UCSB

Extracted Attributes

• Type

  Public land-grant research university

• Address

  552, Storke Road, Isla Vista, Santa Barbara County, California, 93106

• Founded

  1891 (as Anna Blake School)

• Location

  Santa Barbara County, California, United States

• Full Name

  University of California, Santa Barbara

• Campus Size

  1,055 acres

• Recognition

  Public Ivy

• Abbreviation

  UCSB

• Classification

  R1: Doctoral University – Very high research activity

• Fields Medalists

  1

• Graduate Schools

  2 (Education and Environment)

• ARPAnet Host Rank

  No. 3

• Student-Faculty Ratio

  17:1

• Undergraduate Colleges

  3 (Letters and Science, Engineering, Creative Studies)

• Degree Programs Offered

  Over 200

• Integrated into UC System

  1944

• National Research Centers

  12

• National R&D Ranking (FY2023)

  105th

• Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI)

  Yes

• Companies Founded by Alumni/Faculty

  90+

• National Academy of Sciences Members

  50

• National Academy of Engineering Members

  34

• Total Undergraduate Enrollment (Fall 2024)

  23,181

• Research & Development Expenditures (FY2023)

  $305.48 million

• American Academy of Arts and Sciences Members

  56

• Forbes Magazine 2024-2025 Public University Ranking

  #8

• Nobel Prize Laureates (alumni, faculty, researchers)

  11

• U.S. News & World Report 2025 Public University Ranking

  #13

• U.S. News & World Report 2026 Top Public Schools Ranking

  #14

• U.S. News & World Report 2026 National Universities Ranking

  #40

Timeline

• Founded as an independent teachers college, the Anna Blake School. (Source: Web Search Results)

  1891

• Joined the University of California system, becoming its third-oldest campus. (Source: Wikipedia)

  1944

• Elected to the Association of American Universities. (Source: Wikipedia)

  1995

• John Martinis, a UCSB faculty member, led Google's quantum lab in Santa Barbara to achieve Quantum Supremacy. (Source: Related Documents)

  2019

• Reported $305.48 million in research and development expenditures for the fiscal year. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2023

• John Martinis, a UCSB faculty member, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for his foundational work in quantum computing. (Source: Summary)

  2025

University of California, Santa Barbara

The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an independent teachers college, UC Santa Barbara joined the University of California system in 1944. It is the third-oldest campus in the system, after UC Berkeley and UCLA. UCSB's campus sits on the oceanfront site of a converted WWII-era Marine Corps air station. UCSB is organized into three undergraduate colleges (Letters and Science, Engineering, and Creative Studies) and two graduate schools (Education and Environment), offering more than 200 degrees and programs. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and is regarded as a Public Ivy. The university has 12 national research centers and institutes, including the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics and NSF Quantum Foundry. According to the National Science Foundation, UC Santa Barbara spent $305.48 million on research and development in fiscal year 2023, ranking it 105th in the nation. UCSB was the No. 3 host on the ARPAnet and was elected to the Association of American Universities in 1995. UCSB alumni, faculty, and researchers have included 11 Nobel Prize laureates, founders of 90+ companies, 1 Fields Medalist, 50 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 34 members of the National Academy of Engineering, and 56 members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. The faculty also includes two Academy and Emmy Award winners and recipients of a Millennium Technology Prize, an IEEE Medal of Honor, a National Medal of Technology and Innovation and a Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics.

Web Search Results

• University of California, Santa Barbara - Wikipedia

  The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an independent teachers college, UC Santa Barbara joined the University of California system in 1944. It is the third-oldest campus in the system, after UC Berkeley and UCLA. [...] UC Santa Barbara is a large, comprehensive, primarily residential doctoral university. The full-time, four-year undergraduate program comprises the majority of enrollments and has a liberal arts & sciences focus with high graduate coexistence. UCSB is organized into five colleges and schools offering 87 undergraduate degrees and 55 graduate degrees. The campus is the sixth-largest in the UC system by enrollment with 18,620 undergraduate and 3,065 graduate students. In 2015, UCSB was designated [...] Originally, the regents envisioned a small, several thousand–student liberal arts college, a so-called "Williams College of the West", at Santa Barbara. Chronologically, UCSB is the third general-education campus of the University of California, after Berkeley and UCLA (the only other state campus to have been acquired by the UC system). The original campus the regents acquired in Santa Barbara was located on only 100 acres (40 ha) of largely unusable land on a seaside mesa. The availability of

• University of California, Santa Barbara | World University Rankings

  The University of California, Santa Barbara, often abbreviated as UCSB, is a prestigious research institute in the United States, which specialises in liberal arts. As a Public Ivy university, UCSB is well regarded among US universities. [...] Situated in close proximity to the city of Santa Barbara, UCSB’s premises cover over 4 km² of land between California’s Pacific coastline and the Santa Ynez Mountains. UCSB is one of the few American universities that has its own beach; a lagoon and specially designed walking and bicycle paths, which encourage and enable students to stay active, even during in busy exam periods. [...] The roots of UCSB begin with the establishment of the Anna Blake School in 1891. The institution, which firstly taught economics, saw forty years of development and expansion before becoming part of the ten colleges united under the University of California public university system.

• University of California, Santa Barbara - The Conversation

  Academic rigor, journalistic flair # University of California, Santa Barbara UCSB is one of only 61 institutions elected to membership in the prestigious Association of American Universities. And the Newsweek guide to America’s best colleges has named UCSB one of the country’s “hottest colleges” twice in the past decade.

• University of California, Santa Barbara | US News Best Colleges

  University of California, Santa Barbara is a public institution that was founded in 1909. In the 2026 edition of Best Colleges, University of California, Santa Barbara is ranked No. #40 in National Universities. It's also ranked No. #14 in Top Public Schools. [...] University of California, Santa Barbara is a public institution that was founded in 1909. In the 2026 edition of Best Colleges, University of California, Santa Barbara is ranked No. #40 in National Universities. It's also ranked No. #14 in Top Public Schools. [...] It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 23,181 (fall 2024), its setting is suburban, and the campus size is 1,055 acres. The student-faculty ratio at University of California, Santa Barbara is 17:1, and it utilizes a quarter-based academic calendar.

• Facts and Figures

  Read more UCSB is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), an exemplary designation by the Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities for colleges or universities in which Hispanic enrollment comprises at least 25% of the total. Our campus was the first HSI among members of the prestigious Association of American Universities. 56 American Academy of Arts and Sciences Members Read more [...] At UC Santa Barbara, we span disciplines and transcend labels. Our ambitions aim far, and our impact reaches wide. Spin through these select highlights and see just what makes UCSB such a compelling place to live, work, and learn. #8 Public University Forbes Magazine Read more Forbes Magazine, which showcased 500 of the finest U.S. institutions of higher education in its 2024-2025 America’s Top Colleges list, ranked UC Santa Barbara as the No. 8 public university in the country. 8 [...] UC Santa Barbara is one of only 71 research-intensive institutions in the U.S. and Canada elected to membership in the prestigious Association of American Universities, cementing its status as a higher-education leader. Read more #13 Public University U.S. News & World Report Read more U.S. News & World Report, in its 2025 Best Colleges listing, ranked UC Santa Barbara the No. 13 public university in the country. Committed to Diversity and Providing Opportunities for All Students