San Diego State University

San Diego State University

San Diego State University (SDSU), founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, is the largest and oldest higher education facility in the greater San Diego area (generally the City and County of San Diego), and is part of the California State University system. It is the third-oldest university in the California State University system, and one of the oldest universities in California. SDSU has a student body of approximately 29,256 (as of the beginning of the Fall 2009 academic year) and an alumni base of more than 200,000. San Diego State University had an acceptance rate of 36.4 % for the 2009 academic year.  According to SDSU’s website, the university received 62,000 applications for the 2008 school year.

The Carnegie Foundation has designated San Diego State University a “Research University with high research activity.” SDSU is the only California State University campus with this classification, which places it among the top 200 higher education institutions in the country conducting research.

Established on March 13, 1897, San Diego State University first began as the San Diego Normal School, meant to educate local future female elementary school teachers. In 1923, the San Diego Normal School became San Diego State Teachers College, “a four-year public institution controlled by the state Board of Education.” In 1935, the school became San Diego State College. In 1960, San Diego State College became a part of the California College System, now known as the California State University system. Finally in 1970 San Diego State College became San Diego State University (SDSU).

San Diego State University Rankings in 2010

• 2011 NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL RANKINGS
• TOP 100 NURSING GRADUATE SCHOOL RANKING
• TOP 200 UNDERGRADUATE BUSINESS PROGRAM IN 2010
• TOP 100 FINE ARTS COLLEGE RANKING IN 2010
• BEST UNDERGRADUATE ENGINEERING UNIVERSITY RANKING IN 2010
• TOP NATIONAL UNIVERSITIES RANKING BY HIGH SCHOOL COUNSELOR
• TOP 100 EDUCATION COLLEGES / UNIVERSITIES IN 2010

San Diego State University Rankings in 2011

San Diego State University Tuition and Fees

Schools and Colleges of San Diego State University

• College of Arts and Letters
• College of Business Administration
• College of Education
• College of Engineering
• College of Health and Human Services
• College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts
• College of Sciences

San Diego State University News

• Top 10 Degrees for 2012 - Fri, 18 May 2012
  

  Here are the most popular bachelor's degrees for the class of 2012.

  San Diego State undergraduates receive their degrees in 85 different areas, and here are the most popular:

  No. 10: Public Administration
  A total of 140 students who earn degrees in this area are prepared to become leaders in all areas of government and public service organizations.

  

  No. 9: Nursing
  The 154 students to receive their bachelor’s degrees in nursing (BSN) will go on to serve patients in San Diego and across the country.

  No. 8: Accounting
  They’re not just future numbers crunchers! This year’s accounting grads include father daughter-pair Michael and Melissa Keane. Michael got his bachelor’s degree at SDSU in 1981 and is completing his master’s degree this weekend, while his daughter Melissa is one of 171 undergraduates getting their bachelor’s degree in this top field of study.

  No. 7: Economics
  In this current political climate, the 183 economics majors will have the know-how our state and country needs to thrive after the economic downturn whether it’s in business, government or academics.

  No. 6: Political Science
  They are future lawyers, judges and politicians whose studies included the understanding of how governments work.� These 187 graduates will be ahead of the curve when it comes to making sense of the issues in the 2012 presidential election. �

  No. 5: Finance
  From financial planners to real estate professionals, 198 graduates will receive their degrees in finance on Saturday morning at 8 a.m. They’ll need to get used to getting up early if they are going to be keeping track of the stock market!

  No. 4: Management
  Yes, this group of graduates may one day be employing you! These 210 management graduates are San Diego’s future entrepreneurs and business leaders. Leadership really does start here!

  No. 3: Liberal Studies
  Most of the 225 liberal studies graduates are pursuing the most important profession of them all: teachers! SDSU started as a teachers college in 1897 and continues to produce scores of educators for San Diego and beyond.� In addition to these graduates, approximately 565 graduates will earn their teaching credentials.

  No. 2:� Criminal Justice
  More than 300 graduates will earn their degrees in criminal justice – one of SDSU’s hallmark programs. These students take classes in everything from law in society to juvenile justice and go on to work in local, state, and federal criminal justice agencies. Criminal justice grad Samantha Stauber is one of these grads. Tougher-than-nails, this grad fought brain cancer as a student and has been accepted into the Los Angeles Police Academy.

