Biotechnology Certificate of Achievement

Cost: $3,568
Length: 68 weeks
Working 6 months later: Not reported

Program names, program descriptions and occupation titles appear here in English, because that is the only language the federal and state records publish them in. Everything else on this page is translated.

What happened to people who took this

No outcomes reported for this program

About a third of California programs report nothing. That is a fact about the program's reporting, not evidence that it works or does not.

The job this trains for

This describes the jobs people do, not the classes this program teaches. It comes from the U.S. Department of Labor, which asks people already doing the work. The Department publishes it in English only, so the job names and the sentences below stay in English on this page.

No regional figures for this program's city

Aptos is not one of the metropolitan or rural areas California names when it publishes wages and openings. A neighbouring area's figures would look exactly like a correct answer, so none are shown and the statewide figures stand alone. About half of California's programs are in this position.

Biological Technicians

Job ads may call this: Research Assistant · Research Associate · Research Specialist · Research Technician

Some of what people in this job do. The Department rates how important each one is, and they appear in that order.

Conduct research, or assist in the conduct of research, including the collection of information and samples, such as blood, water, soil, plants and animals.
Use computers, computer-interfaced equipment, robotics or high-technology industrial applications to perform work duties.
Participate in the research, development, or manufacturing of medicinal and pharmaceutical preparations.
Monitor and observe experiments, recording production and test data for evaluation by research personnel.

Show 2 more things this job involves

Analyze experimental data and interpret results to write reports and summaries of findings.
Provide technical support and services for scientists and engineers working in fields such as agriculture, environmental science, resource management, biology, and health sciences.

Typical pay in California: $73,440per year
Projected openings: 11,820
Projected change: +10.1%
Usually needs: Bachelor's degree

Getting in

Experience needed first: None
Training after you are hired: None

No earlier job experience is expected, and new hires are not put through a long training period. For work like this, a program is usually the way in.

These are the federal government's answers for the occupation, not rules this provider sets. California publishes the same two answers for every one of these jobs.

What people in this job actually studied

Most common: Four-year degree — 38% of the people doing this work.

California says this job usually needs: Bachelor's degree. 51% of the people doing it went less far than that.

No high school diploma: 4%
High school diploma: 13%
Started college, no degree: 21%
Two-year degree: 12%
Four-year degree: 38%
Master's degree: 9%
Doctorate or professional degree: 2%

This counts people already doing this job, across the whole United States. Every other figure on this page is California's, and the federal government publishes no state version of this one. It is what people happen to have, not a rule about who gets hired. A small row does not mean you would be turned away, and a large one is not a promise of a job.

Program details

This is a hybrid or blended program providing both in-person and online instruction.

The Biotechnology Certificate of Achievement provides the student with skills and job training essential for the field of biotechnology. Jobs include technical positions in genetic engineering, forensics, bioinformatics, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and medicine. This certificate program allows students to attain essential skills in biotechnology and provides opportunities to learn laboratory procedures and safety, how to record and analyze data, perform basic calculations and write laboratory documents. Students also learn about careers and ethical issues in biotechnology. Career options: careers for those with a Biotechnology Certificate of Achievement would be assay analyst, laboratory assistant or technician, manufacturing technician, QA/QC technician. Jobs for technicians may be found in environmental testing labs, forensic labs, hospitals, plant culturing labs, research labs and wineries.

Provider's website →

Someone else may be able to pay for this

This program was on California's Eligible Training Provider List when the state last reported it to the U.S. Department of Labor (2026-08-04). Programs on that list can be paid for through an Individual Training Account. Listings are renewed periodically and can lapse, so a program listed when the state last reported may not be listed today. Ask before you rely on it.

The place to ask is an America's Job Center of California

A comprehensive center is where all the required partner programs can be reached; an affiliate site offers some of them. California's Employment Development Department directs people to CareerOneStop's finder to locate one. Contacting a center before traveling is worth it — the state notes that its own staff are not physically present at every location.

The rule: 20 CFR 678.305 — What is a comprehensive one-stop center? · 20 CFR 678.310 — What is an affiliated site? · California EDD — Office Locator

Capitola Career Center - America`s Job Center of California (AJCC)Affiliate site
Phone: 831-464-6286
2045 40th AvenueSuite BCapitola, CA 95010about 5.5 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 5:00pm
Has a veterans' representative
SCCOE - Suenos Youth Program ServicesAffiliate site
Phone: 831-466-5672
229 Green Valley RoadSequoia SchoolsFreedom, CA 95019about 6.9 miles away
Hours: Monday-Friday 9a.m.-5p.m.
Santa Cruz County, Workforce, Watsonville Career CenterComprehensive center
Phone: 831-763-8933
500 Westridge DriveCounty of Santa Cruz, South County Government CenterWatsonville, CA 95076about 7.9 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm Closed 12:00 noon - 1pm

Distances are straight-line, so the drive is longer. Call before you travel: opening hours here are as the federal directory published them, and the state notes its own staff are not present at every location.

Find a center anywhere in California, and check what is on the list today:
CareerOneStop — American Job Center Finder (U.S. DOL) · California EDD — Office Locator · California EDD — Eligible Training Provider List

How this gets paid for, and what to ask →

Whether a person can have a program paid for is decided by their local workforce development board and the America's Job Center staff who interview them — not by this site, and not by the training provider. California has 45 local workforce development areas and each sets its own policies, so the answer can differ between two people in neighboring counties. Nothing here is a promise of funding or a determination of eligibility.

The rules cited here, and the state and federal sites linked to, are published in English.

How this site gets its figures, and what they do not tell you →