The University of California, San Diego (popularly known as UCSD) is a public, coeducational university located in La Jolla, California. Founded around the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1959, it has grown to become one of the most selective University of California campuses.

Academics

UCSD excels in the sciences and engineering, aided by a strong local biotechnology sector. In 1995, the National Research Council ranked UCSD faculty the 10th best in the nation, and ranked numerous programs among the top ten in the United States in terms of quality: neurosciences (1st), oceanography (1st), biomedical engineering (2nd), physiology (2nd), pharmacology (3rd), genetics (6th), geosciences (6th), cell and developmental biology (7th), anthropology (9th), biochemistry and molecular biology (9th), political science (9th), aerospace engineering (10th), and mechanical engineering (10th). UCSD also counts among its research centers the renowned Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the San Diego Supercomputer Center.

UCSD is an important research center, with annual research funding totalling over $600 million. The National Science Foundation has ranked UCSD first in the UC system and sixth in the nation in terms of Federal R&D expenditures. Furthermore, some 200 San Diego companies have been founded by UCSD faculty and alumni, and over 40% of the people employed in the San Diego biotechnology industry work in UCSD spin-offs. Sixteen UCSD faculty members have won the Nobel Prize, nine of whom are currently on the faculty. UCSD faculty also include nine MacArthur Fellows and 146 Guggenheim Fellows. UCSD ranks sixth in the nation in terms of National Academy of Science membership.

Organization

UCSD's distinctive Geisel Library, named for Theodor Seuss Geisel ("Dr. Seuss") and featured in UCSD's logo.

Schools and major divisions

• Division of Arts and Humanities
• Division of Biology
• Division of Physical Sciences
• Division of Social Sciences
• Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies
• Graduate Studies and Research
• Jacobs School of Engineering
• Preuss School (http://preuss.ucsd.edu/)
• Rady School of Management
• School of Medicine
• School of Pharmacy
• Scripps Institution of Oceanography

Undergraduate colleges

UCSD has a system of residential colleges inspired by those at the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge, and somewhat similar to the system installed at UCSC. The six colleges are Roger Revelle College (http://revelle.ucsd.edu/), John Muir College (http://muir.ucsd.edu/), Thurgood Marshall College (http://marshall.ucsd.edu), Earl Warren College (http://warren.ucsd.edu/), Eleanor Roosevelt College (http://roosevelt.ucsd.edu/), and the new and unnamed Sixth College (http://sixth.ucsd.edu/). Each college has its own philosophy and general education requirements.

• Revelle - UCSD's first college, named in honor of UCSD's founder; focused on developing "a well-rounded student who is intellectually skilled and prepared for competition in a complex world." Revelle general education requirements lean towards biology and chemistry. It is widely considered to have the toughest general education requirements.
• John Muir - humanitarian emphasis focused on the "spirit of self-sufficiency and individual choice." In the spirit of its namesake, John Muir's students also have a strong tendency towards environmental action.
• Thurgood Marshall - emphasizes "scholarship, social responsibility and the belief that a liberal arts education must include an understanding of [one's] role in society." Marshall general education requirements include community service. Marshall was founded in the 1960s with a strong emphasis on embracing the minority community, especially blacks and chicanos. In 1969, students pushed for the new college to be named "Lumumba-Zapata College" in honor of Patrice Lumumba and Emiliano Zapata. Unable to get approval for this name from UC Administration, the college remained unnamed and was referred to as Third College until 1995.

• Eleanor Roosevelt - emphasizes the development of world citizens through scholarship, leadership and service. The Making of the Modern World is a six-quarter sequence required of all ERC students. It is designed to encourage thinking historically, comparatively, and in an interdisciplinary way about the Western and non-Western cultures studied in the course sequence. Disciplinary perspectives include those from literature, history, philosophy, anthropology, sociology, political science, and the fine arts. Students examine and interpret primary documents and artifacts from diverse eras and cultures, and enhance their understanding with information gained from secondary sources.
• Earl Warren - emphasizes the connection between one's undergraduate education and one's personal and career goals. Warren College is home to a large number of engineering students because it has reduced general education requirements for all engineering majors.
• Sixth College - UCSD's newest college; encourages exploration of the "historical and philosophical connections among culture, art and technology."

Athletics

The school's sports teams are called the Tritons. UCSD's perennial strengths are in water sports (Swimming and Water Polo), soccer, volleyball, and tennis. UCSD participates in the NCAA's Division II and in the California Collegiate Athletics Association. Prior to its move to Division II, UCSD competed in the NCAA's Division III and was considered one of the best programs there. Like most younger UC campuses, UCSD does not have a football team, and so some students joke of UCSD's "undefeated" record. Their newly-formed roller hockey team is 6th in the nation.

Noted faculty

• Sydney Brenner - Nobel laureate in Medicine (2002)
• Francis Crick - Nobel laureate in Physiology/Medicine (1962)
• Paul Crutzen - Nobel laureate in Chemistry (1995)
• Bram Dijkstra - Professor of English Literature (1966-2000)
• Renato Dulbecco - Nobel laureate in Physiology/Medicine (1975)
• Robert F. Engle - Nobel laureate in Economics (2003)
• Y.C. Fung - Considered the father of bioengineering
• Clive W.J. Granger - Nobel laureate in Economics (2003)
• Adele Goldberg - Associate Professor of Linguistics (1997-1998)
• Maria Goeppert-Mayer - Nobel laureate in Physics
• Ronald Graham - mathematician, Professor of Computer Science and Engineering
• Herbert Marcuse - philosopher
• Harry Markowitz - Nobel laureate in Economics (1990)
• Mario Molina - Nobel laureate in Chemistry
• Donald Norman - Professor Emeritus of Cognitive Science and Psychology (1966- )
• George Emil Palade - Nobel laureate in Physiology/Medicine (1974), Professor of Medicine in Residence and Dean for Scientific Affairs (Emeritus)
• Vilayanur S. Ramachandran - neuroscience and psychology
• Roger Reynolds - Pulitzer Prize in Music (1989)
• Kartik Seshadri - Professor of Indian Classical Music
• Sally Ride - Professor of Physics, former astronaut
• Herbert Schiller - Professor Emeritus of Communication (1970-2000)
• Leó Szilárd (1898-1964) - Hungarian physicist, Professor at the Salk Institute
• Harold Urey - Nobel laureate in Chemistry
• Herbert F. York - Enrico Fermi Award (2000)
• Efim Zelmanov - Fields Medal recipient, Professor of Mathematics

External links

• Official website (http://www.ucsd.edu/)
• School of Medicine (http://medicine.ucsd.edu/)
• Jacobs School of Engineering (http://www.jacobsschool.ucsd.edu/)
• International Relations and Pacific Studies (IR/PS) (http://www-irps.ucsd.edu/)
• School of Management (http://management.ucsd.edu/)
• The UCSD Guardian. The official student newspaper (http://www.ucsdguardian.org/)
• The Muir Quarterly: Student-Run Humor Newspaper (http://ww.themq.com/)
• The Koala: Student-Run Humor Newspaper (http://www.thekoala.org/)
• Teacher Education Program (http://tep.ucsd.edu/)
• Interesting facts about UCSD (http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/about/index.htm)
• Historical Overview of UCSD (http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/uchistory/general_history/campuses/ucsd/overview.html)