WELCOME to the College of Liberal Arts
On-Line Advising Program for First Time Freshmen!
For your convenience, we have
created Word or PDF Document curriculum sheets to help you understand your requirements. If
you are a first time freshman, click on and print the
2007/09 curriculum sheet for your major. For the next
four years, the curriculum sheet will be your guide in
determining which requirements you've met and which
you still need to meet. If your major has information
on the front and back of the curriculum sheet, it will
have two pages. Otherwise, all the information is on one
page. Examine the sheet carefully.
Notice how the courses on the
sheet are divided into Major courses, Support/Concentration
courses, General Education (GE) courses, and, in most
cases, Electives. Students usually try to schedule some
combination of Major and/or Support and GE courses each
quarter.
Look over the titles of the Major
and /or Support courses to get a good idea of what you
will be studying for the next four years. Read the course
descriptions in the back of the catalog
for a fuller understanding of what the courses encompass.
Course prerequisites are also listed there.
It is critical that you review carefully the General Education requirements by college (CLA) and by Area (Areas A, B, C, D, and F) so that when we suggest you enroll in a course to satisfy a particular GE Area (for example, A2, B5, C3, D4, etc.) you know what your options are.
In the top right hand corner
of the curriculum sheet, you’ll see the total number
of units required for your degree. Right below the “UNITS
REQUIRED,” note the boxes marked Earned Hours, Quality
Hours, Quality Points, and GPA. “Transcript Totals”
are all units earned at Cal Poly and at other institutions.
Non-baccalaureate units (such as remedial math or English)
will be deducted from the total since they are not degree
applicable. Quality Hours and Quality Points are merely
a function of grade point average (GPA). Students must
have at minimum a 2.0 GPA to graduate.
Take a look at the requirements
listed in the upper LEFT side of the sheet. The Major
GPA must also be at least 2.0 to graduate. Listed next
is the United States Cultural Pluralism Requirement (USCP)
which does not require you to complete an additional course.
Any Major, Support, Elective, or GE course can be used
to meet the USCP, as long as the course is designated
USCP.
Next on the list is the upper
division requirement: “60 Units Upper Division Met.”
Of all the units completed for the degree, 60 must be
upper division (300-400 level courses). First time freshmen
SHOULD NOT take upper division courses, however. These
courses are designed for juniors and seniors.
The “GWR Met” also
represents a requirement you can not meet until you have
reached junior status (earned 90 units). The Graduation
Writing Requirement will test your competency in writing.
Students with weak writing skills should work to improve
their skills by visiting the University
Writing Lab regularly and often!
In addition to fulfilling the Graduation Writing Requirement after completing 90 units, you are also required to complete upper division GE courses. This requirement will be met in GE Areas C4, D5, and F, and none of the courses offered by your major department can be used to satisfy C4 or D5. (This is not the case with lower division or Area F GE.)
“Free Electives Met”
basically relates to the number of units needed to earn
the degree. If all specific course requirements have been
met and you have not completed the total needed for the
degree, you still have free electives to complete. Moreover,
the total number of units needed to graduate is constant,
but the number of required “electives” could
change if you’ve made substitutions, double counted*
additional GE courses, or if the department has changed
the unit-value of required courses. The purpose of free
electives is to allow you to take non-required courses
that sound interesting to you and have them count toward
your degree.
*The term “double counted”
does not mean the unit value of the course is doubled.
It simply means the course is being used to satisfy more
than one requirement. Most of your lower division GE has
already been double counted, but occasionally your choices
will result in additional GE courses being double counted.
After examining your curriculum
sheet, you should have a much clearer understanding of
your requirements. Now you’re ready to review your
department’s course recommendations for your first quarter.
These recommendations are relatively generic. It’s
up to you to know your scores on Advanced
Placement Exams and what course credit they award
you. Likewise, it is your responsibility to know your
EPT
and ELM
status, and if either of them require you to complete
remedial math or English before enrolling in the required
math or English.
We recommend you enroll in no
more than 14 units your first quarter at Cal Poly. Twelve
units is full-time. You should also know that only THREE
majors in the College of Liberal Arts allow students to
take one Major or Support course CR/NC. Those three majors
are: Art and Design, Journalism and Liberal Studies.
Before you scroll to your major
to review your first quarter course recommendations
(below), please click these links for succinct advice critical to
your successful fall registration.
