Early Childhood Education Associate Teacher (Online)

Cost: $2,680
Length: 24 weeks
Working 6 months later: 35%

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

People enrolled: 1,000

Finished the program: 100%Based on 394 peopleTypical California program: 85% of 1,951 reportingThat median pools every California program that reported this measure, whatever its length, credential, or field, and leaves out the ones that reported nothing. It is a reference point, not a rating of this program.
Working 6 months later: 35%Typical California program: 69% of 1,690 reportingThat median pools every California program that reported this measure, whatever its length, credential, or field, and leaves out the ones that reported nothing. It is a reference point, not a rating of this program.
Earnings in one quarter after: $10,500A single quarter of earnings, roughly three months, not a yearly salary. Do not compare it directly with the yearly pay shown for the occupation.Typical California program: $10,900 of 1,339 reportingThat median pools every California program that reported this measure, whatever its length, credential, or field, and leaves out the ones that reported nothing. It is a reference point, not a rating of this program.

The jobs 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.

Shrinking -0.4%
California projects this job will shrink over the next ten years. Fewer openings may mean a harder search.

Trains for more than one job. The outlook shown is the weakest of them.

Where California publishes a separate figure for Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD (Los Angeles County), it appears beneath the statewide one. Statewide stays the headline: people who train here do not necessarily work here.

Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education

Job ads may call this: Teacher · Group Teacher · Infant Teacher · Nursery Teacher

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

Teach basic skills, such as color, shape, number and letter recognition, personal hygiene, and social skills.
Provide a variety of materials and resources for children to explore, manipulate, and use, both in learning activities and in imaginative play.
Establish and enforce rules for behavior and procedures for maintaining order.
Adapt teaching methods and instructional materials to meet students' varying needs and interests.

Show 4 more things this job involves

Serve meals and snacks in accordance with nutritional guidelines.
Attend to children's basic needs by feeding them, dressing them, and changing their diapers.
Meet with parents and guardians to discuss their children's progress and needs, determine their priorities for their children, and suggest ways that they can promote learning and development.
Organize and lead activities designed to promote physical, mental, and social development, such as games, arts and crafts, music, storytelling, and field trips.

Typical pay in California: $48,727per yearLos Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD: $45,794
Projected openings: 80,570Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD: 14,860
Projected change: +13.1%
Usually needs: Associate'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 — 35% of the people doing this work.

California says this job usually needs: Associate's degree. 33% of the people doing it went less far than that.

No high school diploma: 2%
High school diploma: 14%
Started college, no degree: 18%
Two-year degree: 12%
Four-year degree: 35%
Master's degree: 18%
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.

Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary

Pay, hiring, and what people studied

The Department publishes no description and no task list for this job. That is a gap in the federal record, not a sign that the work is unusual.

These figures describe a wider group of jobs
California publishes no separate pay or openings figures for the occupation this program trains for (25-9042 and 25-9043). The federal classification it follows counts that work together with several related jobs under Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary, because they cannot be measured apart, so the pay, openings and projected change below belong to the combined group. Read them as the range this job sits inside, not as a figure for the job itself.

Typical pay in California: $47,791per yearLos Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD: $46,690
Projected openings: 208,890Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD: 49,750
Projected change: -0.4%
Usually needs: Not shown for this programCalifornia does publish a usual entry requirement for Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary, but it is one answer for the whole group and can name a degree this program's own occupation never asks for. It is left out here rather than shown beside a program it may not describe. That is this site's decision, not something the provider failed to report.

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.

What people in this job actually studied

Most common: High school diploma — 26% of the people doing this work.

No high school diploma: 5%
High school diploma: 26%
Started college, no degree: 21%
Two-year degree: 15%
Four-year degree: 23%
Master's degree: 8%
Doctorate or professional degree: 2%

Program details

This program provides online instruction, e-learning, or distance learning only.

The UCLA Extension Associate Teacher Certificate program equips students with the foundational knowledge needed to become an Associate Teacher in a preschool or child care setting, for children birth to five years. This online certificate program meets the 12 ECE/CD semester units needed for the California CTC Associate Teacher permit. This program is perfect for Individuals preparing for a teaching role in early childhood education and care (ECE), Professionals who need the Associate Teacher ECE/CD coursework requirements for California Title 5 and Title 22 regulations and Child Development permits, Teachers with a Multiple Subjects teaching credential who need to meet Transitional Kindergarten (TK) requirements, Care providers seeking an in-depth understanding of their childs development and how to best encourage growth through the various stages of early childhood.

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

West LA WorkSource Center/ AJCCComprehensive center
Phone: 310-309-6000
5446 Sepulveda BoulevardCulver City, CA 90230about 5 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Has a veterans' representative
West Adams WorkSource CenterComprehensive center
Phone: 323-293-6284
2900 Crenshaw Blvd.AADAPLos Angeles, CA 90016about 5.9 miles away
Hours: 9:00am-6:00pm Monday-Friday
South Los Angeles - WorkSource CenterComprehensive center
Phone: 562-445-3673
5343 Crenshaw BlvdLos Angeles, CA 90043about 7.3 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm

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 →