Organization of the University

Organization of the University

The president is the chief executive officer of the university. He is appointed by the Oregon State Board of Higher Education, and is responsible for the overall leadership and direction of the university. The provost and executive vice president is the chief academic and operating officer and is responsible for the daily operations of the university.

In November 2009, four new divisions were created as part of OSU's Strategic Alignment and Budget Reduction Implementation Plan: the Division of Arts and Sciences, Division of Business and Engineering, Division of Earth Systems Science, and the Division of Health Sciences.

The academic programs of Oregon State University are divided among 11 colleges, the Graduate School, and the University Honors College, each with a dean responsible for all faculty, staff, students, and academic programs.

The 11 colleges are the College of Agricultural Sciences; College of Business; College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences; College of Education; College of Engineering; College of Forestry; College of Public Health and Human Sciences; College of Liberal Arts; College of Pharmacy; College of Science; and the College of Veterinary Medicine.

Colleges are divided into departments or schools administered by a department head, chair, or director. Each department may offer several programs of study leading to degrees, certificates, options, or minors requiring a specific group of courses for completion.

Some courses and programs described in the OSU General Catalog are offered throughout the year online and at a distance by OSU Ecampus. A list of online and distance education courses and programs are available on the Web at 

OSU Extended Campus also is home to OSU Summer Session, which serves more than 10,000 students annually on the Corvallis campus, online and at the OSU Hatfield Marine Science Center on the Oregon coast. Summer session courses are published annually in the OSU Summer Session Planning Guide and listed in the online schedule of classes.

his OSU General Catalog lists requirements for each program, as well as all regular courses offered by Oregon State University. A number of special temporary or 'X' courses are also offered each year and are listed in the online