GE 2026 (to begin fall 2026)
Background
For several years, the CSU has been working closely with partners in the University of California (UC) and California Community College (CCC) systems to align lower-division General Education (GE) curricula in a way that is more streamlined for students, particularly transfer students. This effort resulted in the systems agreeing to a new lower-division template referred to as California General Education Transfer Curriculum, or Cal-GETC, which will be followed by students enrolled in a CCC.
In May 2024, the CSU Chancellor's Office published a new GE template and policy that adheres to Cal-GETC guidelines. CSU campuses will implement this new template beginning in fall 2025. However, Cal Poly received a one-year extension to implement this new pattern in fall 2026, which will be the same time as the campus begins semesters.
Draft Template
Cal Poly's General Education Governance Board (GEGB) was tasked with revising and aligning Cal Poly's template with the CSU policy and has proposed a template to the Academic Senate for approval.
While most of the template is a realignment (e.g., Area A1 is now 1C, etc. — see the table below), there are several significant differences between the new template and the current templates with GE 2020:
- The current Area B: Scientific Inquiry and Quantitative Reasoning is being split into two new areas.
- Area 2: Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning
- Area 5: Physical and Life Sciences
- Area 5C: Laboratory is now a 1-unit course. (It had been 0 units in the past as it was embedded in a Physical or Life Science course).
- There will no longer be an Area C lower-division elective (4 quarter units).
- There will no longer be a requirement for courses in lower-division C to come from three different prefixes.
- There will no longer be an Area E: Lifelong Learning and Self-Development (4 quarter units).
- There will no longer be a high-unit template. All Cal Poly students will have the same GE requirements.
- There will no longer be GE Area Electives (8 quarter units), which were available for students on the GE 2020 standard template.
After the new template is approved, the website will be updated to reflect the changes. The revision does not affect the curriculum guidelines (aside from the changes to the area names), so those will remain in effect. While the approval process is still underway, below is a draft of what the GEGB is proposing.
Proposed Lower-Division GE Requirements
Please note: The unit requirements are indicated in the parentheses.
| Area 1: English Communication and Critical Thinking | Subarea in GE 2020 | |
|---|---|---|
| 1A | Written Communication (3 semester units) | A2: Written Communication (4 quarter units) |
| 1B | Critical Thinking (3) | A3: Critical Thinking (4) |
| 1C | Oral Communication (3) | A1: Oral Communication (4) |
| area 2: Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning | Subarea in GE 2020 | |
| 2 | Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning (3) | B4: Mathematics/Quantitative Reasoning (4) |
| Area 3: Arts and Humanities | Subarea in GE 2020 | |
| 3A | Arts (3) | C1: Arts - Arts, Cinema, Dance, Music, Theatre (4) |
| 3B | Humanities: Literature, Philosophy, and Languages other than English (3) |
C2: Humanities - Literature, Philosophy, and Languages other than English (4) |
| Area 4: Social and Behavioral Sciences | Subarea in GE 2020 | |
| Area 4 includes two lower-division courses (4A and 4B) and one upper-division course (see Upper-Division Area 4 below). These three courses must come from at least two different course prefixes. | Select courses in Area D from at least two different prefixes. | |
| 4A |
American Institutions (3) (Title 5 Section 40404 Requirement) |
D1: American Institutions (4) (Title 5 40404 Requirement) |
| 4B | Social and Behavioral Sciences (3) | Lower-Division D (4) |
| Area 5: Physical and Life Sciences | Subarea in GE 2020 | |
| 5A | Physical Sciences (3) | B1: Physical Sciences (4) |
| 5B | Life Sciences (3) | B2: Life Sciences (4) |
| 5C |
Laboratory (1) May be embedded in a 5A or 5B course or may be offered as a standalone laboratory, with a prerequisite or co-requisite of an associated lecture course |
B3: Laboratory (0) Embedded in either B1 or B2 |
| Area 6: Ethnic Studies | Subarea in GE 2020 | |
| 6 | Ethnic Studies (3) | Area F: Ethnic Studies (4) |
Total Lower-Division Units in GE 2026: 34
Proposed Upper-Division GE Requirements
| Upper-Division GE REquirements | Subarea in GE 2020 |
|---|---|
| Upper-Division Area 2 or Upper-Division Area 5 (3 semester units) | Upper-Division B (4 quarter units) |
| Upper-Division Area 3 (3) | Upper-Division C (4) |
|
Upper-Division Area 4 (3)
Area 4 includes two lower-division courses (see 4A and 4B above) and one upper-division course |
Upper-Division D (4) |
Total Upper-Division Units in GE 2026: 9
Total Units in General Education Program: 43
For more information, visit the CSU GE overview webpage here.
The CSU General Education Requirements policy can be found here.