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California State University San Marcos

California State University San Marcos

California State University San Marcos or CSUSM or Cal State San Marcos is one of the campuses of the California State University (CSU) system. It was founded in 1989 as the 20th CSU campus. The university has three colleges:

  • College of Arts and Science (COAS)
  • College of Business and Administration (COBA)
  • College of Education (COE)

The school is a typical commuter campus. It is often referred to as the California State University Stair Master (CSUSM) because of its hilltop location. Cal State San Marcos won first place in the nationwide RecycleMania contest held in 2008.

The school newspaper is called The Pride. The original mascot of the campus was the Tukwut, but later it was changed to the Cougars. The school's athletics department has ten teams. The Cougar athletic teams compete as independents in Region II of the NAIA.

Overview of California State University San Marcos

Cal State San Marcos is located in a small city, in San Marcos, CA. The school is a public institution. Degree levels at Cal State San Marcos top out at the Master's degree.

Areas of Study

The school tries to do a few things and do them well, and doesn't offer a huge range of majors. Students at Cal State San Marcos often study media, art studies, and liberal arts.

Cal State San Marcos Selectivity

The admissions department at the school does not accept all those who apply. Most students' verbal SAT scores were in the range of 430 to 530 in 2007-2008. A quarter of students admitted in 2007-2008 scored 540 or higher on the math SAT.

Faculty

The school's tenure system is geared toward rewarding and keeping the most valuable professors. By paying its faculty better than most schools, Cal State San Marcos tries to attract and retain a high quality teaching staff.

Student Body

The school offers classes to 9,159 students (7,537 full-time equivalent).

Student Life

Cal State San Marcos has a large share of part-time students. Students sports include formal participation in Independent Far West Region competitions.

Cal State San Marcos Tuition and Affordability

Tuition is fairly low at Cal State San Marcos.

More complete details are provided below.

Contacting Cal State San Marcos

California State University San Marcos
333 S Twin Oaks Valley Rd
San Marcos, CA 92096-0001
General Phone: (760) 750-4000
http://www.csusm.edu

Cal State San Marcos Programs and Degrees (2008-2009)

General CategoryDegreesMost Common Majors [see all]
Liberal Arts652liberal arts and sciences, sociology, English, history, social services, political science, economics, Spanish language, ...
Business and Management401business management, finance, marketing
Media186communication studies, mass communication
Education and Teaching139education
Family and Social Work117family studies
Therapy and Counseling103psychology
Science78biology, chemistry, biochemistry, biotechnology
Security and Law Enforcement65criminology
Art Studies49visual and performing arts
Computer Science and Engineering34computer science, information technology
Nutrition and Exercise Therapy25health and physical education
Mathematics9mathematics

Number of programs and degrees for Cal State San Marcos in 2008-2009:

Degree LevelTotal
Awarded
Number of
Programs
Bachelor's degree1,63328
Master's degree2259

Cal State San Marcos Student Body

In 2007-2008, Cal State San Marcos had a total enrollment of 9,159 students (7,537 full-time equivalent).

Students in the Freshman Class:

GroupPercent
Men34%
Women66%
Full-Time79%
Part-Time21%

Students By Class:

GroupPercent
Undergraduate87%
Graduate13%

Racial Diversity:
RacePercent
White50%
Black3%
Hispanic21%
Asian12%
American Indian1%
Unknown10%
(Foreign Students)3%

Students by Age:

AgePercent
Under 180%
18-1923%
20-2116%
22-2427%
25-2918%
30-346%
35-393%
40-494%
50-642%
65+0%

Incoming (Freshman) Students by Place of Residence:
(From available data sampling)

ResidencePercent
California99%
(International Students)1%

Cal State San Marcos Graduation, Retention, and Transfers

Retention Rates (2007):

GroupReturning From
Previous Year
Full-Time74 %
Part-Time50 %

Cal State San Marcos Room and Board (2007)

Cal State San Marcos offers campus housing for 625 of its 7,537 (full-time) students.

(Please refer to our profile of San Marcos, California for details about the area surrounding the campus. Also see our list of other California Colleges).

The school does not offer students a meal plan.

