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Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies Program

Freedom to Choose / Freedom to Create / Freedom to Travel

Resources

Catalog, Flowchart, & Curriculum Sheet

  • Use it to help track courses taken and see what courses are still required.
  • Semester-by-semester curriculum based on selected concentrations.
  • Select your major (LAES), concentration, and catalog year (can be found under the "Academics" tab in your Cal Poly Portal).

 

LAES Concentration and Study Abroad Declaration Form

  • Fill out this form with updated concentration and study abroad declarations.
  • Must be approved by a faculty advisor (Dr. David Gillette or Dr. Michael Haungs).

 

Degree Progress Report

  • Helps track progress to graduation and shows which requirements have not yet been met.

 

Degree Planner

  • A degree planning tool that provides you with a personalized, pre-populated path to graduation.

 

Substitution for Major/Support Courses

 

The LAES Lab (181-101) and Expressive Technology Studios (181-104) are available to all LAES students. They are used as collaboration space to work on interdisciplinary projects with other departments and programs on and off campus. Improvements are ongoing, and equipment is updated as our needs predict; our primary goal is to optimize these spaces for designing, creating, testing, and updating expressive technology work that combines aspects of theater, cinema, music, dance, electronic design, computer science, and innovative sustainable technologies.

The space is shared whenever possible, in accordance with our mission as an interdisciplinary program. Students from the Colleges of Architecture, Liberal Arts, and Engineering have used it for various projects.

Equipment and Space Requests

The LAES Technical Coordinator and a team of student lab managers oversee all equipment and activities in the lab and Expressive Technology Studios. While they can assist with most projects, some have particular specialties. Please submit the appropriate equipment or activity request as described below.

Equipment

Some equipment (VR headsets, motion capture gloves, cameras, recorders, microphones, etc.) can be checked-out for short periods to help with class or senior projects. Please refer to the ETS Rental Information Page for rental steps.

Activities

When you need lab or studio access (other than to check out equipment), send a request to laes-labrequest@calpoly.edu indicating your specific need (please provide as much advance notice as possible).

 

The College-Based Fee (CBF) is a mandatory academic fee approved by the students to help support and enhance instructional programs. LAES students pay their CBF each semester as part of their class registration.

In 2015, the LAES CBF Committee surveyed students to determine how these fees should be spent. Based on the survey results,  54% of those surveyed preferred not to change CBF reimbursements. Students also established the following spending priorities:

  • Invited Speakers/Project Partners
  • Class Projects
  • Conferences/Professional Development Opportunities (must be in CA)
  • Senior Projects
  • Study Abroad Travel Aid (special requirements apply)

 

Student Professional Development Funding

To best meet student-requested CBF priorities and stay within our available funding, we have established the following policy for managing student professional development support: 
 
Each academic year the LAES program intends to set aside $1,600 to assist LAES students with conference attendance/presentation or for related forms of professional development confined to the state of California. This allows four LAES students per year to request up to $400 per student, to cover professional development expenses. All requests will be reviewed for approval by both LAES co-directors.  

This $1,600 amount may not be available on some years due to budget limitations; students are advised to check with the LAES program about the status of this fund at the start of every semester, especially if they are considering applying for support later that year. 

Expense Coverage Request Process

Conference/Professional Development

Only the following Conference/Professional Development support types are eligible for funding:

  • Local (CA only) travel (car, train, short flight)
  • Attendance for professional networking event
  • Shared meal/visit with professional mentor/interview subject

Requests require full, advance approval from both LAES Co-Directors at least 60 days prior to when the funding will be needed for travel and/or for applying toward conference fees (whichever comes first). To begin the request process: 

1. Complete Travel Form 1A.

2. Within the first two weeks of Fall or Spring semester, email the completed form to both co-directors along with detailed documentation about the event/opportunity and a 50–100-word explanation for why/how this event/opportunity supports your professional development. 

If you have questions and/or need assistance, please contact laes@calpoly.edu.

 

Senior Project Materials Purchasing

See the Student Project purchasing Request Policies and Instructions document for detailed information.

Important: All submissions are subject to approval and must adhere to university guidelines. Ownership of all purchased property will be transferred to the Cal Poly Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies Program.

 

Career Services & Mustang Jobs

  • This is for those needing support for finding jobs, internships, and career opportunities.

Make Your Own Portfolio

  • Follow this guide by Nicole Arcolino (LAES '23).

Alumni Testimonials

  • See what the recent graduates of the LAES program have been up to and how LAES has helped them in their careers.

LAES Club

  • Come out and meet other LAES students, learn more about the major, and get involved in some projects.
  • Any major is welcome!

LAES Newsletters

Registrar's Website

The following forms and resources are available on the Registrar’s website:

  • Request to complete degree early
  • Request to extend degree completion
  • Course Withdrawal Request
  • Leave Request

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