SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY
A Degree for the Working Adult

Application for Admission to BVE Program

This course of study is specifically intended for persons who currently teach, train, or supervise others in the workplace, who design and teach competency workshops or seminars, who teach vocational or continuing education courses, or who teach skills-based subjects to adults. The following represent the range of professionals who have benefited from this program of study leading to a bachelor's degree.

• ROP Instructors
• Law Enforcement Trainers and Instructors
• Fire Department Instructors
• Public Utility Educators
• Human Resources Program Managers and Trainers
• Health Occupations Instructors
• Adult Education/Community College Instructors
• Career and Vocational Counselors and Educators
• School-to-Career Special Education Teacher Aides
• Military Trainers
• Job Training Instructors+

Note: If you have been working in any of these fields for at least 7 years, have assisted others with obtaining or maintaining employment skills and have completed at least 60 semester units of transferable coursework, you may qualify for this unique and selective program. This program can award a qualified student up to 40 semester units of upper division academic credit for their professional and teaching experience, greatly reducing the time to degree completion.

Welcome

Thank you for your interest in Occupational and Adult Studies. We offer a Bachelor's Degree in Applied Arts and Sciences, with a major in Vocational Education. This Bachelor's Degree is a unique program offered only by select campuses of the California State University (CSU).

We also offer Designated Subjects Credential courses that meet the professional competencies specified by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing for holders of preliminary credentials in Adult and Vocational Education. These courses are approved by the San Diego Office of Education and partially meet the requirements to clear the preliminary credential. For more information go to Adult and Vocational Education Credential – Professional Development Courses.

We offer a graduate certificate in Workforce Education and Lifelong Learning for persons interested in advancement and leadership roles in the Occupational and Adult Studies field. For more information go to Certificate in Workforce Development and Lifelong Learning (C-WELL).

Note: The core courses required for the Bachelor's Degree and the Designated Subjects Credential courses are offered only through the SDSU College of Extended Studies. This allows greater scheduling flexibility for working adults.

Please contact our Program Advisors for further information or answers to specific degree questions.

Program History

The Bachelor's in Vocational Education degree program was introduced by California State Senator Swan in 1943 (Senate Bill 752) in an effort to assist Vocational Teachers in attaining their bachelor's degree without having to attend a full time academic program. The degree program awards upper division academic credit to qualified candidates for their professional and teaching experience. This degree is unique in the California State University (CSU) System as it is the only degree that will award academic credit for these career experiences. Besides the traditional Vocational Educator, the eligibility criteria for admittance into the program has been expanded to include public school systems (e.g., Regional Occupations Programs and Centers, Special Education personnel, adult schools, and community colleges), Employment Development Department (EDD), rehabilitation service providers, public safety agencies, public utilities, community-based organizations (CBOs), private career schools, military personnel, and private industry. The degree is available at San Diego State University and is offered through the Department of Administration, Rehabilitation, and Postsecondary Education. This degree offering utilizes a different, more compressed learning format than the traditional semester, and it allows SDSU to present the coursework in a manner that is most accessible to the working adult student.

Qualified candidates who hold this degree have been accepted to Graduate programs at SDSU in such areas as Rehabilitation Counseling and Educational Leadership.

Advisors

Dr. Stephen Barnes, the Academic Coordinator for the program, will assist you with the university application process, coursework schedule, development of a degree plan and advise you on general questions of official program status. He is also available if you have questions regarding your career goals and options.

SDSU Program Address:

Dr. Stephen F. Barnes
Program Advisor, Occupational and Adult Studies
Department of Administration, Rehabilitation, and
Postsecondary Education (ARPE)
3590 Camino Del Rio North
San Diego, California 92108
619-594-8806
Email: sbarnes@mail.sdsu.edu

 

Bachelor’s Degree In Vocational Education (BVE)

Minimum Qualifications for the degree program

1. Seven years of occupational experience (or a combination of education and work experience equivalent to seven years).

2. At least 1620 full-time or 1,000 part-time student contact hours of vocational teaching or training in an area that assists adults in obtaining or maintaining employment (i.e. School-to-Work Transition, in-service-training, employee supervision, military instructor, vocational educator, Rehabilitation practitioner, public service provider).

3. A minimum of 60 semester units (GE certified for the CSU) of baccalaureate-level college coursework that is transferable to the CSU system. (Consult the SDSU Catalog for specific course requirements applicable to upper division transfer students.)

