California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

The Dexter Lawn – Cal Poly San Luis Obispo's unofficial social center and meeting place.[14]

Cal Poly Pomona began as a satellite campus of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in 1938 when a completely equipped school and farm were donated by Charles Voorhis and his son Jerry Voorhis of Pasadena, California, and was initially called the Voorhis Unit. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation then donated an 812-acre (329 ha) horse ranch in Pomona, California to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in 1949. Located about one mile (1.6 km) from the Voorhis campus, the two became known as Cal Poly Kellogg-Voorhis. Cal Poly Kellogg-Voorhis broke off from Cal Poly in 1966, becoming the fully independent university, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona). Since 1949, the two campuses have cooperated on creating a float for the Rose Parade. Today, the long-running float program still boasts floats designed and constructed entirely by students year-round on both campuses.

On October 29, 1960, a chartered plane carrying the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo football team, hours after a loss to Bowling Green State University, crashed on takeoff at the Toledo Express Airport in Toledo, Ohio. Twenty-two of the 48 people on board were killed, including 16 players.

Jespersen Hall

In 1903, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo opened as a coeducational school with 20 students enrolled, 16 new male students and 4 new female students.[15] In 1929, California Governor C. C. Young banned women from studying at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo starting from 1930. It was not until 1956 when the institution once again began admitting female students.[16] The university remains coeducational today, with women constituting 48.4% of the Fall 2018 total student population.[17]

Cal Poly's Performing Arts Center

The Cal Poly Master Plan calls to increase student population from approximately 17,000 students to 20,900 students by 2020–2021.[20] To maintain the university's Learn by Doing philosophy and low class sizes, the master plan calls for an increase in classrooms, laboratories, and professors.

A dormitory style student community was completed in the summer of 2018. Located at the corner of Slack Street and Grand Avenue, it consists of seven 3- to 5-story concrete framed freshman residence hall buildings with 1,475 beds and an adjacent four-level parking structure. Additional community space for the housing complex and the campus wrap the parking structure on three sides. These spaces include a small café, community room, game room, mail room, welcome center, offices, and maintenance shop. Site improvements include a large open space in the center of the project for activities and group events, volleyball and basketball courts, and outdoor gathering spaces at each building.[21]

The Warren J. Baker Center for Science and Mathematics was dedicated November 1, 2013.[22] It replaced the aging "spider" Science Building 52, built in the 1950s, with a new 189,000-square-foot (17,600 m²) structure. The $119 million, six-story building was made possible by voter-approved state education bonds and $18 million in private donations.[23] The Center adds new laboratories, classrooms, and offices for the physics, chemistry and soil science programs, as well as an open area and terraces for student study and meeting places. The top floor of the Center houses labs and offices for the school's Western Coatings Technologies Center and the Environmental Biotechnology Institute. It is the second largest and most technologically advanced structure on campus. In the space between the remaining wings of the old "Spider Building" and the new Center is Centennial Park, a landscaped central green.

A $20 million wine and viticulture center is projected to open in 2020.[24] The new $123 million Science and Agriculture Teaching and Research Complex is scheduled to open fall 2021; a renovation of The Robert E. Kennedy Library is expected to begin no sooner than January 2022 and cost $65 million.[25] In addition, the William and Linda Frost Center for Research and Innovation, a $124 million interdisciplinary research center, broke ground in May 2019.[26]

Campus parking is limited. In its most recent survey of available parking spaces on campus, the Cal Poly University Police reported 2,892 general purpose parking spaces, 3,492 dorm resident spaces, and 8,648 total spaces.[27] In its facilities Master Plan, the university admits that while more parking spots will be added, the actual ratio of parking to students will decrease since enrollment is expected to increase sharply.[28] To resolve the disparity, the Master Plan calls on the university to reduce the demand for individual vehicle parking. As part of that plan, the university has constructed additional dorms and has tried to make campus life more desirable. In addition, Cal Poly Commuter and Access Services has successfully promoted alternatives to commuting in single occupancy vehicles: in the past 10 years, bus use has more than doubled, and the use of bicycles has close to quadrupled.[29]

