Baccalaureate Programs, Undergraduate Curriculum Policy

Guidelines for Majors, Concentrations, and Minors

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1. Course Categories
Curriculum course categories shall be labeled Major Courses, Support Courses, General Education Courses, and Free Elective Courses.

a. Major Courses

i. Definitions   

1. Major courses comprise the basic knowledge in the discipline and are required of all students in the major.
2. Courses using the prefix of the major program must count as major courses.
3. Courses from any other prefix or discipline may be designated as major courses.
4. Unless otherwise designated, all major courses will be counted towards the major GPA.
5. Courses in the major which fulfill General Education (GE) requirements should be listed in the Major Course category with a reference (e.g. a footnote) to the GE area.
6. The major column comprises all courses in the major core and concentration (if present).

ii. Major core 

1. For students pursuing the same degree objective, more than 50% of their major courses or course areas must be the same (CSU ASA 2017-02).
2. The major core comprises requirements common to all students earning the degree, addressing a common set of learning outcomes for the program.

iii. Concentrations    

A concentration is a coherent and specialized course of study within a student's major degree program. Degree programs are not required to include concentrations.

Policy on concentrations is given in AS-953-22, and is as follows:

1. A concentration is a block of designated courses from one or more lists of designated courses or course areas, totaling at least 12 units.
2. No single course should appear in every concentration of a given major; such courses should be included in the major.
3. The courses for a concentration shall appear in the major course column of the curriculum.
4. The number of concentration units must be less than 50% of the total major, support, and concentration units.
5. No single course should be required in every concentration offered in a given degree program; such courses should be included in the major core or support.
6. The number of units in a concentration must be less than 50% of the sum of all major units (major core, concentration, and support courses).
7. In a program that includes a concentration, an equivalently-sized Individualized Course of Study (ICS) may be included as an alternative.
8. The courses for a concentration or ICS shall appear in the major course column, and are included in the calculation of the major GPA.

b. Support Courses

i. Definitions

1. A support course is any specified course outside of the home department. Courses with the home department prefix shall not appear in the support course category.
2. Support courses which fulfill General Education requirements shall appear in the Support Course category with a reference to the appropriate GE area.
3. Support courses are not included in the calculation of the major GPA.

c. General Education

i. Those areas and courses designated as fulfilling General Education requirements as defined by the CSU shall appear in the category of General Education Courses. Areas which can be met by major and support courses shall be designated by a comment or footnote such as "Required in Major or Support; also satisfies General Education (GE) requirement."

ii. GE courses are not included in the calculation of the major GPA, unless they are also listed in the major core or concentration.

d. Free Electives

i. Free elective means a course chosen solely by the student with no curricular restrictions.

ii. Programs are not required to include free elective units in the degree program.

iii. Free electives are not included in the calculation of the major GPA.
 

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2. Required Semester Units

a. Definitions

i. “Major units” include all units earned in major (core), concentration, and support. Conversely, “major units” are the total number of units earned minus GE and free electives.

 

b. Unit requirements

i. The minimum (and maximum, where applicable) numbers of total semester units required for the following baccalaureate degrees offered by Cal Poly are as follow:

1. Bachelor of Arts (BA): 120 (Title 5 § 40500)

2. Bachelor of Science (BS): 120 (Title 5 § 40501)

3. Bachelor of Architecture (BArch): 120-150 (Title 5 § 40505)

4. Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA): 120-132 (Title 5 § 40506)

5. Bachelor of Landscape Architecture (BLA): 120-150 (Title 5 § 40507)

ii. The minimum numbers of total semester units designated as major courses or course areas required for the following baccalaureate degrees offered by Cal Poly are as follow:

1. Bachelor of Arts (BA): 24 (Title 5 § 40500)

2. Bachelor of Science (BS): 36 (Title 5 § 40501)

3. Bachelor of Architecture (BArch): 45 (Title 5 § 40505)

4. Bachelor of Landscape Architecture (BLA): 120-150 (Title 5 § 40507)

5. Note: Title 5 does not designate a minimum number of major units for the BFA degree.

 

iii. The maximum number of total semester units designated as major courses or course areas required for the BFA degree is 70 (Title 5 § 40506).

Note: Title 5 does not designate a maximum number of major units for the BA, BS, BArch, or BLA degrees.

 

iv. The minimum numbers of upper-division semester units designated as major courses or course areas required for the following baccalaureate degrees offered by Cal Poly are as follow:

- Bachelor of Arts (BA): 12 (Title 5 § 40500)

- Bachelor of Science (BS): 18 (Title 5 § 40501)

- Bachelor of Architecture (BArch): 27 (Title 5 § 40505)

- Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA): 18

- Bachelor of Landscape Architecture (BLA): 27 (Title 5 § 40507)

 

c. Each baccalaureate degree offered by Cal Poly requires a minimum of 40 upper- division units.

d. Of the semester units in courses or course areas designated as major at least 10 should be designated in lower division courses or course areas.

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Sources:

Academic Senate Resolution: AS-959-23 “Resolution on Undergraduate Curriculum for Semester Conversion” (PDF). Approved 3 October 2023.

Academic Senate Resolution: AS-953-22 "Resolution on Undergraduate Concentrations and Semesters" (PDF). Approved 9 February 2023.

California Code of Regulations: Title 5. Education, Division 5. Board of Trustees of the California State Universities, Chapter 1. California State University, Subchapter 2. Educational Program, Sections 40500-40509.

CSU Coded Memorandum: ASA-2017-02 "Accurate National Enrollment and Degree Reporting." Revised 1 February 2022.

 

Updated: 7/20/2026