Computer Science & Engineering
Programming, algorithms, AI/ML, systems and software engineering.
Essential: CLRS \u00b7 SICP \u00b7 Operating System Concepts \u00b7 Bishop’s PRML
DISCOVER
Books
Textbooks
Scripture
Book clubs
Grad reading
DISCOVER · Books
Readwidely.Readwisely.Readthe Word.
From the foundational textbook of your major to the study Bible on your nightstand, Watch Altars helps Tritons build a reading life that feeds both the mind and the soul. Browse books for all 120+ UC San Diego departments, a full biblical library, and reading communities that meet every week.
Now reading: “Mere Christianity” — Warren College circle
CSE 8B students opened “Structure & Interpretation of Computer Programs”
Theology club finishing “Knowing God” by J.I. Packer
Grad seminar reading Kuhn’s “Structure of Scientific Revolutions”
Now reading: “Mere Christianity” — Warren College circle
CSE 8B students opened “Structure & Interpretation of Computer Programs”
Theology club finishing “Knowing God” by J.I. Packer
Grad seminar reading Kuhn’s “Structure of Scientific Revolutions”
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” — Psalm 119:105
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01 · ACADEMIC BOOKS BY DEPARTMENT
A reading list for every one of 120+ majors
Whatever you study at UC San Diego, there is a stack of books that will carry you from your first lecture to your senior thesis. Browse by division, watch the spotlight cycle through disciplines, then search the live catalog for the exact title you need.
Jacobs School \u00b7 CSE
Computer Science & Engineering
From your first CSE 8A Python lecture to graduate machine learning, these are the spines worth keeping on your shelf.
- Foundational: Introduction to Algorithms (CLRS); SICP (Abelson & Sussman)
- Advanced: Pattern Recognition & Machine Learning (Bishop); Operating System Concepts
- Graduate: Deep Learning (Goodfellow); The Art of Computer Programming (Knuth)
Biological Sciences
Biology & Life Sciences
Molecular biology, ecology, genetics, evolution and neuroscience \u2014 the texts behind every wet-lab and field study.
- Foundational: Campbell Biology; Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry
- Advanced: Molecular Biology of the Cell (Alberts); Genetics (Hartwell)
- Graduate: The Selfish Gene (Dawkins); Principles of Neural Science (Kandel)
Physics
Physics & Astrophysics
Quantum mechanics, cosmology, particle physics and thermodynamics \u2014 the books that taught generations to read the universe.
- Foundational: University Physics (Young & Freedman); Griffiths E&M
- Advanced: Introduction to Quantum Mechanics (Griffiths); Classical Mechanics (Goldstein)
- Graduate: Quantum Field Theory (Peskin & Schroeder); Gravitation (Misner, Thorne, Wheeler)
Psychology
Psychology
Clinical, cognitive, developmental and social psychology \u2014 the reading that frames how we understand the human mind and heart.
- Foundational: Psychology (David Myers); Cognitive Psychology (Sternberg)
- Advanced: Thinking, Fast and Slow (Kahneman); Abnormal Psychology (Barlow)
- Graduate: Research Design (Creswell); The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat (Sacks)
Humanities
Literature & Philosophy
The great texts and the questions they raise \u2014 from epic and novel to ethics, metaphysics and the philosophy of mind.
- Foundational: Norton Anthology of English Literature; Russell’s History of Western Philosophy
- Advanced: Plato’s Republic; Augustine’s Confessions; Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics
- Graduate: Being and Time (Heidegger); Theory of Justice (Rawls)
Health Sciences
Health Sciences
Public health, pharmacology, neuroscience and nutrition \u2014 the foundation for pre-meds, future clinicians and researchers.
- Foundational: Epidemiology (Gordis); Guyton & Hall Physiology
- Advanced: Goodman & Gilman’s Pharmacology; Principles of Neural Science
- Reflective: When Breath Becomes Air (Kalanithi); Being Mortal (Gawande)
Biology & Life Sciences
Molecular biology, ecology, genetics, evolution and neuroscience.
Essential: Campbell Biology \u00b7 Molecular Biology of the Cell \u00b7 Lehninger
Chemistry & Biochemistry
Organic, inorganic, physical chemistry and biochemistry.
Essential: Clayden Organic Chemistry \u00b7 Atkins’ Physical Chemistry
Physics & Astrophysics
Quantum mechanics, cosmology, particle physics, thermodynamics.
Essential: Griffiths QM & E&M \u00b7 University Physics \u00b7 Goldstein
Mathematics
Calculus, real & complex analysis, algebra, statistics, applied math.
