AA/AS in Criminal Justice and Corrections

This program is delivered through the Criminal Justice Training Center, which is a regional facility on the Golden West College campus that prepares people for work in policing and related fields. Its stated aim is to give students educational and technical preparation that can support transfer to a university, entry into specialized jobs, or advancement within a career already underway. The center organizes its work into three main programs, each with its own delivery requirements yet connected to the others. Because the needs of the profession shift, the programs are kept flexible, and their content is shaped by agencies at the city, county, and state levels, acting together and separately. Training also has to keep pace with California's peace officer certification rules, which a state body for officer standards sets and revises over time. One of the offerings is the Specialized Investigators Basic Course, and the center also lists a police academy track, semester courses, short courses, and a law enforcement certificate option. A center coordinator handles inquiries.