  And, drumroll please. The No. 1 most popular degree for the class of 2012 is…

  Psychology
  While nearly every student takes at least an entry-level psychology class, these more than 500 SDSU graduates made studying human behavior and mental processes their major. SDSU’s clinical psychology program is ranked among the best in the country and its students are deeply involved in research, even as an undergrad like Abdifatah Ahmed Ali. Ali was heavily involved in organizational psychology research and is going on to Michigan State University with a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.

• Watch Commencement - Thu, 17 May 2012
  

  Watch a live stream of 2012 commencement ceremonies, May 17-20.

  

  Commencement ceremonies will stream live, May 17-20, on the SDSU home page.

  The live stream is an alternative for friends and families who cannot attend the ceremonies.

  Television broadcast

  Commencement ceremonies will be broadcast on local TV. Get the complete broadcast schedule. �

  Commencement 2012

  Get more information about commencement, including:

  • Ceremonies by college
  • Information for students
  • Information for family and guests
  • Parking and transportation

• A Shift in Heart Research - Thu, 17 May 2012
  

  SDSU researchers continue to improve modern heart research.

  

  Earlier this month, the ever-youthful Dick Clark became the latest celebrity to die of cardiac arrest, a grim reminder that heart disease is still the number one cause of death and hospitalization in America.

  Though scientists haven’t managed to find a cure for this pervasive killer, they have identified promising new ways to prevent and treat heart disease.

  
  Mark Sussman and a student researcher

  Innovative discoveries

  At the SDSU Heart Institute, researchers led by Mark Sussman, Ph.D., are exploring non-invasive remedies to restore heart muscle damaged during cardiac arrest. These remedies are based on recent discoveries that heart cells can regenerate, and Sussman and his team are working to help the cells regenerate faster and stronger.

  “This is a huge shift in the way medicine is done,” said Sussman. “We essentially want to retrain transplant surgeons from replacing the entire heart and show them how to repair a heart with stem cells from the patient’s own body.”

  Next door at the Donald P. Shiley BioScience Center, Roberta Gottlieb, M.D., and Scott Kelley, Ph.D., study the link between periodontal disease and atherosclerosis, the potentially deadly buildup of plaque in the arteries. Another SDSU professor, Christopher Glembotski, Ph.D., creates prototypes for the development of novel heart disease treatments.

  Both the BioScience Center and the Heart Institute are hubs of faculty collaboration and student learning. Working in teams, SDSU faculty share ideas and discoveries that can result in new avenues of research.

  The power of the campaign

  The Campaign for SDSU will strengthen the university’s research credentials by establishing endowed faculty chairs such as the Frederick G. Henry Chair in Life Sciences, which allowed SDSU to recruit Dr. Gottlieb in 2008.

  Carefully managed endowments enable SDSU to offer students opportunities to learn from leading scholars.

  “A strong faculty is the key to serving our students well,” said SDSU President Elliot Hirshman. “Increasing endowed chairs through private support is a priority of The Campaign for SDSU.”

• When Parents Get Involved - Wed, 16 May 2012
  

  The Aztec Parents Association encourages parents to stay active in their children's education.

  

  Parents of college students get mixed messages about how much of a role to play in their student’s education.

  But at San Diego State, the message is clear: parent participation is welcome.

  
  The Tamborrell brothers

  The Aztec Parents Association keeps parents informed about SDSU while their students are here. Part of Student Affairs, the association communicates frequently with members; organizes events for SDSU students and their families; and provides personal contacts for parents to call with questions and concerns.

  Staying involved

  Ricardo and Luisa Tamborrell joined the Aztec Parents Association this year when they made a gift to SDSU through the Aztec Parents Fund.

  Their son Ricardo is a business major at SDSU with a focus on information systems. A younger son, David, is a freshman majoring in geology.� Both have GPAs above 3.5.

  “Education is the most important ingredient for the future success of our country,” said the elder Tamborrell. “It’s a priority for Luisa and me. We know our sons are part of a strong educational community, and we can see how happy they are at SDSU.”

  Both Ricardo and Luisa graduated from universities in Mexico. In 1991, they founded J & R Industrial Tools, which exports supplies to companies assembling products in Tijuana.

  With the success of that company, the couple looked for a second investment. Now, they also own Label ID Technologies, a manufacturer of labels for wine and other products.

