More High School Career Technical Education Courses Now Meet Rigorous California UC Standards

More than 10,000 high school career technical education (CTE) courses now meet the rigorous college preparatory course standards, known as “a-g,” that are used for admission at the University of California and California State University.

That’s nearly one-fourth of the 37,867 CTE courses in the state, according to a joint annual report issued recently by the California Department of Education and the University of California Office of the President. By comparison, only 258 courses met that standard in 2000-01.

This upward trend demonstrates today’s CTE courses do more than teach students a trade or specialized skill. They now blend in with a solid core of rigorous academic instruction to ensure students are ready for careers and college, if they choose, in preparation for the economy’s increasingly complex high-tech jobs.

The annual report, California High School Career Technical Education Courses Meeting University of California “a-g” Admission Requirements for 2011–12 (DOC), offers information on these CTE courses, which “a-g” requirement they meet, and where they are taught in California’s public schools.

For more information about the “a-g” requirements, visit the University of California’s “a-g” Guide. For lists of approved CTE courses, visit the University of California Doorways Web site.

These high school CTE courses include hundreds in the ICT space, primarily in the Business, Art, Media and Entertainment, and ROC/P sections!

These are great opportunities for community colleges to build articulation, dual/concurrent enrollment and ICT pathways!