Types of Education - Community Colleges / Technical Colleges

This page merely provides an overview of the subject matter. To learn more, please visit the web sites found on the Resources page.

Key Points

• Community colleges and publicly supported technical colleges are a bargain, especially if you live in the same state as the college. In fact, their per-credit-hour tuition fees are perhaps the lowest of any education type.
• They are everywhere, with over 1200 schools nationwide - so there's probably one close to you.
• They specialize in 2-year degrees, less than 2-year certificate programs, and non-degree classes and training.
• They are open admission, although some programs have course pre-requisites.
• They are all non-profit, public institutions.
• Community colleges are sometimes called junior colleges.
• Technical colleges are sometimes called technical institutes, vocational schools, or simply institutes.

What Are You Going to Do After High School?

Have you thought about going to a community college or a technical college? Community and technical colleges are attractive for many reasons: an open admissions policy, a wide range of course offerings, low tuition, and flexible class schedules (nearly 50 percent of their students work full time). Combined, these factors help to keep higher education within the reach of many Americans.

One of the goals of community and technical colleges is to respond to local business needs. Community and technical colleges keep abreast of these needs and then offer classes that focus on locally in-demand skills. By taking these classes, both full-time students and those who are currently employed can upgrade their skills and become more valuable to local employers.

The American economy is constantly changing. In fact, some studies indicate that the average American will change careers 3-5 times in his or her lifetime. As a result, many "career changers" use community and technical colleges as a means to enter completely new fields.

So What's in a Name? - Differences between Community and Technical Colleges

Community Colleges

Community colleges traditionally offer 2-year Associate's degrees, non-degree certificate programs, and general knowledge classes. However, community colleges can also serve as a cost-effective substitute for the first two years of a 4-year college education.

In this scenario, students take "core curriculum" liberal arts, business, and general education courses and thereby acquire transfer credits. These credits are then accepted by more expensive 4-year colleges and universities. To provide some assurance that the transfer credits will be accepted, community colleges often enter into formal agreements with 4-year colleges.

However, as with any such agreement, the "devil is in the details," and you should always make sure that the specific transfer credits you are acquiring will be accepted by the specific 4-year college(s) of choice. For example, some 4-year college and university programs may require you to achieve a specific grade point average (GPA) for the transfer credits to be accepted, whereas other colleges may not have this requirement.

Technical Colleges

Technical colleges teach the specific skills required for entry-level employment in a particular trade or technical occupation. They focus on providing "education and training to employment," and offer courses designed to properly prepare students for specific jobs.

Technical college programs vary widely in length and may range from three months to two years, depending on the requirements of the trade or occupation. Upon completing a program, students typically receive a credential of some sort, whether a certificate of completion, an industry certification, or other credential.

The focuses of technical colleges can vary greatly. Some offer training for a wide range of occupations, some focus on a particular industry - such as automotive repair - while others offer training for just a single occupation - such as Registered Nurse.

The publicly-funded technical colleges within each state tend to offer the same cost advantages as the state's community colleges. Since many technical college programs are fairly brief, students can often begin earning a paycheck sooner rather than later.

Unlike courses offered by community colleges, the courses offered by technical colleges typically do not result in transfer credits that might be accepted by 4-year schools. This has nothing to do with the value of these courses but rather the intent of the courses - which is to provide the skills and credentials needed for immediate employment in a particular job.

Combined Technical and Community Colleges

As the name implies, these colleges offer a mix of community college and technical college programs and courses.

How Can I Find Educational Programs, Certifications and Apprenticeships?

Once you are on the Education page of a specific occupation, you will be able to search for educational programs, certifications, and apprenticeship sponsors related to that occupation.

For help with federal employment and training programs call 1-877-US2-JOBS (1-877-872-5627) TTY 1-877-TTY-JOBS (1-877-887-5627)