[CSU] – Severe budget cuts over the past several years and the prospect of an additional $250 million trigger cut will limit new student applications to only 10 California State University campuses for the spring 2013 application period.  (California State University, Northridge is not among them – ed.) Applications to those campuses will be limited primarily to students who have earned an Associate Degree for Transfer from a California Community College.

“Providing access to a quality education for students of California continues to be a bigger challenge as ongoing reductions in state funding are forcing campuses to reduce enrollment to match the level of available funds,” said Ephraim Smith, CSU executive vice chancellor and chief academic officer.  “An additional mid-year cut could result in even further reductions to enrollment.  However, despite these challenges, students who earned an Associate Degree for Transfer will be admitted to a CSU campus.”

For the spring 2013 application period only Channel Islands, Chico, Fullerton, East Bay, Humboldt, Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Francisco and Sonoma will be accepting applications from prospective new students.  Students who have earned an Associate Degree for Transfer can begin submitting applications starting August 1, with the priority application period extending through August 31.

For the most current information on which campuses are accepting students, and at what level, please visit the CSUMentor status page.  Current and future applicants are also encouraged to visit CSUMentor to apply or find out more about CSU program offerings, financial aid and academic planning.

The 2012-13 state budget includes a mid-year trigger cut for the CSU depending on the outcome of Proposition 30 on the November ballot.  If voters reject the measure, the CSU will be cut by an additional $250 million.  In that event, the system will have lost almost $1.2 billion or 39 percent of its state support since 2007-08.  The passage of the measure would result in a flat budget for the CSU.  At their September meeting, CSU Trustees are expected to adopt a contingency plan to manage the potential trigger cut.  Options include strategies to reduce payroll costs, a “triggered” mid-year tuition fee increase, enrollment reductions, and other measures to generate additional revenue or reduce spending.

About California State University

The California State University is the largest system of senior higher education in the country, with 23 campuses, approximately 427,000 students and 44,000 faculty and staff. The CSU awards about 99,000 degrees annually and since its creation in 1961 has conferred nearly 2.6 million.