Existing law provides that the University of California has the sole authority in public higher education to award doctoral degrees in all fields of learning, except that it may agree with the California State University to award joint doctoral degrees in selected fields. Existing law authorizes the California State University to offer doctoral programs in education, audiology, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and public health without agreement with the University of California.
AB 656 amends existing law to authorize the California State University to award professional or applied doctoral degrees statewide that do not duplicate University of California doctoral degrees and satisfy certain requirements. AB 656 requires a California State University campus seeking to offer a professional or applied doctoral degree program to submit specified information on the proposed doctoral degree for review by the office of the Chancellor of the California State University and approval by the Trustees of the California State University. Doctoral degrees approved by the Board of Trustees may be offered at any California State University campus but would limit the number of doctoral degree programs that may be offered at a California State University campus.
The bill further prohibits the Trustees of the California State University from approving more than 10 new doctoral degree disciplines per academic year.
(AB 656 repeals Section 66046.3 and adds Article 4.92 (commencing with Section 66046 of the Education Code) to Chapter 2 of Part 40 of Division 5 of Title 3 to the Education Code.)