The lack of English language skills will not be a barrier to enrollments in Career and Technical Education programs.

Posibles dificultades con el inglés no son una barrera para matricularse en programas de carreras académicas o educación técnica.

Career and Technical Education (CTE) Curricula

Santa Barbara City College offers a variety of programs and courses in Career and Technical Education leading to Skills Competency and Departmental Award programs, Certificates of Achievement and two-year Associate in Science Degree programs. Subject areas include Business Education, Health and Human Services, Media Arts, Drafting/CAD/Interior Design, Culinary Arts and Hotel Management, Environmental Horticulture, Construction Technologies, Water Science, Computer Network Engineering and Electronics, Marine Diving Technologies and Auto Technologies. Specific award, certificate or degree programs in these occupational areas are listed in the “Programs of Study” table in this Catalog. 

Specialty programs in Cooperative Education and job-site training allow students to combine classroom studies with on-the-job experiences. The main thrust of career and Technical Education is to provide the student with entry-level job skills for a smooth and productive transition to the workplace. Although the requirements in the majors are generally fixed, students have a wide range of courses from which to choose in meeting General Education requirements. Counselors should be consulted for variations and assistance with planning programs.

Cooperative Work Experience

Santa Barbara City College offers two types of Cooperative Work Experience—General Work Experience and Career and Technical Education Work Experience:

Career and Technical Education Work Experience combines on-the-job training with classroom instruction, enabling the student to acquire knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to enter and/or progress in a chosen occupation. Class attendance in a regularly scheduled weekly coordinating class is required by some SBCC departments.

For each semester that a student is enrolled in Cooperative Work Experience, it is required that the student provide evidence of new or expanded responsibilities or learning opportunities beyond those experienced during previous employment. Satisfactory completion of specific job-oriented learning objectives is required for determining the student’s progress and improvement of performance on the job.

By satisfactorily completing a Work Experience course, a student may earn from 1-4 college units. A maximum of 16 Work Experience units may be applied as electives toward the 60 units required for an Associate in Arts or an Associate in Science Degree.

Credits are based on the number of hours worked during the semester: 1 credit = 75 paid hours or 60 volunteer hours.

Prerequisites for Career and Technical Education Work Experience Courses

The Occupational Work Experience class must be directly related to the student’s stated major and the college program in which he/she is enrolled.

Career and Technical Education Departments Offering Work Experience

• ADN Nursing
• Addictive Disorders Counseling
• Automotive Service and Technology
• Business Administration
• Computer Information Systems
• Drafting/CAD
• Early Childhood Education
• Environmental Horticulture
• Finance
• Graphic Design and Photography
• Interior Design
• Journalism
• Medical Imaging Sciences
• Multimedia Arts and Technologies
• School of Culinary Arts and Hotel Management
• School of Justice Studies

Job Referral Services

The Career Center receives numerous job orders from employers in the community and provides referrals for full- and part-time jobs and internships. It also provides a website listing information on all on-campus student jobs and maintains an online job referral system. Every spring the center sponsors an annual Job Fair that invites local employers and allows students to learn about career opportunities and to apply for job openings. Additional information about job referral is available at the Career Center, located in the Business Center Building, Room 221, or by calling (805) 730-4131.