Currently, there are over 6,500 bike rack spaces and 224 secure bike lockers available on campus; 57% of students and 33% of faculty/staff live within 5 miles of the Cal Poly campus, an easy bike commute.[30] The city's SLO Transit bus system provides service to and from campus. Cal Poly financially supports SLO Transit with funding from parking citation revenue (not from state general funds nor from student tuition), so faculty, staff, and students ride for free.[30] Bus service throughout the county is provided by SLO Regional Transit Authority. Discounted passes are available to the Cal Poly community.

360° panorama from the top of Poly Canyon; the main Cal Poly campus and agricultural area can be seen below.

The Agricultural Sciences Building

The Orfalea College of Business

The university currently offers 65 bachelor's degrees, 39 master's degrees, 84 minors and 13 credentials in six colleges:[6]

• College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences
• College of Architecture and Environmental Design
• Orfalea College of Business
• College of Engineering
• College of Liberal Arts
• College of Science and Mathematics

All undergraduate students at Cal Poly are required to complete a senior project. This requirement has been in place before the 1980s, and has set Cal Poly apart from other Cal State campuses. The senior project is intended to be a capstone experience for students receiving a baccalaureate degree by integrating theory and application from across a student's undergraduate educational experiences.[31] The senior project consists of one or more of the following: a design or construction experience, an experiment, a self-guided study or research project, a presentation, a report based on an internship, co-op, or service learning experience, and/or a public portfolio display or performance.[32] Senior projects have often led to students obtaining jobs or recognition for their work. In July 2011, a company created from a Senior Project, Punchd, was acquired by Google.[33] Jamba Juice, founded as "Juice Club", was inspired by the Senior Project idea but was founded after the founders had graduated.[34] On campus towards Poly Canyon, a popular area known as 'Architecture Graveyard' has many architecture Senior Projects, including experimental structures and unconventional architecture.

Cal Poly's admissions process is "more selective" according to U.S. News & World Report.[37]

For the class entering Fall 2019, 15,366 freshmen were accepted out of 54,072 applicants, a 28.4% acceptance rate, and 4,613 enrolled. Fall 2019 entering students had an average GPA of 3.99; the middle 50% range of SAT scores was 620–700 for reading and writing, and 620–740 for math, while the ACT Composite range was 26–32.[38] Women constituted 50.5% of the incoming freshmen class, men 49.5%.[38]

For Fall 2019 admitted transfer students, Cal Poly accepted 1,622 of 11,109 applicants, a 14.6% acceptance rate.[39]

Cal Poly requires students to declare a major when applying for admission, and the university then admits the most competitive applicants within each major based on GPA and other factors. As a result, changing majors at the university is not guaranteed. Each major has a specific change of major plan which includes required classes to be taken while maintaining a certain GPA (usually between 2.5 and 2.75) in order to be considered as a candidate. In some cases, students wishing to change majors transfer to other universities.

According to U.S. News & World Report's 2024"Best Regional Universities West Rankings," Cal Poly is ranked first overall in the western United States out of 127 regional schools whose highest degree is a Master's, first in "Top Public Schools", first in "Best Colleges for Veterans", first in "Most Innovative Schools", 2 for "Best Undergraduate Teaching", 18 best value school, 46 in Undergraduate Research/Creative Projects and tied for 97th in "Top Performers on Social Mobility."[45] The same report ranked the College of Engineering seventh out of 220 public and private undergraduate engineering schools in the U.S. where doctorates are not offered[46] with national program rankings of:[45]

• Civil Engineering: first
• Computer Engineering: first
  • Mechanical Engineering: second
  • Electrical Engineering: second
  • Aerospace Engineering: second

