California State University, Stanislaus (also known as Stanislaus State or simply Stan State and formerly known as CSU Stanislaus) is a public university in Turlock, California. It is part of the California State University system. It was established in 1957 and is also the only campus in the system to offer a bachelor's degree in cognitive studies. The university offers 45 Bachelor's degrees, 17 Master's degrees, one Doctoral degree (Doctor of Education), and 6 teaching credentials.^[3][4]

In 1957, the California State Legislature established what was then called Stanislaus State College as the 15th campus of the CSU system.^[5] Classes began on the Stanislaus County Fairgrounds in September, 1960, and the college moved to its current location five years later. The college was first accredited in 1964. It gained university status and its current name in 1986, and received a ten-year accreditation by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) ^[37] in 1999 and 2010.^[6] In 2019, the Commission reaffirmed Stanislaus State's accreditation for eight years, with a visit scheduled in 2027.^[7]

In 1974 the University established an extension program at the campus of San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton in neighboring San Joaquin County. In 1998 the Stanislaus State-Stockton Center expanded and moved to its own permanent campus in downtown Stockton.

California State University, Stanislaus offers 45 undergraduate programs, 17 master's degree programs and 2 graduate certificate programs, 6 school credential programs and a doctoral degree program in Educational Leadership.^[14][15] Its academic disciplines are clustered within four colleges:

Several individual programs, across the four colleges, have achieved and maintain accreditation by professional accreditation bodies.^[16] Stanislaus State's College of Business Administration is accredited by the AACSB.^[17] Its Human Resource Management program has the nation's top student testing success rate.^[18] In fall 2012, Stanislaus State launched an online Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree program, the first fully online AACSB-accredited MBA program offered in the state of California.^[19]

The university library building was originally named for founding president Dr. J. Burton Vasché. The library currently holds over 370,000 volumes, 841 print journal subscriptions, access to 141 electronic databases, and a growing number of electronic journals, video recordings, and compact discs.^[20] The University Library also contains a Children's collection, which has more than 5,900 titles of children's literature. The library offers access to more than 70 electronic databases and also contains federal, state, and local documents.

As of Fall 2017, the five most popular bachelor's degrees Programs are: BS Business Administration, BA Psychology, BA Liberal Studies, BA/BS Biological Sciences, and BA Criminal Justice.

The university has several resources available for students. The Tutoring/Writing Center is located in the Vasche Library and offers individual and group tutoring. Some of the services available include essay planning, organization, development and revision, writing across the curriculum, ESL, and WPST test preparation.^[21] The university also has a bookstore that features marble herms by sculptor Andrew Wilson alongside other artwork, as well as a university police department and financial aid office. The New Stanislaus State Student Center is scheduled to open Spring 2020.

Cal State Stanislaus was ranked the #10 college in the United States by the 2015 Social Mobility Index college rankings.^[27]

In 2015, Washington Monthly's "Best Bang for the Buck —Western Rankings" ranked Stanislaus State 10th among 233 schools in the Western United States for five criteria: net price based on annual family income; graduation rate; student loan default rate; percent of applicants admitted; and applicants' ACT/SAT scores.

Stanislaus State, in the Division II of the NCAA, competes in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). Stanislaus State fields 13 sports for men and women for the fall, winter, and spring seasons. Fall sports for men include soccer and cross country. Fall sports for women are soccer, volleyball and cross country. The winter sport for men is basketball and for women it is basketball and indoor track and field. Spring sports for men include baseball, golf, and track and field. Spring sports for women include softball, track and field, and tennis.

Ed & Bertha Fitzpatrick Arena (aka Warrior Gym) is a 2,000-seat multi-purpose, built in 1978, which is the home arena for the university's Warriors basketball teams. It was also briefly the home of the defunct Big Valley Shockwave of the American Basketball Association. In the 2010-2011 season the name of the basketball arena was changed to Ed & Bertha Fitzpatrick Arena.^[28]

The university has a Hmong Students Association. In 2004 the association and a former member led the Project Ready for School to help children arriving in the United States from a Thai refugee camp for preparing for school.^[30]

As of fall 2018 CSU Stanislaus has the third larges enrollment percentage of Mexican Americans in the California State University system.^[29]

Greek Life at CSUS includes:^[31]

Sarah Palin's selection as the keynote speaker at Stanislaus State's main fundraising event in 2010 resulted in the most successful fundraiser in the campus's history. It provoked speculation and debate when the university refused to disclose her speaking fee and certified public accountants representing Clendenin Bird & Company from Modesto, California were called in to do an internal audit regarding the investigation. The event was organized by a school foundation.^[32]