  For the Tamborrells, the decision to support The Campaign for SDSU is rooted in current economic reality. They believe California no longer provides adequate funding for higher education.�

  Other Aztec parents are also stepping up to support student services. The Aztec Parents Association now has approximately 21,000 members, and all are keen advocates, not only for their students but also for San Diego State.

  Learn more about the Aztec Parent Fund.�

• Early Start (Ups) - Wed, 16 May 2012
  

  The Zahn Center is an on-campus incubator at SDSU that helps student entrepreneurs turn their ideas into companies.

  

  Vann Wesson and Ben Yeoman had a hobby, then an inspiration, then the beginnings of a plan.

  The two friends and San Diego State University students enjoyed tinkering with robotics. After a chance encounter with a young woman who had no hand, they decided to create an affordable prosthetic for people who lost or were born without a limb.

  They had drawings, a prototype developed in their basement, a lot of big ideas and …

  And then they met Rich Kerr, who told them about the Zahn Center, which recently opened at SDSU. Suddenly, they had direction.

  “One of the unique features we put here is something some of the high tech companies have in town, it’s a collaboration pit,” said Kerr, the director of the Zahn Center, an on-campus business incubator for student entrepreneurs.

  “It’s white boards, couches and chairs. Come and invent, pound on the boards, anybody joins in, even other teams. This center is designed for a lot of collaboration, a lot of coaching, a lot of development.”

  A place to learn and prepare

  Kerr will mentor the fledgling entrepreneurs through the process of starting a company. When he believes they are ready, he will connect them with venture capitalists who could potentially invest in their businesses.

  “This place is ... a dream come true
  for any would-be entrepreneur.”

  For Wesson and Yeoman, and their company, REACH, the goal is to spend the next 18-24 months in the Zahn Center, developing their company, refining their product, tightening their business plan, shoring up their patents and absorbing the advice of mentors like Kerr.

  “It will give us access to the engineering building here, all the machines down there. We built (our latest prototype) on the rapid prototyper there. We hope to develop our new prototype on that too,” said Yeoman, a bio-engineering major and the designer of REACH’s prosthetic hand.

  “Especially valuable is the coaching Rich has been giving us,” added REACH CEO Wesson, a history and pre-law major. “This place is literally a guide — step one, step two, step three — on how to start a business. It’s a dream come true for any would-be entrepreneur.”

  Irwin Zahn’s vision

  A dream coming true thanks to long-time entrepreneur, Irwin Zahn, who wants students to have the opportunity to work for themselves, not just someone else.

  “The reason behind the Zahn Center itself is to provide a place where you can go with tables and chairs and lockers and assembly equipment and test equipment; where you can develop your own products,” Zahn said. “And hopefully, the measure of success of an incubator of this sort will be how many companies are ultimately started here.”

  Zahn is a member of the SDSU College of Engineering Dean’s Advisory Board and a longtime San Diego resident. The company he founded, Autosplice Inc., has employed dozens of SDSU engineering alumni. His $700,000 gift to SDSU’s College of Engineering is based on the premise that students have their own ideas and, with a little guidance, can be successful entrepreneurs who drive the economy forward.

  “I think in terms of growing entrepreneurs, who in turn start companies, these companies then employ people,” Zahn said. “The people then buy automobiles, they buy food, they buy shoes. They enhance the community. By enhancing the community, they grow the region and in turn, grow the country as well.”

  

  Supporters like Irwin Zahn, by providing unique opportunities such as the Zahn Center, are helping SDSU students to innovate and discover ways to drive California's economy forward, a key initiative of The Campaign for SDSU. Learn more about how SDSU is Leading in Innovation and Discovery.
  

  The first group

  The first five teams to enter the Zahn Center did so via the Zahn Incubator Challenge, a business plan competition. Three of those teams split $25,000 in prize money, also a gift from Zahn, to help seed their companies.

  Other projects

  In addition to REACH, teams currently working in the center include:

  • Nextero, which placed first in the challenge, and is developing wheelchairs to function in non-ADA compliant settings
  • Mobile Network Innovations, which� is creating a wearable, wireless electronic device to identify potential business partners through intelligent profile matching
  • Quanta Sciences, which is determining how to use smart materials and processes to generate electrical power from normal body functions
  • Center Stage, which is creating online portfolios for young professionals looking to establish a personal brand.

