Chapter IV

Curricular Policies

4.100 Residence Requirement

(Senate: 5/25/99; President: 6/25/99; Editorial Amendment: 1/21/15)

Undergraduate students must complete a minimum of 30 semester units, including at least 24 upper division units, 12 units in the major, and 9 units in General Education courses is residence at Cal State L.A. for the baccalaureate.  Credit earned in special sessions, including Open University, may be applied toward this residence requirement.   However only 24 residence units may be earned through Open University.  Credit earned in extension courses or by examination may not apply toward the residence requirement.

 

4.110  Waiver of Tuition for Nonresident Students
(Senate: 4/12/94; President: 5/26/94, 9/03)

For all nonresident students who are not participating in an international student exchange program, all or part of nonresident tuition fees may be waived for one year. Students may reapply for the waiver. Waivers may be granted to students who display exceptional scholastic ability and prior scholastic achievement if any of the following sets of requirements are met:

1. The student is a citizen and resident of a foreign country and is enrolled as an undergraduate student in a course of study of no fewer than ten semester or quarter units. (Education Code 89706)
2. The student is enrolled as a graduate student in a course of study of no fewer than ten semester or quarter units. (Education Code 89707)
3.  The student is enrolled as a graduate student and is employed by a state university less than full time but at least 20 hours per week (Education Code 89707) 

Each year the President will set the maximum number of waivers that may be awarded for graduate and undergraduate students. These numbers shall not exceed 7.5% of the undergraduate students at Cal State LA who are citizens and residents of foreign countries, or 25% of the graduate students at Cal State LA who are not residents of California. Undergraduate and graduate student applications for nonresident tuition fee waivers will be considered by the Curriculum Subcommittee.

4.200 Academic Advisement

(Senate: 10/22/91, 10/28/97, 12/1/15; President: 11/5/91, 11/20/97, 3/2/16; Editorial Amendment: 1/21/15)

Advisement is central to the educational process. It is a multifaceted all-university function intended to facilitate student success. Advisement is an ongoing process during which the student develops an educational plan in consultation with an advisor and completes a curricular program of study. Students benefit from regular advisement to achieve their academic goals, clarify their career objectives and better understand how the University can assist them in realizing their goals and objectives in a timely and efficient manner.

To this end, advisement is a campus-wide, integrated support service which provides appropriate resources to students. The purposes of advisement include the following:      

• Assist students to maximize the benefits of their educational experience by providing guidance in the selection of curricular programs and courses;
• Familiarize students with academic policies, procedures and University requirements for graduation;
• Help students develop a plan to complete all University requirements for graduation in an efficient and timely manner;
• Familiarize students with career opportunities directly and indirectly related to their academic interests and professional ambitions;
• Inform students about campus resources and services, including how these can help meet their educational goals and individual aspirations;
• Encourage students to develop the independence and personal skills necessary to make informed judgments about their educational objectives, careers, and use of University support systems and other opportunities available on or through the campus. 

While the faculty bear responsibility for academic advisement, other campus personnel also provide important advisement services. All individuals involved in advisement are part of the overall system for advisement and must interact with each other in order to be effective,

An effective system of advisement is an important factor in student retention and is the essential first step in facilitating student success at Cal State L.A. Collectively and individually, each unit that provides advisement services makes an important contribution to each student's ultimate academic and personal success. This contribution notwithstanding, students share major responsibility in contributing to and ensuring their own success, and, as such, must be active participants in the advisement process.

Advisement is conducted with respect for the individual student being advised. The ultimate success of effective advisement depends on the individual commitment of faculty and staff to perform their duties in a professionally competent manner and professional expertise within a campus-wide system of support. 

4.210 Academic Progress Criteria and Milestones for Undergraduate Programs

(Senate: 3/21/17; President: 4/7/17)

I. Establishing Academic Progress Plans

Departments or colleges may develop academic progress plans requiring students to meet established milestones on a timely basis. Possible milestones may include but are not limited to: passing grades in specific required courses; program-established gpas; number of units earned; and excessive numbers of repeats or withdrawals.

Departments or colleges who wish to implement academic progress criteria must create plans that contain the following:

1. Clearly identified milestones consistent with graduation requirements and university policy.
2. Detailed descriptions of the intervention that will follow a missed milestone. The intervention must include mandatory academic advising to provide the student with guidance to meet the missed milestone.
3. Clearly articulated timelines for dismissal from the academic program for students who have not satisfied the specified academic progress plan requirements.
4. Detailed descriptions of the process by which students dismissed from the academic program will be advised into new academic programs.
5. Clearly articulated plans to monitor impact on student success including underrepresented groups.

II. Plan Approval and Review Process

Plans for academic progress criteria, including plans for pre-majors, must first be approved through the regular school/department and college curricular approval process and then be submitted to the provost's office. All plans must be approved by the provost's office before they are implemented to assure that they adhere to University and State Education policies. Academic progress plans and their impact on student success shall be monitored through the program review process. Academic progress plans must be published in the University Catalog and included in advising materials. Departments or colleges may revise plans, subject to approval by the provost's office.

III. Dismissal from the Academic Program
Students must be warned in writing or via email that they are in jeopardy (or probation in the major) with regard to completing their academic milestones at least one semester before they are subject to dismissal. Students may be dismissed from their academic program only if they fail to satisfy the academic progress requirements established by their school/department. School/department chairs or college associate deans may decide that the student's performance merits additional time to complete a missed milestone; authority for this decision must be clearly articulated in the program criteria. School/department chairs or college associate deans must notify students in writing or via email that they have been dismissed from the academic program. The college dismissing the student must offer students an appointment with a faculty and/or professional advisor and provide information regarding processes for changing to a new academic program or moving to undeclared status. Students who are dismissed from an academic program have a right to appeal that dismissal to the Office of the Dean of the college, and if not satisfied they may file an appeal with the Academic Appeals Committee. The college must publish required timelines for the student to appeal and for the college to render a decision in a timely way. A list of dismissed students must be submitted to the Office of Undergraduate Studies each semester, which shall ensure that students' change of major has been communicated to Enrollment Services in a timely manner.

4.230 Timely Progress to Degree Completion for Undergraduate Students - Milestones and Advising Guidelines

(Senate: 10/20/20; President: 11/5/20)

This policy is designed to provide clear guidelines that will help students graduate in a timely manner, remain in good standing with financial aid, and in compliance with CSU policies about time to degree.  It also provides information about the role that advisors and the University play in supporting students along the way.
 
First and Second Years:
During their first year, freshmen will be encouraged to explore their major options. Students who have selected a prospective major should validate their choice through their coursework, interactions with their departments, and engagement with other campus resources, including the Career Center and student clubs and organizations. Advisors will support students throughout this process. They will proactively identify and support students who are off track and help students select and affirm their major and degree pathway by the end of their second year.

Third Year and Beyond:
When first-time freshmen reach their third year, and transfer students are in their first year, they will have declared a major.  Advisors and faculty will encourage students to explore their major more deeply through coursework, research, scholarly and creative activities, and by participating in co-and extra-curricular activities that will prepare them to embark upon a career or pursue a post-baccalaureate degree.

By the time first-time freshmen reach the second semester of their third year (and transfer students their first year), students should be working with advisors to ensure that they are completing degree requirements needed in order to apply for graduation in the fall of their final year.

Students are expected to meet the following milestones along the pathway to their degree:

Advising for First-Time Students

• First-time freshmen and transfer students are required to participate in academic advising before the beginning of their first year at Cal State LA
• First-time freshmen are required to meet with an advisor during their first year to validate that they are on the right path and/or to explore alternatives.

Declaring a Major

• First-time freshmen shall declare a major by the end of the second year; an option or concentration within the major must also be declared at that time if applicable.
• First-time freshmen who are pre-majors and are not on track to be able to complete their major specific criteria by the end of their second year may be granted an extra semester under the following conditions:
  o    If they need an additional semester to pursue a major in their home college
  o    If they need an additional semester to complete pre-major requirements for a different major within their home college
• Students who are not able to meet major specific criteria for a major in their home college will be referred to the University Academic Advisement Center as “exploring” students to find a major that they can complete in a timely manner.

Changing Majors or Adding a Major or Minor (i.e., changing degree objectives)

• Students may only change degree objectives if they can complete those requirements in six years (first-time freshmen) or four years (transfer students).
• Changing majors in or after their third year (for first-time freshmen) or in their first year or later year (for transfer students) is permitted under certain circumstances. Students seeking to do so should be able to complete their degree requirements within six years (for first-time freshmen) or four years (for transfer students). They should meet with an advisor to review a degree plan and discuss career goals. The advisor shall review and approve the degree plan to ensure that it does not exceed these limits.

Preparing for Graduation

• First-time freshmen should apply for graduation during the fall term of their fourth year if they are planning to graduate in four years (during the fall term of their second year for transfer students);
• First-time freshmen who have not applied for graduation by the end of their fifth year and transfer students who have not applied for graduation by the end of their third year may be required to meet with an advisor to agree upon a timely graduation plan.  In rare circumstances, should the advising plan prove unsuccessful, the University may initiate additional actions designed to facilitate graduation, including the following:
  o    Identification and implementation of appropriate course substitutions that will help the student complete degree requirements;
  o    Limiting students to one major that can be completed in a timely manner;
  o    Restricting enrollment to courses required to graduate in the major for which graduation is most likely to occur in a reasonable time;
  o    In the rare case of students who have met graduation requirements but have not applied for graduation, the University may automatically
        graduate them; such students will be charged graduation fee.

Exceptions: Some students, such as students who are not able to be continuously enrolled, or students who are unlikely to meet graduation requirements for their current majors, may require an exception to the limits in this policy. Students requesting an exception to the limits in this policy should file an appeal for an exception to Academic Policy to the AVP of Undergraduate Studies. The appeal must include a rationale, such as specific circumstances beyond the student’s control, and an advisor-approved plan to graduate.

4.240 Implementation of Advisement at Cal State, Los Angeles

(Senate: 10/22/91, 12/1/15; President: 11/5/91, 3/2/16)

In order to accomplish the goal of providing effective and successful advisement, the University shall:

1. Maintain a coordinated, integrated system of advisement that supports the teaching and academic mission of the University, meets the needs of a culturally diverse student body, increases the retention of students, and promotes their educational success.
2. Provide advisement services to students in a manner that encourages them to be responsible, informed and active participants in the achievement of their educational goals.
3. Make available to students, especially prior to and during their first term, comprehensive information about student academic policies and procedures and advisement programs and services on campus.
4. Provide faculty with the necessary resources, including training to ensure that they effectively perform their academic advisement responsibilities (including workshops, on-line training, mentors, manuals, resource guides, etc.).
5. Maintain a University advisement center that provides advisement services to undecided majors and provides staff advisors with appropriate resources, including training and information on all aspects of academic advisement, including General Education.
6. Support college advisement centers that provide advisement services for majors in that college and provide staff advisors with the necessary resources, including training and information on all aspects of academic advisement in their college, as well as General Education requirements.
7. Establish an assessment plan to evaluate the effectiveness of academic advisement.

4.300 Curricular Policies

(Senate: 1/30/96, 4/9/96, 3/16/21; President: 5/7/96, 7/24/96, 5/15/21; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01; 9/03)

Responsibility for the development of the curriculum rests with the faculty, subject to system guidelines in the Administrative Code, Title 5, and in other pertinent statutory documents.

New degree programs, including options and concentrations, are projected on the University's Academic Master Plan prior to their detailed design.  Undergraduate and graduate degree programs with options, concentrations, or special emphases must have a major or program core that comprises more than 50 percent of the total units required for the program. The major core or program core is the set of courses required of all students pursuing a degree program and should represent the majority of required uits so that the program learning outcomes can be achieved by all enrolled students, regardless of subprogram. Modifications in existing courses and programs also are given formal consideration, and all programs are reviewed in an ongoing process which has a five-year cycle.

The curriculum has both residence and external components, and includes undergraduate and graduate segments. Courses, degree and certificate programs, and modifications thereof are proposed by the faculty in the respective disciplines or interdisciplinary areas. Following departmental/divisional/school approval, these proposals are reviewed by the appropriate committee of the corresponding college.

At the university level, new major programs, options, minor/credential programs and certificates and resolution of unresolved challenges to curricular modifications are considered by the Curriculum Subcommittee or Graduate Studies Subcommittee.  The subcommittee submits approved proposals to the Educational Policy Committee, where the curricular actions stand approved unless questioned and agendized for further consideration.

Detailed policies and procedures on curriculum development appear in Appendix F.

4.310 Curriculum Calendar

(Senate: 1/16/90; President: 3/15/90; Editorial Amendment: 9/00; 8/01, 1/21/15)

Curricular proposals may be considered by departmental/divisional/school, college and University committees and subcommittees only during fall and spring semesters. Curricular proposals which did not receive final action prior to the end of spring semester shall be held on the agenda of the committee or subcommittee until fall semester.

The Educational Policy Committee subcommittees shall not meet during summer term. Non-curricular items which cannot wait until fall semester, such as policy issues requiring timely response and referrals of student petitions which cannot be handled by executive action, shall be referred to the Senate Executive Committee for consideration.

4.320 Definition, Purpose, and Guidelines for Assessment

(Senate: 11/23/93, 12/1/98; President: 1/13/94, 2/1/99; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01)

General Definition of Assessment. Assessment is the process by which academic institutions evaluate student progress in learning and success in achieving educational goals. Assessment of courses, programs, and University activities, involve among other things, a measure of student outcomes.  Achievement may be assessed directly by measuring the changes, progress and/or gains that occur with students or indirectly, by using other indicators such as employment, employers' satisfaction and the percent of students who continue their education in graduate or professional programs.

Purpose of Assessment. The purpose of assessment is to assist in improving learning, teaching and academic advising at the individual, course, program and institutional levels. Assessment should be on-going, consistently applied, and based on teaching and learning goals and objectives.  Each academic department/division/school or program should utilize information from assessment to analyze and improve the effectiveness of its academic programs in such areas as curriculum, academic advisement, faculty development and student services. Data from outcomes assessment will not be used for cross-program rankings or comparisons of individual faculty.

Assessment Plan. Faculty, students and academic administrators shall work together to develop a campus strategy for coordinating and supporting student outcomes assessment activities that includes:

1. development of an institutional plan for assessment;
2. incorporation of evaluation of assessment data in the review of the effectiveness of the general education program;
3. incorporation of the evaluation of assessment into program review procedures; and
4. development of an assessment program to review the academic support programs (e.g. Writing Center, Library, Tutoring Center).

Assessment of Programs

Assessment is a significant portion of both the academic and academic support programs review.  It should assist in unit planning and improvement.  Program review shall include an evaluation of the extent of assessment measures have been used to document effectiveness and to improve the program.

Each unit shall develop, in consultation with the college dean or other college level entity as determined by the college, an assessment plan based on the goals and objectives of the unit, college and University.  The assessment plan shall identify the methods for evaluating the student outcomes of the program.  The plan shall include a description and justification for the selection of current evaluation practices, as well as a description of other assessment measures the unit might consider using in the future, and a timetable for implementation of the plan.  Assessment methods should generate both quantitative and qualitative information.  A summary of assessment activities shall be provided triennially to the college dean and included as part of the program review self-study.

The General Education Subcommittee, working with units that offer courses in General Education, shall be responsible for assessing the General Education program. The program review of General Education shall include an evaluation of the extent to which student outcomes assessments have been utilized to improve the program.

Administration and Students

Academic Administrators shall support faculty and departments by providing resources for a reference library, workshops and other appropriate activities.

Student input shall normally be sought in the development of assessment activities of academic programs and departments/divisions/schools.

 

4.330 Minors

Although not required for a baccalaureate, minors are available in many fields that will help strengthen students’ preparation in areas related to their major field or to career choices. A minor consists of a formal aggregate of courses totaling 12 or more semester units.  At least 9 semester units must be upper division and taken in residence at Cal State L.A. A minimum of 12 units must be distinct from the core requirements in the student's major but may overlap with the electives in the major. A minimum grade point average of 2.0 is required in the minor program. Students must get approval from an advisor in the minor department in order to declare a minor. It is essential that this advisor verify that the courses used to satisfy the minor are aligned with the criteria stated above. The minor field will be noted on the student’s transcript and on the student's diploma if the individual program has been approved by the offering department/division/school and is completed at the same time as or prior to the work for the degree itself. 

4.340 Service Learning Definition

(Senate: 1/22/02; President: 2/26/02)

Consistent with the special mission at Cal State L.A. to provide an educational experience that recognizes and takes full advantage of diversity, while emphasizing the knowledge, experience, and ethical concerns common to all people, service learning at California State University, Los Angeles:

• is a teaching and learning strategy that provides students with organized and meaningful learning experience outside the classroom designed to enhance their understanding of information, knowledge and theoretical principles shared in the classroom;
• is also defined as a pedagogical model that links course content with a community service component that is designed to address the needs identified by the community whether local or global; and
• has, as an integral component, the use of reflective activities intended to integrate course content and skills and knowledge with community involvement and to develop or strengthen students’ commitment to social responsibility and civic engagement.

