Academic Scheduling: Overview
The Office of the Registrar works in partnership with the colleges and departments to facilitate scheduling of academic classes. Standard policies and guidelines are followed to optimally utilize classrooms and provide a consistent registration experience for students.
CourseLeaf Section Scheduler (CLSS) streamlines data entry for departments. The tool is used for everything from inputting, editing, validating, approving and updating course offerings in the class schedule. Each academic department has a team of Schedulers who work with this tool to build the quarterly schedule. CLSS User Guides may be found under the Resources section of this webpage.
Access CourseLeaf CLSS (access based on security). Accounts are added or removed based on CLSS security request.
When the class schedule is available, students are able to build their schedule for the term using Schedule Builder. Individuals who are unable to log in to the Cal Poly Portal may access Class Search for a complete list of available courses. A list of archived class scheduled can be found in the Library Digital Commons.
When building the quarterly class schedule, departments should be mindful of best practice when scheduling virtual sections. A course must be approved for virtual instruction. The class schedule should include useful information such as class notes, modality, and meeting pattern so students understand expectations when registering for the class.
Academic Senate Resolution AS-978-24 approved "sun setting" Cal Poly time effective fall 2026, Cal Poly's first semester term. As such, class times will primarily begin on the hour and half hour, though there are some deviations based on component and required units.
In addition, the University Hour—which historically occurred Thursday from 11:10 a.m. - 12 noon—will occur on Friday from 11:00 a.m. - 11:50 a.m in the semester calendar. As such, lecture component courses may not be scheduled during this time without university approval. Departments may seek approval for exception to policy by routing the Power form through their college to Academic Programs and Planning. When seeking an exception, please include information related to the course, requested time block, and why deviation is proposed. Final review and feedback is provided by Academic Programs and Planning.
In compliance with AS-945-22, course material information should be made available to students on the first day of registration.
|
TERM |
DATE |
| Spring 2026 |
February 19, 2026 |
| Summer 2026 | April 27, 2026 |
| Fall 2026 | May 11, 2026 |
| Spring 2027 | October 19, 2026 |
Academic Scheduling: Approved Scheduling Time Patterns
In order to maximize utilization of university controlled rooms, as well as mitigate the potential for class overlap and allow students a wide range of class schedule options, the Office of the Registrar enforces university approved scheduling time patterns. It is each departments’ responsibility to comply with these patterns to ensure the university it working as one cohesive entity.
Standard time patterns are used by the university to maximize utilization of classrooms and student access to classes.
Per Campus Administrative Policy 282, facility limitations make it necessary for each department to schedule 50% of lecture sections outside the hours of 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Please refer to the Class Time Spread Dashboard once your schedule is in PeopleSoft to identify distribution.
- Semester Meeting Patterns (15 week) - SLO (Main) Campus
- Semester Meeting Patterns (15 week) - Solano Campus
- Semester Meeting Patterns (7.5 week session)
- Reserved for 1 or 2 unit courses approved through the curriculum review process. Must be offered in college/department managed space. Patterns requested outside of standard patterns must go through the Standard Pattern Deviation form.
Note: Final exams for half-term offerings are during the last regular class meeting.
- Reserved for 1 or 2 unit courses approved through the curriculum review process. Must be offered in college/department managed space. Patterns requested outside of standard patterns must go through the Standard Pattern Deviation form.
In order to maximize utilization of university controlled rooms, mitigate the potential for class overlap, and provide students with a wide range of class schedule options, the Office of the Registrar enforces university approved scheduling time patterns.
It is each departments’ responsibility to comply with these patterns to ensure the university is working as one cohesive entity.
General Scheduling Guidelines
- Lecture, seminar, and discussions sections may be scheduled in university lecture rooms
- Activity and laboratory sections are scheduled in college/department rooms, following standard meeting patterns
- A course with both lecture and laboratory modes of instruction that is taught in a studio format is scheduled in college/department rooms
- Class meeting times are created using the 50-minute Carnegie Hour. Meeting patterns will include the following break time:
- 1.5 credit hours in one day (75 minutes) will be scheduled for 80 minutes, includes one 5-minute break
- 2 credit hours in one day (100 min) will be scheduled for 110 minutes, includes one 10-minute break
- 3 credit hours in one day (150 minutes) will be scheduled for 170 minutes, includes two 10-minute breaks
- 4 credit hours in one day (200 minutes) will be scheduled for 220 minutes, includes two 10-minute breaks
Academic Scheduling: Final Exams
Final exams for activity, laboratory, or 1-unit lecture sections occur during the last week of classes. All other final exams are allocated a 2.5 hour block in the week immediately following the last week of classes. Summer quarter has a different final exam schedule to accommodate the multiple sessions offered during the term.
Departments should utilize CourseLeaf CLSS to indicate whether a room is required during final exam week. This allows for accurate facility utilization.
Refer to the Calendar page for exam calendars
A class that is scheduled with a non-standard time pattern may not have an allocated final exam time. In these cases, an instructor will need to do the following, before the end of the fifth week of the term:
- Work with the students to identify an exam time that will not conflict with their already scheduled exams.
- Contact University Scheduling in the Office of the Registrar to schedule a classroom for the exam.
For more information, refer to academic policy for Final Assessments (Exams) on the Academic Programs and Planning website.
