 | |
| Type | Public university |
|---|---|
| Established | 1989; 37 years ago (1989) |
Parent institution | California State University |
| Accreditation | WSCUC |
Academic affiliations | CUMU |
| Endowment | $36.56 million (2024)[1] |
| President | Ellen Neufeldt[2] |
| Provost | Carl Kemnitz[3] |
Academic staff | 854 (299 tenured or tenure-track)[4] |
| Students | 15,431 (fall 2024)[5] |
| Undergraduates | 14,246 (fall 2024)[5] |
| Postgraduates | 1,185 (fall 2024)[5] |
| Location | , United States 33°07′42″N117°09′34″W / 33.12833°N 117.15944°W /33.12833; -117.15944 |
| Campus | Large suburb[6], 340 acres (140 ha) |
| Other campuses | Temecula |
| Newspaper | The Cougar Chronicle |
| Colors | Blue, black, and white |
| Nickname | Cougars |
Sporting affiliations | NCAA Division II –CCAA |
| Website | csusm |
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California State University San Marcos (CSUSM orCal State San Marcos) is apublic university inSan Marcos, California, United States. It was founded in 1989 as the 21st campus in theCalifornia State University (CSU) system.
CSUSM offers 43bachelor's degree programs,[7] 24master's degree programs, 8 credential programs, and 1 joint doctoral with theUniversity of California, San Diego.[8]
CSUSM is accredited by theWestern Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and alsoAccreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). The university had a total undergraduate enrollment of 15,431 students in fall 2024. In 2024, the university had 284 tenured faculty.[8] TheCal State San Marcos Cougars compete inNCAA Division II as a member of theCalifornia Collegiate Athletic Association.
Efforts by community and political leaders to bring a state university toNorth County date back to the 1960s. In 1969, thechancellor of the CSU system,Glenn S. Dumke, issued a report concluding that there was "an ultimate need" for a new university campus in the area.[9]
In 1978,State Senator William A. Craven won $250,000 in state funding for a North Countysatellite campus ofSan Diego State University, which opened at Lincoln Junior High School inVista[10] with an enrollment of 148 students. In 1982, the satellite moved to larger quarters in an office building on Los Vallecitos Boulevard in San Marcos.[9] When it appeared that the new San Marcos campus would be a satellite of San Diego State, CSU ChancellorW. Ann Reynolds insisted on an independent university with the goal of creating leadership opportunities for women and minorities. CSUSM would also go on to attract more STEM-focused students than SDSU, as well. In September 1985, Senate Bill 1060, introduced by Craven, passed, appropriating $250,000 for afeasibility study on building a university in North County. By 1988, the enrollment of SDSU North County had reached 1,250 students, and the CSU board of trustees purchased for $10.6 million the future site of CSUSM, the 304-acre Prohoroff Poultry Farm in San Marcos. The hillside site lies approximately 8 miles (13 km) due east of thePacific Ocean and 35 miles (56 km) due north of downtown San Diego. The CSU trustees also requested $51.8 million in state funds for the first phase of construction.[9]
In 1989, GovernorGeorge Deukmejian signed Senate Bill 365 (also sponsored by Craven) into law, officially creating Cal State San Marcos.Bill W. Stacy was named the university's first president in June 1989, and over the next year recruited the first 12 members of the faculty.[9] These dozen "founding faculty" played an important role in the university's early years and are today honored at Founders Plaza on the CSUSM campus. Stacy and the faculty were given $3.9 million to begin the university.