According to U.S. News & World Report's 2022 "Best Regional Universities West Rankings," Cal Poly is ranked second overall in the western United States out of 127 regional schools whose highest degree is a Master's, first in "Top Public Schools", first in "Best Colleges for Veterans", first in "Most Innovative Schools", third for "Best Undergraduate Teaching", 32 best value school, 46 in Undergraduate Research/Creative Projects and tied for 94th in "Top Performers on Social Mobility."[45] The same report ranked the College of Engineering seventh out of 220 public and private undergraduate engineering schools in the U.S. where doctorates are not offered[46] with national program rankings of:[45]

• Civil Engineering: second
• Electrical Engineering: second
• Computer Engineering: second
• Mechanical Engineering: second

According to U.S. News & World Report's 2021 "Best Regional Universities West Rankings," Cal Poly is ranked 3rd overall in the western United States out of 127 regional schools whose highest degree is a Master's, first in "Top Public Schools", first in "Best Colleges for Veterans", tied for first in "Most Innovative Schools", second for "Best Undergraduate Teaching", and tied for 96th in "Top Performers on Social Mobility".[45] The same report ranked the College of Engineering eighth out of 220 public and private undergraduate engineering schools in the U.S. where doctorates are not offered[46] with national program rankings of:[45]

• Industrial Engineering/Manufacturing: first
  • Civil Engineering: second
  • Electrical Engineering: second
  • Computer Engineering: second
  • Aerospace Engineering: second
    • Mechanical Engineering: third
    • Biomedical Engineering: third

Washington Monthly ranked Cal Poly 26th out of 614 schools in the U.S. "National Universities – Masters" category in 2020 based on its contribution to the public good in three broad categories: social mobility, research, and service.

Money magazine ranked Cal Poly 51st in the country out of 739 schools evaluated for its 2020 "Best Colleges for Your Money" edition[47] and 33rd in its list of the 50 best public schools in the U.S.[48]

Cal Poly ranked 40th in the U.S. for in-state students in PayScale's 2019 "Best Value Colleges", which ranked 2,006 colleges and universities for return on investment (ROI). According to PayScale's projections, Cal Poly has a 20-year net return on investment of $716,000. This ROI is the 2nd highest in the California State University system and is higher than all of the University of California schools except UC Berkeley.[49]

In 2019, Forbes magazine rated Cal Poly 115th out of the 650 best private and public colleges, universities and service academies in America. In 2008, the first year of the list, Cal Poly was ranked 369th out of 569.[50]

For 2019, Kiplinger ranked Cal Poly 19th out of the top 174 best-value public colleges and universities in the nation, and 3rd in California.[51]

In the 2019 edition of "America's Best Architecture & Design Schools" published by the architecture and design journal DesignIntelligence, Cal Poly was ranked the No. 3 most admired undergraduate architecture program in the nation.[52] The landscape architecture program was ranked 6th most admired in the country and 1st in the Western region.[53]

Cal Poly's Orfalea College of Business was ranked 59th among U.S. undergraduate business colleges in Bloomberg Businessweek's 2016 list (the latest).[54]

Due to continued reductions in state funding, Fall 2011 fees for the average student reached approximately $2,600 per quarter.[55] For comparison, the Spring 2002 fees for the average student were $760 per quarter. While total yearly fees for an in-state student were just $2,976 in 2002, students entering in fall 2011 faced an annual fee of over $7,900.[56]

Of the students enrolled in fall 2014, 61.6% of undergraduates and 70.0% of first-time freshmen received some form of financial aid in 2014–15.[57] The amount of financial aid awarded in 2014–15 totaled $151.5 million, of which 64.3% came from federal funds, 11.9% came from state funds and 17.5% came from institutional funds.[57] Loans comprised 55.6% of the financial aid, 31.2% came in the form of grants, and 10.2% in scholarships.[57]

Cal Poly's endowment more than tripled during its Centennial Campaign from $43.1 million to $140.1 million. Growth is attributed to gifts and prudent stewardship. However, since 2007, the university's endowment has fluctuated dramatically, going from $181.7 million in 2007[58] to $130.9 million in 2009,[59] before rebounding to $227.7 million in 2019, the 301st largest of 785 colleges and universities in the United States and Canada.[1]

