UCLA, the University of California, Los Angeles, is a public land-grant research university in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. Its origins trace back to 1881, but it was officially founded in 1919 as the Southern Branch of the University of California. In 1927, it was renamed the University of California at Los Angeles. UCLA is the second-oldest of the University of California system's ten campuses. Julio Frenk became UCLA's seventh chancellor on January 1, 2025.
UCLA is consistently ranked among the top universities globally. For 2024-25, U.S. News & World Report ranked UCLA as the No. 2 public university and 17th among national universities. The university offers over 5,000 courses across its college and 12 professional schools, encompassing a wide array of undergraduate majors, master's programs, doctoral programs, and minors. UCLA is a leading research university, with research and development expenditures of $1.45 billion in 2021. Recent news highlights include research on more resilient crops and healthier oceans, innovations in sunscreen for diverse skin tones, and the Fielding School of Public Health addressing the challenges of the 2025 Los Angeles wildfires. UCLA joined the Big Ten Conference in August 2024.
