Software @ Cal Poly
- Frank Gonzales
- Saanika Medishetty
- Mitashi Parikh
Looking for software to help with administrative tasks, teaching, or learning? Cal Poly offers three types of software available to campus based on academic, business, or personal use. It is up to the faculty member, staff, or student to determine which type of license applies and which procurement process to follow. A breakdown can be found below...
What's the Difference Between Academic, Business, or Personal
Software Use?
Academic Use
Software is for teaching and learning. Titles are available at no or low-cost through the Cal Poly Software Hub.
What would be an example of academic use?
A Faculty member will be teaching a course and SolidWorks is a required tool. This software title is available for the students and Faculty at no charge.
Personal Use
Some software titles are available through Kivuto OnTheHub and can be available at discounted prices.
What situation would qualify as personal use?
A Faculty member would like to use Adobe Creative Cloud for a hobby outside their normal commitments to coursework.
Business Use
Software is used by a unit/org/college etc and should follow Cal Poly’s procurement process. Licenses for some enterprise software packages used by Cal Poly are managed by ITS and immediately available to Campus.
What scenario would be deemed as business use?
A Staff member would like to purchase a DropBox license for departmental storage needs not met by Sharepoint or Onedrive.
What if I use the software for personal then business?
Say a Faculty member would like to use Adobe Creative Cloud for a hobby outside their normal commitments to coursework. The Faculty member then realizes Adobe Creative Cloud would be a great tool for their department, since they have a backlog of graphic arts work to complete. In this case, the personal copy can still be used for the hobby but the procurement process should be followed when purchasing and installing for the department.
Please visit the Academic Use Software article for a list of eligible titles and how to install them.
NOTICE:
ITS makes these titles available to further learning, teaching, and doing. It is up to the faculty, staff member or student to use the application responsibly and for its intended use.
In accordance with the Cal Poly Responsible Use Policy, all software installed on Cal Poly-managed workstations and personal devices used for university business must be used in compliance with the licensing agreement established with the vendor. For example, licenses designated for academic use only should be used solely for academic purposes.[JV1] [SJ2]
If a desired software title is not available, please use the Install or License Software ticket to request a consultation.
Related content
Request Support | 805-756-7000 | Service Catalog
Site Map | Privacy Notice | Web Accessibility Statement | © 2025 California Polytechnic State University