Cal Poly’s 2+2 program will expand to include liberal studies at Cuesta College and business administration at Allan Hancock College beginning in fall 2026, opening more degree options across the region, according to a Cal Poly press release. Cal Poly launched its first 2+2 pathway last year with a single sociology cohort at Allan Hancock College.
The expanded offerings aim to increase regional access to Cal Poly degrees by allowing students to complete lower-division coursework at partner colleges before finishing upper-division classes through Cal Poly. The model is designed to support local students, working adults and those who need flexible schedules by using evening classes taught in-person and online.
The program gives Central Coast residents the option to not relocate to San Luis Obispo. The program will support the regional teacher pipeline through the liberal studies degree offering, according to the press release.
These programs are cohort-based, meaning students progress through the program together as a group, and designed for evening and online formats. The students involved in this program will remain enrolled through partner colleges early on, then will transition into Cal Poly enrollment for upper-division coursework.
All regular Cal Poly prerequisite requirements still apply to students in the program, Cal Poly Spokesperson Keegan Koberl wrote in an email to Mustang News. Students are required to meet the university’s academic standards and complete the necessary prerequisite courses listed in the catalog before enrolling in upper-division general education classes.
Cal Poly originally debuted the 2+2 program last year with the sociology cohort, offering a Bachelor of Arts at Allan Hancock College, according to previous Mustang News reporting. The program will be welcoming its third consecutive cohort in fall 2026.
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“The addition of Business Administration at Allan Hancock College was driven by growing student interest in business and management education,” Koberl wrote.
Locally, this new expansion opens new doors for students across the Central Coast, especially for residents who cannot relocate to the main SLO campus.
Students across majors had mixed reactions to the expansion. For liberal studies senior Ruby Ventor, the move is a positive step towards equity.
“It’s such a great way to make education more accessible,” Ventor said. “Having the ability to have students who maybe can’t financially front the cost of Cal Poly is such a good thing.”
Another liberal studies senior, Kiona Spellman, said she would have considered the option if it had existed earlier.
“Being able to take it at a lower cost is so much nicer,” Spellman said. “Some of the upper divisions here are really hard to get into.”
However, not all students are convinced. Business administration junior and transfer student, Caleb Schick, worries the expansion could decrease the value of a Cal Poly degree.
“I think if you start lowering standards, it just kind of diminishes what it takes to get into [Cal Poly],” Schick said.
Once admitted, students in these programs are considered Cal Poly students and apply for financial aid through Cal Poly, just as other transfer students do, according to Koberl.
“The Bachelor’s Pathways programs at Cuesta and Allan Hancock will not affect the availability of courses offered at Cal Poly SLO’s campus,” Koberl wrote. “We anticipate that the Liberal Studies program may actually expand access by adding evening sections of majors and GE courses on Cuesta’s campus.”