USC School of Advanced Computing

An aerial view rendering of the Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg Human-Centered Computation Hall, which will integrate all computer science programs into a 116,000 square-foot, seven-story structure.

The USC School of Advanced Computing comprises the following:

• ​Thomas Lord Department of Computer Science  
• Ming Hsieh Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering   
• Information Technology Program  
• Interdisciplinary Data Science Program  
• SAC Affinity Faculty Groups (details to be announced)
• USC Information Sciences Institute (ISI) 
• USC Institute for Creative Technologies (ICT)

Rooted in an interdisciplinary approach, the USC School of Advanced Computing (SAC) was established in 2024 and serves as the hub for advanced computing research and education at USC. The SAC, a unit of the Viterbi School of Engineering, bridges the USC computer science and computer engineering community with experts from numerous disciplines across the University. It seeks to educate all USC students, regardless of their major, in the ethical use of computing technology.

Among its goals, the new school drives cross-university initiatives in areas of education and research involving advanced computing, including artificial intelligence, quantum computing and data science.

Operating as a “school-within-a-school” under USC Viterbi , the SAC consists of the Thomas Lord Department of Computer Science (CSCI), the Ming Hsieh Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), and two programs focused on computing education: the Information Technology Program (ITP) and the Interdisciplinary Data Science (IDS) program. In addition, the SAC partners closely with USC Viterbi’s two institutes, the Information Sciences Institute (ISI) and the Institute for Creative Technologies (ICT).

Building upon the individual departments’ long-standing reputation for academic excellence, the SAC brings together engineers, scientists and professionals – from the arts and humanities, business, health, sustainability, and other areas – around advanced computing to tackle society’s most pressing issues, from climate change to public health, with ethics at the core.

The SAC is the University’s intellectual nexus for computing, and its reach extends across disciplines, including health, law, business, education and film, to name a few.

SAC website: sac.usc.edu

Administration

Gaurav S. Sukhatme, PhD, Director,
Donald M. Alstadt Chair in Advanced Computing and Professor of Computer Science and Electrical and Computer Engineering
(Executive Vice Dean, USC Viterbi School of Engineering)