4.345 Criteria for Service-Learning Course Designation

All courses approved for a service learning designation must address the following criteria:

1. The service experience must relate course content to clearly articulated course objectives and student learning outcomes, which helps to foster or strengthen the students’ awareness of social responsibility and sense of civic duty.
2. The service learning option or requirement must link course content with a community service component that addresses a need identified by the participating community.
3. Since knowledge from the course informs the service experiences with which the students are involved, the service opportunities must be appropriate for the course.
4. Service learning courses must provide a method to assess the learning derived from the service, and academic credit must be based on learning outcomes—not the service itself.
5. Structured and organized opportunities for critical reflection of the learning gained through the service experience and how the service relates to the course content must be evident.
6. Number of hours devoted to the service learning component must be specific and sufficient to provide meaningful service while also meeting course objectives and student learning outcomes.
7. Opportunities must be available for community partners to provide input into the evaluation process of students’ community service and activities within their agencies.

--Adapted from the Lowell Bennion Community Service Center, University of Utah

4.350 Time Limits on Major Requirements for the Bachelor's Degree

(Senate: 10/10/89; President: 11/10/89; Editorial Amendment: 8/01)

A department/division/school may specify that no subject, unit or grade credit be granted for specific upper division courses offered by that department/division/school, which were completed more than ten years prior to the date of the bachelor's degree. Approval of time limits for specific courses shall be requested through normal curricular channels in the form of a course modification for existing courses or as part of an initial course proposal and shall be subject to mandatory consultation with departments/divisions/schools using the courses on their majors. Courses with time limits shall be designated in the Catalog description of the courses and on the program advisement sheet submitted by the student's major department/division school to the Graduation Office. When a Cal State L.A. course is so designated, the restriction shall also apply to equivalent courses from transfer institutions. Students may petition and in extraordinary circumstances the major department/division/school may grant permission to validate by examination such an expired course with the concurrence of the department/division/school offering the course or its equivalent.

4.355 Inactivation of Infrequently Offered Courses from the Curriculum
(Senate: 10/3/79, 1/12/16; President: 10/25/79, 4/14/16; Editorial Amendment: 8/01, 8/11)

In order to avoid advertising the availability of courses that are not actually being offered, it is imperative that departments/divisions/schools and colleges act promptly to remove unused courses from the Catalog. Courses not offered successfully for a period of three years that normally would be offered annually will be inactivated. A course is considered to have been offered successfully if it meets through the census date. Courses not offered successfully for a period of four years that are normally offered every other year will be inactivated. The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs or designee may initiate the inactivation of infrequently offered courses. They will notify colleges and departments/divisions/schools of the proposed action in sufficient time for adjustments to be made.

Courses that have been recently inactivated will be reactivated upon notification from the department to the Office of Undergraduate Studies that it intends to offer them again.

The following courses are exempt from inactivation: Cooperative Education, Directed Study, Independent Study, Comprehensive Examinations, Graduate Research, Graduate Directed Study, Thesis or Project, and Special Topics Courses.

The Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs produces each semester a report showing total enrollments in all University courses over the previous three years.  This report flags courses not offered during the previous two years ("two-year rule warning") and three years ("three-year rule warning"), and four years, as well as new courses and those offered recently at enrollment levels requiring special justification.  Courses thus flagged should be acted upon appropriately and promptly by departments/divisions/schools concerned.

4.357 Policies and Procedures for Temporary Suspension of Academic Programs
(Senate: 4/27/2010; President: 5/25/2010; Editorial Amendment: 1/21/15)

Program suspension is a formal process to temporarily halt new student admission in an academic program.  Program suspension is not applicable when the goal is program discontinuance.  Temporary suspension of an academic program is intended to allow time for program faculty to review curricular structure, resources, enrollment issues, accreditation demands, etc., in order to reinstate the program by enrolling new students once again within three years.  It must be clear in the request for suspension that significant problems exist that prevent effective implementation of a program and that there are reasonable grounds to believe that these problems can be rectified within the proposed period of suspension.

Academic programs covered in this policy include: a) undergraduate and graduate degrees; b) concentrations and options; c) minors; d) credit certificate programs; and e) credential programs.

Program faculty refers to the tenured and tenure-track faculty in the department/division/school in which the program is housed.

I.  Procedures for Requesting Program Suspension

A. Consultation

1. Initial consultation between the dean and the program faculty entails meaningful interaction in which all parties may freely exchange information and counsel.
2. Prior to a formal request for program suspension, a meeting between program faculty and the dean of the college in which the program is housed must occur and minutes shall be taken.  This consultation may be initiated by program faculty or the college dean.
3. Upon completion of the consultation process, if the program faculty and dean are in agreement that program suspension should be requested, the formal request for program suspension will be made by program faculty, regardless of

B.    Formal request for program suspension
        The formal request for program suspension shall include all of the following, whether the request is made by program faculty or the college dean:

1. A full explanation of why the temporary program suspension is being proposed.
2. Reasons why temporary program suspension is being proposed instead of discontinuance.
3. The semester and date when the proposed suspension will take effect.  No temporary suspension may exceed three academic years.
4. A complete list of courses where offerings will be suspended or substantially reduced.  Evidence of consultation with affected units, including written responses, if any.
5. Student enrollment and application patterns for the program during the previous five years.
6. Likely effects of the temporary suspension on students currently enrolled in the program.
7. Potential consequences regarding faculty assignments.
8. Any changes that would be necessary in order to resume offering the program.

C.    Review of formal request for program suspension presented by the college dean

1. Formal requests for program suspension presented by the college dean are forwarded to the program faculty for review.  Program faculty are given 10 academic work days to prepare a written response to the request for suspension, which should include a justification for not suspending the program (which may include the need for the program, the importance of the program to the University, the quality of the program, and program benefits and costs), alternatives to suspension, identification of community stakeholders, and identification of other programs in the University that would be affected by the suspension.
2. The dean submits the formal request for program suspension and the program faculty’s written response and any written dissent by program faculty to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, the Educational Policy Committee, the College Curriculum Committee, all other college deans, and affected programs that were identified in the program’s response.  The Educational Policy Committee, the College Curriculum Committee, college deans, and affected programs will have 20 academic work days to submit opposition to the proposed suspension, if any, to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.
3. The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs makes the final decision regarding program suspension.

II. Procedures for Implementing Program Suspension

A.    Notification to program

Following a decision to suspend a program by the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, the college dean, the Educational Policy Committee, the faculty of the suspended program, and others affected by the suspension will be notified as soon as possible regarding the decision to suspend, date of implementation, and length of suspension.

B.    Catalog

A notice of program suspension will be included in the Cal State LA online catalog.  The notice will include that the program is under temporary suspension, is not currently accepting new students, the date of plans to resume the program, contingent on campus approval procedures, and an appropriate University contact for further information about the suspended program.

C.    Accommodating students

If a program is to be suspended, the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs or designee shall:

1. Require program faculty to develop a teach-out plan with a list of courses that would need to be offered during the suspension period or other mechanisms such as course substitutions that would allow those students to graduate in a timely manner.
2. Prepare an official list of students enrolled in the program.
3. Notify all students enrolled in the program of the following:
   a. the date by which requirements must be completed to receive the specified degree/credential/certificate;
   b. a provisional teach-out plan, a part of which will apply to each individual student;
   c. other closely related programs offered by Cal State LA to which the student may wish to transfer;
   d. similar programs available at other institutions in the geographical area or in the CSU system;
   e. the extent to which courses from other institutions can be substituted;
   f. a designated office that can assist the students to transfer to another institution or complete program requirements atCal State LA;
   g. that readmission to the program will not be allowed during the suspension period if the student loses continuing student status;
   h. any other relevant aspects of the teach-out plan mentioned above. 

D.    Faculty assignments

If a program is to be suspended, the college dean must communicate to faculty who currently teach in the program their assignments during the period of suspension.

III. Early Reinstatement

Program faculty can request reinstatement of a suspended program for sooner than the date originally specified.  A written justification must be submitted to the college dean, which is then forwarded to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.  The college dean may append a letter of support or non-support for the request for early reinstatement if desired.  The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs will make the final decision regarding early reinstatement.

 IV. Extended Suspension and Discontinuance

A program will automatically be reinstated and new students will be enrolled at the end of the stated suspension period unless a request for a one-time extension of no more than one academic year has been approved by the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.  Such a request may be initiated by program faculty or the dean of the college where a program is housed, and must explain why the program could not be reinstated during the proposed period of suspension, the continuing importance of the program to the University, and assurances that appropriate measures will be taken to assure that new students will be enrolled in the program by the end of the extension period.
Program faculty or the college dean may initiate discontinuance procedures if program reinstatement at the end of the approved suspension period, including extensions, if applicable is not desired.

4.359 Policies and Procedures for Academic Program Discontinuance
(Senate: 10/30/79, 8/25/81, 11/10/92, 7/29/00, 11/3/09; President: 5/30/80, 9/3/81, 11/25/92, 9/29/00, 11/23/09; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01, 9/03, 1/21/15)

I.  Preamble.  This policy provides criteria and a set of processes and procedures to be used in considering the discontinuance of academic programs. Academic programs covered in this policy include the following: a) undergraduate and graduate degrees; b) concentrations and options; c) minors; d) certificate programs (including those administered by Extended Education); and e) credential programs.

This policy, which describes two procedures for discontinuing programs, allows the University to maintain flexibility and respond to changing demands.  Programs shall be discontinued when they no longer serve the needs of the students, the University or society, or no longer possess academic validity or when the University cannot provide the resources to offer them.  The decision to discontinue a program shall be made only after all appropriate evidence has been gathered and examined, and thorough consultation with faculty and other affected parties has occurred.

In the event that imposed budget restrictions lead to a request for program discontinuance, the University shall seek alternatives to discontinuance, and the University shall terminate programs only as the last resort.

II. Criteria. Should it be necessary to consider the discontinuance of an academic program, a determination will be based upon a review of the program under the following criteria, which are listed in rank order:

A. The need for the program and importance of the program to the University.

1. The extent to which the University and society need the program should be assessed qualitatively by using the three criteria listed below: 
   a.    The extent to which the program is central to Cal State LA using the following priorities: (1) programs essential to a comprehensive public university; (2) programs that contribute to the mission of Cal State LA with its commitment to understanding and respecting diversity and to serving the changing needs of a global society; (3) programs that contribute to a well-rounded University but are not essential; and (4) programs that fill special needs for society, but without which the University could still fulfill its primary mission.
   b.    Present and projected student demand for the program as well as present and projected demand for graduates of the program.
   c.    The importance of the program to the Southern California community and the extent to which the program is unique to the Southern California community.

B.    The quality of the program.

1. The quality of the program should be assessed by the results of the program reviews, accreditation reviews, or other comparable evidence. Among the variables for assessing the program quality are:
   a.    Offering and maintaining a current rigorous curriculum.
   b.    The quality of the faculty in terms of their degrees, currency in the field, quality of teaching, and level and quality of scholarly, creative and professional activity including the extent to which the faculty have received external funding and support. A demonstrated ability to attract and retain well-qualified and diverse faculty is an important part of this criterion.
   c.    The quality of the positions received, or graduate or professional programs entered into, by graduates of the program.

C.    Program benefits and costs.

1. The efficiency of the programs should be assessed using the following criteria and information from the departments/divisions/schools, colleges and university.
   a.  The full-time equivalent faculty (FTEF), full-time equivalent students (FTES), and student-faculty ratio for the program or department/division/school; the trends in these numbers; and the reasons for these trends. Where data are available total cost per FTEF and per FTES may be used in comparison to comparable programs at other institutions. Other discipline specific information may be provided.
   b.  The number of students completing the program per year.
   c.  The graduation rate, the continuation rate, and the tracking rate (a combination of the continuation rate and the graduation rate).
   d.  Other benefits and costs, including the extent to which programs support or duplicate other programs on campus.

III. Procedures for Program Discontinuance as a Result of Changes in Student, University, or Societal Needs, or a Loss of Academic Validity

A.    Program Discontinuance Process

1. Requests for discontinuance of a program may be made by:
   a.  the offering department/division/school,
   b.  the Program Review Subcommittee,
   c.  the dean of the college in which the program is housed,
   d.  the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.
2. All requests to discontinue a degree program must proceed through all levels of curricular review with an accompanying record of its action and rationale for that action from each review forwarded to the next level.
3. Requests for discontinuance made by and agreed to by the offering department/division/school will follow the regular levels of curricular review.
   a.  the offering department/division/school,  

B.    Process When There Are Objections by the Offering Department/Division/School

1. In cases where the Program Review Subcommittee, the dean of the college housing the program, or the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs makes requests for discontinuance, and where there are objections by the offering department/division/school; the following procedures shall be followed:
   a. The request for discontinuance shall be submitted to, or made by, the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.  The request shall include the following information: 
        1. the specific recommendations and justification for the recommendation to discontinue the program;
        2. an assessment of the impact on students, program faculty, other programs and the mission of the University if the program be discontinued;
        3. copies of the most recent program review documents including, but not limited to, the self-study, external evaluator reports, Program Review Subcommittee's reports and the department's/division's/school's responses to those reports.

b.    The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs shall appoint an individual whose charge it will be to present the case supporting the recommendation for discontinuance at each curricular level.

C.    Levels of Review

1. All recommendations made at each curricular level shall be forwarded to the next level and finally to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.
2. The levels of curricular review shall include the following:
   a. the department/division/school curriculum committee
   b. the department/division chair or school director
   c.  the college curriculum committee
   d.  the college dean
   e.  the appropriate University level subcommittee of EPC
   f.  the Educational Policy Committee
    
3.  The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs shall establish timelines for the review of the recommendation for discontinuance in consultation with the department/division/school and college in which the program is housed and the Dean of Graduate and/or Undergraduate Studies, whichever is appropriate.  In no case shall the review extend beyond twelve months.
4.  In the case of a non-degree program the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs shall make the final decision on the discontinuance in this process.  In the case of a degree program the recommendation will be forwarded to the President or his or her designee in accordance with Trustee policy.

IV.  Procedures for Program Discontinuance as a Result of Imposed Budget Restrictions

A.    The Program Discontinuance Committee (PDC)

1. Membership. The PDC shall be made up of the following members:

1.1  One tenured faculty member elected by the faculty in each college and three members-at-large from different colleges elected by the faculty for a one-year term in an all-university election from nominees provided by the colleges.

1.2  Two student members from different colleges selected annually by the Board of Directors of the Associated Students. During committee service each student must be in good standing and must be either an upper division student enrolled in a minimum of six units or be an enrolled classified graduate or post-baccalaureate credential student.

1.3  One liaison tenured faculty member from and appointed by the Executive Committee.

1.4  The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs or designee as non-voting Executive Secretary.

2.  Nomination and Election of Members.

2.1  The timelines for the nomination and election process shall be set by the Executive Committee of the Academic Senate.

2.2  Each college shall nominate and elect one committee member by procedures decided by the college. Simultaneously, the Nominations Committee shall nominate at least two full-time tenured faculty members for each at-large position on the committee.

2.3  There shall be a petition process by which additional names of tenured faculty may be added to the ballot; the signatures of ten probationary or tenured faculty members are required to add the name of a faculty member to the ballot. Additional nominations may be made by petition of ten members of the full-time faculty provided such petition is submitted to the chair of the Academic Senate within five academic workdays following the presentation to the faculty of the slate nominated by the Nominations Committee.

2.4  A preferential ballot with a single transferable vote shall be submitted to all probationary and tenured faculty members. The balloting period will be 10 full working days or major portions thereof.

2.5  In the event an individual is elected to both a college position and an at-large position, the individual shall vacate the college position.

B.  Initiation of the Program Discontinuance Process.

1.   A recommendation to review a program for discontinuance may be made by any of the following:
     a.  The faculty of the department/division/school in which the program is housed acting through its normal processes;
     b.  The dean of the college in which the program is housed
     c.  The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs;
     d.  The Educational Policy Committee of the Academic Senate;
     e.  The Chairs of the Program Review Subcommittee for the previous six years meeting as a group;
     f.   The Program Discontinuance Committee (PDC) which shall, in its initial meetings, compile through the process described in IV, Section C.1 a list of programs that should be considered for discontinuance.

      2.    Any recommendation to discontinue a program must be accompanied by a rationale in terms of the stated criteria.

C.  Procedures for Review by PDC

1. The PDC shall divide all University programs into five ranked groupings of approximately equal size using the criteria in II. Those programs falling in the bottom grouping shall constitute the PDC's recommendation for the list of programs to be reviewed for discontinuance.
2. The pool of programs to be reviewed shall be the combination of lists provided for in IV, Section B1.
3.  If a program is recommended for discontinuance by more than one originating source, then the PDC shall consider that program for discontinuance. If a program is recommended for review by only one originating source, then the PDC may consider that program for discontinuance.
4. When the PDC has assembled the list of programs to be considered for discontinuance, it shall inform the college dean, the department/division chair or school director, and the department/division/school faculty in writing regarding any programs in the unit that are being considered for discontinuance and will provide a written rationale for this decision. The department/division/school and the College Dean will have a two-week period to submit a response in writing to the PDC after being so informed.
5. The PDC shall consider the responses it receives, examine all relevant information concerning the programs being reviewed and then compile a rank-ordered list of programs that it has decided should be further considered for discontinuance. This list will be transmitted, together with its rationale for each program so listed, to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs shall share the rationale with the department/division and the college dean and allow the submission of written appeals.
6. After review of all pertinent documents and with the approval of the President, the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs shall then issue a list of programs, if any, to be discontinued, with target dates.  