Requesting a Common Final Exam Time
- Departments may request common final exams for classes offering two or more sections of a course with approval of the department chair/head and appropriate Dean.
- Any student who cannot attend a common final must be accommodated at another time.
- Common Finals may be requested for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday of Finals Week. Common Finals may also be requested on the Saturday preceding Final Exam Week.
- Requests should be received two weeks prior to the start of final exam week for the regular academic term.
- Every effort will be made to accommodate your preferred exam date. However, assignments are based on the number and type of requests for each term, and we cannot predict availability for a specific day or room.
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Confirmation emails will be sent after all requests have been accommodated.
Requesting an Alternate Final Exam Time
- Instructors may request alternate final exam times in addition to the regularly-scheduled exam. Instructors must accommodate any student wishing to take the exam at the regularly-scheduled time. If all students in two or more sections are meeting together, guidelines for common final exams should be used.
- Assignments are based on room availability. Requests should fall within the established final exam, three hour time blocks.
Academic Scheduling: University Lecture Rooms
Due to the impact on university rooms, academic department schedulers and the Office of the Registrar work closely to evaluate data each term in order to maximize facility utilization. Classes may be moved to accommodate student demand through the add/drop period for the term.
During the summer term when fewer academic classes are offered, there is an increase in the number of events occurring on campus as well as scheduled facility maintenance. For this reason, rooms are designated for key area use to allow both academic classes and on campus events to co-exist.
University Lecture Room List website
University Lecture Room List (PDF) - Select a location for a view of the space as well as features and instructions for use.
Department Schedulers have access to Room Seek through CourseLeaf CLSS. This tool is integrated with 25Live, the campus space management tool. Once the class schedule publishes, if the day, time, or location needs modification, a department may use this tool to identify whether a University Lecture space is available. If one is, they may request a change using appropriate steps in CLSS. If a space is not available, the department should explore other options.
Scheduling Sections Based on Campus
Effective Fall 2026, Cal Poly will have 4 Campuses.
- AHC - Allan Hancock College
- CCC - Cuesta College
- MAIN - San Luis Obispo MAIN
- SOLA - Cal Poly, Solano Campus
The Course Catalog will identify “where” a course may be scheduled. An offering will be created for each Campus where instruction is approved. Virtual classes will all be identified as offered from the MAIN campus.
Steps to complete data entry
PeopleSoft Catalog View
To create new sections in CourseLeaf CLSS
- Select the check box for Show Courses with No Sections at the top right
- Click on the Course you would like to schedule
- Add a section at the respective campus using the Plus.
Note: The view is not intuitive as it shows course and title, not Campus.
To help identify which course (by row) you should select, the order is by Offering, which comes from the PeopleSoft Catalog. Departments will know where a course is approved to be offered. The selections will appear in the following order:
Main
Allan Hancock College
Cuesta College
Solano Campus (Cal Poly Maritime)
So, as an example, if my course is approved for the Main Campus, Allan Hancock, and Solano Campus: Main will appear first, AHC will appear second, Solano will appear third
- Complete data entry to schedule your section. Be mindful of Section Number as it related to Campus.
Semester Section Numbers
To provide visibility of class offering information, the following will be used in the academic class schedule:
Main Campus
S01 - S99
Cuesta College Campus
C01 - C99
Allan Hancock Community College
H01 - H99
Cal Poly Maritime Academy
M01 - M99
Combined Sections (for Cross-listed courses)
X01 - X99
Virtual (Synchronous, Asynchronous, Asynchronous/Synchronous)
V01 - V99
Academic Scheduling: Resources for Department Schedulers
The following resources are designed to assist in the scheduling processes.
Resources
- CourseLeaf CLSS - Training Guide
- CourseLeaf CLSS - Guide to what changes departments can make and when changes can be made.
- CourseLeaf CLSS - Consultant training presentation
- Summer Term
- Academic Scheduling Production Calendar – Deadlines for class schedule development
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Planning Phase Information - Submit to the Office of the Registrar, University Scheduling once Planning Phase data entry is complete (Information related to combined sections, reserve capacities, medical requests, term instructions, etc.)
- CS Numbers and K-Factors – Contact hours and workload for course components are determined using this CSU classification system
- CSU Learning Modes – List of CSU learning mode codes used to report information to the Chancellor’s Office
- Faculty Assignment by Department (FAD) Information – Reporting deadlines for class schedule data
- Link to Class Schedule’s shared calendar in Outlook Calendar, to see important scheduling dates in your own calendar. Follow these instructions to create the link:
- Open your Outlook calendar
- On the Folder tab, click on “open Calendar”
- On the dropdown menu, click “From Address Book”
- Find Class Schedule and double click on it. Select “ok”
Training Guides
- Generating Permission Numbers User Guide – Instructions for generating permission numbers and selecting the appropriate control settings.
- Schedule of Classes Dashboard User Guide – Review your current and upcoming schedules using the PolyData Dashboards. Information can be viewed in a similar format to our proofing and reporting spreadsheets. (Data warehouse information is updated only once daily, so changes will not be reflected until the following day).
Contact Us
Class Scheduling • 805-756-2461 • classschedule@calpoly.edu
Phone Hours:
Monday - Friday 8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.