On February 23, 1990, ground was broken on the new campus, and construction began at the formerchicken farm.[10] In the fall of 1990, the first class enrolled at the new university: 448 juniors and seniors. (Initially, only upperclassmen were admitted to CSUSM.) While construction continued on the permanent campus, classes continued to be held at the former SDSU satellite location on Los Vallecitos Boulevard. An industrial facility on Stone Drive was also used to provide lab space for the biology program, and was used through January 1993. In 1991, the university conferred its first degrees, as seven students were awardedBachelor of Arts degrees. CSUSM's first officialcommencement ceremony was held in May 1992.[9]
In the fall of 1992, the permanent CSUSM campus at Twin Oaks Valley Road opened. The first buildings were the Administrative Building (formerly Craven Hall), Academic Hall, Science Hall I, and the University Commons.[9][11] The university had grown to 1,700 students and 305 faculty and staff.[9]
The university continued to grow rapidly, and by 1993 CSUSM's enrollment had grown to almost 2,500 and it received accreditation from theWestern Association of Schools and Colleges. In 1995, CSUSM admitted its first freshman class and offered lower-division (and general education) courses for the first time, with enrollment growing to 3,600. The same year, the College of Education was fully accredited by theNational Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education.[9]
In 1996, CSUSM received two major gifts: $1 million from Jean and W. Keith Kellogg II, the first of a series of gifts for the Kellogg Library, and a $1.3 millionbequest from Lucille Griset Spicer (presented by Spicer's siblings Richard H. Griset Sr. and Margaret Griset Liermann) to begin astudent loan fund.[9]
In early 1997, Stacy departed asuniversity president, andAlexander Gonzalez was named interim president. In 1998, the CSU Board of Trustees made Gonzalez permanent president. By 1997, enrollment had grown to 4,400, the faculty had grown to 300 (including part-time instructors).[9] The university also received additional major donations, including a $2.3 million gift from Leonard Evers to establish the Evers Computer Scholarship and a donation from Bob and Ruth Mangrum to build the Mangrum Track & Soccer Field.[9] The university intercollegiate athletics department opened in 1998, and initially consisted of men's and women's golf,cross-country, andtrack and field.[9]
A campus "building boom" began, with the Foundation Classroom Buildings opening in December 1996, University Hall in 1998, Science Hall II and the Arts Building in August 2002, and the University Village Apartments and the nearby M. Gordon Clarke Field House in 2003. The University Village Apartments were the university's firston-campus housing; the newstudent union, known as "the Clarke," was funded by $1.2 million gift pledged in 1998 by Helene Clarke in honor of her husband.[9]
The campus' first freestanding library, the five-story, nearly 200,000 square feet (19,000 m2) Kellogg Library later opened. The campus' Starbucks coffee is next to it.
In 2004,Karen S. Haynes was named the university's third president, following Gonzalez's departure the year previously, and the university announced that it planned to establish anursing school. In the fall of 2004, over 7,000 students enrolled.[9]
In 2006, the College of Business Administration's Markstein Hall opened, funded by a 2003 state grant of almost $25 million and a 2005 pledge of $5 million from Kenneth and Carole Markstein.[9] The School of Nursing opened in the fall of 2006.[9]
The university's first parking garage, the six-floor, 1,605-space Parking Structure I, is near the main campus.[12] The 106,509 gross square foot Social and Behavioral Sciences Building at the north end of the campus is next to it.[13]
CSUSM also has an Extended Learning program. According to its website:
Extended Learning (EL) at California State University San Marcos serves as the academic outreach arm of the university. As a unit within the Academic Affairs Division, EL is North San Diego County's premier provider of continuing education and training programs. Cal State San Marcos, and—by extension, EL—is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.
For the 2011–2012academic year, tuition and fees rose to $6,596, a 31% increase attributed to thestate's budget crisis; it was the largest such percentage increase in the United States.[14]
In 2023, the California State University Board of Trustees agreed to rename Craven Hall to the Administrative Building, as students and alumni voiced concerns over William A. Craven's history of racist remarks. Despite Craven's influential role in the founding of CSUSM, students felt that his reputation did not align with the university's goals as aHispanic-Serving Institution.[15][16]
In 2024, CSUSM broke ground on Black Oak Hall, a new housing building and dining commons. It is expected to be completed by fall 2026. The structure will be seven stories tall, include a 10,000-square-foot dining facility, and will provide housing for more than 500 students. The dining commons will be named Kwíila Dining, utilizing theLuiseño word for "acorn."[17]
| 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Applicants | 19,721 | 16,156 | 15,000 | 13,986 | 15,398 |
| Admits | 18,755 | 15,797 | 14,064 | 13,049 | 12,230 |
| Acceptance Rate | 95.1% | 97.8% | 93.8% | 93.3% | 79.4% |
| Enrolled | 2,624 | 2,533 | 2,551 | 2,413 | 2,255 |
| Avg GPA | 3.34 | 3.40 | 3.39 | 3.32 | 3.40 |
The university isaccredited by theWASC Senior College and University Commission.