Art and Design (Graphic Design, Photography & Digital Imagery, and Studio Art)
Barring AP Credit:
- Graphic Design Concentration: Art 101, 105 and 182 (if 101 is full, it can be taken Winter Quarter)
- Photo Concentration: Art 101, 105, & 121 (if 101 is full, it can be taken Winter Quarter)
- Studio Concentration: Art 101 and 105 (if 101 is full, it can be taken Winter Quarter)
- All concentrations: remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1 or A2, B1, B2, B3, D1, D3, or D4 for 12 to 15 units total.
Child Development
Barring AP Credit:
- CD 102 and Psy 201 or 202
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1 or A2, B1, B2, B3, C3, D1, or D3 for 12 to 14 units total.
Communication Studies
Barring AP Credit:
- COMS 101/102
- foreign language
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1, B1, B2, B3, D1, D3, for 12 to 14 units total.
Comparative Ethnic Studies
Barring AP Credit:
- ES 112
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1, A2, B1, B2, B3, C3 for 12 to 14 units total.
- foreign language
English
Barring AP Credit:
- remedial math &/or Engl if required; Engl 134 or ComS 101/102 if remedial Engl not required
- foreign language (recommended unless exempted by AP or Spanish Placement Exam)
- some combination of B1, B2, B3, C3, D1, D2, D3, or D4 for 12 to 14 units total.
Graphic Communication
Barring AP Credit:
- GrC 101 and GrC 201 (Make every effort to get GrC 101 and GrC 201. If you are unable to get GrC 201, please see your advisor during Fall quarter.)
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1 or A2 &/or Math 118 (same as Math 116 & 117) or Stat 217; B2; PSc 101 or Chem 110; C3; D1; D3; or D4 for 12 to 14 units total.
History
Barring AP Credit:
- Hist 110, 207, 213, 210, or 215 (choose one)
- foreign language
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1 or A2, B1, B2, B3, C3, or D4 for 12 to 14 units total.
Journalism
Barring AP Credit:
- Jour 203
- Jour 219
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1 or A2, B1, B2, B3, C3, D1, D3, or D4 for 12 to 14 units total.
Liberal Studies
Barring AP Credit:
- LS 214, LS270, Hist 208, Hist 210 (enroll in two of the four)
- LS 230 or LS 250 (do not need to be taken in order - enroll in one)
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1 or A2, Bio 113, Math 118, PolS 112, or Psy 201/2.
- LS 101 (enroll in this one unit course after the full rotation, when you can enroll in more than 16 units)
Modern Languages and Literatures
Barring AP Credit:
- Span ___ (all MLL majors must take the Spanish Placement Test)
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1 or A2, B1, B2, B3, C3, D1, D3, or D4 for 12 to 14 units total.
Music
Barring AP Credit:
- Mu 101 or 103 (depending on placement results)
- Mu 104
- Piano Proficiency
- Applied Music
- Performing Ensembles
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1 or A2, B1, B2, B3, D1, D3, or D4 for 12 to 14 units total.
Philosophy
Barring AP Credit:
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1 or A2, B1, B2, B3, C3, D1, D3, or D4 for 12 to 14 units total.
Political Science
Barring AP Credit:
- PolS 180 (You are required to enroll Fall Quarter; course offered Fall only.)
- PolS 112-04 (Be sure to enroll in Section 04, which is held for PolS majors.)
- other PolS options: PolS 225, PolS 230
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of Hist 110 or 111, A1 or A2, B1, B2, B3, C3, D3, or D4 for 12 to 14 units total.
Psychology
Barring AP Credit:
- Psy 201 or 202
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1 or A2, Stat 217, B2, B3, C3, D1 or D3 for 12 to 14 units total.
Social Sciences
Barring AP Credit:
- Ant 201 or 202, Geog 150, or Soc 110 (choose two)
- remedial math &/or Engl if required and some combination of A1 or A2, B1, B3, C3, D1, D4 for a total of 12 to 14 units total.
Theatre Arts
Barring AP Credit:
- Th 210
- Th 227 or Th 230 or Th 250
- remedial math &/or English if required or some combination of A1 or A2, B1, B2, B3, D1, D3, D4 for 12 to 14 units total.
We hope this On-Line Program has answered
most of your questions. Feel free to contact your major
department or your academic advisor for additional assistance.
Email addresses and phone numbers are available from the
College of Liberal
Arts Web Site by clicking Academics and then clicking on your department's web page or by clicking the Academic Advising Main Page from the college web site.
Our best wishes go with you to study,
to ponder, to build a foundation for life-long learning
and inquiry.
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