  “Ten teams submitted business plans,” said Kerr, a veteran entrepreneur and member of the San Diego business community. “We chose the top five to go on to the finals. But the other five are just as important to Irwin Zahn and us. Can we develop them to the point where they can win this competition next year?”

  While the Zahn Center officially opened this spring, Kerr has been on campus mentoring students for several months and working to develop cross-campus collaboration. The College of Business Administration and the Entrepreneurial Management Center are already involved.

  "...� the measure of success of an incubator of this sort will be how many companies are ultimately started here.”

  And while focusing on the teams within the Zahn Center, Kerr will also be working with the region’s business community. He wants industry partners to be involved and to understand the depth and breadth of talent and ideas being germinated at SDSU.

  “One of the things I hope comes out of this is that people look to us and say ‘I want to fund a company, I want to find someone to fund in my portfolio, and if they come out of this program I know they’re top notch,’” Kerr said.

  And student entrepreneurs, like the founders of REACH, now have a path they hope will turn their inspiration into a reality.

  “The vision of REACH is to make it so there are no more amputees without a hand,” Wesson said.� “We want to eradicate limblessness.”

• SDSU Mystery Photos - Tue, 15 May 2012
  

  Alumni, faculty and staff can help solve campus history mysteries.

  

  One black and white photo from 1966 shows a young Bill Cosby, presumably during a campus visit, sitting on a desk eating pizza.� Who is the woman with the notebook and pen in her hand who appears to be interviewing the comedian?
  
  Another picture features former SDSU President Thomas B. Day next to a man and woman at a 1994 commencement ceremony.� Like Day, they are wearing ceremonial robes, but what are their names?
  
  The photos are among an estimated 30,000 to 35,000 images belonging to the University Archives Photograph Collection.� They’re housed in Special Collections at the SDSU Library and are part of a six-year digitizing project intended to both preserve the images and make them more widely available on line.
  
  Included in the project are prints, negatives, slides and paper images of everything concerning the university over the course of more than a century.� Hundreds of the items were stored with limited or no descriptive information.

  "Give us a clue"

  “There's nothing written on the backs of the photographs,” says Lisa Lamont, a digital collection librarian who is managing the digitizing project.

  “Basically, they were given to the archives by any department or person on campus. There's no documentation with the photograph, so we've got lots of just unidentified-man-at-a-podium kind of photographs or three ladies donating books to the library, but we don't know who the ladies are.”�
  
  That’s why Lamont is asking for help.�

  She wants alumni, faculty, staff or anyone with information about the pictures to check out the flickr page she has established and share what they know.��

  "I would love to get some identifications of people, events, places — any information they can hang on any of these photographs would help us,” she says. “Even if they don't know who the people are, if they could give us a clue as to where we would start looking for some information, even that would be helpful."
  
  Lamont is working with a metadata specialist to gather as much information as possible about each image and include it in an accompanying description.� She urges contributors to be as detailed as possible in sharing what they know.
  
  "In Flickr, people can actually go in and comment on the photo or actually put some tags on it so they can type right into it," she said. “Any information you might have would be great even if you just give us a lead.� If people put comments in, it might even spark other people’s memories.� We're going to try and verify as much as we can."
  
  Completing the project
  
  With the help of paid students, Lamont says she may be able to complete the scanning portion of the project by the end of the year.� The metadata will be ongoing for some time.

  “It takes a lot longer to describe a photograph than it takes to actually scan it," she observes.
  
  The librarian says the staff intends to maintain between 50 and 100 images on the Flickr site at any one time.� New photos will be added to replace those that are identified.
  
  "That way it might inspire people to come back to the site later,” Lamont says, “and it won't be so overwhelming then, too."

  You can help

  Can you help identify any of the SDSU mystery photographs?� You may also share your thoughts with SDSU librarians.
  �

  �

• Surfrider Selects Student Designs - Tue, 15 May 2012
  

  SDSU student art will be used in a public awareness campaign to reduce plastic pollution.

  

  The Surfrider Foundation recently selected the designs of four SDSU graphic design students for the grassroots environmental group's countywide Rise Above Plastics initiative.

  Thirty students from Patricia Cu� Couttolenec's graphic design class presented their designs to four representatives from the Surfrider Foundation who chose the top designs.

  The selected designs will be printed on various Surfrider materials this summer aimed at reducing plastic pollution on the coasts and in the oceans.