4. Completion of seven core courses at SDSU in professional occupational teacher education:
   
   ARP 380, 381, 382, 499, 499, 565, and 568…………........................…21 units

5. Evaluation of occupational experience, teaching experience, and professional growth and development through the Swan Bill process (see Figure 1). Applicants apply to the Board of Examiners for Vocational Teachers, Bureau of Industrial Education, c/o Occupational Studies Department, College of Health and Human Services, CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, LONG BEACH, 1250 Bellflower Blvd., E-TEC 224, Long Beach, CA 90840-5601.
   
   These units count toward the major and are classified as upper division units……………………………………….........................….40 units maximum

6. Completion of 30 units of upper division coursework taken at SDSU, including the six core courses listed above and 9 additional units of General Education from Natural Sciences (3 units), Social and Behavioral Sciences (3 units), and Humanities (3 units).

7. Completion of the upper division writing requirement and all other graduation requirements.

8. Enrollment during the semester of graduation.

Total Units Required for B.A in Vocational Education ..………..……..120 units

Note: Please submit all documents to a Program Advisor for review and determination of specific selection/eligibility criteria.

Academic Advising Information & Resources

•Application for Admission to BVE Program

• SDSU home page
http://www.sdsu.edu/

• SDSU Transfer Student Info Page (Prospective Students)
http://www.sdsu.edu/prospective.html

• Transfer Admission Planner
https://sunspot.sdsu.edu/pubred/!tap.disp

• CSU Mentor
http://www.csumentor.edu/

• California Clearinghouse for Adult and Vocational Education

http://interwork.sdsu.edu/courses/bve/clearinghouse/index.html

Description of Coursework

ARP 201

Introductory Statistics and Research Design for Education (3 units)

Understanding, interpreting, and applying educational research in natrual settings. (Meets General Education Quantitative Reasoning requirement.)

ARP 301
Introduction to the BVE Program (3 units)
Individual study in vocational and adult education. Course assists students with SDSU admissions and graduation requirements, preparation and submission of Swan Bill application, and career exploration.

ARP 380
Principles of Adult and Vocational Education (3 units)
Principles, practice, scope, and functions of vocational education.

ARP 381
Developing Adult and Vocational Education (3 units)
Needs assessment, task analysis, formulation of objectives, lesson plans, instructional techniques and evaluation in adult vocational settings.

ARP 382
Directed Teaching (2-4 units)
Systematic observation, participation, and teaching under supervision in an occupational subject matter field.

ARP 480
Instructional Media and Technology for Vocational Instructors (3 units)
An introduction to instructional media, multimedia, and technology for adult and vocational education applications.

ARP 565
Psychological Foundations of Adult and Vocational Education (3 units)
Learning processes of adult and vocational education in relationship to theories of learning and methods of teaching.

ARP 568
Adult and Vocational Education in Contemporary Society (3 units)
Contemporary adult and vocational education in the U.S., including learning opportunities and environments, instructional delivery systems, and adult learning models.

ARP 596 (Special Topics)

Applied Critical Thinking for Adult Learners (3 units)

Skills-based course that seeks to enrich adult experiences through systematic questioning, structured problem-solving, and simple risk analysis. (course syllabus)

Swan Bill

The BVE Degree in California is the result of legislation proposed by the late Senator John Harold Swan, and approved by the California State Legislature in 1943. It recognized the need for a baccalaureate degree program that included credit for career experience. Today, qualifying students in the BVE program at SDSU who have worked full-time in their occupational area for at least seven years, have full-time (1625 hours) or part-time teaching or training experience (1000 hours), and exhibit professional growth through coursework and other documented activities can receive up to 40 units of upper division college credit (authorized by State Education Code, Sections 89220, 89221, 89222 and 89223). To receive these credit units, students must prepare and submit a Swan Bill Application to the Board of Examiners for Vocational Teachers. Students will be instructed and assisted in preparing their Swan Bill Application in connected with one of the required “core courses,” ARP 499 – Special Study.

Figure 1 below summarizes graphically the Swan Bill Application evaluation factors. For Occupational Experience, qualifying BVE students can receive up to 22 semester units for their occupational experience; up to 10 semester units for their student Teaching Experience; and up to 8 semester units for their Professional Growth and Development.

Click here for SWAN Bill OVERVIEW

Click here for SWAN Bill Preparation Guide

Click here for Swan Bill Application