Entrepreneurship and Small Business Certificate of Achievement

Students pursuing the Entrepreneurship and Small Business Certificate of Achievement will learn the fundamentals of small business planning and management. The certificate is designed to prepare students for the challenges they may encounter in establishing and operating a small business.

Program Learning Outcomes:

1. Develop a viable business plan and venture creation plan.

2. Assess market and competitive alternatives and develop marketing strategies.

3. Develop strategies to create value for both the customers and the organization.

4. Develop and assess financial plans for start-up capital and operations.

Upon completion students will be able to a) critically evaluate business plans and describe the processes required to establish, b) operate and measure the viability of a small business, c) assess and analyze costs and revenues of a small business and d) comprehend the dynamics and operations of an e-commerce business.

Our Entrepreneurship/Small Business program is projected to have an enrollment of 25-35 students/year with 10-15 completing the certificate annually.

Cabrillo College is seeking approval from the Chancellor’s Office to convert our existing Entrepreneurship and Small Business Skills Certificate to a Certificate of Achievement.  The Entrepreneurship and Small Business Certificate of Achievement is designed to educate and provide skills to students to either open their own business, as well as work in the business fields of management, marketing, sales and business planning in a variety of business professions. The need for those understanding entrepreneurship and small business has been advocated for by local and regional businesses both large and small, and is supported by current, regional labor market research (TOP 0506.40).  

The Entrepreneurship and Small Business Certificate of Achievement is aligned with Cabrillo’s mission, master plan, and statewide community college work in Guided Pathways.  Approval of this program will benefit regional employers, fulfill business needs of the local community, augment college enrollment, and support non-traditional and underserved minority students in a viable career and academic path. This program would give our students the knowledge and skills they need to gain acceptance to a four-year institution or excel in the workforce. 

The goal is for certificate completers to be gainfully employed by the 4th fiscal quarter, whether they continued with a AA/AS degree or transferred to a university. Working with employers to identify earning potential is promising, with potential for a starting salary of $62,000 - $183,000/yr in jobs such as business operations specialists, marketing managers, financial managers, plus general and operations managers. It is critical to give Community College students educational and professional experience that is necessary to be successful when they transfer to earn a degree or certificate in other business professions.

The 9 required units for the Entrepreneurship and Small Business Certificate of Achievement include the following core courses: Advertising For Small Business, Starting and Operating a New Small Business, and Starting and Operating an Ecommerce Business. There are 3 elective classes required of various units for a total of between 9-12 elective units. There are no prerequisites for the coursework or the program.  Competencies and proficiencies will be obtained through a number of experiences in the classroom and labs.

Course	Title	Units	Year/Semester (Y1 or S1)
BUS20	Intro to Business	3	Y1, S1
BUS88	Starting and Operating a New Small Business	3	Y1,S1
BUS89	Starting and Operating an eCommerce Business	3	Y1, S2
Electives: ACCT151, BUS18, BUS50, BUS52, BUS82, or FIN4		9-12	Y1, S1 and S2

The Entrepreneurship and Small Business Certificate of Achievement is an interdisciplinary program in the Business Department at Cabrillo College. The majority of core courses and elective classes are in marketing, advertising, entrepreneurship and communications. Likewise, the Entrepreneurship and Small Business Certificate of Achievement can be a stepping stone for students to pursue other degrees at Cabrillo College, including other business or accounting professions. The Business and Accounting departments collaborated with Strong Workforce Development and local business professionals to launch the program.

Cabrillo has modeled our Entrepreneurship and Small Business Certificate of Achievement program to be consistent with similar programs in the California Community College system. We hope to promote entrepreneurship and small business training to our students and continue to develop strong workforce professionals in this area. The sequencing of courses is designed to prepare students to be successful when they transfer to a university to continue their education or join the workforce at entry level positions. Furthermore, program content and program mapping have been chosen based on student needs. Based on all available LMI data, the State of California will be short 1.1 million college graduates for economic demand by 2030. There is high demand for business occupations and business skills in the Bay region and in the SC-Monterey sub-region (Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz Counties). The annual gap between demand and supply is about 6,660 students in the Bay region and 703 students in the SC-Monterey sub-region. Though being an independent business owner does not require a college degree, the business skills can be brought to other occupations which do require a Bachelor’s degree. This LMI report also provides student outcomes data on employment and earnings for programs on TOP 0506.40 - Small Business and Entrepreneurship in the state and region. It is recommended that this data be reviewed to better understand how outcomes for students taking courses on this TOP code compare to potentially similar programs at colleges in the state and region, as well as to outcomes across all Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs at Cabrillo College and in the region. This certificate is not limited to only students pursuing a business degree, but any profession or degree under the Business and Accounting umbrella.