San Diego State University (SDSU)

Since its founding in 1897, the university has grown to become a leading public research university, and a federally-designated Hispanic-serving Institution and an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution. Each year, acific Islander-Serving Institution. Each year, SDSU provides more than 39,000 students with the opportunity to participate in an academic curriculum distinguished by direct contact with faculty and an international emphasis that prepares them for a global future. In 2024, the university celebrated the milestone of reaching 500,000 alumni with the spring graduating class and, in 2025, was officially classified as an R1 research institution, the highest distinction given to doctoral universities in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. SDSU is the oldest higher education institution in San Diego, uniquely situated only 30 minutes north of the U.S.-Mexico border on Kumeyaay land. Our community is fully committed to excellent teaching, meaningful research and service to our regional community and others we serve throughout the state, across the nation and internationally. We have an incredible past, and a powerful future ahead of us, marked by: A five-year strategic plan, “We Rise We Defy: Transcending Borders, Transforming Lives,” launched in 2020, and planning for the second phase began for 2025-2030. The development of SDSU Mission Valley, a mixed-use, medium-density development that is transit-oriented and that will expand the university’s educational, research, entrepreneurial, and technology transfer programs. The expansion of the border-connected SDSU Imperial Valley, which has been infused with new investments to introduce new programs and student services. The growth of SDSU Global Campus, which is growing educational access to adult learners through the creation of new degree programs. Our campus diversity is our pride. SDSU is recognized for its commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. About 54 percent of students are of color, the university recognized for our military and veteran program and ranked as a top college for LGBTQ students. For generations, SDSU has overcome hurdles and defied expectations, forging ahead to deliver academic excellence, student success and groundbreaking research. We will continue to do so as we build SDSU’s new chapter of inclusive opportunity for more students, reimagining a university designed to thrive for many years to come, and impacting San Diego, our border region, and the world as never before. SDSU formally recognizes Native and Indigenous peoples as traditional stewards of the land on which our university resides, and respects the enduring relationship that exists between Indigenous peoples and their ancestral territories. At San Diego State University, we recognize the land as Kumeyaay. The mission of San Diego State University is to provide research-oriented, high-quality education for undergraduate and graduate students and to contribute to the solution of problems through excellence and distinction in teaching, research, and service. The university strives to impart an appreciation and broad understanding of the human experience throughout the world and the ages. This education extends to diverse cultural legacies and accomplishments in many areas, such as the arts and technology; the advancement of human thought including philosophy and science; the development of economic, political, and social institutions; and the physical and biological evolution of humans and their environment. San Diego State University pursues its mission through its many diverse departments and interdisciplinary programs in the creative and performing arts, the humanities, the sciences, and the social and behavioral sciences. At SDSU, our diversity gives us power and benefits every single member of our community. Consistent with California law and federal civil rights laws, SDSU provides equal opportunity for all in education and employment. We encourage all members of our community to purposefully learn from one another through open and respectful dialogue and responsible engagement. We strongly preserve the right to free expression and encourage difficult conversations that help lead to improved individual and community learning and cohesion. Since its founding in 1897, the university has grown to become a leading public research university. SDSU has officially been classified as an R1 research institution, the highest distinction given to doctoral universities in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. It is also a federally-designated Hispanic-serving Institution as well as an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution (AANAPISI). SDSU provides more than 39,000 students with the opportunity to participate in an academic curriculum distinguished by direct contact with faculty and an international emphasis that prepares them for a global future. Founded March 13, 1897, San Diego State University began as the San Diego Normal School, a training facility for elementary school teachers. Seven faculty and 91 students met in temporary quarters over a downtown drugstore before moving to a newly constructed 17-acre campus on Park Boulevard. The curriculum was first limited to English, history and mathematics. Course offerings broadened rapidly under the leadership of first president, Samuel T. Black, who left his position as state superintendent of public instruction to become the new school's first president. Black served from 1898 to 1910. From 1910 to 1935, SDSU President Edward L. Hardy headed a vigorous administration that oversaw major changes to the fledgling institution. In 1921, the Normal School became San Diego State Teachers College, a four-year public institution controlled by the state Board of Education. In that same year, the two-year San Diego Junior College, forerunner of today's local community colleges, became a branch of San Diego State Teachers College. That union lasted until 1946. By the 1920s, the college was already beginning to outgrow its Park Boulevard location, and San Diegans launched a campaign to build a new campus on the city's eastern border. In February 1931, students, faculty and staff moved into seven buildings surrounding a common area still known as the Main Quad. ...view more