DeCal Courses in the English Department

What is a DeCal? 

DeCal classes, in a nutshell, are legitimate university classes run by students. The responsibility of such courses rests on the department chair, faculty member, and student facilitator, who all sign a contract of understanding before the DeCal is reviewed by COCI / the Academic Senate. A faculty member sponsors a student’s course as a 98 / 198 section. That faculty member, as far as the computer systems and transcripts are concerned, is the “instructor of record.” The student that runs the course can be viewed as the delegated instructor for the faculty sponsor. At the end of the semester, the student will provide grade “recommendations” for the faculty sponsor, who will then do the actual grade inputting. Grades are only offered as Pass / No Pass, and the academic credit for each class typically range from 1-2 units.

  • Student DeCal FAQ's available here 
  • What's the deal with DeCals

Students interested in leading a DeCal course in the English Department for the Fall 2025 academic semester must submit their application for review via: English Department DeCal Proposal Form by Friday, June 27, 2025.

Our first round of review will start Monday, May 26th. Applications can still be submitted until our Friday, June 27th deadline.

  • After you have submitted your CPF form via our internal Google form the department staff person for DeCals will email you to let you know whether it has approved your course for consideration by the Academic Senate's Committee on Courses of Instruction (COCI).
  • Once you receive the department's approval to teach your Decal you will then submit your CPF form to COCI. For Fall 2025, COCIs CPF submission portal opens on Monday, May 5th, and closes on Tuesday, July 15th, 2025. 

For planning purposes, please note that the DeCal proposal consists of the following:

  1. A completed Course Proposal Form 
  2. A syllabus
  3. A letter of support from a member of the English Department faculty
  • Please ensure you've completed the necessary training before submitting the proposal.
  • Only one facilitator is allowed to be listed on the Berkeley Academic Guide. This means only one facilitator will have grading access. Co-Facilitators will not be considered for course listings, however co-facilitators can still help run your course. 
  • Department staff person: Jasmine Valenzuela Please email valenzuelajazmine96@berkeley.edu if you have any questions regarding the English department's submission process and COCI submission process. 

    DeCals offered in the English Department

  • Spring 2025 English DeCals - Available to review; courses posted 1/24/25.
  • Fall 2024 English DeCals - Please view our September 2024 newsletter for the full list, posted on 8/28/24.