  The featured student designs are by:

  • Sandy Meidinger
  • Ricardo Romero
  • Marleia Alfaro
  • Loren Burgess

  Art and sustainability

  The designs are part of a project related to SDSU professor Cu� Couttolenc’s research in graphic design and sustainability.
  
  �“It is an interdisciplinary project that requires students to respond with their design to issues identified through research,” Cu� Couttolenc said.
  
  When she heard about Surfrider’s Rise Above Plastics initiative, she contacted the company about using student work.

  She said Surfrider officials were not only excited about originality of the designs, but also how informed the students were about the most urgent issues in plastic pollution.

  About the Surfrider Foundation

  The Surfrider Foundation is a grassroots organization concerned with protecting the ocean and beaches. The San Diego chapter is one of the largest in the country.

  �

• Recycle Your Bicycle - Mon, 14 May 2012
  

  Donated bicycles will be refurbished and given to underprivileged kids and teens.

  

  Do you have a bike on campus you don’t feel like hauling home at the end of the semester?

  Recycle it!

  A charitable cause

  All recycled bikes will go to Donovan State Prison where the inmates will learn marketable job skills as they refurbish the bikes.�

  The bikes will be given to underprivileged kids and teens in December to brighten their holidays.

  Recycling the bikes is also sustainable and beneficial for the environment.�

  Drop off locations

  Cuicacalli Walkway
  �May 15- 17, 10 a.m.-3p.m.

  Public Safety building lobby
  Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m.-3p.m. between now and May 25

• Softball Heads to NCAA Tournament - Mon, 14 May 2012
  

  SDSU women's softball returns to the NCAA championship tournament after winning the Mountain West title.

  

  The San Diego State softball team earned a trip to the NCAA Division I Softball Championship for the fifth consecutive season and the eighth time in 12 years.

  The Aztecs (30-22) will play Florida State (46-14) at 3 p.m., Friday, at UCLA (36-18), the tournament's No. 12 overall seed. Hofstra (38-13) is the other team in the double-elimination regional.
  
  SDSU, which also made the tournament in 2001, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011, is 10-14 all-time in the NCAA championship.

  The Aztecs earned the automatic bid into the tournament after winning the Mountain West with a 9-3 record. It was their fifth Mountain West conference title.

  SDSU has set single-season program records in batting average (.296), slugging percentage (.485), doubles (75), home runs (58), RBIs (236, tied) and total bases (675).

  The NCAA tournament
  
  This year's national tournament features 64 teams, with four teams participating at 16 regional sites in a double-elimination tournament.

  The regional winners will advance to super regional competition for a best-of-three series from May 24-27 at eight campus sites.

  The remaining eight teams will advance to the Women's College World Series, an eight-team, double-elimination tournament with the championship final being a best-of-three series. The tournament takes place from May 31-June 6 at the ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City.
  
  2012 NCAA Division I Softball Championship
  
  Friday, May 18, 2012
  Game 1, 3 p.m.: San Diego State (30-22) vs. Florida State (46-14)
  Game 2, 5:30 p.m. PT: Hofstra (38-13) at No. 12 overall seed UCLA (36-18)
  
  Saturday, May 19, 2012
  Game 3, 1 p.m: Winners of Game 1 and Game 2
  Game 4, 3:30 p.m.: Losers of Game 1 and Game 2
  Game 5, 6 p.m.: Loser of Game 3 and Winner of Game 4
  
  Sunday, May 20, 2012
  Game 6, Noon: Winner of Game 3 and Game 5
  *Game 7, 2:30 p.m.: *If necessary

• Construction Walkway Update - Mon, 14 May 2012
  

  During the summer, the walkway west of Aztec Student Union will close.

  
  With construction progressing on Aztec Student Union, the project crew will close the walkway located adjacent to Aztec Green between the SDSU Trolley station and Manchester Hall from May 23 until the start of the fall semester.
  �
  Pedestrian access will be available adjacent to Adams Humanities. The pedestrian ramp next to Manchester Hall will remain unaffected.
  �
  About Aztec Student Union
  �
  Opening in fall 2013, Aztec Student Union will open its doors to the Aztec community as the new “campus living room,” serving as a hub for studying, socializing, relaxing, eating and a much-needed coffee break.
  �
  Students, faculty, staff and alumni alike will enjoy the state-of-the-art LEED Platinum-certified building that will showcase the latest in sustainable construction.
  �
  Learn more information on the Aztec Student Union.