California State University System turns students into teachers. The university, known simply as CSU, traces its roots to the state's teaching colleges and trains the majority of California's teachers and staff. CSU is neck-and-neck with the State University of New York (SUNY) as the nation's largest university system. And it's growing. CSU's enrollment has ballooned to about 450,000. Those students, along with 44,000 faculty and staff members, are spread out among CSU's roughly two dozen campuses in cities such as Bakersfield, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Jose. CSU awards bachelor's and master's degrees in more than 380 subject areas, including education, business, psychology, and social work.