Cal Poly's on-campus student housing of 6,239 spaces[60] is the largest student housing program in the California State University system.[61] Cal Poly housed 35.9% of fall 2015 undergraduates in 28 dorms on campus, and 98.7% of first-time freshmen lived on campus. In addition, 28.7% of Cal Poly sophomores lived on campus in fall 2015.[57]

There are five distinct groups of residence halls on the Cal Poly campus. The five North Mountain halls, constructed in the 1950s, are the oldest on campus still used for residential purposes.[62] The six "red-brick" halls were completed shortly afterward in 1959.[63] The Sierra Madre and Yosemite halls were finished by 1968, and the Cerro Vista Apartments were completed in 2003. The Poly Canyon Village housing complex, with a similar style as the Cerro Vista apartments, was completed in 2009 at a cost of $300 million, making it the California State University system's largest construction project to date.[64] In 2018, Cal Poly opened the seven-building complex yakʔitʸutʸu dorms on the site of the old Grand Avenue surface parking lot.[65] In addition to being state-of-the-art living spaces, the yakʔitʸutʸu residence halls serve to honor the heritage and culture of the Indigenous People of San Luis Obispo County, the yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini, Northern Chumash tribe.

Each of the residence halls represent a different living community on campus. The six red-brick halls are the Living-Learning Program halls for the different colleges of Cal Poly. The five North Mountain halls are organizationally a part of the engineering Living-Learning Program. The Sierra Madre and Yosemite halls are the First-Year Connection Program halls and focus on freshman-oriented transition programs. All buildings house students of all majors. The Cerro Vista Apartments is the Transitions community for first-year and second-year students. Poly Canyon Village is the Sophomore Success Program community, which is open to primarily to sophomores, but also juniors and seniors, and helps students transition into independent living.

Greek organizations have been at Cal Poly since 1949. The Greek community consists of three governing councils at Cal Poly: United Sorority and Fraternity Council (USFC), Interfraternity Council (IFC), and Panhellenic Association (PHA). Cal Poly also offers Greek organizations based on academic fields of study.[69]

The Week of Welcome program, more commonly known as "WOW", serves as a volunteer-based orientation program for new students during the first week after move-in during the beginning of the school year in September. Its purpose is to introduce students to the campus and the community and prepare them for a successful college career. Freshmen are placed in a group with 10–12 other new students while transfer students are in groups of 40–60; each group is led by two current Cal Poly student orientation leaders. The "WOW" groups participate in an array of orientation events in addition to activities both on and off campus. In 2010, the awareness section of the program won the 2010 National Orientation Directors Association (NODAC) Media & Publications Showcase Award in the Emerging Technologies. The awareness section was entirely developed by student volunteers. The program started in 1956 and is now the largest volunteer orientation program in the nation.[70]

Cal Poly Recreation Center

The Cal Poly Recreation Center is the on-campus student recreation center.[71]

Cal Poly has many recognized clubs and independent student organizations operating on campus. Included are over 150 groups, including, among many others, cultural clubs and exchanges, mathematics and science clubs, improv and sketch comedy clubs, religious and atheistic groups, service organizations, engineering research and development clubs, professional development organizations, a perennial Rose Parade Float design program, LGBTQ+ and Multicultural groups, competitive and social athletic teams, and academic honors clubs. Engineering clubs and independent student organizations on campus include Prove Lab, PolySat, CubeSat, and QL+.[72]

As of 2018, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo has the least racially diverse student population of all California State University and University of California campuses.[74] On a national scale, however, Cal Poly is ranked 240 out of 2,475 colleges and is considered "highly diverse" by collegefactual.com.[75] President Armstrong has been working to increase the percentage of non-white students on campus, with the share of white students in the university student body decreasing from 63% to 55%.[76] The City of San Luis Obispo is 84.5% white.[77] About 84.2% of the students attending California Polytechnic State University – San Luis Obispo come from within California.[78]

The Los Angeles Times reported that the university "was ranked one of the nation’s worst serving institutions for Latino student success."[79][80]