D.  Information Sources.
      The PDC may make use of any sources of information it wishes such as:

1. Need and Demand for the program:
   a. Total enrollment, available by gender, ethnicity, and admission status.
   b. How the program relates to others on campus; overlap with other programs on campus.
   c.  Availability of the program on other campuses in the region; unique characteristics of the program; commitments to other institutions, including 2+2 and similar agreements.
   d. Availability and effectiveness of educational equity programs.
2. Program quality:
   a. Program Review Subcommittee reports and department/division/school self-study reports.
   b. External evaluations and accreditation reports.
   c.  Results of survey of students, alumni, and employers.
   d. Summaries of Student Opinion Surveys.
   e. WPE pass rate.
   f. Grade distribution and average GPA by student level.

   3.  Program: Benefits and costs:
         a. FTEF, FTES, SFR.
         b. Number of students completing the program.
         c. Student continuation rates; graduation rates; and tracking rates (a combination of continuation rate and graduation rate).

V.  If it be determined that a Program Leading to a Degree Shall be Discontinued by Either of the Two Procedures, the Following Plans to Accommodate Students and Faculty Will be Followed

A. Students: If a program is to be discontinued the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs shall:

1.    Determine and announce the cut-off date beyond which no new students will be permitted to enter the program.
2.    Prepare an official list (as of the cut-off date) of majors in the program.
3.    Notify all students in the major of the following:
       a.  the date by which the degree requirements must be completed to receive the specified degree or certificate;
       b.  other closely related programs offered by Cal State, LA to which the student may wish to transfer;
       c.  similar programs available at other institutions in the geographical area or in the CSU system;
       d.  the extent to which courses from other institutions can be substituted;
       e.  a designated office that can assist the students to transfer to another institution or complete the requirements of the degree at Cal State LA.
   
B. Faculty
If the discontinuance of a program is likely to result in the elimination of a position filled by a tenure-track faculty (probationary or tenured), the procedures are described in the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the California State University and the California Faculty Association (currently Article 38) will be followed.

4.360 Review of Degree Programs
(Senate: 7/3/73, 2/7/79, 8/19/81, 4/26/83, 1/19/93, 7/29/97, 11/23/99; President: 7/5/73, 2/27/79, 10/6/81, 5/5/83, 2/16/93, 12/4/97, 12/28/99; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01; 9/03)

Trustee Policy.  Program Review on this campus has its origins in Chancellor's Office memorandum AP 71-32, "Performance Review of Existing Degree Major Programs," which requested that each campus "establish a formal performance review procedure for all existing degree programs on campus in order to assess periodically both the quantitative and qualitative viability of each undergraduate and graduate program in the total context of offerings." AP 71-32 was endorsed by the Educational Policies Committee of the Board of Trustees, and later by the Board of Trustees on July 14, 1971. Although initiated in the context of limited resources and impelled by externally defined quantitative criteria, the review process has matured into an intensive, quality-oriented program of benefit to departments/divisions/schools, colleges, and the University alike.

Purpose of Program Review.  The purpose of program review is to enable the University, its colleges and its departments/divisions/schools to effectively achieve their stated objectives, and to examine on a continuing basis the worthiness of these programs; in short, the purpose is to maintain and strengthen the quality of the University's curriculum. The priorities in program review center around the desire to provide a quality university-level program balanced with respect to the needs of society in general, needs of the urban community, professional preparation requirements, and student interest. Program review leads to informed recommendations related to program, faculty, and student needs; curricular planning, resource allocation, and management; and such matters as recognition of unique situations, the need for additional study or planning, augmentation, maintenance, consolidation or discontinuation of programs, and responses to the problem of diminution of available resources, while attempting to maintain and enhance program quality.

Inherent in program review are two assumptions:
    1.    Program review is a judgmental process which uses both qualitative and quantitative data; it is comprehensive and intensive.
    2.    Quality cannot be easily defined or simplistically evaluated. It emerges from honest professional discourse about the evaluation criteria that should be applied, changes in knowledge, the relationship of programs to each other, and the educational needs of students and the society at large.

Review Cycles. In accordance with the Trustees' resolution, each academic program must be reviewed qualitatively and quantitatively at least once every five years. The Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs or designated subunit of that office will determine the specific review cycles for each department/division/school and interdisciplinary program by consultation with the administration of the colleges. In the selection of programs to be reviewed each year, related disciplines will be grouped to the extent possible and in such a manner that approximately one-fifth of the programs are reviewed each year over the review period. Care will be taken to schedule review of graduate programs at the same time as the review of the undergraduate program(s) within the same discipline, and to coordinate with accreditation cycles for the discipline. In the case of new programs, it should be expected that a developmental period of up to five years will be required to establish a valid measure of their productivity. The President, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, or the Educational Policy Committee may request additional reviews of programs in any given academic year for purposes of planning or to satisfy a request from the Chancellor's Office or the Board of Trustees. Reviews other than the university reviews may of course be conducted by colleges or departments/divisions/schools at times other than those scheduled by the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, and they may request a university review on their own initiative. The schedule for program review and all subsequent modifications will be published by the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs and distributed to the faculty.

Periodic Review. Departments/divisions/schools or interdisciplinary groups scheduled for university review prepare a complete program review document for the program under consideration, as a result of department/division/school wide consultation, and according to the format prescribed by the Program Review Subcommittee. However, a department/division/school that has programs which have undergone within the past three years specialized accreditation which included external reviewers will prepare a matrix comparing the standards and criteria of accreditation and those of program review, and, if necessary, a modified report consisting of those sections which are not addressed in the accreditation documents. The full program review reports will be submitted for department/division/school programs which were not addressed in the accreditation process. Copies of all accreditation documents shall be provided to the subcommittee.

Periodic Review of Accredited Programs.  Because the goal and intent of program review and accreditation are distinct, programs that have undergone accreditation review must also undergo program review, albeit modified, so as to utilize the work done for accreditation.  Therefore, one year prior to the scheduled program review the program will develop a matrix comparing the program review standards and criteria with the standards and criteria required for accreditation, and submit it to the college dean.  The matrix along with the accreditation documents will be reviewed by an ad hoc committee in order to determine the extent to which accreditation documents meet the program review criteria.  This ad hoc committee will be composed of the executive secretary of the Program Review Subcommittee, the chair of the Program Review Subcommittee, the college dean, and the chair of the program.  At the conclusion of the review of documents, the ad hoc committee will report to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs the extent to which the program's accreditation documents meet the requirements for program review self-study, and identify any areas that should be addressed in a modified program review self-study.

The Program Review Subcommittee is selected according to established campus procedures.*

Following review by the Program Review Subcommittee, its report will be transmitted to the department/division/school and college for their responses. The report of the Program Review Subcommittee shall be prepared by the voting members of the subcommittee. The Program Review Subcommittee report and response will be submitted to the Educational Policy Committee. The Program Review Subcommittee report and response will be filed in both college and university academic planning and resources offices, where they can be used for planning purposes (which might include processes such as long-range program planning, program modification, and reallocation of resources), data extraction for systemwide analyses, and other positive aspects of program development. Implementation of recommended changes shall be handled through appropriate academic channels.

External Review. All programs to be reviewed by the Program Review Subcommittee are subject to an independent evaluation by external reviewers. Unless otherwise determined by the Program Review Subcommittee, departments/divisions/schools in which an external review or national accreditation has been conducted within the previous three years will be exempt from this requirement. The external reviewers will be individuals of significant professional reputation in the field, who will report their findings to the Program Review Subcommittee and to the appropriate department/division/school or college. The evaluation report will become part of the permanent Program Review file. The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs or designee will be responsible for the overall coordination of the external review.

Nominations for evaluators of each program will be solicited from the chair of the department/division or director of the school, the dean of the college, and from other institutions, higher education associations and professional organizations. Nominees should have no prior or present academic appointment at Cal State, Los Angeles. These nominees will be reviewed by the departmental/divisional/school faculty, who may reject any of the nominees for cause. The external review evaluators will be selected from the remaining nominees by the Program Review Subcommittee. When possible one evaluator should be from the CSU system and one from outside the CSU system. The evaluators will spend at least two days on campus meeting with students, staff, department/division/school faculty, and administrators, and then prepare a written evaluation. Sufficient funds to cover the expense of the external reviews will be included in the budget of the University.

Additional Reviews. Student academic support programs (University Writing Center, Tutorial Center, Academic Advisement Center, Testing Center, GE Honors Program, PALS Program and the Library) must be reviewed qualitatively and quantitatively on a periodic basis.  The determination of review cycles and review criteria will be approved by the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs or a designated sub-unit of that office after consultation with the Educational Policy Committee.  Ad hoc review committees will be convened for the purposes of reviewing each of these programs which shall include a member of the corresponding Senate committee when such a committee exists, i.e., Academic Advisement Center - Academic Advisement Subcommittee.  In the case of new programs, it should be expected that a developmental period of up to five years will be required to establish a valid measure of their achievement.  The President, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, or the Educational Policy Committee may request additional reviews of the aforementioned programs in any given academic year for purposes of planning or to satisfy a request from the Chancellor's Office or the Board of Trustees.
____________
*See "The Program Review Subcommittee," Chapter 2.

4.363 Second Baccalaureate Degree
(Senate: 12/2/69, 4/23/74, 8/11/87, 10/27/98, 2/19/13, 10/14/15 [EA]; President: 12/31/69, 4/24/74, 7/25/88, 2/1/99, 6/24/13, 1/27/16; Editorial Amendment: 8/01)

Students seeking a second baccalaureate degree from Cal State LA other than nursing, may qualify for graduation with the approval and recommendation of the faculty upon completion of the following:

1. Residence and scholarship requirements then in effect;
2. A major program as specified by the major department/division/school;
3. Completion of a minimum of 30 semester units in residence beyond the requirements of the first degree.  The student must complete 30 semester units in residence, which must include at least 24 units in upper division courses, at least 12 units in the second academic major, and 9 units in General Education if applicable;
4. Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR);
5. General Education and other University requirements as appropriate:

In the case of a post-baccalaureate student pursuing a second baccalaureate degree, the General Education requirements and the GWAR shall be satisfied if the student previously earned a baccalaureate or higher degree from an institution accredited by a regional accrediting association or if the student completed equivalent academic preparation, as determined by the Admissions Office and Undergraduate Studies.

A student who completes a baccalaureate degree from other than a regionally accredited institution will be required to complete the following requirements if equivalent academic preparation was not completed as part of the first degree as determined by the appropriate campus authority:

a. Breadth requirements for Executive Order 1100 with a minimum of 12 semester units in each of three areas (including 3 upper division units in each): natural sciences and math, humanities, and social sciences.  Course by course articulation or comparability will not be required.  Sub-blocks (B1, B2, B3) will not be considered; i.e., the GE block as a whole will be evaluated.

b. Statutory requirements, i.e., U.S. history and California state and local government.

Nursing Students seeking a second baccalaureate degree:

Students who have been admitted to the baccalaureate nursing degree program who have previously earned a baccalaureate or higher degree from an institution accredited by a regional accrediting association, may qualify for graduation with the approval and recommendation of the faculty upon completion of the major program, as specified by the School of Nursing.

Post-baccalaureate nursing students who have not previously earned a baccalaureate or higher degree from an institution accredited by a regional accrediting association may qualify for graduation with the approval and recommendation of the faculty upon completion of the major program as specified by the School of Nursing and an academic preparation equivalent to an accredited baccalaureate that includes the following requirements:

1. Residence and scholarship requirements then in effect;
2. Completion of a minimum of 30 semester units in residence beyond the requirements of the first degree.  The student must complete 30 units in residence, which must include at least 24 units in upper division courses, 12 units in the second academic major, and 9 units in General Education if applicable;
3. Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR);
4. General Education and other University requirements as appropriate.

A student who has earned a baccalaureate degree from other than a regionally accredited institution will be required to fulfill the following requirements if they were not completed as part of the first degree as determined by the appropriate campus authority:

a. Breadth requirements for Executive Order 1100 with a minimum of 12 semester units in each of three areas (including 3 upper division units in each): natural sciences and math, humanities, and social sciences.  Course by course articulation or comparability will not be required.  Sub-blocks (B1, B2, B3) will not be considered; i.e., the GE block, as a whole will be evaluated.

b. Statutory requirements, i.e., U.S. history and California state and local government.

4.365 Academic Certificate Programs
(Senate: 8/14/74, 7/11/78, 8/18/82, 2/6/90, 4/23/14 [EA], 5/14/16; President: 8/29/74, 7/13/78, 9/10/82, 3/13/90, 6/26/14, 8/16/16; Editorial Amendment: 9/99, 9/00, 8/01, 9/03, 6/11)

Academic certificate programs are composed of University courses that offer academic credit that may count toward a degree. The minimum number of units in an academic certificate program shall be 15 semester units for undergraduate programs and 12 semester units for post-baccalaureate programs. Normally, courses in the program, except for prerequisites, are those at the 3000, 4000, OR 5000 level. For enrollment in 5000-level courses, consent of the instructor is required. If there are prerequisites in addition to those required by the courses in the program, they must be clearly stated. At least seventy-five percent of the total units required for the certificate must be completed in residence. A maximum of twenty-five percent of the units in the program may be devoted to internships or independent study, or any combination thereof. The minimum grade point average required for completion of an undergraduate certificate program is 2.0. For post-baccalaureate academic certificates, a minimum GPA of 3.0 is required for completion of the program.
 
Procedural Guidelines for Proposing New Academic Certificate Programs are:
A proposed certificate program must not infringe upon existing degree, minor, credential, or other certificate programs. In addition to the above, the following information must be furnished for all certificate proposals: purposes of the program, need for the program, availability of faculty, availability of other resources, and evidence of appropriate consultations and approvals.

Academic Certificate Programs.

a.  Proposals ordinarily are initiated by faculty members.
b.  Proposals must be submitted using a standard form, the general pattern of which is similar to that used for new program proposals. They are processed in accordance with established university curricular procedures. Proposals for new undergraduate and graduate academic certificate programs are forwarded by the program/department/division/school to the college curriculum committee for approval.  All proposals shall be submitted to the other colleges for consultation before they are reviewed by the college curriculum committee.  If approved by the college committee and the respective Dean of Graduate Studies, they are then forwarded to the Office of Undergraduate Studies for referral to the appropriate curriculum subcommittee. If the proposed program is approved by the subcommittee and if there are no subsequent objections by the Educational Policy Committee, the proposal shall be submitted to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs for final approval.
c. The program/department/division/school or interdisciplinary area that initiated the program proposal is required to designate an appropriate faculty member as coordinator of the certificate program.
d. Approved descriptions of academic certificate programs currently being offered are included in the University Catalog. Programs that are likely not to be repeated will not be included in the University Catalog.
e. Upon application by an academic certificate program student, a review is initiated in the Registrar's Office/Graduation Unit. When all of the requirements have been met, the Registrar's Office/Graduation Unit enters an appropriate designation on the student's transcripts and certifies completion.
f. Certificates are designed in a standard form for all programs, bear the seal of the University and the signature of the President, and are issued by the Registrar's Office/Graduation Unit.
g. Annually, the Registrar's Office is required to report to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs or designee the number of certificates awarded in each approved program.
h. Each certificate program is reviewed along with other departmental/divisional/school or interdisciplinary programs in the course of the normal review cycle carried out by the Program Review Subcommittee of the Educational Policy Committee.
i. Academic certificate program modifications must undergo the same approval process as new academic certificate programs.

4.370 Course Components and Instruction Modes
(Senate: 1/23/07, 9/27/16, 3/15/22; President: 2/22/07, 3/20/17, 4/29/22)

I.  Course Components
Course Component refers to the teaching format used to designate the types of courses available to provide instruction in approved curriculum.  The standard course components are lecture, seminar, laboratory, activity, recitation, and supervision. Specific courses or course sections are designated as employing one or more of the course components listed above, typically classified in increments of at least one unit for a selected course component.

II. Instruction Modes
The three instruction modes of the course components are face-to-face, online, and hybrid. The instruction mode is determined by the proportion of face-to-face compared to online instruction. These instruction modes can be further specified into learning modes based on the CSU Chancellor's Office's definitions.

a. In a face-to-face instruction mode, students meet in-person with an instructor physically present during class meetings. Class meetings outside of the university-assigned class time and/or physical space must involve comparable instructional activities such as field trips, service-learning experiences, directed study, or technologically-mediated instruction. Face-to-face instruction must account for at least 75% of the instructional time provided.

b. In an online-only instruction mode, 100% of the instructional time occurs online. This includes all class meetings, instructional materials, office hours and support, class activities, assignments, exams, and assessments. Online-only components may be synchronous, asynchronous, or a combination of the two. The learning mode and meeting pattern (synchronous meetings, filed trips, etc.) must be published in the schedule of the classes before students enroll.

c. Hybrid instruction modes blend face-to-face instruction with more than 25% and less than 100% online instructional time.

d. Learning modes in the table below are based on the CSU Chancellor's Office learning mode reporting examples, available on CSYOU Tools and Services under Academic Affairs tools, Academic Planning Database.

