Dornsife at a Glance

The future belongs to creative thinkers.
The USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences is the academic core of the University of Southern California. Our community works across disparate fields of study to explore fundamental questions about who we are, how the world works, and what we can do on the ground to improve and enrich society.
Our faculty push the boundaries of knowledge and innovation, heading up the charge of inquiry and discovery. Beyond the classrooms and labs, they work hand-in-hand with outside leaders in the public square. Not only world-leading experts in their fields, they are problem solvers who want to have an impact beyond the ivory tower.
We attract some of the most talented students in the world, providing them a distinctive 21st century liberal arts education infused with our West Coast, entrepreneurial spirit. They are explorers who prepare to engage both broadly and deeply — preparing to thrive as leaders who can adapt, evolve, and navigate complexity. Naturally ambitious, they get their hands dirty from day one, directly applying the concepts and tools they’ve acquired through our immersive educational opportunities in dynamic Los Angeles and the wider world.
USC Dornsife at a Glance
36
Academic Departments
967
Faculty
(13% of all USC faculty)
860
Staff
67
Centers and Institutes
~9.8K
Students *GCERT included
(22% of all USC students)
~70K
USC Dornsife alumni since Fall 1989
Education
7,765
Undergraduates
(38% of total USC undergraduate population)
40%
of the total undergraduate courses taught across the university
95
Undergraduate Majors Offered
94
Minors Offered
1,272
PhD students enrolled across 33 programs
953
Master’s degree students enrolled across 47 programs
Faculty
497
Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty
331
Teaching
2
Nobel Laureates
5
MacArthur Fellows
14
National Academy of Sciences Members
46
American Association for the Advancement of Science Members
22
American Academy of Arts and Sciences Fellows
41
National Endowment for the Humanities Fellows
$123.9M
Annual Research Expenditures
Undergraduate Student Demographics
13%
Undergraduate First-Year Acceptance Rate
(Fall 2025)
23%
First-Generation
(Fall 2025 First-Years)
66%
of Dornsife undergraduates receive financial aid
24%
Transfer Students
93
Countries Represented
Contact Us
USC Dornsife Office of Admission and Student Success
3709 Trousdale Parkway
Mudd Hall of Philosophy (MHP) 106
Los Angeles, CA 90089
USC Dornsife Office of Graduate and Professional Education
3551 Trousdale Pkwy., ADM 304
Los Angeles, CA 90089-4012