The university has four colleges:[19]
The five most popular undergraduate majors for 2021 graduates were:[24]
CSUSM Social Mobility Outcomes include: #1 in the U.S.[25] in the 2022 Social Mobility Index[26] & Top 3% in National Economic Mobility Index.[27]
The 2022–2023 USNWR Best Regional Colleges West Rankings ranks San Marcos 7 on Top Performers onSocial Mobility, 10 on BestUndergraduate Teaching (tie), 17 on TopPublic Schools, 33 in Best Value Schools and 293 inNursing (tie).[28]
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| Race and ethnicity[34] | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Hispanic | 51% | ||
| White | 25% | ||
| Asian | 10% | ||
| Two or more races | 6% | ||
| Black | 4% | ||
| Unknown | 3% | ||
| Foreign national | 1% | ||
| Economic diversity | |||
| Low-income[a] | 45% | ||
| Affluent[b] | 55% | ||
In 2022 59% of the students were female, 41% male.[35] There are also a sizable number oftransfer students fromcommunity colleges. The "local admissions area community colleges" for CSU San Marcos areMount San Jacinto College in Riverside County andMira Costa College andPalomar College in San Diego County.[36] About 50 percent of transfer students are from North San Diego County, 2 percent from San Diego County elsewhere; and 48 percent from Riverside County.[37]
This CSU is still considered somewhat of a "small school"—especially in comparison to other San Diego County institutions such as San Diego State University and University of California, San Diego.[38] Looking to expand, the campus master plan envisions the university growing to an enrollment of 25,000.[38]
There are over 100 recognized student organizations on campus.[39] Thestudent newspaper is called The Cougar Chronicle.[40]
CSUSM recognizes several fraternities and sororities, each belonging to one of three different governing councils. Social fraternities belong to the Inter-fraternity Council (IFC), while social sororities belong to the Panhellenic Council (PHC).[41]
| Fraternities (IFC)[41] | Sororities (PHC)[41] |
|---|---|
Additionally, cultural-interest fraternities and sororities belong to the Multicultural Greek Council (MGC).
| Fraternities (MGC)[41] | Sororities (MGC)[41] |
|---|---|
The University Student Union (USU) consists of various student groups, cultural centers, a gender equity center, an LGBTQ+ center, an extended food court, a convenience store (called "Crash's Market"), two game rooms, a ballroom, an outdoor amphitheater, and a commuter lounge which includes a shower and lockers. In the food court are aPanda Express, Kalamata,Qdoba, and Hilltop Bistro.[42] The USU offers many spaces for students to gather between classes with seating, electronic charging ports, and restrooms. The indoor windows showcase panoramic views of the San Marcos valley.
North City, an urban district of San Marcos, intended to directly serve the entire North County San Diego community, is just across from the university's main campus. Several other buildings, including student and market apartment complexes with ground-level restaurants, small businesses, residential complexes, a medical center, and a hotel are all in the district.
The university has three housing options: the University Village Apartments (UVA), the Quad, and North Commons, which is exclusively for freshmen. The first two are apartment-style dorms with fitness centers, pools, game rooms, common areas, and more, and North Commons is traditional, more dorm-style housing. The Quad is directly east of the university's Extended Learning Building (ELB) which is directly linked to campus with a second-level pedestrian bridge. The university also plans to expand housing with a new building to replace what is currently UVA Parking Lot. The proposed building will add 600 beds and a second dining hall. The university has committed some of these beds to be available to house the low-income students.
TheSprinter hybrid rail service provides service to a station on the northeast corner of the campus. It was intentionally constructed near the University Village Apartments. It connects the campus to other cities of north San Diego County, includingOceanside,Vista andEscondido.
The Cal State–San Marcos (CSUSM) athletic teams are called the Cougars, and their official colors are bright/royal blue and white. The university is a member of theDivision II level of theNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in theCalifornia Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) since the 2015–16 academic year. The Cougars previously competed as anNAIA Independent within the Association of Independent Institutions (AII) of theNational Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1998 to 1999 (when the school joined the NAIA) to 2014–15.
CSUSM competes in 15 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer and track & field (indoor and outdoor); while women's sports include basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball. Former sports included cheerleading and dance.
The university's athletic teams are represented by Crash the Cougar. Crash began formally representing CSUSM during its inaugural season as a full NCAA member in 2017.[43]
California State University San Marcos is one of two CSU campuses to omit the comma used in the system's standard naming convention.[50]
The original mascot of the campus wasTukwut, which meansmountain lion in theLuiseño language of the localNative AmericanLuiseño people. Tukwut was chosen as the mascot in 1990 by CSUSM's first class of students in order to honor the indigenous people and their land on which the university was built.[51] However, the mascot was "dropped for something with more ring," and in a 2004 referendum students selected "Crash the Cougar." The dropping of the Luiseño word was criticized by a faculty member at CSU San Marcos.[52] The indigenous word can still be found in campus culture, and is used to describe the student life experience as "Tukwut Life."[53]
Crash the Cougar is a blue mountain lion, and is intended to begender non-confirming.[43]
The school's primary logo depicts the Academic Hall clock tower and Administrative building, as well as the hills which rise above the campus.[54][55]
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