Cal State San Marcos Admissions and Selectivity

Acceptances:

GroupApplicantsAcceptedPercent
Accepted
EnrolledPercent of
Accepted Enrolled
Total9,4286,76472%1,35820%
Men3,5562,47470%46719%
Women5,8724,29073%89121%

Standardized Test Scores:

Test25th Percentile75th Percetile
SAT Verbal430530
SAT Math440540
ACT Verbal1622
ACT Math1723
ACT Composite1822

Application Requirements:

ItemRequirement
GPArequired
Class Ranknot required
High School Recordnot required
College Prep Programrequired
Recommendationsnot required
Formal Demonstration of Competencenot required
Standardized Tests (SAT and/or ACT)required
Percent of Applicants Submitting SAT95%
Percent of Applicants Submitting ACT25%
TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language)required
Other Standardized Testsnot required

Cal State San Marcos Expenses and Financial Aid (2008-2009)

Expenses and Financial Aid:

ExpenseAmount
In-state tuition and fees$ 3,638
Out-of-state tuition and fees$ 13,820
Room and board$ 9,486
Room charge$ 6,375
Books and supplies$ 1,565
Other expenses$ 3,935

Financial Aid:
Cal State San Marcos participates in Federal Title IV financial aid programs. (The school's OPE ID is 3011300)

Cal State San Marcos Faculty

Cal State San Marcos has a tenure system for faculty.

Tenure Status of Faculty (2008-2009):

Full-Time Faculty LevelMenWomen
Tenured7877
Non-tenured, but on tenure track2835
Non-tenured and not on tenure track1222

Salaries for full-time faculty:

Full-Time Faculty (2008-2009):

Full-Time Faculty LevelContract LengthNumber MenAvg Salary MenNumber WomenAvg Salary Women
Professorcalendar year0*1*
Lecturercalendar year1*2*
All faculty totalcalendar year1*3$81,936

*: salaries are not displayed where there are fewer than 3 professors in the category.

Full-Time Faculty (2008-2009):

Full-Time Faculty LevelContract LengthNumber MenAvg Salary MenNumber WomenAvg Salary Women
Professoracademic year42$94,96139$92,608
Associate professoracademic year37$82,40640$73,599
Assistant professoracademic year27$69,13732$67,770
Lectureracademic year11$59,85520$53,737
All faculty totalacademic year117$81,731131$74,802

*: salaries are not displayed where there are fewer than 3 professors in the category.

Cal State San Marcos Athletics

Athletic Conferences:

SportConference
BaseballIndependent Far West Region
TrackIndependent Far West Region

Students on Athletic Scholarships (2007):

SportMenWomenTotal
Total212243
Track121224
All Other Sports91019

Cal State San Marcos Degree Programs (2007)

ART STUDIES
Visual and Performing Arts, General

BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT
Business Administration and Management, General
Finance, General
Marketing/Marketing Management, General

COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
Computer Science
Information Technology

EDUCATION AND TEACHING
Education, General

FAMILY AND SOCIAL WORK
Human Development and Family Studies, General

LIBERAL ARTS
Anthropology
Economics, General
English Language and Literature, General
History, General
Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies
Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other
Political Science and Government, General
Social Sciences, General
Sociology
Spanish Language and Literature
Women's Studies

MATHEMATICS
Mathematics, General

MEDIA
Communication Studies/Speech Communication and Rhetoric
Mass Communication/Media Studies

NUTRITION AND EXERCISE THERAPY
Health and Physical Education, General

SCIENCE
Biochemistry
Biology/Biological Sciences, General
Biotechnology
Chemistry, General

SECURITY AND LAW ENFORCEMENT
Criminology

THERAPY AND COUNSELING
Psychology, General

Find a school near you

Cal State San Marcos Highlights

(Details are provided further down on this page.)

What Sets Cal State San Marcos Apart:

CategoryTrophy 
Lowest tuition & fees (in-state)
(vs. colleges with similar degree levels)
Top 3%Cal State San Marcos Lowest tuition & fees (in-state)
% of degrees in liberal arts
(vs. colleges with similar degree levels)
Top 7%Cal State San Marcos % of degrees in liberal arts
Number of students
(vs. all colleges)
Top 8%Cal State San Marcos Number of students
Salaries of full-time faculty
(vs. all colleges)
Top 9%Cal State San Marcos Salaries of full-time faculty
Degrees concentrated in limited number of degree programs
(vs. all colleges)
Top 10%Cal State San Marcos Degrees concentrated in limited number of degree programs
% of degrees in media
(vs. all colleges)
Top 13%Cal State San Marcos % of degrees in media
% of freshmen enrolled part-time
(vs. all colleges)
Top 15%Cal State San Marcos % of freshmen enrolled part-time
Number of degree programs
(vs. all colleges)
Top 17%Cal State San Marcos Number of degree programs
% of degrees in art studies
(vs. colleges with similar degree levels)
Top 19%Cal State San Marcos % of degrees in art studies
% of full-time faculty on tenure track
(vs. all colleges)
Top 19%Cal State San Marcos % of full-time faculty on tenure track
Explanation of the Highlights categories

Notable:
Accepts some high school credits
Grants credits for AP courses
Offers distance learning
Career counseling
Career services
Student employment services
Option to study abroad
Offers part-time study
On-campus library
Offers campus housing
Tenure system for quality teaching
Offers athletic scholarships

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