University of Southern California
Judge Robert Maclay Widney stood before a small group of donors in 1880 and secured the land that would become the University of Southern California. Three key figures provided the initial seed money and donated 308 acres to establish the campus. A Protestant nurseryman named Ozro Childs, an Irish Catholic former governor named John Gately Downey, and a German Jewish banker named Isaias Wolf Hellman all contributed to this effort. The school opened its doors with an enrollment of just 53 students and a faculty of 10. It operated under Methodist Church affiliation from the start but mandated that no student would be denied admission because of race. The first graduating class in 1884 consisted of only three people: two men and one woman who served as valedictorian. Old College was constructed in 1887 to serve as the College of Liberal Arts. This building eventually became a major concern due to age and lack of earthquake safety. It was demolished in 1948 after serving for over six decades.
Architect John Parkinson developed a master plan for the university beginning in 1919 that expanded beyond University Avenue. He focused on Romanesque buildings which remain iconic features of the campus today. Bovard Administration Building was completed in 1921 along Trousdale Parkway and remains one of the oldest structures. The Gwynn Wilson Student Union, Doheny Memorial Library, and Allan Hancock Foundation were finished in 1927, 1932, and 1940 respectively. These buildings sit directly adjacent to Hahn Plaza, now known as the central quad. President Rufus B. von KleinSmid spearheaded the creation of 19 buildings over 25 years during his tenure. Norman Topping initiated a capital construction campaign starting in 1958 with assistance from architect William Pereira. USC constructed 99 buildings between 1961 and 1979 under this new development phase. The historic portion of the main campus was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015. Widney Alumni House built in 1880 stands as the oldest university building in Southern California. Some dormitories and engineering buildings feature Modernist styles including two large Brutalist structures at the northern edge. A $700 million project called USC Village opened on the 17th of August 2017. This residential and retail center spans 1.25 million square feet across 15 acres.
The University of Southern California employs approximately 4,706 full-time faculty members and supports 350 postdoctoral fellows. George Olah won the 1994 Nobel Prize in Chemistry while Arieh Warshel received the same honor in 2013. Leonard Adleman won the Turing Award in 2003 for contributions to computer science. USC spent $891 million on research and development in 2018 according to the National Science Foundation. The institution ranks 23rd nationally in total R&D spending. It serves as headquarters for the Southern California Earthquake Center since 1991. Jonathan Postel edited communications protocols for ARPANET making USC one of the earliest internet nodes. In July 2016 the university hosted the world's most powerful quantum computer at its Information Sciences Institute. The School of Cinematic Arts accepts between 4% and 6% of applicants annually. George Lucas donated $175 million to expand this film school in September 2006. The Warner Bros. Archives contain records from the studio's first major feature My Four Years in Germany through 1968. The Shoah Foundation houses testimony from 52,000 survivors rescuers and others involved in The Holocaust. Over 70,000 students applied for admission to the undergraduate class entering in 2021 with only 12% admitted.
Trojan athletes have won 107 NCAA team championships and 412 individual championships across all sports. They have earned 326 Olympic medals including 153 golds more than any other American university. From the 1904 Summer Olympics through the 2014 Winter Olympics 632 Trojan athletes competed taking home 144 gold medals. If it were an independent country USC would rank 13th globally in total medal count since 1912. The men's program has won 97 team national championships and male athletes hold a record 303 individual NCAA titles. Eight players have won the Heisman Trophy making USC the school with the most NFL draft picks at 537. The annual football game against Notre Dame has been played since 1926 except during World War II travel restrictions. Tommy Trojan is a bronze statue modeled after actual football players engraved with ideal characteristics of a Trojan warrior. Traveler is a white Andalusian horse that first appeared at a football game in 1961 ridden by Richard Saukko. The current horse is known as Traveler IX. The Spirit of Troy marching band performed on Fleetwood Mac's multi-platinum album Tusk released in 1979.
USC maintains a total enrollment of roughly 47,500 students with about 20,000 undergraduates and 27,500 graduate professionals. Approximately 53% of students are female while 47% are male. For the entering first-year class in 2020 43% came from California 42% from elsewhere in the United States and 15% from abroad. In the academic year 2014, 2015 the student body included 12,300 international students making it the second most diverse university nationally. Twenty percent of admitted and attending students are SCions or those with familial ties to USC. Fourteen percent are first-generation college attendees. The average financial aid package reached $71,169 among recipients as of 2025. The Daily Trojan has served as the student newspaper since 1912 securing the first interview of President Richard Nixon after his resignation. KXSC radio station began operations in 1946 by students before transitioning to classical programming off-campus in the mid-1970s. Trojan Vision broadcasts 24/7 from the Robert Zemeckis Center for Digital Arts on Channel 8.1. El Rodeo yearbook released its first edition in 1889 originally called The Sybil before changing names in 1899.
On the 1st of May 2014 USC faced investigation by the Office of Civil Rights regarding potential Title IX violations under Barack Obama's White House Task Force. In 2018 the university was ordered to pay $111,965 in legal fees to a male student accused of rape following an unfair disciplinary proceeding. George Tyndall a gynecologist abused 52 patients between 1990 and 2016 according to Los Angeles Times reports. By the 1st of June 2018 over 401 people contacted a special hotline about complaints against him. Nearly 100 women filed new lawsuits bringing total accusations above 500 current and former students. Settlements totaling over $1.1 billion represent the largest sexual abuse settlement of any university. Carmen Puliafito resigned as dean of the Keck School of Medicine in 2016 after engaging with young recreational drug users and prostitutes at office parties. Dennis Kelly resigned as men's health physician in 2018 after almost twenty years then faced 49 accusations from gay or bisexual students. Four university personnel were charged in March 2019 for accepting bribes during the Varsity Blues admissions scandal. A 2020 investigative report revealed USC granted degrees to Khalifa bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani while allowing him to avoid standard rules.
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Common questions
Who founded the University of Southern California and when did it open?
Judge Robert Maclay Widney secured the land for the University of Southern California in 1880. The school opened its doors that same year with an enrollment of just 53 students.
What is the oldest building on the University of Southern California campus?
The Widney Alumni House built in 1880 stands as the oldest university building in Southern California. Old College was constructed in 1887 to serve as the College of Liberal Arts but was demolished in 1948.
How many NCAA team championships have Trojan athletes won at the University of Southern California?
Trojan athletes have won 107 NCAA team championships across all sports. They have also earned 326 Olympic medals including 153 golds more than any other American university.
When did USC open the USC Village residential and retail center project?
A $700 million project called USC Village opened on the 17th of August 2017. This residential and retail center spans 1.25 million square feet across 15 acres.
Who received a Nobel Prize in Chemistry from the University of Southern California faculty?
George Olah won the 1994 Nobel Prize in Chemistry while Arieh Warshel received the same honor in 2013. Leonard Adleman won the Turing Award in 2003 for contributions to computer science.