The Education Trust lists the university as an "Engine of Inequality" because "very few students come from working-class and low-income families." It is one of 20 public institutions in the U.S. with this negative distinction.[81]

On April 29, 1990, San Luis Obispo police responded to a call of a bicyclist down at around 11pm. The activity drew heavily intoxicated crowds that began to get unruly. After unsuccessfully attempting to disperse the crowd, a mob began looting the nearby Campus Bottle Shoppe. The next day, dumpsters were set on fire during more rioting and 127 people were arrested.[93]

On May 25, 1996, Cal Poly student Kristin Smart disappeared without a trace after a birthday party. The university and sheriff's department have been investigating leads, including excavating the land around the Cal Poly "P" on an adjoining hill. In 2017, the excavation of the area surrounding was completed with articles found; however, the sheriff's department has not yet released its findings. On April 13, 2021, Paul Flores and his father, Ruben Flores, were arrested and taken into custody in suspicion of Smart's disappearance. Their homes were searched, and investigators found numerous "items of interest".[94][95]

On October 18, 2022, a jury found Paul Flores guilty of murder, and his father, Ruben Flores, not guilty.[96]

In 2008, a university-owned house (known as Crops House) where agriculture students were given subsidized lodging in exchange for work on the school's farms hosted a Halloween party with decorations including a noose. A sign was also posted which read: “No niggers,” along with a similar slur against gays. At a later date, the house displayed a Confederate flag tacked above the entrance to the house while a large Confederate flag laid painted on a table in front of the house.[97] This became a First Amendment free speech issue, with the university initially not evicting the students.[98]

In 2018, the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity was suspended following a photo surfacing that showed a student wearing blackface.[99] In response to further protests, President Armstrong suspended all Greek Life on campus indefinitely.[76] This was followed with protests during Open House events for incoming freshmen. On May 4, 2018, President Armstrong announced yet another blackface incident that was mocking the prior incident. The incident is being investigated by the state.[100]

The university is organized administratively into four divisions: Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, Administration and Finance, and University Advancement. The academic division is organized into six colleges, each with its own dean. Academic Affairs also includes the Library, Research and Graduate Programs, and Information Technology Services.

The Cal Poly Corporation is a public-benefit, nonprofit corporation and university auxiliary. It provides commercial services, fiscal services, and key support services to assist and promote the educational mission of Cal Poly and the California State University System (CSU).[101] The Corporation engages only in those activities ancillary to state operation that are requested by Cal Poly's president and approved by the CSU. The corporation was founded in 1940 and was known as the Cal Poly Foundation until February 1, 2006.

The Cal Poly Foundation is an auxiliary organization and IRC 501(c)(3) public charity that accepts and administers tax deductible gifts to the university. The Cal Poly Foundation leads campus philanthropic activity by supporting fundraising activities and investing and managing the campus endowments.[102]

The Cal Poly Extended Education provides access to degree, certificate, and professional development programs and services of the university to the citizens of San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Monterey Counties and through distance learning technologies to students across the country.[103]

The Associated Students Inc. (ASI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation owned and operated by Cal Poly student leaders. ASI has an annual operating budget in excess of $12 million. ASI provides co-curricular experiences for students, faculty, and staff, including events, speakers, concerts, intramural sports, fitness programs, aquatics, outdoor adventure trips, craft center enrichment courses, club services, and child development.[104] ASI manages the University Union, Recreation Center, Sports Complex, and Children's Center, totaling more than 450,000 square feet (42,000 m²) of campus facilities.

The Cal Poly Alumni Association seeks to engage and serve alumni, to foster a lifelong connection between the university and its alumni, and to foster goodwill and support for the university. The association includes 15 regional and special interest chapters.[105]

Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.

• Pflueger, Donald (1999) [1991], California State Polytechnic University, Pomona: A Legacy and a Mission, Spokane, Washington: Arthur H. Clark Company, ISBN 0-9622822-1-9, OCLC 43853707