Michelson Hall at dusk
About Us

Dornsife at a Glance

students standing in front of hagia sophia mid day

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 navigating 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

965

Faculty
(12% of all USC faculty)

828

Staff

66

Centers and Institutes

~10K

Students *GCERT included
(21% of all USC students)

~65K

USC Dornsife alumni since Fall 1989

Education

7,965

Undergraduates
(37% of total USC undergraduate population)

39%

of the total undergraduate courses taught across the university

97

Undergraduate Majors Offered

93

Minors Offered

1,285

PhD students enrolled across 35 programs

877

Master’s degree students enrolled across 58 programs

Faculty

487

Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty

340

Teaching

2

Nobel Laureates

6

MacArthur Fellows

14

National Academy of Sciences Members

48

American Association for the Advancement of Science Members

21

American Academy of Arts and Sciences Fellows

40

National Endowment for the Humanities Fellows

$96.4M

Annual Research Expenditures

Undergraduate Student Demographics

13%

Undergraduate First-Year Acceptance Rate
(Fall 2022)

29%

First-Generation
(Fall 2022 First-Years)

34%

Underrepresented Minority
(Fall 2022 First-Years)

63%

of Dornsife undergraduates receive financial aid

22%

Transfer Students

97

Countries Represented

Portrait of Kiersten Formoso with drawer of dinosaur fossils in front of her. Smiling at camera
Group hike in Grand Tetons
Student volunteering with food pantry, carrying box in her hands and looking at camera
Students in study area sitting on their laptops. Overhead shot
group shot of students with USC flag in Italy, ancient ruins in the background
Two students studying outside together

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