Code	Instruction Mode	Description	Definition
01	Online Only	Asynchronous No Meeting	Instruction is delivered online asynchronously (i.e., not at scheduled days/times) and requires no face-to-face meetings with students throughout the term.
02	Online Only	Synchronous No Campus Meetings	Instruction is delivered online synchronously (i.e., at scheduled days/times) and requires no face-to-face meetings with students throughout the term.
03	Hybrid (Allowed)	Asynchronous Meetings Allowed	Instruction is delivered online asynchronously (i.e., not at scheduled days/times) and may require face-to-face meetings with students throughout the term for one or more of the following: orientation, mid-term and/or final exam, and overview of next phase of course content.
04	Hybrid (Allowed)	Synchronous Meetings Allowed	Instruction is delivered online synchronously (i.e., at scheduled days/times) and may require face-to-face meetings with students throughout the term for one or more of the following: orientation, mid-term and/or final exam, and overview of next phase of course content.
05	Hybrid	Asynchronous with Meetings, Hybrid	Instruction is delivered in a combination of asynchronous (i.e., not at scheduled days/times) online and face-to-face meetings. Face-to-face portion of instruction must meet weekly or bi-weekly at scheduled days/times.
06	Hybrid	Synchronous with Meetings, Hybrid	Instruction is delivered in a combination of synchronous (i.e., at scheduled days/times) online and face-to-face meetings. Both the face-to-face and online portions of instruction must meet weekly or bi-weekly at scheduled days/times.
09	Face-to-Face	Face-to-Face	Instruction is delivered at least 75% in person with a live instructor and physically assembled students throughout the term.
10	Online Only	Polysynchronous  No Campus Meetings	Instruction is delivered in a combination of asynchronous (i.e., not at scheduled days/times) and synchronous (i.e. at scheduled days/times) online meetings and requires no face-to-face meetings with students throughout the term.
11	Hybrid	Polysynchronous  Meetings allowed	Instruction is delivered in a combination of asynchronous (i.e., not at scheduled days/times) and synchronous (i.e., at scheduled days/times) online meetings and may face to face meetings with students throughout the term.

III. Curriculum Development and Approval

a. The instruction mode has a significant impact on the learning experience of students.  Thus, the instruction mode(s) for a new or modified course shall become part of each new curriculum proposal.  The instruction mode shall be approved through the curricular approval process. A course component may be approved for more than one instruction mode.  If a course is offered in multiple sections, then different sections may have different instruction modes.

b. For both new and modified courses proposing online-only and/or hybrid instruction modes, the course proposal must include a justification of the appropriateness of the proposed instruction mode(s).

c. For both new and modified courses proposing online-only and/or hybrid instruction modes, the course proposal must include a description of how the student- to-student and student-to-instructor interaction appropriate for the instruction mode and course component (e.g., lecture, lab, seminar, activity) will be accomplished.

d. For both new and modified courses, the course proposal must include the need for specialized technical skills, computer hardware, and/or computer software for each instruction mode.

e.  For both new and modified courses, the course proposal must address accessibility for any required materials.

IV. Operational Procedures

The University shall publish the following information in the Schedule of Classes:

1. The instruction mode of each course offering that is online-only or hybrid.
2. Regularly scheduled times for online class meetings, if applicable.
3. Any required off-site meetings for any courses that include such a requirement.
4. Notification to students that an instructor may drop them from an online-only course if they do not log in within the first four days of instruction.

4.400 Entry Level Proficiency in Mathematics and English

(Senate: 8/27/85, 5/26/15; President: 9/9/85, 10/13/15; Editorial Amendment: 8/01)

The CSU requires all entering undergraduate students to demonstrate entry level proficiency in Mathematics and English. Entry level proficiency is determined in Mathematics by the CSU Entry Level Mathematics (ELM) examination, and in English by the CSU English Placement Test (EPT). A student might also demonstrate entry level proficiency in Mathematics and/or English by qualifying for one of the CSU approved ELM and/or EPT exemptions listed in the general catalog. Entry level proficiency in Mathematics is a prerequisite to enrollment in a course that satisfies the General Education Breadth Requirement in quantitative reasoning. Entry level proficiency in English is a prerequisite to enrollment in a course that satisfies the General Education Breadth Requirement in written English communication.

Students who do not demonstrate the requisite proficiency in Mathematics, English, or both shall be required to begin remediation prior to the term for which they have been admitted (by participating in the CSU Early Start Program), to continue to enroll in appropriate developmental courses/activities during the first term of enrollment and progress every term toward achieving entry level proficiency. Those who have not completed their developmental courses/activities within one year of matriculation are subject to disenrollment.

Proficiency scores on the English Placement Test (EPT) and the Entry Level Math examination (ELM) for placement in developmental courses shall be set by the Educational Policy Committee in accordance with CSU policy and/or guidelines and with recommendations from the Departments of English and Mathematics regarding GE basic subjects and developmental courses in their department.

4.410 Written English Competency Requirement

(Senate: 4/3/84; 9/23/92 [EA], 5/21/96, 10/14/15 [EA], 5/9/17; President: 4/19/84; 11/18/92, 8/12/96, 1/27/16, 5/24/17; Editorial Amendment: 8/01, 2/8/18 [EA])

All CSU students subject to degree requirements listed in the 1977-78 and subsequent catalogs are required to demonstrate competence in writing skills as a requirement for the bachelor's degree. The development of competence in written English is a key institutional learning outcome that depends on the active participation of all University faculty. The main responsibility for teaching English Composition has historically resided within the English department, but because the University’s written English competency requirements span a student’s academic career, all faculty play an important role in helping students become effective writers.

At Cal State L.A., undergraduate students demonstrate competence in written English by meeting the following requirements:

First-Year Writing Requirement—completing successfully a first-year writing course that satisfies the CSU General Education Block A Written Communication requirement;

Critical Thinking/Composition Requirement—completing successfully a second course in written English that satisfies the Cal State L.A. General Education Block A Critical Thinking/Composition requirement;

GWAR— students will normally satisfy the Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR) by completing the Upper-Division Disciplinary Writing Requirement with a grade of "C" or better; they may also satisfy it by successfully completing a university approved upper division university writing course that has received a GWAR designation; students who previously satisfied the GWAR by passing the WPE under the prior policy will have also satisfied the requirement;

Writing-Intensive (WI) Courses Requirement—completing successfully at least two writing-intensive (WI) courses, at least one of which is in their major degree program;

Upper-Division Disciplinary Writing Requirement—completing successfully one upper-division course in their major degree program that emphasizes practices, conventions, and strategies appropriate to writing in the discipline, which if approved as a writing-intensive course can also count as one of the writing-intensive courses.

Lower Division Writing Requirements

Completion of the year-long course sequence or the one semester course or a transferrable CSU A2 Written Communications course with a grade of “C-” or better satisfies the first-year writing requirement. Completion of an approved Critical Thinking/Composition (GE A3) course or a transferrable CSU A3 Critical Thinking course with a grade of “C-” or better satisfies the Critical Thinking/Composition requirement.

Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR)

Cal State L.A. students pursuing the baccalaureate who are subject to requirements of the 1984-85 or subsequent catalogs are required to satisfy the Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR). The GWAR is normally met by passing the Upper-Division Disciplinary Writing Requirement course with a grade of "C" or better. They may also satisfy it by successfully completing a university approved upper division university writing course that has received a GWAR designation; students who previously satisfied the GWAR by passing the WPE under the prior policy will have also satisfied this requirement.

Writing-Intensive (WI) Courses Requirement

Writing-Intensive courses are defined in the policy “Definition, Philosophy, Student Learning Outcomes and Criteria for General Education Breadth Requirements.”

Upper-Division Disciplinary Writing Requirement

Students will be required to complete successfully at least one upper-division course in their major degree program that focuses on teaching the practices, strategies, expectations and conventions of writing in English particular to their disciplines. Completion of GE Block A is a prerequisite for this course. Satisfactory completion of the Upper-Division Disciplinary Writing Requirement with a grade of "C" or better meets the graduate writing assessment requirement.

4.420 Graduate Writing Requirement
(Senate: 4/3/84, 8/5/86, 8/23/88, 9/23/92[EA], 5/4/99, 6/2/15, 4/4/17; President: 4/19/84, 5/9/87, 10/7/88, 11/18/92, 8/17/99, 10/13/15, 4/19/17; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01)

All CSU students are required by Trustee policy to demonstrate competence in writing as a requirement for all advanced degrees. All post-baccalaureate students at Cal State LA who are subject to requirements of the 1984-85 or any later Catalog and who are pursuing a graduate degree are required to satisfy the Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement. Graduate students are considered to have met the GWAR requirement upon admission to the university if they (1) earned a bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university where English is the medium of instruction; or (2) attained a score of 41 or better on the writing portion of the California Basic Educational Skills Test (CBEST) or a score of 4 on the analytic writing portion of the GRE or the GMAT.
Graduate students must satisfy this requirement before completing 12 semester units. Graduate students may take the writing proficiency exam once. Students who do not pass are required to pass the designated GWAR course. Students who do not satisfy the GWAR requirement within their first 12 units may be subject to a registration hold. Students must satisfy this Graduate Writing Requirement in order to be Advanced to Candidacy.

Departments/divisions/schools may require of their majors additional discipline-based coursework in writing.

A student who has satisfied the Graduate Writing Requirement shall continue to be certified with no time limit on such certification. A Post-baccalaureate unclassified student is not required to satisfy this Graduate Writing Requirement.

4.440 Information Literacy

(Senate: 4/4/00, 1/22/08; President: 5/1/00, 3/3/08; Editorial Amendment: 1/21/15)

Prior to graduation from California State University, Los Angeles, students must develop the ability to:  (1) define a research topic and identify the need for information, (2) access information effectively and efficiently, (3) evaluate information critically for relevance, for quality of sources, and for objectivity, (4) organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize and communicate that information for a specific purpose, and (5) ethically and legally access and use information.

The process of developing information literacy shall occur progressively.  Therefore, instruction in necessary skills shall occur in lower division and introductory courses, including the Introduction to Higher Education course for first time freshmen. These skills shall be further developed and refined in discipline specific courses.  The extent to which programs are effective in progressively preparing students in developing information literacy shall be assessed at the time of program review.

 

4.450 Credit for Transfer Work
(Senate: 4/12/94; President: 5/25/94; Editorial Amendment: 8/01, 1/21/15)

To receive credit toward a master's degree for acceptable post-baccalaureate work taken at other colleges or universities, students must have official transcripts forwarded to the Admissions Office, and must file a "Request for Records" (form GS1A) with their major department/division/school. Cal State LA will allow credit for work taken at another college or university only when it appears on the student's official transcript from that institution, is acceptable for master's degree credit at the offering institution, and is deemed appropriate to the student's master's degree program by the major department/division/school at Cal State LA. See limitations and exclusions below:

• For master's degrees requiring 30 total units, no more than 9 semester units of acceptable transfer, extension and/or special session courses may be included on a master's degree program. For master's degrees requiring more than 30 semester units, up to 30% of the total required units may consist of acceptable transfer, extension and/or special session courses, providing such action is approved by the appropriate graduate department/division/school advisor.
• No master's degree credit is allowed for directed teaching, 700 or 800-level courses, courses numbered below 400, or courses taken at another accredited institution that would not be accepted toward a master's degree at that institution.
• Six semester units of 5000-level or other graduate courses taken through extension are eligible for master's degree credit.

4.451 Credit for Examinations
(Senate: 5/20/65, 4/21/66, 10/9/96, 2/8/11, 2/16/17; President: 5/27/65, 4/28/66, 11/21/96, 9/27/11; Editorial Amendment: 8/01, 1/21/15, 2/23/17; Governing Document: Executive Order 1036)

Campus-Originated Challenge Examinations
Students who pass campus-originated challenge examinations (as differentiated from placement examinations) shall earn credit toward the degree and/or toward satisfying the requirement for admission to a class or program.  Students currently enrolled in the University are eligible for campus-originated challenge examinations at the discretion of individual departments/divisions/schools.

Approval to receive credit by examination is to be granted at the discretion of the appropriate university authorities and under the following conditions:

1. Students must be matriculated at the University and must be in good standing (not on probation), be registered in at least one other course at the time credit by examination is authorized, and pay for additional units if the cost exceeds fees already paid.
2. Prior to taking the examination, approval of the chair of the department/division chair or school director concerned and the instructor of the course, is required. Forms for approval may be obtained from the departments/divisions/schools. One copy of the approval to take the examination must be filed with the Records Office, prior to the eighth week of the semester in which the examination is taken.
3. Credit by examination is restricted to regular undergraduate and graduate courses listed in the General Catalog; while there is no limit to the number of courses that can be taken as credit by examination, these units do not count as residence credit.
4. Credit by examination is not treated as part of the student's work load and is not considered by the Veterans Administration in the application of their regulations.
5.  Whatever grade the student receives for the examination must be entered on the student's official transcript and counted toward the grade point average. It shall be designated as "credit by examination" on the student's official transcript.
6. The examination is to be interpreted broadly to include whatever activity, test, or demonstration the instructor deems appropriate in order to evaluate the student's understanding, skills, or knowledge as required by the objectives of the course.   

Standardized External Examinations and System-wide Examinations

The University shall award baccalaureate credit to be applied toward the degree and/or admission eligibility to students who pass either of the following (or both):

1. Standardized external examinations, such as Advanced Placement (AP) tests, International Baccalaureate (IB), and College Level Entrance Program (CLEP); or
2. System-wide examinations that have been developed and approved by established CSU policy and procedures.
   For standardized external examinations and system-wide examinations, the passing score and the minimum amount of credit awarded for the calculation of admission eligibility and toward the baccalaureate shall be in accordance with the scores and minimum amount of credit established by the Chancellor's Office and as is specified in the University General Catalog.

Credit for passage of standardized external examinations or system-wide examinations shall not be awarded when equivalent degree credit has been granted for regular coursework, credit by examination, or other instructional processes.

Credit for passage of standardized external examinations or system-wide examinations shall not be awarded when credit has been granted at a level more advanced than the content in the examination.

Care shall be taken not to award duplicate credit because of overlapping tests, college-level courses, or both.  Where there is partial overlap, the amount of examination credit shall be reduced accordingly.

A maximum of 30 semester (45 quarter) total units of credit may be applied to the calculation of admission eligibility or to the baccalaureate degree on the basis of passing externally developed tests.  Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate are excluded from this limit.

4.452 Credit for Knowledge or Skills Acquired through Experience
(Senate: 11/28/78, 2/8/11, 2/16/17; President: 12/11/78, 9/27/11; Editorial Amendment: 1/21/15, 2/23/17)

A maximum of 6 semester units of undergraduate nonresident credit may be granted for knowledge or skills acquired through experience consistent with the academic standards of Cal State L.A.  The experience must be verified through written or oral examinations, portfolios, demonstrations, and/or other appropriate means of documentation and must be evaluated in accord with legitimate academic standards by Cal State LA faculty who are competent in the appropriate disciplines. To qualify, students enroll in a course that helps them to describe and document the knowledge or skills acquired through the prior learning, in relation to their degree objectives and educational plans. Supporting information supplied by a field supervisor and/or employer may be required.  Grades are recorded as credit/no credit.  In order to register for the course, students must be matriculated and have satisfactorily completed a minimum of 30 resident units, be registered in at least one other course and have obtained approval from the faculty sponsor, the department/division chair or school director, and the Dean of Undergraduate Studies.  Units may be applied as major, minor, general education, or elective credit.  The awarding of academic credit requires approval from the faculty sponsor, the department division chair or school director, and the Dean of Undergraduate Studies. Students and faculty are advised to consult the Dean of Undergraduate Studies for detailed information.

4.453 Credit for Military Service
(Senate: 11/6/2012; President: 1/18/12/13; Editorial Amendment: 1/21/15)

Students are granted six semester units of lower division elective credit and/or GE Block E credit, upon admission, for one year or more of regular active duty in U.S. military service with an honorable discharge, including completion of basic or recruit training.  For six months to one full year of military service, including six-month reserve training, and an honorable discharge, three semester units of lower division elective credit and/or GE Block E credit are granted upon admission.

 

4.454 Undergraduate Credit for Graduate Courses

(Senate: 11/15/69, 7/10/79, 4/17/07, 5/26/09; President: 12/31/69, 7/31/79, 5/11/07, 6/16/09; Editorial Amendment: 8/01, 1/21/15)

Under special academic circumstances as specified below, an academic program, department, division or school, may approve the granting of baccalaureate credit for 5000-level course work to a maximum of two courses not to exceed a total of six semester units.  Academic credits earned under this rule may not be used to satisfy requirements towards M.A. and M.S. degrees awarded by California State University, Los Angeles except through integrated degree programs.

Additionally, the following conditions must be met.

• senior standing(completion of 90 semester units) at the start of the term in which the course will be taken;
• a grade point average adequate for admission in classified standing to the master's program in that major;
• permission of the instructor teaching the course, the student's advisor, and the chair or director of the department, division or school offering the course.

4.455 Guidelines for Approval of Credit and Noncredit Courses, Certificates, and Degrees to be offered through the College of Professional and Global Education
(Senate: 10/3/79, 2/6/90, 5/24/16; President: 10/25/79, 3/13/90, 8/17/16; Editorial Amendment: 9/99, 9/00, 8/01)

The categories of courses offered through the College of Professional and Global Education (PaGE) and the criteria they meet are described in the guidelines below.

1. Courses for Special Sessions Credit (Courses for degree credit). Special sessions courses which carry credit can be used in meeting requirements for university degrees. Self-supporting special sessions shall not supplant regular course offerings available on a non-self-supporting basis during the regular academic year (Cal. Educ. Code 89708). A maximum of 24 semester special sessions course credits taken by a non-matriculated student may be applied toward the baccalaureate degree, and a maximum of 9 semester special sessions course credits taken by a non-matriculated student may be applied toward the master’s degree.  This maximum applies to special sessions course credits earned through self-support course offerings, as well as to state-support offerings in which credits are earned through Open University (Title 5 Section 40407.1).  Generally, the following types of degree-credit courses are available, with appropriate approval, through PaGE:

a. Regular university courses listed in the General Catalog
b. Special Topics courses (e.g., 4540, 4900, or 4910) which usually consist of subject matter of a transitory nature and
c. Undergraduate Directed Study (4990) and Graduate Directed Study (5980), used for faculty-sponsored independent study.
d. Sub-collegiate level courses (which do not offer degree credit) and those that are offered by community colleges, while not generally offered through PaGE, may be offered when need is evident.

