The University of California, San Diego (UCSD) was formally established in 1958 around the nucleus of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. It has since become one of the major research universities in the world. Over the first decade, UCSD built its academic backbone by establishing first-rate departments in the natural sciences. UCSD started its instructional role with graduate students in the late 1950s, followed in 1964 with undergraduate students.
In 1965 it was Psychology's turn to be established with the appointment of George Mandler as founding chair and with the addition of the other two members of the initial Department - William J. McGill and Norman H. Anderson. The view of these founders was that psychology was displayed at its best as an empirical or lab science. Within 5 years the Department had grown to some 18 faculty and was listed as one of the premier experimental psychology departments in the country, a distinction it has maintained according to various surveys. For example, when indexed by average number of citations per faculty, a relatively objective indicator of impact per faculty member, UCSD was the #1 ranked psychology department. We currently have approximately 1,500 undergraduate psychology majors and 65 graduate students. With a focus on experimental psychology, our 31 full-time faculty members cover 6 broad areas:
Our success is based in part on the strong tradition of interdisciplinary research at UCSD, and many faculty maintain collaborative relationships with campus units including Neuroscience, Cognitive Science, UCSD's Medical School, Rady School of Management, and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies. Our forward-looking perspective and rich collaborative environment offers a unique opportunity for cutting-edge research that is changing the face of modern psychology.
In the new Millennium, the Department looks forward to further expansion both in its faculty and in its graduate student population.