Las Positas College now offers two new tuition-free, noncredit business certificates: the Customer Service Certificate and the Small Business Management Certificate. Anyone over the age of 18 can earn both certificates by taking seven courses in 15 weeks. A registration fee of only $41 per semester includes all classes, which are provided online.

“These new certificate programs offer practical, real-world skills that help people gain confidence, build their professionalism, and advance their careers,” according to Business Studies Professor Drew Patterson. “Students learn valuable soft skills that all employers look for in job candidates.” Patterson adds that both programs help prepare students for college-level courses in business.

The Customer Service Certificate helps students learn work skills all employers want, according to Las Positas. Taking classes for this certificate will help students prepare for workplace readiness or advance their careers by building skills in interviewing, managing, decision-making, and working with others. Courses for this certificate include Attitude in the Workplace, Decision Making and Problem Solving, Customer Service, Team Building, and Time Management.

Employment opportunities from attaining this certificate include working in fields related to retail, customer service, marketing, sales, management, and small business, Pattern says. “The skills taught in these classes are soft skills which have been identified from our advisory board, local employers, and Bureau of Labor Statistics as valuable and desirable. In addition to a traditional career, this will prepare students for the gig economy.”

The Small Business Management Certificate program teaches students about operating, managing, and growing a small business. Students benefit from real-life small business management cases and projects, according to Patterson, and the classes will help them develop the business acumen and technical expertise needed to launch a new enterprise, take over an existing business, or make a difference in an organization.

After earning the Small Business Management Certificate, students will be prepared to launch new enterprises, assume responsibility for existing businesses, or work as a manager in others’ organizations, according to the college. “Additional employment opportunities include working in fields related to management, marketing, sales, operations, and entrepreneurship. It is estimated by the Department of Labor and the Small Business Administration that 80% of new jobs are initially created by small businesses.”

In addition to fulfilling requirements for a certificate, the two courses are great stand-alone courses for freelancers, small business owners, and entrepreneurs, according to Patterson. While classes have already begun for the spring semester, potential students are encouraged to enroll this coming autumn.

To apply and register for Las Positas classes, please visit www.laspositascollege.edu.

For more information about continuing education, or noncredit classes, please visit www.laspositascollege.edu/programs/noncredit.php.

For more information about the Customer Service Certificate program, please visit www.laspositascollege.edu/degrees/customerservice-certificateofcompletion.php.

For more information about the Small Business Management Certificate program, please visit www.laspositascollege.edu/degrees/smallbusinessmanagement-certificateofcompletion.php.