
Arts & Letters By the Numbers
The College of Arts and Letters (CAL) is home to the humanities and social sciences at San Diego State University. It is the university's cornerstone college, providing the core liberal arts and writing courses required for SDSU's bachelor's degrees. With over 400 faculty members, CAL is the largest of the colleges at San Diego State University.
MAJORS/MINORS
82+
GRAD. PROGRAMS
25
ENROLLMENT
+4,440 (Fall 2021)
Fall 2021 Enrollment
Student Ethnicity
During the Fall 2021, out of 4,444 students enrolled in CAL programs:
- 36.3% are Hispanic or Latino,
- 32.7% are White,
- 6.5% are International,
- 6.4% are Multiple Ethnicities,
- 5.7% are African American,
- 5.2% are Asian,
- 3.1% are Filipino,
- 0.5% are Native American,
- 0.2% are Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian, and
- 3.3% are other, did not state.
Student Ethnicity by Class Level
During the Fall 2021, out of 4,444 students enrolled in CAL programs:
- Among Hispanic or Latino students: 36.3% are undergraduates and 30.7% are graduates.
- Among White students: 32% are undergraduates and 37.6% are graduates.
- Among International students: 6.7% are undergraduates and 10.1% are graduates
- Among Multiple Ethnicities students: 6% are undergraduates and 4.2% are graduates.
- Among African American students: 5.7% are undergraduates and 3.6% are graduates.
- Among Asian students: 5.2% are undergraduates and 5.3% are graduates.
- Among Filipino students: 3.1% are undergraduates and 2.2% are graduates.
- Among Native American students: 3.1% are undergraduates and 0.2% are graduates.
- Among Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian students: 0% are undergraduates and 0.5% are graduates.
- Among those other students, did not state: 0.2% are undergraduates and 5.1% are graduates.
Student Gender
During the Fall 2021, out of 4,444 students enrolled in CAL programs:
- 57.9% are women,
- 0.3% are nonbinary, and
- 41.8% are men.
Student Gender by Class Level
During the Fall 2021, out of 4,444 students enrolled in CAL programs:
- 4.4% are freshmen men,
- 0% are nonbinary freshmen,
- 8.2% are freshmen women,
- 3.3% are sophomores men,
- 0% are nonbinary sophomores,
- 6.1% are sophomore women,
- 13% are junior men,
- 0.1% are junior nonbinary,
- 17.7% are junior women,
- 16% are senior men,
- 0.1% are senior nonbinary,
- 19.7% are senior women,
- 0% are post bacc. men,
- 0% are post bacc. nonbinary,
- 0.1% are post bacc. women,
- 4.9% are master's student men,
- 0.1% are master's students nonbinary,
- 5.8% are master's students women,
- 0.2% are doctoral students men,
- 0% are doctoral students nonbinary, and
- 0.2% are doctoral students women.
Student Major or Program by Class Level
Major/Program | Undergraduate | Graduate | Total |
---|---|---|---|
Afro-American Studies | 49 | - | 49 |
American Indian Studies | 17 | - | 17 |
Anthropology | 118 | 31 | 149 |
Asian Studies | 17 | - | 17 |
Big Data Analytics | - | 58 | 58 |
Chicana and Chicano Studies | 45 | - | 45 |
Classics | 3 | - | 3 |
Comparative International Studies | 46 | - | 46 |
Comparative Literature | 16 | - | 16 |
Creative Writing | - | 71 | 71 |
Economics | 504 | 28 | 532 |
English | 351 | 29 | 380 |
European Studies | 2 | - | 2 |
French | 12 | 5 | 17 |
Geography | 104 | 44 | 148 |
German | 6 | - | 6 |
History | 250 | 40 | 290 |
Humanities | 26 | - | 26 |
International Business | 406 | - | 406 |
International Security and Conflict Resolution | 131 | - | 131 |
Islamic & Arabic Studies | 9 | - | 9 |
Japanese | 25 | - | 25 |
Language, Culture, and Society | 13 | - | 13 |
Latin American Studies | 8 | 7 | 15 |
LGBTQ+ Studies | 9 | - | 9 |
Liberal Arts and Sciences | - | 27 | 27 |
Linguistics | 79 | 27 | 106 |
Modern Jewish Studies | 3 | - | 3 |
Philosophy | 103 | 22 | 125 |
Political Science | 564 | 26 | 590 |
Religious Studies | 20 | - | 20 |
Rhetoric and Writing Studies | 28 | 15 | 43 |
Russian | 1 | - | 1 |
Russian and East European Studies | 1 | - | 1 |
Social Science | 121 | - | 121 |
Sociology | 438 | 27 | 465 |
Spanish | 136 | 25 | 161 |
Sustainability | 188 | - | 188 |
Urban Studies | 57 | - | 57 |
Womens Studies | 39 | 17 | 56 |
Total | 3,945 | 499 | 4,444 |
BACHELOR DEGREES
1,200+
GRAD. DEGREES
155+
STUDENTS TAUGHT
94,000+
Degrees Awarded 2020-2021
Student Ethnicity
Out of 1,371 degrees awarded by CAL in 2020-2021:
- 9.8% were International,
- 4.6% were other, did not state,
- 33.8% were White,
- 5.4% were Multiple Ethnicities, Non-Hispanic,
- 3.4% were Filipino,
- 0.1% were Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian,
- 1.2% were SE Asian,
- 2.8% were Asian,
- 5.8% were Other Hispanic, Latino,
- 28.7% were Mexican American
- 4.0% were African American, and
- 0.3% were Native American.
Student Gender
Out of 1,371 degrees awarded by CAL in 2020-2021:
- 53.9% were women,
- 0.2% were nonbinary, and
- 45.9% were men.

Degree Type by Class Level
Major | Undergraduate | Graduate | Total |
---|---|---|---|
Afro-American Studies | 7 | - | 7 |
American Indian Studies | 1 | - | 1 |
Anthropology | 50 | 2 | 52 |
Asian Studies | 3 | - | 3 |
Big Data Analytics | - | 10 | 10 |
Chicana and Chicano Studies | 6 | - | 6 |
Classics | 4 | - | 4 |
Comparative Literature | 6 | 6 | |
Comparative International Studies | 8 | - | 8 |
Creative Writing | - | 15 | 15 |
Economics | 233 | 19 | 252 |
English | 75 | 17 | 92 |
French | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Geography | 32 | 12 | 44 |
German | 2 | - | 2 |
History | 59 | 16 | 75 |
Humanities | 5 | - | 5 |
International Business | 135 | - | 135 |
International Security and Conflict Resolution | 61 | - | 61 |
Islamic & Arabic Studies | 1 | - | 1 |
Japanese | 6 | - | 6 |
Language, Culture, and Society | 2 | - | 2 |
Latin American Studies | 5 | 1 | 6 |
LGBTQ+ Studies | 1 | - | 1 |
Liberal Arts and Sciences | - | 9 | 9 |
Linguistics | 19 | 13 | 32 |
Modern Jewish Studies | 1 | - | 1 |
Philosophy | 16 | 3 | 19 |
Political Science | 144 | 7 | 151 |
Religious Studies | 8 | - | 8 |
Rhetoric and Writing Studies | 3 | 9 | 12 |
Russian | 1 | - | 1 |
Social Science | 48 | - | 48 |
Sociology | 128 | 8 | 136 |
Spanish | 34 | 9 | 43 |
Sustainability | 77 | - | 77 |
Urban Studies | 12 | - | 12 |
Womens Studies | 15 | 8 | 23 |
Total | 1,213 | 158 | 1,371 |