2.  Courses for Extension Credit. Extension credit courses, which bear 7000 and 8000 series numbers, are highly specialized and have general acceptability for professional advancement. One extension credit unit is equivalent to the same     number of contact hours and the same number of non-contact hours required for one unit of degree credit. An academic department may allow up to a maximum of 24 semester units of extension credit to be applied toward degree requirements (Title 5 Section 40407).

3. Courses for Continuing Education Unit Credit (CEU). The CEU is a nationally recognized unit of measurement for any variety of programs that may apply to relicensure (e.g. – nurses, pharmacists, accountants, psychologists, social workers, etc.), promotion, or career advancement.  These units are not approved for academic degree credit and may not be used to fulfill degree program requirements. One CEU is equivalent to 10 hours of participation in an organized extended education course under responsible sponsorship, capable direction, and qualified instruction.  CEUs shall not be converted to units of academic credit (EO 1099).

4. Noncredit Courses (0 Units).  Non-credit courses serve professional, personal, and recreational needs.  No academic credit, extension credit or CEUs are awarded for participation in non-credit courses.  Non-credit courses do not grant credit for degrees or for standardized purposes specified in sections 2 and 3 above. For such offerings the university is not required to maintain a permanent record of attendance or grading, except in some instances as a convenience to those who are using the courses for such purposes as establishing eligibility for relicensure.

The following procedures apply to the offering and development of courses under these guidelines:

1. Courses for Special Sessions Credit (Courses for degree credit). Requests for approval of the offering of existing courses which grant credit shall ordinarily be initiated by faculty members or the Dean of PaGE. All proposals for offering existing courses through PaGE must be approved by the appropriate department/division chair(s) or school director(s) and college dean(s) prior to each instructional period that the course is being offered. The criteria for approval or disapproval of an offering shall include the credentials of the instructor and demonstrated need to offer these courses through PaGE. All proposals for offering new special sessions courses through PaGE must follow the established curriculum review process for courses bearing academic credit.
    
2. Courses for Extension Credit. Requests for approval of these courses may be initiated by community members who are subject matter experts, faculty members, college deans, or the Dean of PaGE. Proposals for courses for extension credit (7000 and 8000-level) to be offered through PaGE shall be approved first by the Dean of PaGE.  All courses will be submitted to the other colleges for consultation.  The consultation period will be five working days.  The Dean of PaGE will forward the record of consultation and a recommendation to University EPC.  EPC will then either approve it, reject it or determine the appropriate course of action for further review.  For proposals requiring immediate attention during the summer term, this review will be handled by the Academic Senate Executive Committee.
    
3. Courses for Continuing Education Units. Requests for approval of these courses may be initiated by community members who are subject matter experts, faculty members or college deans.  Proposals for courses for continuing education units to be offered through PaGE shall be submitted to the Dean of PaGE.
   If a course or program proposal coincides with an existing university academic department (e.g. – Accounting, Social Work, Nursing, etc.), and the Dean of PaGE is interested in offering the course the proposed course or program shall be submitted to said department for review and recommendation.  Given the need to respond to community and partner course and program proposals in a timely fashion, departments/schools/colleges shall respond to such requests within 5 working days. In reviewing CEU course proposals, the department/division chairs shall consider the quality of the course content, whether there is a demonstrated need to offer the course through PaGE, and the credentials of the instructor. The Dean of PaGE will review department recommendations and make a final decision on whether to approve the course.  The Dean of PaGE will forward the decision and record of consultation to University EPC. If a course or program proposal does not coincide with an existing university academic department, the proposed course or program will be reviewed and approved by the Dean of PaGE. The Dean of PaGE shall consider the quality of course content and whether or not there is a demonstrated need to offer the course through PaGE, as well as the credentials of the instructor(s). At the end of each academic year, the Dean of PaGE shall submit a report of courses and programs offered for CEU credit to the EPC.
    
4. Non-Credit Courses. Requests for approval of these courses may be initiated by community members who are subject matter experts, faculty members or college deans.  Proposals for non-credit courses to be offered through PaGE shall be submitted to the Dean of PaGE. If a course or program proposal coincides with an existing university academic department (e.g. – Accounting, Social Work, Nursing, etc.), and the Dean of PaGE is interested in offering the course the proposed course or program shall be submitted to said department for review and recommendation. Given the need to respond to community and partner course and program proposals in a timely fashion, departments/schools/colleges shall respond to such requests within 5 working days. In reviewing CEU course proposal, the department/division chairs shall consider the quality of the course content, whether there is a demonstrated need to offer the course through PaGE, and the credentials of the instructor. The Dean of PaGE will review department recommendations and make a final decision on whether to approve the course.  The Dean of PaGE will forward the decision and record of consultation to University EPC.
   If a course or program proposal does not coincide with an existing university academic department, the proposed course or program will be reviewed and approved by the Dean of PaGE.  The Dean of PaGE shall consider the quality of course content and whether or not there is a demonstrated need to offer the course through PaGE, as well as the credentials of the instructor(s).
   
   At the end of each academic year, the Dean of PaGE shall submit a report of courses and programs offered for non-credit to the EPC.

Certificate Programs.  The categories of certificate programs that may be offered through PaGE are special sessions certificate, extension credit certificate, and non-credit certificate programs.  Certificate programs may be offered through PaGE subsequent to securing all regularly required campus approvals; however, no Chancellor’s Office approval is required (E.O. 1099).  These programs and the criteria they meet are described below.

Special Sessions Certificate Programs: Academic certificate programs offered through PaGE are called Special Sessions Certificate Programs. Courses for Special Sessions Certificate Programs may be offered any term.

1. Special Sessions Certificate Programs are composed of university courses that offer academic credit that may count toward a degree. The minimum number of units in a special sessions certificate program shall be 15 semester units for undergraduate programs and 12 semester units for post-baccalaureate programs. Normally, courses in the program, except for prerequisites, are those at the 3000, 4000, or 5000 level. For enrollment in 5000-level courses, consent of the instructor is required. If there are prerequisites in addition to those required by the courses in the program, they must be clearly stated. No more than one quarter of the total units required for the certificate may be transferred from other colleges. A maximum of one quarter of the units in the program may be devoted to internships or independent study, or any combination thereof. The minimum grade point average required for completion of an undergraduate certificate program is 2.0. For post-baccalaureate academic certificates, a minimum GPA of 3.0 is required for completion of the program.
    
2. Extension Credit Certificate Programs are composed of courses at the 7000 and 8000-level that offer professional credit towards certification.
    
3. Non-credit Certificate Programs are composed of non-credit courses. Some non-credit certificates may award continuing education units (CEUs).  

Procedural Guidelines for Certificate Programs are Described Below. A proposed Special Sessions or Extension Credit Certificate Program must not infringe upon existing degree, minor, credential, or other certificate programs. In addition to the above, the following information must be furnished for all certificate proposals: purposes of the program, need for the program, availability of faculty and/or subject matter experts, availability of other resources, and evidence of appropriate consultations and approvals.

1. Special Sessions Certificate Programs.
   a. Proposals ordinarily are initiated by faculty members.
   b. Proposals must be submitted using a standard form, the general pattern of which is similar to that used for new program proposals. They are processed in accordance with established university curricular procedures. Proposals for new undergraduate and graduate academic certificate programs are forwarded by the program/department/division/school to the College Curriculum Committee for approval. All proposals shall be submitted to the other colleges for a consultation period of 10 working days before they are reviewed by the College Curriculum Committee.  If approved by the college committee and the respective college dean, as well as the Dean of Undergraduate Studies and/or the Dean of Graduate Studies, they are then forwarded to the Office of Undergraduate Studies for referral to the appropriate curriculum subcommittee. If the proposed program is approved by the subcommittee and if there are no subsequent objections by the Educational Policy Committee, the proposal shall be submitted to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs for final approval.
   c. The program/department/division/school or interdisciplinary area that initiated the program proposal is required to designate an appropriate faculty member as coordinator of the certificate program.
   d. Approved descriptions of Special Sessions Certificate Programs currently being offered are included in the University Catalog. Programs that are likely not to be repeated will not be included in the University Catalog.
   e. Upon application by a Special Sessions Certificate Program student, a review is initiated in the Registrar's Office/Graduation unit. When all of the requirements have been met, the Registrar's Office/Graduation unit enters an appropriate designation on the student's permanent record and certifies completion.
   f. Certificates are designed in a standard form for all programs, bear the seal of the university and the signature of the President, and are issued by the Registrar's Office/Graduation unit.
   g. Annually, the Registrar's Office is required to report to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs or designee the number of certificates awarded in each approved program.
   h. Each certificate program is reviewed along with other departmental/divisional/school or interdisciplinary programs in the course of the normal review cycle carried out by the Program Review Subcommittee of the Educational Policy Committee.
   i. Special Sessions Certificate Program modifications must undergo the same approval process as new Special Sessions Certificate Programs. 

2.     Extension Credit Certificate Programs.

a. Proposals for Extension Credit Certificate Programs may be initiated by community members who are subject matter experts, individual faculty members, programs, departments/divisions/schools, colleges, or PaGE. Proposals for extension credit certificates shall be approved first by the Dean of PaGE. All Extension Credit Certificate Programs will be submitted to the other colleges for consultation.  The consultation period will be five working days.  The Dean of PaGE will forward the record of consultation and a recommendation to University EPC.  EPC will then either approve it, reject it or determine the appropriate course of action for further review.  For proposals requiring immediate attention during the summer term, this review will be handled by the Academic Senate Executive Committee. The proposal format is the same as for academic certificate programs.
b. The Dean of PaGE will annually report on Extension Credit Certificate Programs to the Dean of Undergraduate Studies and/or the Dean of Graduate Studies and the Educational Policy Committee.  This report will include enrollments and course completion rates.
c. Descriptions of approved Extension Credit Certificate Programs may appear in the general University Catalog.
d. Administration of Extension Credit Certificate Programs is carried out under the supervision of the Dean of PaGE. When substantive matters of concern to a specific department/division/school/college are involved e.g., appointment of a coordinator or key instructors, consultation with such interested departments/divisions/schools/colleges is required.
e. All informational materials to be published and circulated in connection with an Extension Credit Certificate Program must have the prior approval of the Dean of PaGE.
f. Upon request by a certificate program student, submitted prior to registration for the last term of the program, a review of the student's records is initiated in the College of PaGE. When all of the requirements have been met, the Dean of PaGE or designee enters an appropriate designation on PaGE records maintained for the student.
g. Certificates are designed in a standard form for all programs, bear the seal of the university and the signature of the Dean of PaGE, and are issued by the College of PaGE.
h. Each Extension Credit Certificate Program is reviewed every fifth year after its implementation by the Dean of PaGE or designee and the co-sponsoring department(s)/division(s)/school(s) and college(s). The review findings and recommendations are made available to the Educational Policy Committee.
i. Extension Credit Certificate Program modifications must undergo the same approval process as new Extension Credit Certificate Programs.

  
3.     Non-credit Certificate Programs

a. Proposals for non-credit certificate programs may be initiated by community members who are subject matter experts, individual faculty members, departments/divisions/schools, colleges, or by the College of PaGE. Proposals for non-credit certificates shall be submitted to the Dean of PaGE.  If a non-credit certificate program proposal coincides with an existing university academic department (e.g. Accounting, Social Work, Nursing, etc.), the proposed certificate program shall be submitted to said department for review and recommendation. Given the need to respond to community and partner course and program proposals in a timely fashion, departments/schools/colleges shall respond to such requests within 5 working days. In reviewing non-credit course proposals, the department/division chairs shall consider the quality of the course content, whether there is a demonstrated need to offer the course through PaGE, and the credentials of the instructor. The Dean of PaGE will review department recommendations and make a final decision on whether to approve the program.  The Dean of PaGE will forward the decision and record of consultation to University EPC. If a non-credit certificate program proposal does not coincide with an existing university academic department, the proposed program will be reviewed and approved by the Dean of PaGE.  The Dean of PaGE shall consider the quality of course content and whether or not there is a demonstrated need to offer the course through PaGE, as well as the credentials of the instructor(s).
b. The Dean of PaGE will annually report on non-credit certificate programs to the Curriculum Subcommittee, the Dean of Undergraduate Studies and/or the Dean of Graduate Studies and the Educational Policy Committee. This report will include enrollments and course completion rates.
c. Descriptions of approved non-credit certificate programs shall not appear in the University Catalog.
d. Administration of this type of program is carried out under the supervision of the Dean of PaGE. When substantive matters of concern to a specific department/division/school are involved e.g., appointment of coordinator or key instructors, consultation with such interested departments/divisions/schools is required.
e. All informational materials to be published and circulated in connection with a non-credit certificate program must have the prior approval of the Dean of PaGE.
f. Upon completion of the program, a review of the student's records is initiated in the College of PaGE. When all requirements have been met, the Dean of PaGE or designee enters an appropriate designation on PaGE records and issues the certificate to the student.
g. Certificates are designed in a standard form for all programs, bear the seal of the university and the signature of the Dean of PaGE, and are issued by PaGE.
h. Each non-credit certificate program is reviewed every fifth year after its implementation by the Dean of PaGE or designee and the co-sponsoring department(s)/division(s)/school(s) and college(s), if any,  the review findings and recommendations are made available to the Educational Policy Committee for its consideration.

 
Degree Programs. Degree programs may be offered through the College of Professional and Global Education.

New Degree Programs. New degree programs may be offered through PaGE subsequent to securing all regularly required campus and Chancellor’s Office approvals (E.O. 1099). All proposals for offering new degree programs through PaGE must follow the established curriculum review process for programs bearing academic credit.

Subsequent to obtaining requisite Chancellor’s Office approvals, a campus may operate degree programs in state-support mode, self-support mode, or both, subject to the prohibition against supplanting. (E.O. 1099).

Implementing a Self-Support Version of an Existing State Support Degree Program.  Before implementing a self-support version of a previously approved state-supported degree program, Chancellor’s Office approval is required. (E.O. 1099).

Changing from Self-Support Mode to State-Support Mode. Chancellor’s Office approval is required in order to change a degree program’s support mode from self-support to state support (E.O. 1099).

Change of Geographic Location.  Before implementing a previously approved degree program in a different geographical location, Chancellor’s Office approval is required if WASC substantive change approval is required or if the program would be offered in another CSU campus’ traditional service area. (E.O. 1099).

Out of State and Out of Country Operations.  Chancellor’s Office approval is required prior to offering degree programs out of the state or out of the country.  Campuses shall comply with all existing requirements of WASC, as well as with CSU policies and procedures (E.O. 1099).

Programs Other Than Certificates. The Dean of the College of Professional and Global Education may issue a certificate for one or more academic, professional or non-credit PaGE course offerings. Examples include a certificate of completion, of attendance, or of participation.

4.456 Repeating Courses, Repeating Courses for Grade Replacement and Repeating Courses with "Grades Averaged"

(Senate: 2/22/83, 10/24/95, 4/14/98, 2/6/01, 4/24/07, 10/19/10, 5/8/12, 5/31/16; President: 4/7/83, 12/1/95, 6/9/98, 10/19/01, 5/11/07, 11/18/10, 7/10/12; 7/21/16; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01)

Unless otherwise indicated in the University Catalog, undergraduate students may repeat a course no more than two times (a maximum of 3 times taking the same course). Undergraduate students who wish to repeat an individual course a second time must create an action plan with the appropriate academic advisor and receive approval from the college associate dean or designee of their major course of study. These limits apply to courses completed at Cal State LA, whether as a matriculated student or through the College of Professional and Global Education or Open University.

Repeating courses under this policy does not result in the removal of the original record and grade from the transcript.

Individual colleges and departments/divisions/schools/programs may have additional restrictions on repeating courses. 

Unless otherwise indicated in the University Catalog, undergraduate students may not repeat for credit any course already completed with a grade of C (2.00 grade points) or better and post-baccalaureate or graduate students may not repeat for credit any course already completed with a grade of B (3.00 grade points) or better.

Repeating Courses for Grade Replacement

Grade replacement is the circumstance under which the new grade replaces the former grade in terms of the calculation of GPA.  Grade replacement shall not be applicable to courses for which the original grade was a result of a finding of academic dishonesty.

Students may replace up to a maximum of 16 semester units of repeated coursework and this policy is limited to courses taken at Cal State LA, whether taken in a matriculated status or as coursework, completed through the College of Professional and Global Education or Open University. Grade replacement shall occur only when the same or equivalent course is taken a second or third time at Cal State LA.  For purposes of grade replacement, a repeated course is considered equivalent to the original course if the only alteration to the course is its name and/or course number. In the case of different courses with similar content, students must petition the chair of the department offering the original course to verify that the course is an appropriate replacement. In cases where the original course carries a different number of units than the course that will be replacing it, the number of units earned and calculated will be based on the new course.

In computing grade point averages for graduation with a baccalaureate from this institution, units attempted, units earned (if any), and grade points (if any) for up to two previous attempts of the same or equivalent course shall be excluded when conditions specified in this policy are met. 

Repeating Courses with "Grades Averaged"

In addition to the 16 semester units for which grade replacement is permitted, undergraduate students may repeat 12 semester units with the grade earned in the repeated course calculated into the student's overall grade-point average.  The original grade is not replaced by the repeated grade; both grades are used for the calculation of the grade point average and remain on the student's records.