Essential: Stewart Calculus \u00b7 Rudin Analysis \u00b7 Axler Linear Algebra
Data Science
Machine learning, statistics, visualization and big data.
Essential: ISLR \u00b7 The Elements of Statistical Learning \u00b7 Storytelling with Data
Psychology
Clinical, cognitive, developmental and social psychology.
Essential: Myers’ Psychology \u00b7 Thinking, Fast and Slow \u00b7 Barlow
Economics
Micro, macro, behavioral economics and econometrics.
Essential: Mankiw’s Principles \u00b7 Varian Microeconomics \u00b7 Wooldridge
Political Science
International relations, comparative politics, political theory.
Essential: Morgenthau’s Politics Among Nations \u00b7 The Federalist Papers
Sociology
Social theory, research methods, inequality and culture.
Essential: The Sociological Imagination \u00b7 Distinction (Bourdieu)
Anthropology
Cultural, biological, archaeology and linguistic anthropology.
Essential: Patterns of Culture (Benedict) \u00b7 The Interpretation of Cultures
Communication
Media studies, rhetoric and digital communication.
Essential: Understanding Media (McLuhan) \u00b7 Media & Society
Literature
American, British, world literature, literary theory, creative writing.
Essential: Norton Anthology \u00b7 The Western Canon (Bloom)
Philosophy
Ethics, metaphysics, epistemology, logic, philosophy of mind.
Essential: Plato’s Republic \u00b7 Nicomachean Ethics \u00b7 Russell
History
American, European and world history; historiography.
Essential: The Western Heritage \u00b7 A People’s History (Zinn)
Languages & Linguistics
Spanish, French, Chinese; linguistics and translation studies.
Essential: Language (Fromkin) \u00b7 The Language Instinct (Pinker)
Music, Theatre & Dance
Theory, composition, history, performance and playwriting.
Essential: Tonal Harmony (Kostka) \u00b7 The Empty Space (Brook)
Visual Arts
Art history, studio practice, criticism and design.
Essential: The Story of Art (Gombrich) \u00b7 Ways of Seeing (Berger)
Bioengineering
Tissue engineering, medical devices and synthetic biology.
Essential: Bioengineering Fundamentals \u00b7 Biomechanics (Fung)
Mechanical Engineering
Thermodynamics, mechanics, design and manufacturing.
Essential: Shigley’s Design \u00b7 Fundamentals of Thermodynamics
Electrical Engineering
Circuits, signals, communications and power systems.
Essential: Sedra/Smith Microelectronic Circuits \u00b7 Oppenheim Signals
Structural Engineering
Mechanics, materials, design and seismic engineering.
Essential: Hibbeler Structural Analysis \u00b7 Mechanics of Materials
Aerospace Engineering
Aerodynamics, propulsion and structures.
Essential: Anderson’s Aerodynamics \u00b7 Rocket Propulsion Elements
NanoEngineering & Materials
Nanomaterials, materials science and chemical engineering.
Essential: Callister Materials Science \u00b7 Introduction to Nanotechnology
Public Health
Epidemiology, health policy, global health, biostatistics.
Essential: Gordis Epidemiology \u00b7 The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down
Pharmacology
Drug development, medicinal chemistry and toxicology.
Essential: Goodman & Gilman’s \u00b7 Katzung Basic & Clinical Pharmacology
Neuroscience
Brain function, cognition and neurological disorders.
Essential: Principles of Neural Science (Kandel) \u00b7 Neuroscience (Purves)
Nutrition
Diet, metabolism and public health nutrition.
Essential: Krause’s Food & the Nutrition Care Process \u00b7 Advanced Nutrition
Physiology & Medicine
Human physiology, anatomy and clinical foundations for pre-meds.
Essential: Guyton & Hall \u00b7 Robbins Basic Pathology
Medicine & Meaning WA
Reflective reading on suffering, vocation and the soul of medicine.
Essential: When Breath Becomes Air \u00b7 Being Mortal \u00b7 The Healing Presence
Live catalog finder
Search 29 flagship titles across the divisions, or filter by area.
Biblical Resources Library
The Word, opened every way you study it.
Study Bibles, translations, commentaries, lexicons, and original-language tools — the same scholarship our faculty and small groups use to go deeper. "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." — Psalm 119:105
Study Bibles
Translations
Commentaries
Language Tools
Study Bibles
Trusted study editions with notes, maps, and cross-references for serious readers.
