Susan Golden (née Stephens) is a Professor of molecular biology known for her research in circadian rhythms. She is currently a faculty member at UC San Diego. Golden was born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas in 1957. She attended the local public high school, where she was involved with the marching band and school newspaper. She was accepted to the Mississippi University for Women in 1976 as a journalism major, but soon switched her studies to major in biology and minor in chemistry.