4.457 Upper Division Credit for Lower Division Course Work

(Senate: 6/30/96; President: 9/4/96; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01)

Students in a major may be given upper division subject credit for lower division courses taken at another accredited college and not required to make up the upper division units in the major program if:

• the courses are deemed equivalent in content and level of presentation by the department/division/school
• the courses are offered by the department/division/school
• the department/division/school has agreed to this practice and it has been approved at the college level

4.460 Study Load for Undergraduate Students

(Senate: 11/30/76; President: 12/6/76; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01, 1/21/15)

The recommended normal full-time undergraduate study load is 15 semester units.  Students earning a C average or better may register for 18 semester units with department/division/school approval.  Authorization for more than 18 units requires prior approval of an advisor and the department/division chair or school director.  Students on scholastic probation must limit their study loads to 12 semester units or fewer.  A student on probation may petition the University for a greater study load with the approval of an academic advisor and department/division chair or school director.

4.500 Definition, Philosophy, Student Learning Outcomes and Criteria for General Education Breadth Requirements
(Senate: 11/24/81, 2/16/82, 12/3/85, 6/1/93, 6/4/96, 10/9/96, 11/6/96 [EC], 2/29/97[EA], 4/21/98, 6/2/98, 11/17/98, 11/7/00, 5/8/12, 3/11/14, 3/16/21; President: 12/9/81, 3/5/82, 3/10/86, 6/11/93, 8/27/96, 10/14/96, 3/28/97, 4/22/97, 6/9/98, 2/1/99; 1/30/01, 8/31/12, 3/19/14, 3/19/21; Editorial Amendment: 8/01, 1/21/15, 2/22/18 [EA])

Governing Documents: Title V of the Higher Education Code and CSU General Education Breadth Requirements

I. Definition and Philosophy of General Education

California State University, Los Angeles is a comprehensive institution that offers educational opportunities to its students who are as varied as the city's population. Cal State LA has a special mission to provide an educational experience that recognizes and takes full advantage of this diversity, while emphasizing the knowledge, experiences, and ethical concerns common to all people.

The General Education program enriches the lives of students as they acquire knowledge, learn to think critically, and use methodologies of the various disciplines. Students also learn to prepare for participation in a democracy, to appreciate a sense of shared cultural heritage, and to understand the environment. Students experience self-discovery and personal growth and recognize them as lifelong processes.

Mission Statement
General Education (GE) at Cal State LA prepares students for advanced study in their chosen academic disciplines and provides a broad foundation for a lifetime of intellectual discovery and personal and professional development. The mission of General Education at Cal State LA is:

• To prepare students with the intellectual skills and habits necessary for success;
• To provide students with a breadth of knowledge through focused study in a range of disciplines and disciplinary-specific ways of knowing;
• To encourage students to bridge disciplines and disciplinary-specific ways of knowing;
• To develop students who are informed citizens and reflective and ethical thinkers actively committed to improving their local and global communities; and
• To encourage students to become self-motivated and self-directed lifelong learners and leaders in their communities.

General Education Learning Outcomes
The General Education program at Cal State LA is defined by a set of learning outcomes that are aligned with the Cal State LA Institutional Learning outcomes and the Liberal Education and America’s Promise (LEAP) outcomes promoted by the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) and adopted by the California State University System.

Knowledge: Mastery of Content and Processes of Inquiry

Students who successfully complete GE will be able to:

• Demonstrate understanding of the physical and natural world.
• Demonstrate understanding of contemporary events within political and historical contexts.
• Demonstrate understanding of the diversity of cultures and communities in the United States and abroad.
• Demonstrate understanding of constructions, institutions, and structures of power and privilege in societies as well as strategies used to challenge existing inequalities.
• Demonstrate understanding of a range of disciplinary ways of knowing.
• Demonstrate understanding of creative expression in the context of the relevant art form and intellectual history.
• Demonstrate understanding of race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic class.

Proficiency: Intellectual Skills

Students who successfully complete GE will be able to:

• Demonstrate civic literacy that would enable them to participate effectively in a democratic society.
• Use inquiry processes, including quantitative and qualitative reasoning and critical and creative thinking, to engage with contemporary and enduring questions.
• Find, use, evaluate and process information in order to engage in complex decision-making and problem solving.
• Read, speak and write effectively.
• Demonstrate an ability to work collaboratively.

Engagement: Local and Global Communities

Students who successfully complete GE will be able to:

• Demonstrate the capacity to engage meaningfully with diverse communities.
• Demonstrate understanding of how individuals affect society and the environment.
• Demonstrate the capacity to make well informed, ethical, and socially responsible decisions.
• Demonstrate understanding of the interconnectedness of local and global communities.
• Demonstrate literacy in the perspectives and needs of individuals and groups.

Transformation: Integrative Learning

Students who successfully complete GE will be able to:

• Integrate academic learning with life through project-based experiences.
• Integrate their knowledge, skills and experience to address complex, enduring, and emerging issues.

II. General Education Program Framework

Governing Principles

1. The Cal State LA GE program shall have a distinctive theme that features engagement with the surrounding multicultural communities and the greater Los Angeles area.  Civic Learning and/or Community Engagement shall be a 6-unit requirement for all entering freshmen at Cal State LA, 3 units at the lower division level in the Introduction to Higher Education course and 3 units in an upper division GE course. Transfer students are required to complete 3 units of Civic Learning in an upper division GE course.
2. In order to keep the total number of units as near as possible to the minimum 48 units required by E.O. 1100 Revised and Title V, the proposed GE program shall require no more than 48 units, with 39 at the lower division level and 9 at the upper division level. Subsequent to a change of major, students shall not be required to take different or additional GE courses solely to address CSU GE requirements already satisfied by coursework taken in the original major.
3. In their first semester, entering freshmen students shall complete a 3-unit Introduction to Higher Education course that informs them about Cal State LA, that explores a selected topic of intellectual inquiry from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, that includes Civic Engagement, and that meets the outcomes for Block E, including life-long learning regarding human differences and cross-cultural competency.
4. All classes in the GE program shall require students to find, evaluate, use, and process information to facilitate learning and critical inquiry and to engage in complex decision making and problem solving.
5. All students shall complete one course that meets the outcomes for Critical Thinking (A3) and the outcomes for a second composition course.  Block A2 is prerequisite to this course.
6. American Institutions shall be incorporated into GE, such that the U.S. History course meets outcomes for Area C, Humanities, and the U.S. Constitution course meets the outcomes for Area D, Social Science, in the CSU General Education Breadth Requirements.
7. All students shall complete two laboratory activities associated with a course taken to satisfy either Block B1, B2 or B3. Transfer students who have satisfied the area requirements for Block B with at least one lab will not be required to take an additional lab in Block B to satisfy GE requirements at Cal State LA.
8. Students shall complete three GE courses at the upper division level, one each in Blocks B, C, and D, with a Civic or Community Engagement component (designated as CL in the catalog) in at least one of these courses. The nine semester units of upper division GE shall be taken within the CSU. If all three upper division GE courses have been satisfied at another CSU campus, the Civic or Community Engagement component shall be waived.
9. Diversity shall be incorporated to the extent possible and appropriate into GE courses, and all students shall complete at least two GE courses that address diversity explicitly and substantially (designated as D in the catalog). The intersectionality of gender, race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic class shall be substantially incorporated to the extent possible into GE courses. If all lower and upper division GE area and unit requirements have been satisfied prior to admission to Cal State LA, the Diversity component (including Race and Ethnicity) shall be waived.
10. In addition to courses in A2 and A3, all students shall complete at least two writing intensive courses (designated as WI in the catalog) with at least one in the major that satisfies the graduation writing requirement. If all lower and upper division GE area and unit requirements have been satisfied prior to admission to Cal State LA, the second WI requirement shall be waived. However, all students shall complete the WI course in the major to satisfy the graduation writing requirement.
    
    All UD GE courses shall continue to require a substantial writing assignment.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      
11. Major courses and campus-wide required courses that are approved for GE credit shall also fulfill (double count for) the GE requirement.
12. Faculty shall have the opportunity to develop GE pathways that reflect a specific disciplinary, interdisciplinary or multi-disciplinary emphasis. The GE pathways shall include lower and upper division GE courses and could lead to minors if so approved.  Each GE pathway shall include an UD course that meets the learning outcome of transformation and integrates the use of one or more high impact practices (as defined in High-Impact Educational Practices: What They Are, Who Has Access to Them, and Why They Matter, by George D. Kuh [AAC&U, 2008]). These GE pathways and minors, while encouraged, shall be optional for the completion of GE at Cal State LA.
13. All courses, including General Education replacement courses, approved for General Education are mandated to require the practice of writing in English, including, where appropriate, library assignments. Evaluation of such writing shall be included in all courses.
14. General Education breadth requirements will provide ample opportunity for students to be active learners during their educational experience.
15. The General Education breadth requirements shall be structured so that introductory courses are taken prior to participation in integrative experiences. Students are expected to have completed the General Education requirements in written communication, oral communication, critical thinking, and mathematics, and at least one course each from Blocks B, C, and D before enrolling in any upper division General Education course. No course with a non-General Education prerequisite may be used as a General Education course.

GE Program (48 units)

Lower Division (39 units)

Required Courses	Units	GELOs	EO 1100 Revised Blocks
IHE - civic and community-based learning at Cal State LA	3	E	E
Oral Communication	3	P	A1*
Written Communication	3	P	A2*
Critical Thinking and Composition	3	P	A3*
Quantitative Reasoning & Mathematical Concepts	3	K,P	B4*
American Institutions - US History	3	K,P	C
American Institutions - US Constitution and State/Local Govt.	3	K,P	D
Natural Science - including two courses, from at least two categories: Physical Science (B1); Biological Science (B2); or interdisciplinary Physical-Biological Science (B3)	6	K,P	B
Arts & Humanities (1 arts and 1 humanities)	6	K,P,E	C
Social Science	3	K,P,E	D
Ethnic Studies	3	TBD	F

Upper Division (9 units)
Three of the 9 units (one course) must include a civic and community-based learning component.
 

Required Courses	Units	GELOs	EO 1100 Revised Blocks
IHE - civic and community-based learning at Cal State LA	3	E	E
Oral Communication	3	P	A1*
Written Communication	3	P	A2*

*A grade of C- or better is needed to satisfy the requirement for these courses.

GELO Abbreviations:
K = Knowledge: content and processes of inquiry
P = Proficiency: Intellectual Skills
E = Engagement: Local and Global Communities
T = Transformation: Integrative and Lifelong Learning

III. Student Learning Outcomes for General Education Breadth Requirements

Block A. Communication and Critical Thinking (9 units)

Block A addresses communication in the English language, both oral and written, and critical thinking, to include consideration of common fallacies in reasoning.
This block must be completed within the first 30 semester units counted toward the baccalaureate degree. In addition, Block A2 must be completed prior to enrolling in Block A3.  Transfer students who have not completed this requirement must take at least one of these courses each semester until the requirement is met. Courses in this block must be completed with a grade of C- or better to satisfy requirements.

Student Learning Outcomes for Oral Communication (Block A1)

Students successfully completing an oral communication course will be able to:

1. Describe the theoretical foundations of oral communication.
2. Recognize the importance and purpose of oral communication in social life.
3. Analyze the audience and situation and adapt to the specific context in which a speech is to be delivered.
4. Conduct research and evaluate the quality of source materials and their appropriateness for use in a specific occasion, purpose, and context.
5. Prepare outlines that include appropriate organization, well-supported claims, reasoned arguments, and sensitivity to the rhetorical situation.
6. Perform a variety of well-prepared speeches using effective delivery techniques.
7. Listen to and evaluate the public communication of others and provide constructive criticism.

Student Learning Outcomes for Written Communication (Block A2)

Students successfully completing a written communication will be able to:

1. Apply fundamental rhetorical strategies used to produce university-level writing, especially
   A. modify content and form according to the rhetorical situation, purpose, and audience.
   B. appropriately use authorities, examples, facts, and other forms of persuasive evidence to support an argument or position.
   C. vary stylistic options to achieve different effects.
    
2. Think critically to analyze a rhetorical situation or text and make thoughtful decisions based on that analysis, through writing, reading, and research.
3. Develop an effective writing process that includes flexible strategies for generating, revising, editing, and proof-reading.
4. Incorporate textual evidence through quotation, summary, and paraphrase into their essays and appropriately cite their sources.
5. Develop knowledge of genre conventions ranging from structure and paragraphing to tone and style.
6. Control such surface features as syntax, grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
7. Use electronic environments for drafting, reviewing, revising, editing, and sharing texts

Student Learning Outcomes for Critical Thinking and Composition (Block A3)

Students successfully completing a critical thinking and composition course will be able to:

1. Demonstrate the ability to distinguish between knowledge and belief, facts and values, and identify faulty reasoning through an understanding of the formal and informal fallacies of language and thought, through writing, reading, and research.
2. Analyze and evaluate a range of evidence used to support various types of claims.
3. Recognize, respond to and use common techniques of persuasion.
4. Understand the fundamentals of logic and critical thinking and the relationship of logic to language.
5. Use inductive and deductive reasoning to reach well- supported conclusions.
6. Identify the assumptions, biases, and prejudices upon which particular conclusions rely and understand how they may erode sound arguments.
7. Refine fundamental rhetorical strategies used to produce university-level writing, especially
   
   A. modify content and form according to the rhetorical situation, purpose, and audience.
   B. incorporate textual evidence through quotation, summary, and paraphrase into their essays and appropriately cite their sources.
   C. evaluate the relevance, validity, and authority of information, and ethically use and cite that information in their own writing.
    
8. Develop cogent arguments for views on theoretical and practical matters
9. Exhibit knowledge of genre conventions ranging from structure and paragraphing to voice, tone and style.
10. Control such surface features as syntax, grammar, punctuation, and spelling.

American Institutions (6 units)

Statutory Requirements:

Students are required by California Statutory Law (Title V, Section 40404) to complete six units (two courses) in the following areas of United States History, Constitution and American Ideals:

    A.  Any course or examination that addresses the historical development of United States institutions and ideals must include all of the subject matter elements:

          1. Significant events covering a minimum time span of approximately one hundred years and occurring in the entire area now included in the United States of America, including the relationships of regions within that area and with external regions and powers as appropriate to the understanding of those events within the United States during the period under study.
         2. The role of major ethnic and social groups in such events and the contexts in which the events have occurred.
         3.  The events presented within a framework that illustrates the continuity of the United States experience and its derivation from other cultures, including consideration of three or more of the following: politics, economics, social movements, and geography.

    B. Any course or examination that addresses the Constitution of the United States, the operation of representative democratic government under that Constitution, and the process of California State and local government must address all of the subject matter elements:

         1. The political philosophies of the framers of the Constitution and the nature and operation of United States political institutions and processes under that Constitution as amended and interpreted.
         2. The rights and obligations of citizens in the political system established under the Constitution.
         3. The Constitution of the State of California within the framework of evolution of federal-state relations and the nature and processes of state and local government under that Constitution.
         4. Contemporary relationships of state and local government with the federal government, the resolution of conflicts and the establishment of cooperative processes under the Constitutions of both the state and nation, and the political processes involved.

American Institutions Outcomes

Students successfully completing the American Institutions requirement will be able to:

1. Demonstrate civic literacy that would enable them to participate effectively in a democratic society, including an understanding of the requirements of democratic citizenship.
    
2. Use inquiry processes, including qualitative reasoning and critical thinking to engage with contemporary and enduring questions regarding United States institutions and government.
    
3. Demonstrate understanding of ethical principles and values that have shaped United States institutions and ideals throughout the history of the United States and its government.
    
4. Demonstrate understanding of United States institutions and ideals within the context of a changing and diverse society, including the impact of government on the introduction and evolution of various cultures and institutions in the United States and the effect of new cultures and institutions on the structures and policies of federal and state government.

In addition, students successfully completing the requirement in U.S. History will be able to:

1. Demonstrate understanding of the historical diversity of cultures and communities in the United States.
    
2. Demonstrate understanding of cultural expression in the historical context of the United States.

In addition, students successfully completing the requirement in U.S. Constitution/California state & local government will be able to:

1. Demonstrate understanding of Americans’ and Californians’ political behavior within the frameworks established by the United States and California Constitutions.
    
2. Understand the effects of historical, technological and economic changes on government and the effects of governmental policy on technological and economic change.

Area Requirements (21 units)
Students will take courses in each of the following areas. Each department/division/school in a block may have a limited number of courses.

Block B Natural Sciences and Mathematics (9 units)  

Students will take two Natural Science courses and one Mathematics course.

There are three categories of Natural Science GE courses: Physical Science [B1 (3 units)], Biological Science [B2 (3 units)], and Interdisciplinary Physical-Biological Science [B3 (3 units)]; all three include laboratory at Cal State LA. Students will take two science courses from any two categories.

The third required course covers Mathematics or Quantitative Reasoning.  Courses in Mathematics/Quantitative Reasoning must be completed with a grade of C- or better to satisfy this requirement.

Block C Arts & Humanities (6 units)

One course each from the following areas: Block C1 Arts (Arts, Cinema, Dance, Music, and Theatre) and Block C2 Humanities (Literature, Philosophy, Languages other than English).

Block D Social Sciences (3 units)

One course each any discipline that addresses social science issues.

