University of South Alabama

Founding USA was founded to provide public higher education to the Gulf Coast region. Classes began in June 1964 with 276 students, and the first graduation was in 1967. Frederick Palmer Whiddon served as founding president. [ 10 ]

USA now has 11 colleges and schools and continues to expand in research and healthcare. Football and other athletic programs have grown, including the opening of Hancock Whitney Stadium in 2022. [ 11 ]

The Pat Capps Covey College of Allied Health and College of Nursing Quick facts Academic rankings, National ... Academic rankings National Forbes [ 12 ] 616 U.S. News & World Report [ 13 ] 363 (tie) Washington Monthly [ 14 ] 347 Global U.S. News & World Report [ 15 ] 1677 (tie) Close The university offers a range of undergraduate and graduate degrees in ten colleges and schools. Several programs offer masters level degrees in addition to undergraduate degrees. Doctoral level degrees are offered in several areas, including a Doctor of Pharmacy degree offered in collaboration with Auburn University . USA also offers classes in nearby Baldwin County at its Fairhope campus, [ 16 ] and in 2015 opened Gulf Coast Campus. [ 17 ] Students at South Alabama can choose from more than 50 bachelor's degree and certificate programs and more than 40 master's degree programs. As of 2011, USA ranks as the 22nd best public university in the southern United States, and 52nd overall in the South. It has an acceptance rate of 86.5%. [ 18 ] The student-faculty ratio at USA is 18:1. [ 19 ] USA students are 57% female and 43% male. [ 18 ] As of 2018, the university had a 44% six-year graduation rate and a 22% four-year graduation rate for bachelor's degree programs. [ 20 ] Colleges Shelby Hall - Home to the College of Engineering and School of Computing The University of South Alabama has ten colleges and schools: Pat Capps Covey College of Allied Health Professions College of Arts and Sciences Mitchell College of Business College of Education and Professional Studies College of Engineering Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine College of Nursing School of Computing Honors College Graduate School

The university is governed by a board of trustees appointed by and including the governor of Alabama . The board appoints a president of the university. Frederick Palmer Whiddon served as president from 1963 until 1998 and was succeeded by V. Gordon Moulton who served until 2013. John W. Smith, the current executive vice president, served as an interim president until the arrival of Tony G. Waldrop in 2014 and after his retirement in 2021. Jo Bonner was appointed as university president in 2021. [ 21 ]