Surgical Technology
American College of Healthcare and Technology · Riverside, CA
- Cost
- $24,995
- Length
- 78 weeks
- Working 6 months later
- 66%
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
- 254
- Finished the program
- 73%Based on 105 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
- 66%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
- Not reported
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.
Where California publishes a separate figure for Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA (Riverside and San Bernardino Counties), it appears beneath the statewide one. Statewide stays the headline: people who train here do not necessarily work here.
Surgical Technologists
Job ads may call this: Surgical Technician · Surgical Scrub Technician · Certified Surgical Technician · Operating Room Technician (OR Tech)
Some of what people in this job do. The Department rates how important each one is, and they appear in that order.
- Maintain a proper sterile field during surgical procedures.
- Count sponges, needles, and instruments before and after operation.
- Scrub arms and hands and assist the surgical team to scrub and put on gloves, masks, and surgical clothing.
- Prepare patients for surgery, including positioning patients on the operating table and covering them with sterile surgical drapes to prevent exposure.
Show 2 more things this job involves
- Provide technical assistance to surgeons, surgical nurses, or anesthesiologists.
- Hand instruments and supplies to surgeons and surgeons' assistants, hold retractors and cut sutures, and perform other tasks as directed by surgeon during operation.
- Typical pay in California
- $83,586per yearRiverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA: $79,082
- Projected openings
- 8,420Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA: 740
- Projected change
- +11.6%
- Usually needs
- Postsecondary non-degree award
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: Two-year degree — 41% of the people doing this work.
California says this job usually needs: Postsecondary non-degree award. That is not one of the steps below, so there is no way to count how many people meet it.
- No high school diploma
- 1%
- High school diploma
- 11%
- Started college, no degree
- 34%
- Two-year degree
- 41%
- Four-year degree
- 12%
- Master's degree
- 2%
- Doctorate or professional degree
- 0.5%
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. It is also measured on a different scale from “Usually needs” above, so the two cannot be subtracted from one another.
Program details
This is a hybrid or blended program providing both in-person and online instruction.
An AOS degree program delivered in a hybrid model that prepares individuals, under the supervision of physicians and surgical nurses, to maintain, monitor, and enforce the sterile field and adherence to aseptic technique by preoperative, surgical team, and postoperative personnel. Includes instruction in instrument and equipment sterilization and handling, surgical supplies management, wound exposure and closure, surgical computer and robot operation and monitoring, maintenance of hemostasis, and patient and team scrubbing. ACH Surgical Technology Program curriculum includes three (3) required Clinical Rotation/Clinical Conference courses totaling 580 hours, out of which 500 hours are completed through externships facilitated by the school in hospitals and surgical centers. As required by ABHES programmatic accreditation standards, students are required to take the Certified Surgical Technologist (CST) examination after completion of curricula content and prior to graduation. Although national certification is not a requirement for employment in California, ACH encourages students to become Certified Surgical Technologists upon graduation by providing preparation classes and testing on campus as an authorized testing center, and by paying for students' testing fees.
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
Rubidoux Youth Opportunity CenterAffiliate site
Phone: 951-683-9622
5656 Mission BlvdRiverside, CA 92509about 6.6 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
Riverside Workforce Development Center AJCCComprehensive center
Phone: 951-955-3100
1325 Spruce StreetSuite 110Riverside, CA 92507about 9.5 miles away
Hours: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm Closed Holidays
Has a veterans' representative
West Valley America`s Job Center of CaliforniaComprehensive center
Phone: 909-941-6500
9650 9th StreetWest Valley Workforce Development Department Suite ARancho Cucamonga, CA 91730about 13 miles away
Hours: Mon - Fri. 8:00a.m -5:00p.m
Has a veterans' representative
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 →