Block B. Natural Sciences and Mathematics/Quantitative Reasoning Outcomes
Blocks B1, B2, B3: Natural Sciences

The goal of lower division General Education in the Natural Sciences is to gain basic knowledge and learn key principles in the life and physical sciences as essential for an informed citizenry. In addition, students should recognize the experimental and empirical methodologies characteristic of science and understand the modern methods and tools used in scientific inquiry. Every B1, B2, and B3 course offered will have a laboratory component associated with it. Students are required to take two courses in two different blocks B1, B2, Or B3.

Students successfully completing B1 Physical Science or B2 Biological Science will be able to:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the principles of scientific inquiry (i.e., the “scientific method”), the nature of science, the potential limits of scientific endeavors, and the value systems and ethics associated with scientific inquiry.
    
2. Demonstrate knowledge of basic scientific principles as they apply to broader concepts (e.g., global climate change, the spread of infectious diseases, etc.), including historical developments of the disciplines and major contributions from various cultures of the world.
    
3. Evaluate the credibility of sources of scientific information.
    
4. Draw appropriate conclusions based on the analysis of qualitative and quantitative empirical data.
    
5. Demonstrate an understanding of the value of science in developing a rigorous understanding of the natural world and of the impact of science on societal, environmental, political, economic, and/or technological contexts.
    
6. Students successfully completing a science laboratory will be able to demonstrate hands-on skills applying specialized methods and tools of scientific inquiry (such as collecting, analyzing, and interpreting the data, presenting the findings, and using the information to answer questions).

Students successfully completing B3 Interdisciplinary Physical-Biological Science, will be able to, in addition to the outcomes described for B1 and B2:

1. Explain that the natural sciences are integrated.
    
2. Describe elements of the natural sciences that are common to both the physical and the biological sciences.
    
3. Demonstrate through examples that many of today’s problems require an interdisciplinary approach for resolution.

Block B4: Mathematics/Quantitative Reasoning

The goal of lower division General Education in quantitative reasoning is to gain basic knowledge and develop key skills in mathematics and quantitative reasoning.  The knowledge and skills developed in these courses are essential in a world where many arguments, claims, and decisions should rely on scientific studies and statistical evidence.  Courses used to meet the requirement for this block must be completed with a grade of C- or better and within the first 30 semester units counted toward the baccalaureate degree.

Students successfully completing a Mathematics/Quantitative Reasoning class will be able to:

1. Use mathematical concepts and quantitative reasoning to solve problems, both in a pure mathematical context and in real- world contexts.
    
2. Interpret information presented in a mathematical form (e.g., equations, graphs, diagrams, tables, words) and convert relevant information into a mathematical form.
    
3. Draw appropriate conclusions based on the quantitative analysis of data, recognizing any underlying assumptions or limits of this analysis.
    
4. Use deductive reasoning in a pure mathematical context to draw conclusions and provide an irrefutable logical justification for them.
    
5. Formulate and communicate a position on a real-world question and use appropriate quantitative information in support of that position, and evaluate the soundness of such an argument.

Block C: Arts & Humanities

Courses in this block should result in developing students’ understanding of the interrelationship between the creative arts, the humanities and self. Studies in these areas should include exposure to a diverse range of world cultures.

Students successfully completing a Block C Arts and Humanities class will be able to:

1. Demonstrate understanding of the diversity and complexity of the human search for meaning, value, and purpose.
    
2. Demonstrate an ability to respond subjectively as well as objectively to aesthetic experiences and develop an understanding of the integrity of both emotional and intellectual responses.
    
3. Demonstrate understanding of the interrelationship between the self and the creative arts and/or the humanities in a variety of cultures.

In addition, students successfully completing courses in Block C1 (Arts: Cinema, Dance, Music, Theatre) will be able to do one or more of the following:

1. Analyze, appreciate, and interpret significant works of art and be informed observers of, or active participants in, the Creative Arts.
    
2. Demonstrate an understanding of the intellectual, imaginative, and cultural elements involved in the creative arts through participation in, and study of, Drama, Music, Studio Art and/or Creative Writing.

In addition, students successfully completing courses in Block C2 (Humanities: Literature, Philosophy, languages other than English) will be able to do one or more of the following:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the personal and social values of cultures and how ideas influence the character of human beliefs and the norms that guide human behavior, as explored in the study of cultures, philosophies, and literary texts.
    
2. Investigate and analyze fundamental human beliefs and their justifications, especially as reflected in Philosophy and Religious Studies.
    
3. Apply language skills within a cultural and social context and understand aspects of the culture of the language being studied.

Block D. Social Sciences

The courses in the social sciences block must reflect the fact that human, social, political, and economic institutions and behavior are inextricably interwoven. Students will develop an understanding of problems and issues from the respective disciplinary perspectives and will examine issues in their contemporary as well as historical settings and in a variety of cultural contexts.  Courses in this block should explicitly address the interconnectedness of peoples, communities, societies, and/or cultures.

Students successfully completing Block D courses will be able to:

1. Demonstrate understanding of problems and issues using the principles, methodologies, value systems and ethics employed in social scientific inquiry.
    
2. Use inquiry processes, such as quantitative reasoning, qualitative reasoning, critical thinking, or creative thinking, to engage with contemporary and enduring questions or to engage in complex decision making and problem solving.
    
3. Demonstrate understanding of contemporary or historical events within political, social, cultural, or economic contexts with an emphasis on how these contexts are interwoven.
    
4. Demonstrate understanding of the diversity of cultures and communities in the United States or abroad.
    
5. Demonstrate understanding of the interconnectedness of individuals, communities, society, and/or the environment.

Block E. Lifelong Understanding and Self-Development (3 units)

Courses in Lifelong Learning and Self-Development block provide the opportunity to equip learners for lifelong understanding and development of themselves as integrated physiological, social, and psychological beings.  The Introduction to Higher Education requirement is incorporated into Block E.

Students successfully completing a Lifelong Learning course will be able to:

1. Demonstrate proficiency in skills that sustain lifelong learning, particularly the abilities to think both critically and responsibly and to access, evaluate, and integrate information.
    
2. Understand the importance of the decisions they make throughout their lives; the impact and influence of various individual, social, cultural, and environmental factors on those decisions; and the impact of their decisions on their personal well-being and their physical, social and cultural environments.

In addition, students successfully completing the Introduction to Higher Education requirement will be able to:

1. Develop an awareness of and utilize the resources available at Cal State LA to support learning, academic planning, and a sense of belonging.
    
2. Contextualize what they are learning in class and its relevance in the context of the community through a Civic Learning and/or Community Engagement experience. Civic Learning and Community Engagement have, as an integral component, the use of reflective activities intended to integrate course content and skills and knowledge with civic participation and/or community involvement and to develop or strengthen students’ commitment to social responsibility and civic engagement.

In practice, Civic Learning includes learning experiences outside the classroom – but not necessarily off campus – that places disciplinary knowledge in a civic context and that links course content with civic participation or community service experiences.
In comparison, Community Engagement refers to academic service-learning activities in local, regional/state, national and global communities beyond the Cal State LA campus.

Block F. Ethnic Studies (3 units)
This lower-division, 3 semester unit requirement fulfills Education Code section 89032. The requirement to take a 3-semester unit course in area F shall not be waived or substituted.

To be approved for this requirement, courses shall have the following course prefixes: African American, Asian American, Chicana(o) and Latina(o) American or Native American Studies. Similar course prefixes (e.g., Pan-African Studies, American Indian Studies, Chicana(o) Studies, Ethnic Studies) shall also meet this requirement. Courses without Ethnic Studies prefixes may meet this requirement if cross-listed with a course with an Ethnic Studies prefix. Courses that are approved to meet this requirement shall meet at least 3 of the 5 following core competencies.

1. Analyze and articulate concepts such as race and racism, racialization, ethnicity, equity, ethno-centrism, eurocentrism, white supremacy, self-determination, liberation, decolonization, sovereignty, imperialism, settler colonialism, and anti-racism as analyzed in any one or more of the following: Native American Studies, African American Studies, Asian American Studies, and Chicana(o) and Latina(o) American Studies.
    
2. Apply theory and knowledge produced by Native American, African American, Asian American, and/or Chicana(o) and Latina(o) American communities to describe the critical events, histories, cultures, intellectual traditions, contributions, lived-experiences and social struggles of those groups with a particular emphasis on agency and group-affirmation.
    
3. Critically analyze the intersection of race and racism as they relate to class, gender, sexuality, religion, spirituality, national origin, immigration status, ability, tribal citizenship, sovereignty, language, and/or age in Native American, African American, Asian American, and/or Chicana(o) and Latina(o) American communities.
    
4. Critically review how struggle, resistance, racial and social justice, solidarity, and liberation, as experienced and enacted by Native Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans and/or Chicana(o) and Latina(o) Americans are relevant to current and structural issues such as communal, national, international, and transnational politics as, for example, in immigration, reparations, settler-colonialism, multiculturalism, language policies.
    
5. Describe and actively engage with anti-racist and anti-colonial issues and the practices and movements in Native American, African American, Asian American and/or Chicana(o) and Latina(o) communities and a just and equitable society.

Upper-division ethnic studies courses may satisfy the lower-division area F requirement so long as adequate numbers of lower-division course options are available to students. Ethnic Studies courses required in majors, minors or that satisfy campus-wide requirements and are approved for GE area F credit shall also fulfill (double count for) this requirement.

Policy governing Block F shall be revisited during 2021-2022 AY.

IV. Upper Division Requirement (9 units)

Students will be required to complete one course in each of the three following breadth areas, (Humanities, Social Sciences and Natural Sciences and Mathematics).

Criteria for Upper-Division GE Courses:

1. Courses are all 3000-level courses.
    
2. All upper-division GE courses must include as prerequisites the completion of Blocks A and B4, an additional course from Block B, and at least one course each from Blocks C and D.
    
3. Students will be required to complete at least one upper division GE course that includes a Civic Learning/Community Engagement Component (CL). The nine semester units of upper division GE shall be taken within the CSU. If all three upper division GE courses have been satisfied at another CSU campus, the Civic or Community Engagement component shall be waived.
    
4. An upper division GE course may not be prerequisite to another.
    
5. Courses must require substantial writing consistent with general education policy.

      Major courses and campus-wide required courses that are approved for GE credit shall also fulfill (double count for) the GE requirement.

Student Learning Outcomes

Students successfully completing upper division GE courses will be able to:

1. Demonstrate basic skills of General Education, namely, oral and written communication, critical thinking, and where appropriate, mathematical skills, beyond the lower division level.
    
2. Demonstrate attainment at the upper division level of the outcomes identified under the breadth area requirements in Blocks B, C, and D.
    
3. Demonstrate their mastery of the outcomes listed under the Civic Learning/Community Engagement requirement in GE for courses so designated.

V. Diversity Requirement (6 units)

Students will be required to complete two courses (six units) certified as diversity courses. At least one of these courses must focus on issues of race and ethnicity and their intersectionality with other social categories that structure inequality in society. These courses can be completed either at the lower division or upper division level from among courses satisfying GE requirements. It is the intent of the diversity requirement to promote understanding of diversity and encourage tolerance and acceptance of others. General diversity courses will be designated with (D) in the catalog. Those courses focusing on race and ethnicity will be designated with (RE) in the catalog.

Student Learning Outcomes

Students successfully completing a diversity course will be able to:

1. Demonstrate understanding of theoretical and practical factors of race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, socioeconomic class, disability, sexuality, religion or age.
    
2. Demonstrate understanding of the intersectionality of these factors, with particular attention paid to race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic class.
    
3.  Demonstrate understanding of the diversity of intercultural and intracultural relationships.
    
4. Demonstrate civic literacy and an awareness of social justice that would enable effective participation in a diverse society.

VI. Civic Learning/Community Engagement Requirement (3 units)

Students are required to complete at least one course (three units) containing a Civic Learning or Community Engagement component at the upper division level. Civic Learning/Community Engagement courses will be designated as (CL) in the catalog.

Students who successfully complete the Civic Learning/Community Engagement courses will be able to:

1. Demonstrate understanding of the connection between academic learning/disciplinary knowledge and civic participation.
    
2. Demonstrate understanding of their impact on their respective physical, social and cultural environments and how such environments impact them.
    
3. Demonstrate knowledge of ways to make change in local and global communities.
    
4. Demonstrate the ability to collaborate in order to develop and implement an approach to a civic issue.

VII. Writing Intensive (WI) Courses

In addition to composition courses taken for Blocks A2 and A3, students will complete at least two writing intensive courses with at least one in the major. Writing intensive courses will be designated as (WI) in the catalog.

Students successfully completing a writing intensive course will:

1. Be able to use both formal (such as essays, reports, and research writing) and informal (such as brainstorming, free-writing, and reading responses) writing strategies to develop their understanding of course content and to think critically about that content.
    
2. Be able to use drafting, revising, editing and other writing processes to demonstrate their mastery of course content through formal writing products appropriate to the discipline, such as thesis-driven essays, formal reports, or professionally formatted manuscripts.
    
3. Be able to demonstrate understanding of discipline specific features of writing including rhetorical strategies and genre and format conventions prominent in assigned reading and writing or found in professional publications in the discipline.
    
4. Have completed written assignments that total at least 5,000 words, of which at least 2,500 words are polished and revised based on responses from readers, such as instructors, peers via workshops, or writing center tutors.

VIII. Approved General Education Course Replacements

Departments/divisions/schools shall have the opportunity to request that existing or new courses be allowed to double count in GE and the major provided the courses meet the outcomes for GE. Requests to double count courses must be approved by the Educational Policy Committee.

IX. Periodic Review
 
The entire program must be reviewed every five years by the appropriate curriculum committee for reapproval. Every 3 years proposals for the addition of new courses will be invited. In the interim years, special topics courses, if approved by the curricular processes for GE courses, may be used to satisfy the appropriate requirement. Courses and pathways, including approved General Education replacement courses, must meet the General Education guidelines. Courses and pathways, including approved General Education replacement courses, not reapproved within the review cycle will be deleted from the General Education program. All courses and pathways must continue to meet the General Education guidelines as they are currently taught.

4.510 Minimum Grade Point Average in General Education

(Senate: 4/15/86, 1/27/87, 10/24/95, 4/21/15; President: 6/5/86, 4/27/87, 12/1/95, 5/29/15; Editorial Amendment: 1/21/15)

It is essential that students plan their General Education programs with the help of an academic adviser. Please consult the current Schedule of Classes for specific information about distribution requirements, unit requirements, and current General Education courses. General requirements include a minimum of 48 semester units to be selected in accordance with the specified distributions among the designated categories. At least 9 units of upper division course work must be included, taken subsequent to the attainment of upper division standing (completion of 60 semester units) and selected from the list of approved courses. Effective Fall Quarter 1986 a minimum grade point average of 2.0 is required in all course work used to satisfy the General Education breadth requirements. In addition, effective for those students subject to the 1987/89 or later Catalog, a minimum C grade (2.00 grade points) is required in each course taken to satisfy basic subjects course requirements (Block A and B4): written communication, oral communication, critical thinking/composition and quantitative reasoning.

4.520 Introduction to Higher Education Course

(Senate: 6/15/96, 5/25/99, 5/20/14, 12/1/15; President: 9/5/96, 10/8/99, 6/26/14, 3/2/16; Editorial Amendment: 9/00)

Every entering freshman shall be required to complete a 1000-level course, no later than their second term in residence.  This requirement is met through Block E courses as described in the policy "Definition, Philosophy, Student Learning Outcomes and Criteria for General Education Breadth Requirements" effective fall 2016, in which the learning outcomes for Lifelong Learning and Self -Development (Block E), Introduction to Higher Education, and Lower Division Civic Learning and/or Community Engagement are described.

4.600 Graduate Course Credit for Undergraduate Students

(Senate: 11/15/69, 7/10/79, 7/10/07; President: 12/31/69, 7/31/79, 10/30/07; Editorial Amendment: 8/01, 1/21/15)

Undergraduate students with 90 semester units completed may take for graduate credit a maximum of nine semester units in courses beyond the minimum requirements for the baccalaureate degree, provided they have maintained a grade point average of 2.75.  Graduate credit is allowed for courses numbered in the 4000 and 5000 series only.  Enrollment in any course for which graduate credit is requested must be approved in advance by the instructor teaching the course, the student's adviser and the coordinator/chair/director of the program/department/division/school offering the course.

The approved application must be delivered to the Graduation Office, Administration 409, during the semester before that in which courses are to be taken.

4.610 Policy for Establishing Graduate Program Admissions Procedures

(Senate: 5/24/16; President: 10/5/16)

All departments must establish written admissions procedures for their graduate programs. These procedures should address new applicants and matriculated graduate students.  In addition graduate admissions procedures must be submitted to the college graduate dean (i.e., associate dean of the college) for approval and filed with the Dean of Graduate Studies. Any changes to the admissions procedures must be submitted prior to the admissions cycle to be implemented. Admissions procedures and criteria may not be changed during an admissions cycle. Department graduate admissions procedures must include, at minimum, the following:

1. Admissions requirements that are published in the university catalog. 
2. Establishment of an Admissions Committee with at least two faculty members.
3. A description of the application review process including:
4. how applicants are evaluated,
5. how decisions are recorded (e.g., checklist, rubric),
6. a statement that a complete record (written or electronic) of evaluation for each applicant (from 3b) will be retained (the format could be individual evaluations or a summary table),
7. a timeline for review of applications and recommendation,
8. a process for resolving split decisions, and
9. a management plan for waitlists, if applicable.
10. Procedure and timeline for notification of admissions recommendations to domestic and international applicants.
11. Procedure for monitoring and resolving conditional admission status:
12. how conditions are established
13. how conditions are communicated to applicants
14. A statement that special action graduate admissions will conform to existing policy.
15. A statement that applications will be kept in a secure location (room/virtual space) and stored separately from the academic file of all admitted students for a time period consistent with Campus Records Retention Policy.

