About the University

The University of San Diego is a community of scholars committed to the pursuit of truth, academic excellence, and advancement of knowledge in liberal arts and professional programs. Independent and comprehensive, the University of San Diego is dedicated to providing a value-based education to all students in its College and Schools.

A Roman Catholic institution, the University is committed to belief in God, to the recognition of the dignity of each individual and to the development of an active faith community. It is Catholic because it witnesses to and probes the Christian message as proclaimed by the Catholic Church.

The University welcomes and respects those whose lives are formed by different traditions, recognizing their important contributions to our pluralistic society and to an atmosphere of open discussion essential to liberal education. As a community the University is committed to collegiality, shared decision-making and academic freedom.

Education at the University is holistic, offering opportunities for intellectual, physical, spiritual, emotional, social, and cultural development. Students are challenged to develop knowledge, values and skills to enrich their lives and to prepare them for careers which will provide service to their global, civic, and faith communities.

Goals and Objectives

The goals of the University of San Diego express the values which flow from the mission statement, while the objectives, expressed here in summary form, delineate how those goals will be implemented during the time period of the current strategic plan.

Academic Excellence

Academic excellence is an integral part of the liberal arts tradition. The University commits itself to excellence in all its academic and professional pursuits. Its primary goal is to achieve a level of academic excellence in teaching and scholarship that, both in fact and in reputation, rivals the best comprehensive universities.

The University will strive to develop the human, environmental, programmatic, evaluative, supporting, and financial resources that are necessary to achieve excellence as an institution of higher education whose primary mission is teaching and encouraging research and scholarship supportive of the teaching/learning environment.

Objectives: In general, the means to achieve the goal of academic excellence include scholarly environment, provision of funding, recruitment/retention of highly qualified students, development of university personnel, expansion of library/media and computing services, encouragement of student/faculty interaction, focus on international and multicultural perspectives, and assessment of outcomes.

Values

The University will continue to emphasize its commitment to the values that characterize the best in American higher education including Roman Catholic higher education. These values include academic integrity, academic freedom, the rigorous quest for understanding and truth, justice, prudence, temperance, fortitude, and compassion. The University's commitment to these values will permeate not only its undergraduate, graduate, and professional academic programs, but all of its programs, activities, and relationships.

Objectives: In general, the means to achieve the values goal include dissemination and celebration on campus of the values of the Judaeo-Christian tradition, promotion of academic freedom and academic integrity, and enhancement of the study and practice of moral/ethical values through instruction, non-instructional ways, and faculty/student research.

Individual Dignity

The University will continue to promote and implement the principles that are associated with the dignity of the individual human being: individual responsibility; respect for each individual; sensitivity to the value of individual differences; and commitment to the view that a community is enriched by the diversity of points of view brought by individuals from a wide variety of cultural, ethnic, religious, and racial background.

Objectives: In general, the means to achieve the goal of individual dignity focuses on specific ways to foster an environment which supports and enhances the value and dignity of the individual through education and training programs, accountability, and assessment of outcomes.

Holism

Education at the University of San Diego addresses the fullest development of the person, intellectually, physically, spiritually, emotionally, socially, and culturally. The University will promote this goal by providing reasonable opportunities, suitable facilities, and appropriate support services for the holistic growth of all its students, faculty, and staff.

Objectives: In general, the means to achieve the goal of holism include provision of opportunities for student involvement with on - and off-campus programs which promote exchange of ideas, reflection on personal growth and collaborative initiatives; opportunities for demonstration of student achievement; and continued conservation of USD's aesthetically pleasing and well maintained campus.

Catholicity

The University is committed to its Catholic identity as intended by its founders and mandated by its corporate declaration and the Board of Trustees. It will communicate this identity, and the activities this identity inspires, to its various constituencies. It will continue to support an active Catholic faith community on campus through its university ministry program.

The University believes its commitment to the Roman Catholic tradition in American higher education is not only consistent with, but also supports, the other goals it has set for its foreseeable future and the spirit of ecumenism and tolerance of other religious beliefs those goals imply.

Objectives: In general, the means to achieve the goal of Catholicity include academic programs examining the Judaeo-Christian and other religious traditions, recruitment/retention of Roman Catholic students, appointment of employees supportive of the University as Catholic, continuation of the architectural expression of the Catholic tradition, and involvement of alumni, parents, and community in the institution's Catholic mission.