4 More than 19,000 students, nationally-renown courses of study and the top-ranked public master’s university in the western United States ... all 11 miles from the Pacific Ocean.
This is Cal Poly ocated in the central California coastal town of San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly comprises one of 23 campuses in the California State University, the nation’s largest fouryear undergraduate university system. Each CSU campus is given considerable freedom to develop its programs and each institution boasts its own qualities and strengths. Cal Poly’s Learn by Doing principle of instruction prepares undergraduates for careers in applied technical and professional fields. From computers to crops, Cal Poly holds that the best preparation for any endeavor is derived through practical application. This ideal has set Cal Poly apart from other schools and been the school’s driving philosophy since its 1901 founding. Courses at Cal Poly emphasize a high proportion of lab work, fieldwork and special assignments, culminating with a senior project. Unique on-campus opportunities – such as an organic farm and a student-run daily newspaper and majors of study ranging from aerospace engineering to wine and viticulture – make hands-on learning a daily reality at Cal Poly. In total, Cal Poly confers bachelor's degrees in 64 separate areas of study. Nine of those degrees are exclusive to the San Luis Obispo campus (see next page). For 20 consecutive years, U.S. News and World Report has ranked Cal Poly as the top public master’s university in the western United States. The publication also ranked Cal Poly’s College of Engineering as the No. 3 program in the nation among public non-doctoral institutions (see below). On-campus activities are headquartered at the renown University Union and Cal Poly’s student-run activities have earned enviable reputations across the nation. Week of Welcome offers first-quarter students a successful introduction to the collegiate experience through a team of trained student leaders and university officials, all of whom provide academic and social resources, encourage awareness and promote relationships with the campus and central coast community.
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Athletically, Cal Poly boasts one of the most successful Division I programs for an institution of its size. During the 2012-13 academic year, the athletics department – which sponsors 21 varsity programs – saw the football, women’s basketball and baseball programs advance to the NCAA Championships. Individually, Laura Hollander (women’s cross country), Andre Dome (men’s tennis), Kennith Jackson (football), Nico Molino (football) and Deonte Williams (football) each earned All-America honors. At the NCAA Championships, Hollander finished ninth as a freshman in women’s cross country while Dome reached the Round of 16 in men’s tennis. Pitcher Chase Johnson was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the third round of the MLB Draft in June 2013. Named Big West athletes of the year were Dome (men’s tennis), Chris Frias (men’s cross country), Hollander (women’s cross country), John Prader (men’s track and field) and Molly Schlemer (women’s basketball). Freshman wrestler Devon Lotito earned a Pac-12 title at 133 pounds. Hollander earned Big West Freshman Player of the Year honors in both cross country and track while Elise Krieghoff earned similar honors in women’s soccer. Williams and Kennith Jackson were first-team All-Big Sky selections. As testament to Cal Poly’s athletics and academic integrity, 67 Mustangs collected conference all-academic praise during the 2012-13 school year. The Cal Poly Athletics Department also finished fourth in the Big West Commissioner’s Cup, an award presented to the institution with the best overall results in the conference’s 16 sponsored sports. Internationally, Cal Poly was represented at the 2008 Summer Olympics by former Mustangs Sharon Day (United States, high jump), Jimmy Van Ostrand (Canada, baseball) and Stephanie Brown Trafton, whose gold medal for the United States in the discus competition was the first such feat by a Mustang athlete. Day (heptathlon) and Brown Trafton (discus) also qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
THE CAL POLY BREAKDOWN • Affiliation: Member of the 23-campus California State University, the largest four-year public university system within the United States • Location: San Luis Obispo, approximately 220 miles south of San Francisco and 200 miles north of Los Angeles • Terms: Four 11-week quarters per year • Student Body (Fall 2012 Quarter): 18,679 • Faculty: 1,244, with a 19-to-1 student-to-faculty ratio • Accredited and Recognized Programs: 24 • Estimated 2012-13 Annual Fee Average for Students (California Residents): Undergraduates – $8,724; Graduate – $9,990 • Out-of-State Tuition (2012-13): $248 per quarter unit in addition to regular tuition fees • Room and Board (2013-14): $11,123 per year
BEST IN THE WEST
CAL POLY AN ACADEMIC DYNASTY 20 YEARS IN THE MAKING For the 20th straight year, Cal Poly was rated by U.S. News and World Report as the best public master’s university in the western United States in its 2012 America’s Best Colleges guidebook. Cal Poly placed sixth in the publication’s overall list of the west’s best universities – including both public and private institutions – that provide “a full range of undergraduate and master’s-level programs but few, if any, doctoral programs.” The publication ranks colleges that grant doctoral degrees, such as those in the University of California system, in a separate category. “Being named Best in the West for 20 straight years is a terrific acknowledgment of Cal Poly’s sustained excellence over a long period of time,” said Cal Poly President Jeffrey D. Armstrong. “The credit belongs to our faculty and staff for their unwavering dedication and commitment to our students’ success, and it underscores the power of our Learn by Doing philosophy.”
Within individual areas of study, U.S. News and World Report ranked Cal Poly’s College of Engineering No. 3 among public engineering programs for schools whose highest degree is a bachelor’s or master’s (Cal Poly was bested only by the United States Military Academy and Air Force Academy). A number of College of Engineering programs ranked high in the Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs in their individual specialty categories. The university’s computer, electrical and mechanical engineering programs were each ranked as the top program at a public university in their respective specialty categories. Cal Poly’s civil and environmental engineering program was ranked the secondbest program at a public university. The College of Engineering plaza, located on the northwest corner of the Cal Poly campus.
Athletics and Academic Excellence • www.gopoly.com