Ucla University

The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has a rich history, dating back to its founding as a small college in 1882, before its inception to the University of California in 1919. Since then, the university has grown and developed into a campus that is home to more than 38,000 students. According to the Office of the Registrar, undergraduates may earn a bachelor of arts or bachelor of science degree in one of 118 different disciplines; graduate students may choose from 200 programs.

UCLA is one of the nine campuses of the University of California. In 1868, the governor of California, Henry H. Haight, signed the Organic Act which was the impetus for the first University of California. In 1873, the Berkeley campus opened and was followed by campuses in Riverside, Davis, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Irvine, San Francisco, Santa Cruz and Los Angeles.

UCLA's humble beginnings were as a small teacher's college called the Los Angeles Branch of the State Normal School. It opened in 1882 in a Victorian-style building, which now houses the Central Los Angeles Public Library. Funding for the building included donations from community members, ranging from $2 to $500. In 1919, Governor William D. Stephens signed the bill that allowed the school to become the "Southern Branch" of the University of California. The university offered two-year studies in letters and science. Four-year degree programs were soon added, and the first graduating class of 300 students received diplomas in 1925. The name, University of California at Los Angeles was given to the school in 1927. In the 1940s, the schools of Medicine, Nursing, Engineering and Law were all founded. In 1955, UCLA Medical Center opened, and performed the first open heart surgery in the western United States one year later.