4.620 Admission to 5000-Level Courses

(Senate: 3/5/97, 7/10/07; President: 4/22/97, 10/30/07; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01, 1/21/15)

Students admitted with postbaccalaureate classified, graduate classified or graduate conditionally classified standing may enroll in 5000-level courses.  Colleges and programs/departments/divisions/schools may impose additional restrictions.  For all programs, no more than 20% of a student's total units may be completed at the 5000-level prior to the formal approval of the student's official program by the student's principal graduate adviser, the head of the student's academic unit, and the student's college graduate dean.  In addition, all such students must have completed either the prerequisites for the course or equivalent competency.

Other students may enroll in 5000-level courses with the following restrictions:

1. Postbaccalaureate unclassified students may register for 5000-level courses if the department/division chair or school director determines that there is space available.  These students must have satisfied all prerequisites for the course and have obtained approval of the instructor, the principal graduate adviser, and the head of the academic unit offering the course.
2. Undergraduate students may, with prior approval and subject to policies governing graduate credit for undergraduate students, enroll in a maximum of 9 units of 5000-level courses.  See "Graduate Course Credit for Undergraduate Students."
3. Matriculated Cal State L.A. students may not enroll in Open University courses.   Students who are not matriculated at Cal State L.A. may enroll in 5000-level courses through the Open University (concurrent enrollment) Program administered by the College of Professional and Global Education.  These students must have satisfied all prerequisites for the course and have obtained approval of the instructor and the head of the academic unit offering the course.

4.630 Special Major for Master's Degrees: Admission to Special Major Program

(Senate: 8/7/79, 4/29/80, 4/17/90; President: 8/31/79, 6/30/80, 5/9/90; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01, 1/21/15)

In addition to meeting minimum University requirements for admission to graduate standing, applicants must possess a baccalaureate degree in an area cognate to the areas of the proposed special major, must have a minimum grade point average of 2.75 in the last 60 semester or 90 quarter units, and must meet all college requirements and such department/division/school requirements as course prerequisites, test scores, and grade point average for the master's degrees of the colleges and departments/divisions/schools in which course work or the special major is proposed. Special majors are approved on an individual basis. If coursework is to be taken in departments/divisions/schools in more than one college, students must make formal written application to the Dean of Graduate Studies and Research. If course work is to be taken in departments/divisions/schools within one college, students are required to make formal written application to the college graduate dean. All applications must include the following:

1. A clear and concisely stated rationale for pursuing a special major and an indication of the professional/academic objectives to be achieved. This rationale must include evidence clearly indicating that the special major program could not be accommodated within any existing approved master's program on campus.
2. A proposed list of available courses chosen from two or more departments/divisions /schools totaling a minimum of 30 units, of which at least 15 must be 5000-level.
3. An indication of whether a comprehensive examination or thesis or project will be used to complete the graduate course of study. If a thesis or project is proposed, a preliminary description of the thesis topic or research project to be included. If a comprehensive examination is proposed, an indication of the area in which the student will be examined is to be included.
4. The names and areas of specialization of at least two faculty members representative of those who might consent to serve on the advisory committee for such a degree program.
5. If coursework to be taken is offered in more than one college, the Dean of Graduate Studies and Research must also approve the program. The student's program is subject to University graduate procedures and regulations that govern all graduate degree offerings.

4.640 Full-Time Unit Load for Graduate Students

(Senate: 8/26/86, 9/28/16, 9/22/20; President: 10/6/86, 4/19/17, 11/5/20;  Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01, 1/21/15)

For the purposes of assigning University enrollment status in a given term (see University Catalog regarding Special Sessions), graduate students will be considered full-time if they carry a unit load of at least 8 units of graduate program courses or other courses approved by their graduate advisor. Upon the recommendation of a student's major department/division/school and approval by the appropriate college dean, a student enrolled in any of the following department/division/school courses may be certified as full-time with fewer than 8 units: 5970, 5990, 5995, 6990 or 5960 (Note: For financial aid purposes, students must be registered in at least one unit-bearing course in addition to 5960 to be considered full-time). The maximum unit load for students working towards a graduate degree is 16 units per semester.  Authorization to enroll in more than 16 units requires a petition approved by the student's major department/division chair or school director and the appropriate college dean. Graduate student study load for the purposes of assigning veteran benefits or for the international student status may have additional requirements or restrictions.

4.650 Requirements for Additional Master's Degree or Option within a Master's Degree

(Senate: 8/27/91, 2/8/94; President: 9/19/91, 3/11/94'; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01, 1/21/15)

Students who have earned a master's degree at Cal State L.A. and wish to obtain a subsequent master's degree or to add an additional option to a previously completed master's degree from this University must complete an approved program of at least 30 semester units.  At least half of the units must be new work not included on the previous degree or option.  The remainder can be from the previous degree provided that the courses have been completed within seven years of the award date of the degree and are otherwise eligible for inclusion.

Students who are currently enrolled in a master's degree program at Cal State L.A. may concurrently complete an additional option under the same degree if the department/division/school and college concerned verify that the additional option requires significantly different knowledge, skill and coursework.  The additional option must include a minimum of 15 semester units of coursework that is specific to that option (not included in the previous option) and an appropriate culminating experience (thesis/project or comprehensive examination).  An approved program plan for each option is required.

Students who have earned a master's degree at an institution other than Cal State L.A. may petition in order to apply for an identical degree at Cal State L.A.  Students must provide extraordinary justification and receive approval of the department/division/school and college concerned before entering the program.

4.660 Integrated Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree Programs

(Senate: 5/26/09; President: 6/16/09; Editorial Amendment: 4/15)

Integrated bachelor’s and master’s degree programs provide an accelerated route to the attainment of the master’s degree.  An accelerated route may be appropriate for certain undergraduate students who have maintained an excellent academic record and have participated in, or plan to participate in, research or other creative, scholarly or professional activities in their senior year.  It is expected that students selected to pursue an integrated bachelor’s and master’s degree program will have demonstrated through the application process their intellectual maturity and the ability to think and work independently.

An integrated bachelor’s and master’s degree program allows a student to count up to 12 units of course work towards both degrees, excluding Directed Study units, thereby decreasing the total number of units required for both degrees.  For example, an integrated bachelor’s and master’s degree program could require 138 units total instead of the 150 units total that would be required to complete a separate bachelor’s degree that requires 120 units and a separate master’s degree that requires 30 units.

Integrated bachelor’s and master’s degrees may be approved either for degrees within the same academic unit or between closely related programs with existing bachelor’s and master’s degrees.

Eligibility for Integrated Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree Programs

The following are minimum eligibility requirements.  Individual programs may set more rigorous requirements to encourage applications from candidates most likely to succeed in graduate study.

1. Senior standing (satisfactory completion of a minimum of 90 units) by the time the integrated program commences.

2. Minimum 3.0 GPA in all coursework in the major completed at the time of application.

3. Successful completion of the Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR).

4. Eligibility requirements that are at least as rigorous as the eligibility requirements for the non-integrated master’s degree program. However, programs are highly encouraged to establish more rigorous requirements in order to limit the program to highly qualified candidates.

Application to Integrated Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree Programs

1. Approved integrated programs will establish their own procedures for review of applications and acceptance of applicants.

2. Graduate Degree Study Plans are prepared and submitted to the appropriate College Associate Dean prior to completion of 10 semester units on the Study Plan.  Study Plans may contain up to 12 units of 4000-level coursework that count towards bachelor’s degree requirements, although at least 50% of the units for the master’s degree (including those units that count towards the bachelor’s degree) must be at the 5000 level.

3. The Office of the Associate Dean submits a request to the Registrar’s Office to change the degree objective from BA or BS to the appropriate combination of bachelor’s and master’s degrees and to change the student’s classification to Graduate.

Retention in the Integrated Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree Program

To be retained in the program students must maintain a minimum 3.0 GPA in undergraduate courses in their major.

Awarding of Degrees

1. Both degrees are awarded at the same time.  The degrees are awarded when requirements for both the bachelor’s and master’s degrees are met.

2. If a student fails to complete the requirements for the master’s degree or opts out of the integrated program, the bachelor’s degree may be granted when all requirements for that degree are met.  In such cases the student’s degree objective must first be changed back to BA or BS and the classification back to undergraduate.

Degree Program Modification

Programs must submit proposals for integrated bachelor’s and master’s degree programs for curriculum approval.  Such proposals must include eligibility requirements and application procedures.

4.670 Master's Student Enrollment and Master's Credit for CSULA Doctoral Level Courses

(Senate: 10/10/06; President: 11/6/06)

Master's students will be permitted to enroll in CSULA doctoral level classes subject to the following conditions:

• classified standing in a master's program
• GPA of 3.5 or higher
• consent of instructor or advisor
• completion of at least 16 units of 500-level coursework

With advisor approval, a maximum of twelve units of doctoral-level courses can be credited towards a master's program.

4.680 University Comprehensive Examinations
(Senate: 4/23/96, 5/17/05; President: 7/24/96, 6/28/05)

Each program offering the comprehensive examination for the master's degree shall implement, maintain in writing, and make readily available to students. explicit current guidelines that address both content and procedures relating to the examination.  These guidelines shall include at least the following information: eligibility for the exam, registration procedures, exam frequency, exam format, method of administration, the nature of the exam questions, exam length, number of attempts allowed, grading procedures, and timeline for student notification of grades. All comprehensive examinations must conform to the following requirement of Title 5, i.e.,

"A comprehensive examination is an assessment of the students' ability to integrate the knowledge of the area, show critical and independent thinking and demonstrate mastery of the subject matter. The results of the examination evidences independent thinking, appropriate organization, critical analysis and accuracy of documentation.  A record of the examination questions and responses shall be maintained in accordance with the records retention policy of the California State University.

4.700 Early Entrance Program

(Senate: 3/8/83, 3/21/17; President: 3/30/83, 4/7/17)

Purpose. The Early Entrance Program (EEP) provides the opportunity for highly gifted students between the ages of 11 and 15 to begin their college studies early at Cal State LA and bypass part or all of high school, and offers them the support and guidance necessary to prepare them for success at the university level.  

Admission Criteria. The criteria for EEP selection include maturity, motivation, and readiness for early college admission. Admission is based on a holistic assessment of the student's overall academic performance. The Admissions Committee considers various factors, including an interview with the applicant and the student's performance in the Honors Academy Summer Program. Those students whose academic and personal performances are judged adequate and appropriate during the Honors Academy and who receive final approval from the Admissions Committee and the Honors College are admitted as matriculated students for the fall term.

Academic Program. Upon admission, EEP students are assigned to a class cohort that is enrolled in special EEP honors classes for their first year and are required to attend regular meetings with EEP staff, and participate in scheduled EEP activities. EEP students maintain enrollment as full-time, degree-seeking undergraduates and are responsible for tuition and fees. EEP students are provisionally admitted to the Honors College. After completion of their first year with a gpa of 3.3 or above, EEP students will be recommended for formal admission to the Honors College with the approval of the director of the Honors College. If a student's gpa falls below 3.3 during their first year, the student will not be recommended for formal admission to the Honors College, but they may remain in EEP. They are, however, eligible to reapply to the Honors College in future terms should their gpa meet the threshold.

All Honors College policies apply to EEP students admitted to the Honors College. In addition, EEP students may not enroll in more than 15 units per semester if they earned a term gpa lower than 3.0 in the immediately preceding academic term.

4.710 Recognition of Students at the University Honors Convocation
(Senate: 3/2/93, 10/14/08, 5/10/16; President: 5/14/93, 1/20/09, 8/17/16; Editorial Amendment: 9/00, 8/01)

Students Named to the Dean's List. Undergraduates who earn a grade point average of 3.5 or higher in 12 or more units of graded course work in one semester are named to the Dean's List.  Students who receive NC for any coursework in the semester under consideration are not eligible to be named to the Dean's List for that semester.

Scholarship and Award Recipients. Scholarship awards are generally based on high academic achievements.

Honor Society Initiates. Chapters of more than twenty national and international honor societies have been chartered at the University to accord recognition to students who demonstrated superior scholarship and leadership in specific academic areas.

Certificate of Honor. The primary purpose of this award is to recognize students for academic excellence. Students who receive the Certificate of Honor are selected by their respective academic departments/divisions/schools for outstanding and distinguished achievement within their major area of study. Each department/division /school is limited to two undergraduate and two graduate awards.

Graduate Students. Graduate students who have a 3.80 or better GPA on their graduate programs and who have completed 80% or more of their graduate programs may be recognized at the University Honors Convocation upon the recommendation of their departments/divisions/schools. Colleges and/or departments/divisions/schools may at their discretion, recognize other students in their ceremonies.

4.720 Graduation with Honors in General Education
(Senate: 10/25/83; President: 11/8/83)

For members of the General Education Honors Program who entered the program during the fall, winter or spring quarter of the 1982-83 academic year, the number of honors courses required for graduation with Honors in General Education is reduced. Students would be required to take four classes instead of six and students who were freshmen when they entered during that period of time would be required to take five honors courses in order to graduate with Honors in General Education. All students entering the honors program during or later than fall quarter, 1983, will be responsible for completing the original requirement of six courses in order to graduate with Honors in General Education.
 

4.730 Honors College Recognition at Graduation
(Senate: 5/20/14; President: 6/26/14)

The following language will be included on the diplomas of students who successfully complete the Honors College Program:

"Honors College Program Completed."
 

4.740 Honors at Graduation
(Senate: 7/15/75; 10/25/83, 8/9/88, 11/28/95, 2/11/97, 5/10/16; President: 7/21/75, 11/8/83, 9/21/88, 4/30/96, 4/22/97, 8/16/16; Editorial Amendment: 9/99, 9/00, 8/9/16)

California State University, Los Angeles uses three designations of honors at graduation: cum laude, magna cum laude and summa cum laude. To be eligible for honors a graduate must have completed a minimum of 45 units in residence at Cal State LA and have attained the appropriate standing (in terms of cumulative grade point average earned at Cal State LA) as described below.

    Summa Cum Laude: GPA equal to or greater than 3.9
    Magna Cum Laude: GPA equal to or greater than 3.75 but less than 3.9
    Cum Laude: GPA equal to or greater than 3.5 but less than 3.75

All students attaining these minimum grade point averages will be awarded the corresponding honors upon conferral of degree.
 

4.750 Honors for Candidates for Second Baccalaureate Degrees
(Senate: 11/25/75; President: 12/8/75; Editorial Amendment: 1/6/16)

Students who have earned a baccalaureate degree and are candidates for another baccalaureate degree (as distinct from an advanced degree or a teaching credential or other type of certificate) shall be eligible for the Dean's List or other academic honors according to the same criteria as candidates for first degrees. Candidates for second baccalaureate degrees shall be eligible for graduation with honors according to the same criteria as candidates for first degrees, with residence counted to include all residence at this institution that is applicable toward any baccalaureate degree (including the first). This excludes residence or grade points earned in graduate courses or professional education courses.

4.800 International Student Exchanges
(Senate: 4/12/94; President: 5/26/94)

Upon recommendation of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs and approval of the President agreements may be established with foreign institutions of higher education, government agencies, or nonprofit corporations or associations in order to enhance international goodwill and understanding through the exchange of students.

In specified cases such an agreement may include waiver of nonresident tuition if:

1. The foreign institution, agency, corporation, or organization is domiciled in and organized under laws of a foreign country;
2. Any student receiving a waiver of tuition under such an agreement is a citizen and resident of a foreign country and not a citizen of the United States; and
3. The agreement provides that comparable expenses are met or waived by or on behalf of the foreign entity entering into the agreement. Comparable expenses may be provided in the form of matching tuition waivers at a foreign educational institution, provision of services, or a combination thereof. 

Each year the President will establish the maximum number of waivers that may be awarded for this purpose. The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs will review and approve individual student applications for nonresident tuition fee waivers from students in approved programs.

Policy Regarding Collections of Native American Burial Remains and Associated Grave Artifacts

(Senate: 10/5/93; President: 11/3/93; Editorial Amendment: 1/21/15)

California State University, Los Angeles, recognizes that ancient human remains have cultural as well as scientific and historic values and that American Indian concerns about human burials should be taken into consideration. As of August 17, 1993, it has been certified that Cal State L.A. has no collection of Native American burial remains and associated funerary objects or cultural patrimony. If, in future research or in any other endeavors, any of the above is discovered by University personnel, after proper and necessary identification, the following will be adhered to:

1. For future applicability, Cal State L.A. will not retain any discovered Native American burial remains or associated or unassociated funerary objects. Any and all remains and associated grave artifacts that are uncovered by Cal State L.A. personnel will be inventoried and deposited with government agencies following state and federal regulations. Proposed federal regulations for the Native American Graves Protection Law (Public Law 101601) will be adhered to.
2. Human skeletal remains and associated grave artifacts that are discovered will be treated with care and respect in accordance with the best possible conservation techniques.
3. It is noted that human skeletal remains excavated from state or private land must comply with state law (Section 7050.5 of the State Health and Safety Code and Section 5097.5 et. seq. of the State Public Resources Code, Division 5, Chapter 1.75, added by amendments, Senate Bill 297 of 1982, Chapter 1492.).

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