Undergraduate Academic Forms
A Guide for Students
Who is a "Super Senior"?
Undergraduate students who have completed 36 or more units beyond the total units required for their degree
program objective are considered "Super Seniors."
For example, if you are enrolled in a degree program that requires 180 units, you become a Super Senior when 216 total units are earned. For the purpose of calculating total units, units transferred in from other institutions, in excess of 105 units, and units earned for pre- baccalaureate credit are excluded from the calculation.Advising and Course Enrollment for "Super Seniors"
If you are a Super Senior, you must meet with your college Super Senior advisor or major advisor to confirm
the remaining courses that are needed to graduate and to request that you be enrolled in one or more of these courses. These remaining courses are identified in the Academic Requirements displayed in the CSU Academic Advisement Report (CAAR) on GET. Once you have met with your college Super Senior advisor or major advisor, the courses will be listed under the Advisor Notes section in GET. The procedure for advisement and enrollment of Super Seniors is as follows:
Step 1: On
April 2, 2012, the Registrar’s Office will place a permanent hold on the records of all students who have attained Super Senior status as of winter quarter 2012. All Super Seniors will be informed via email that a hold has been placed on their registration and that they must schedule an appointment with their major advisor or the designated college Super Senior advisor in their college to add, drop or swap courses for Spring Quarter and all future quarters. The contact information for each college Super Senior advisor will be posted on the college website, which can be accessed from the University Academic Advisement Center webpage (http://www.calstatela.edu/univ/advise/).Step 2: By
April 23, 2012 (one week prior to the start of registration for summer quarter on April 30, 2012), Super Seniors must meet with the designated college Super Senior advisor or major advisor to review the remaining courses required for graduation.Step 3: After meeting with a Super Senior, the major advisor or college Super Senior advisor will record in the "Advisor Notes" the remaining courses for graduation as specified on the "Academic Requirements" page. This information will be forwarded to the student via email and can also be viewed in the CAAR in GET. Super Seniors will not be able to enroll in courses on their own and will need to submit requests to their advisors.
Step 4: The college Super Senior advisors will forward a list of Super Seniors and their needed courses to the Registrar’s Office prior to the start of enrollment for that quarter. Note: Super Seniors requesting additional course(s) beyond those needed for graduation will be required to obtain a permit to add the additional course(s) after the first class meeting on a space-available basis. A request must then be submitted for the college Super Senior advisor to enroll them in the classes for which they are permitted.
Step 5: The Drop procedure for Super Seniors requires students to meet with their college Super Senior advisor or major advisor so that the course or courses, if approved, may be dropped up until the 7th
day of instruction for the term. The advisor will also accordingly amend the CAAR "Academic Requirements." The college Super Senior advisor or major advisor will record the procedure in "Advisor Notes" and send a confirmation email. After the 7th day of instruction, the normal procedure for dropping courses will be used, upon advisor approval.Step 6: If Super Seniors fail to comply with the CAAR-specified agreement, these students will be put on administrative-academic probation and be required to meet with the associate dean of their college. Students who refuse to abide by the agreement after meeting with the college associate dean may be administratively
disqualified, as determined by the Dean of Undergraduate Studies.
Frequently Asked Questions
FAQs for Super Seniors
What is a Super Senior?
These are seniors who have completed at least 36 units beyond what is required for the degree in their major (at least one of their majors if they have two majors). For a student enrolled in a program that requires 180 units, the student becomes a Super Senior when 216 total units are earned. Note: units transferred from another institution in excess of 105 units are excluded from these unit limits.
What is the Super Senior Plan?
Super Seniors will have a permanent registration hold until they graduate and will be required to meet with an advisor each quarter to register for their remaining courses. They will be allowed to enroll in non-required courses only on a space-available basis after the first class meeting with a permit.
Why is the University implementing this plan?
The CSU system and Cal State L.A. are experiencing some difficult budget times. The University is committed to the graduation of our students in a timely manner so that the limited resources we have may be made available to more students.
Are Super Seniors being administratively graduated?
Super Seniors must complete all requirements for their degree. A student will be administratively graduated only if they have met the requirements for a degree.
What about double majors? What about students with minors?
All students are expected to graduate within the required number of units, regardless of the number of majors or minors. It is possible that a student will complete one major and be required to graduate before they are able to complete the second major or complete a minor.
Do Super Seniors have to complete their degree by a particular deadline?
There is no fixed deadline. However, it is expected that most students will complete their remaining requirements within one year or less.
Is there a penalty for not complying with the Super Senior guidelines?
Yes. A student who does not complete the remaining requirements as directed by an advisor will be put on administrative-academic probation and will be required to meet with their college associate dean. Students who continue not to complete requirements as directed by an advisor will be required to meet with the Dean of Undergraduate Studies and may then be disqualified from the university.
Who is the designated advisor?
In addition to the faculty department advisors and existing college staff advisors, the University has hired temporary staff advisors to assist Super Seniors in identifying and completing their remaining requirements. The contact information for the advisors in each department and college is posted on their websites, which are available from the UAAC website at
http://www.calstatela.edu/univ/advise/How does a super senior enroll in their remaining courses?
Super seniors will have a permanent registration hold placed on their record. To enroll in their remaining
courses, they must meet with a designated advisor to identify those courses to be taken in the upcoming and then subsequent quarters. The advisor will submit the identified courses for the upcoming quarter to the Registrar’s Office.
Can a super senior enroll in additional courses beyond those required for graduation?
Super Seniors requesting additional course(s) will be required to obtain a permit to add the additional course(s)
after the first class meeting on a space available basis. They will then need to submit a request to the staff
advisor to enroll them in the classes for which they are permitted.