Blended Degree Programs

The purpose of the blended program (AA-2012-01) is to provide an accelerated pathway from a bachelor’s to a master’s degree and to enhance the undergraduate learning experience. Blended programs award a bachelor's degree and a master's degree at the same time. Students should have a clear and unambiguous path to receive their baccalaureate degree if they choose not to complete their master’s degree program.

 

ADMISSION to BLENDED PROGRAM

Students may be admitted to a blended program up to two years before they would expect to graduate with their bachelor’s degree. Admission recommendation is determined at the program level with final approval from the Dean of Graduate Education. The student must submit an Admission to Blended Program Approval form. The specific requirements for admission are set by the program with approval by the Graduate Education Office and Office of the Registrar. Once accepted, students may take graduate-level courses towards master’s degree requirements, as their schedules permit, provided they have met the course prerequisites.

 

TRANSITION to GRADUATE STANDING

Students admitted to the blended program will maintain their undergraduate status until they have reached a minimum of 180 degree-applicable [quarter] units (or the minimum units required for a degree program of more than 180 units); these units can apply to either the undergraduate or graduate degree. At the beginning of the first academic term in which the student will earn this number of units, the student must file a post-baccalaureate change of degree objective (PBCO) form. Once the form is processed, the student will transition to graduate status and incur the appropriate increase in tuition fees.

Students must complete the Graduate Writing Requirement before transitioning to graduate status. Students must have graduate standing for a minimum of two quarters before degree completion.

[APP Note: CSU Coded Memorandum AA 2012-01 also requires that "To ensure proper awarding of degree credit, all lower-division work (including lower-division general education courses and American Institutions courses) shall be completed prior to changing to graduate degree objective status."]

 

DOUBLE COUNTING UNITS

As per AS-955-23 and Title 5, Section 40510, up to 12 semester units may at the program’s discretion be double counted for both the Bachelor's degree and the Master's degree so that the total number of units may be 138 semester units, provided that

i. none of the required graduate classes is replaced by an undergraduate class, and    

ii. the graduate classes that are also counted toward the Bachelor's degree either assume the more rudimentary knowledge taught at the undergraduate level or cover the content of the undergraduate courses that they replace.   

 

SENIOR PROJECT REQUIREMENTS

Students in a blended program must complete all undergraduate requirements, including senior project requirements as detailed in the Cal Poly Catalog, along with the culminating experience required by the individual graduate program. In cases where the graduate culminating experience is a thesis or project, a student can align the objectives for this culminating experience with those of their senior project. The graduate thesis or project and the senior project must have separate course numbers, each with their own learning objectives and final deliverables.

 

Sources:

Academic Senate Resolution: AS-877-19 “Resolution on Graduate Blended Program Policies” (PDF). Approved 13 June 2019.

Academic Senate Resolution: AS-955-23 "Resolution on Graduate Curriculum for Semester Conversion" (PDF). Approved 28 July 2023.

 

References:

Cal Poly Graduate Education: "Blended Programs".

Cal Poly Graduate Education: "Graduate Education Handbook".

CSU Coded Memorandum: AA 2012-01 "Policy on "Blended" Bachelor's and Master's Degree Programs". Revised 3 December 2022. 

California Code of Regulations: Title 5, Section 40510 "The Master's Degree". Revised 11 August 2022.   

 

Updated: 9/25/2025