Campus Profile – University of California San Diego

Founded as an experiment in 1960, UC San Diego scholars aren’t afraid to challenge convention if it means we can accelerate answers to our society’s most pressing issues. As one of the top 20 research universities in the world, we are driving change far beyond our walls to advance society and propel economic growth. And the world has taken notice.
UC San Diego’s main campus is located near the Pacific Ocean on approximately 1,200 acres of coastal woodland in La Jolla, California. The campus sits on the ancestral homelands of the Kumeyaay Nation. Kumeyaay people continue to have an important and thriving presence in the region. UC San Diego’s rich academic portfolio includes eleven academic, professional and graduate schools and eight undergraduate residential colleges. UC San Diego is also home to the prestigious Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the UC San Diego Health System.
UC San Diego is making waves in the rankings. Globally and nationally, our campus is recognized for improving social mobility, offering a high-quality education at an affordable price, producing powerful research, advancing health care and more.
UC San Diego’s academic programs, taught by recognized experts, prepare students to stand out and lead change. As a student-centered university, all undergraduates belong to a tight-knit college community and are equipped to succeed through supplemental learning, faculty-mentored research opportunities, student success coaches and more.
Students at UC San Diego are curious about the world around them and eager to make a difference. Both academically exceptional and socially conscious, our undergraduate and graduate scholars set the bar high. They travel the world on service learning trips to improve public health and sustainability; they develop exciting entrepreneurial ideas and launch companies; and they work alongside faculty members on diverse research projects, from civic engagement to ocean aerosols and materials inspired by nature.
There is a spirit of bold ingenuity shared among the UC San Diego community. Faculty members are sought-after experts in their field, equally passionate about tackling our world’s toughest problems and training the next generation of student leaders. Staff bring heart and creativity to advance the mission of our campus. And alumni stand out as distinct thinkers who make waves in diverse fields.
As a billion-dollar research enterprise framed by the Pacific and positioned in the heart of one of the most densely concentrated innovation hubs in the nation, UC San Diego is a unique place where fresh ideas are translated into solutions to benefit society.
San Diego’s first biotechnology company, Hybritech, was started in 1979 by UC San Diego School of Medicine professor Ivor Royston. Hundreds of other groundbreaking local companies have roots with our university, from telecommunications giant Qualcomm, Inc.; to Ballast Point Spirits, one of the region’s earliest craft breweries; and Portfolium, a unique student electronic portfolio network.
As the region’s leading research university, the campus continues to have a significant impact on San Diego’s economy. Philanthropic and research support enables our scholars to achieve critical breakthroughs that will impact lives for generations to come.
At UC San Diego, we strive to make a difference in all that we do—it is an integral part of our university mission. Our faculty members don’t just teach, they conduct breakthrough research that changes lives locally and globally. Staff members unite to better the local community through hundreds of hours of volunteer work. And students are shaped into global changemakers through service-learning projects around the world.
In 2017, UC San Diego was named an Innovation and Economic Prosperity University by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU), a designation that fewer than 60 universities nationwide have achieved. The designation recognizes universities that are leaders in spurring regional economic development, including workforce enhancement, innovation and entrepreneurship and civic growth.
UC San Diego was designated as a Changemaker Campus in 2017 by Ashoka U for its role as a leader in social innovation education. Only a select number of universities around the world have received this designation. UC San Diego is the first University of California campus to be recognized.
More than 2,200 local low-income and first-generation college students have been named Chancellor’s Associates Scholars. When combined with other financial aid, the award covers students’ tuition, on-campus living expenses, books and more—essentially a full scholarship.
UC San Diego engages the local community through numerous social, environmental and educational initiatives, including:
UC San Diego Health—the region’s only academic health system—is dedicated to clinical, research and teaching excellence. For decades, UC San Diego Health and its schools of medicine and pharmacy have been advancing medicine through breakthrough discoveries — including pioneering firsts in surgery, imaging, cancer treatment and cardiovascular care. And with more than 1,500 doctors and scientists who are published experts in their fields, UC San Diego Health is well equipped to deliver the highest quality patient-centered primary and specialty care.
UC San Diego ranks in the top 50 nationally in 11 specialties. More than 4,500 medical centers across the nation were ranked by U.S. News and World Report. 
For two decades, the Student-Run Free Clinic Project has helped people of all ages and circumstances access high-quality health care, regardless of their ability to pay. The project assists community members with a range of critical health services, including psychiatric care. 
As part of our academic enterprise, UC San Diego Health has three professional schools, each located on the university campus in La Jolla.
Founded in 1968, the UC San Diego School of Medicine accepts 125 students each year out of approximately 5,000 applicants.
The Integrated Scientific Curriculum combines clinical medicine and medical science. Students get hands-on clinical instruction at institutions including UC San Diego Health hospitals, the VA San Diego Medical Center, Naval Medical Center San Diego and Rady Children’s Hospital San Diego. 
Founded in 2000, the Skaggs School enrolls an average of 240 Pharm.D. students, 60 Ph.D. students and 30 pharmacy residents yearly.
The innovative and flexible curriculum leads to the Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) degree, taught by a stellar health sciences faculty in a program closely associated with the outstanding clinical, research and academic programs in the School of Medicine. The school is also fourth in the nation for NIH grants and total research funding, according to the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy’s FY2022 institutional rankings report.  

The Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science was founded in 2019 with a $25 million lead gift from the Dr. Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Family Foundation, seed money to grow in a new era of public health research, education and rapid societal change, with a mission to create and promote healthier populations on a local, national, and global scale.
The school leverages UC San Diego’s interdisciplinary and collaborative culture to develop and implement solutions to reduce or eliminate disparities in disadvantaged or underserved communities and improve the overall health of our communities.
To fulfill our mission, UC San Diego Health maintains a two-campus strategy integrating research, teaching and clinical care at locations in Hillcrest and La Jolla. Each medical complex supports acute in-patient care and a spectrum of outpatient primary and specialty medical and surgical services, including ambulatory and emergency patient care.
Meandering the campus, you might stumble upon a giant bear made of boulders, part of UC San Diego’s iconic public art collection. Or discover the immersive SunCAVE, a 360-degree virtual reality space where you can be transported to an archaeological site across the globe. UC San Diego shines in so many ways—from developing the first cognitive science department to being the top surfing school in the nation. Learn more about our unique university.
UC San Diego 9500 Gilman Dr. La Jolla, CA 92093 (858) 534-2230
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