Engineering Department - Cabrillo College

Engineering Program Information

Cabrillo College offers a comprehensive engineering program that prepares students for transfer with full junior standing to four-year engineeering colleges in California and across the United States.

Presently, California universities that grant BS degrees in engineering count on community colleges to provide approximately 50% of their junior class.

Engineering News & Announcements

Have a STEM Summer!

Apply for Cabrillo College’s
STEM Summer Program
(for College and High School Students)

Through the use of hands-on projects, class discussions, videos, tours and speakers from industry, students in the STEM summer program will explore the many options of science, computer, and engineering careers.

Summer 2013: 4-weeks, July 29 - August 23, 2013; Mon-Fri 9:00 am - 12:00 pm
Location: Rm 715 on Cabrillo’s Aptos Campus

On-Line Application Form

Download Application (pdf)

Curious about a Career in Engineering?

Attend Cabrillo College’s
ENGR 5 Engineering as a Profession course
(for College and High School Students)

Through the use of class discussions, videos, tours, design projects, and speakers from industry, ENGR 5 students will explore the many options of an engineering career.

Summer 2013: 2-week course, July 15-July 25, 2013; Mon-Thr 9:30 am - 1:45 pm
Fall 2013 Semester: Thursdays, 2:30 - 4:30 pm
Spring 2014 Semester: Thursdays, 1:45 - 3:45 pm or 4:00 - 6:00 pm
Location: Rm 715 on Cabrillo’s Aptos Campus

Orientation to Cabrillo's Engineering Program

Fall 2013 Semester: Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Spring 2014 Semester: Tuesday, January 21, 2014
6:00 – 8:00 pm --- Room 715, Cabrillo's Aptos Campus

The engineering faculty will describe Cabrillo's engineering program, review the engineering courses, and advise you on which classes to take.

What is Engineering?

Engineering Education

Engineering Department Scholarships

Due Date: Wednesday, March 6, 2013 at 3:00 pm. Details contained on application:

PDF format Application

New Incoming Freshman - What should you take?

First Semester At Cabrillo:

MATH (the Math course you assess into)
ENGLISH (the English course you assess into)
ENGR 5 (see above - Curious about a Career in Engineering?)
ENGR 25
Take CHEM 2 if you have not taken high school Chemistry or you received a C or below
OR
Take CHEM 1A if you took high school Chemistry and received an A or B

Middle + High School Summer Programs

Baskin Girls in Engineering: Program for middle school girls to learn about engineering through hands-on projects.

Cabrillo College Extension Programs: Program for middle schoolers to learn about engineering (and science) through hands-on projects.

Girls in Engineering
Boys in Engineering
Integrated Science/Engineering for Girls and Boys

Cabrillo College ENGR 5: Course for college and high school students to explore careers in engineering.

Engineering Abroad Program: January 2014, Guatemala

Apply to be a particpant in Cabrillo's first
engineering abroad program!

We will collaborate on the design and installation of a rainwater collection/ retention system for a 120-family village outside of Antiqua, Guatemala.

The trip is scheduled for December 30, 2013 - January 13, 2014
(actual travel dates may shift 2-3 days at the beginning and/or end of the trip)

Application material is due on Friday, May 24, 2013 at 4:00 pm.

Application Process and Requirements

On-line Application

About Engineering Program

Cabrillo College's engineering program began in 1960, the second year of the college's operation. Cabrillo is the only community college in the tri-county area (Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Benito) that presents a complete lower division engineering program. The program presently transfers more than 50 students each year into the engineering pipeline.

Cabrillo's engineering program provides the facilities, equipment and teaching faculty to present the very finest lower division engineering education to the greatest number of students, so they can transfer and successfully complete a degree in engineering. This program is the integral part of the Cabrillo's college-wide transfer mission and is highly respected by the four-year engineering colleges throughout California.

Cabrillo engineering students, who have gone on to earn their degrees from more than 30 four-year engineering universities, have made a major impact on Santa Cruz county as they have returned to occupy a wide range of positions in the public and private sectors of business and professional life in our area. Many have assisted in providing part-time and summer jobs for current engineering students, who, in turn, have made a significant contribution to the local technical community. Alumni are employed in professional practice throughout the state, nation and even abroad. Former students are a major source of gifts to the engineering scholarship fund and have endowed other awards.

All the diversity of the student population are present in the engineering student body. The exact numbers for all areas fluctuate widely from term to term and subject to subject. We see an age range from 18 to well over 40; an ethnic range including Latino, African-American, Japanese, Chinese, Southeastern Asian, Middle-Eastern, Native-American; and economic and educational abilities ranges from top to bottom. The Cabrillo Engineering Society brings students with diverse talents together.

Cabrillo's engineering coursework follows a pattern established by the California Engineering Liaison Committee (ELC). Cabrillo engineering has been a major player in this group for a third of a century. Our students have been able to transfer to any campus of their choice and complete the required program in the same time span, and with equal or greater success, as the students who start at the four-year schools.