ESV Study Bible
20,000+ notes · Crossway
NIV Biblical Theology
Zondervan
CSB Apologetics Study
Holman
NASB MacArthur Study
Thomas Nelson
11 Scripture Groups
Inductive study, book-by-book deep dives, and original-language reading circles meet weekly across campus.
Join a study
Dictionary of the Bible
IVP Bible Background
Topical Bible
Cruden's Concordance
Holman Bible Atlas
ESV Reader's Bible
Dictionary of the Bible
IVP Bible Background
Topical Bible
Cruden's Concordance
Theology & Doctrine
Think deeply about who God is.
Systematic, biblical, and historical theology, apologetics, and Christian ethics — read across traditions with charity and conviction.
Systematic
Systematic Theology
Wayne Grudem
Systematic
Christian Theology
Millard Erickson
Systematic
Institutes
John Calvin
Spiritual Growth & Discipleship
Books that form you, not just inform you.
Devotional classics, prayer, spiritual disciplines, and biographies that have shaped Christians for generations.
Book of the Week
My Utmost for His Highest
Oswald Chambers
The daily devotional that has formed disciples for a century.
Prayer
Prayer
Tim Keller
Disciplines
Celebration of Discipline
Richard Foster
Spiritual Life
The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry
John Mark Comer
Classic
Knowing God
J. I. Packer
Faith & Scholarship
Where your major meets your faith.
Christian thinkers writing at the highest level in science, philosophy, history, economics, and the arts — proof that the life of the mind and the life of faith belong together.
Science & Faith
The Language of God
Francis Collins
The NIH director on genome science and belief.
Cosmology
God's Undertaker
John Lennox
An Oxford mathematician on science's limits.
History of Ideas
A Scientific Theology
Alister McGrath
Method across the natural sciences and theology.
Philosophy
Warranted Christian Belief
Alvin Plantinga
Epistemology at the highest academic level.
Economics
Economics in Christian Perspective
Halteman & Noell
Markets, justice, and stewardship.
Arts
Art & Faith
Makoto Fujimura
A theology of making.
"Love the Lord your God with all your mind." — Matthew 22:37
Reading by Academic Level
From your first quarter to your dissertation.
Curated reading tuned to where you are — foundational texts, upper-division depth, and graduate research.
Calculus
Stewart · Lower-div core
How to Read a Book
Adler & Van Doren
Mere Christianity
C. S. Lewis · Faith foundation
Book Clubs & Reading Groups
Read together. Grow together.
Twenty-four active reading groups — from theology cohorts to fiction circles to faculty-led seminars. Here's who's meeting this week.
Theology Cohort
Knowing God
Tue · 7pm · Geisel 2nd floor
Fiction Circle
The Brothers Karamazov
Wed · 8pm · Price Center
Faculty Seminar
Science & Faith
Thu · 4pm · Mayer Hall
Bible Study
Romans, verse by verse
Fri · 7pm · The Village
Live · meeting now
Reading Lists & New Releases
Curated lists, freshly stocked.
Faculty picks, Christian classics, student favorites, and the latest arrivals across the catalog.
Gentle and Lowly
Dane Ortlund
Recapturing the Wonder
Mike Cosper
Surprised by Hope
N. T. Wright
Live Not by Lies
Rod Dreher
Library Resources & Access
2.6 million volumes, one Triton ID.
Geisel and the Biomedical Library, digital collections, interlibrary loan, and book-lending programs — plus our own WatchAltars discipleship library.
Geisel Library
The iconic heart of campus research — open 24/7 during finals.
Digital Collections
eBooks & databases off-campus via VPN
Interlibrary Loan
Anything, from any UC, in days
Biomedical Library
Health & life sciences collection
WatchAltars Library WA
Free discipleship lending shelf at The Village
Faith-Based Publishers
The houses behind the best of Christian thought.
From academic monographs to bestselling devotionals — the publishers our reading lists draw from.
IVP Academic
Crossway
Zondervan Academic
Baker Academic
Eerdmans
NavPress
Tyndale
IVP Academic
Crossway
Zondervan Academic
Baker Academic
Eerdmans
Your Reading Hub
Find your next book in 60 seconds.
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Pick what you're hungry for and we'll point you to a starting place.
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Reader Stories
"A book club here got me through my hardest quarter — and into the Word daily."
— Maya, Cognitive Science '26
Begin your reading journey
Open a book.
Open a book.
Open your mind and heart.
Pick up the textbook that unlocks your major, the classic that shapes your thinking, or the Scripture that anchors your soul. Join a circle of Tritons reading together this week.
120+ department reading lists
a full biblical library
readers who pray together