Diego’s innovation, entrepreneurial and change maker focus, The Basement provides creative innovation space, mentorship, entrepreneurship programming centered on experiential learning, and innovation resources.

School Mission & Unique Qualities

At the University of California San Diego, we prefer the path less traveled. And it has led us to remarkable new ways of seeing and making a difference in the world. Recognized as one of the top research universities worldwide, our culture of collaboration sparks discoveries that advance society and drive economic impact. Everything we do is dedicated to ensuring our students have the opportunity to become changemakers, equipped with the multidisciplinary tools needed to accelerate answers to our world’s most pressing issues. The UCSD campus has an aquarium and is home to the Large High Performance Outdoor Shake Table, which tests structures’ ability to withstand simulated earthquakes. A unique UCSD tradition is the Sun God Festival, which includes concerts featuring popular musicians, carnival activities, vendors, and student booths. UCSD is also known for its International House, where approximately 350 students from more than 30 countries live and learn together.

Student Reviews…

“The academics here are amazing and although classes are generally pretty hard, professors are very supportive. You will always feel safe here. Socially it can be challenging to make new friends because it is a STEM heavy school but the socialites are out there if you look.”