CalAPS Pathway Courses

The Agriculture and Natural Resources sector is designed to provide a foundation in agriculture for all agriculture students in California. Students engage in an instructional program that integrates academic and technical preparation and focuses on career awareness, career exploration, and skill preparation in seven pathways. The pathways emphasize real-world, occupationally relevant experiences of significant scope and depth in Agricultural Business, Agricultural Mechanics, Agriscience, Animal Science, Forestry and Natural Resources, Ornamental Horticulture, and Plant and Soil Science. Integral components of classroom and laboratory instruction, supervised agricultural experience projects, and leadership and interpersonal skills development prepare students for continued training, advanced educational opportunities, or entry to a career.

The Arts, Media, and Entertainment Career Technical Education (CTE) sector encompasses a diverse range of industries that are focused on creativity, expression, and communication. This sector is often at the forefront of cultural innovation and plays a crucial role in shaping society's values, beliefs, and identities. This sector offers a wide range of exciting career opportunities for individuals with creative talents, technical skills, and a passion for storytelling and expression. Whether working behind the scenes or in front of the camera, professionals in this sector play a vital role in shaping our cultural landscape and enriching our lives through art and entertainment.

This sector provides a foundation in the Building and Construction Trades industry for secondary students in California. Students engage in an instructional program that integrates academic and technical preparation and focuses on career awareness, career exploration, and skill preparation in the Building and Construction Trades industry. California recognizes four career pathways in the Building and Construction Trades sector: Cabinetry, Millwork, and Woodworking; Engineering and Heavy Construction; Mechanical Systems Installation and Repair; and Residential and Commercial Construction. These pathways emphasize processes, systems, and the way in which structures are built. The knowledge and skills are acquired in a sequential, standards-based pathway program that integrates hands-on, project-based, and work-based instruction. Standards included in the Building and Construction Trades sector are designed to prepare students for technical training, postsecondary education, and entry to a career.

CalAPS currently offers courses in the Residential and Commerical Construction pathway. 

The Education, Child Development, and Family Services sector provides students with the academic and technical preparation to pursue high-skill, high-demand careers in these related and growing industries. California recognizes four distinct, yet interrelated, career pathways: Child Development, Consumer Services, Education, and Family and Human Services. The Child Development pathway provides students with the skills and knowledge they need to pursue careers in child care and related fields, and the Education pathway emphasizes the preparation of students to become teachers. Standards in the Education, Child Development, and Family Services sector are designed to prepare students for technical training, postsecondary education, and entry to a career.

CalAPS currently offers courses in the Early Childhood Specialist/Child Care Worker Pathway.

A public service is one that is provided by government to its citizens, either directly or through the financing of another entity to provide that service. Careers in public service are unique because they center on challenging issues that define the public agenda and involve the provision of vital services to the public—from local to international levels. Public service professions offer many career opportunities, including the following career pathways: Public Safety, Emergency Response, and Legal Practices. Students engage in an instructional program that integrates academic and technical preparation and focuses on career awareness, career exploration, skill preparation in the industry, and preparation for postsecondary education and training. Knowledge and skills are learned and applied within a sequential, standards-based pathway program that integrates classroom, laboratory, and project- and work-based instruction. Standards in this sector are designed to prepare students for technical training, postsecondary education, and entry-level employment

CalAPS currently offers courses in 2 pathways: Public Safety Pathway and Emergency Response Pathway. 

This sector is designed to provide a foundation in transportation services for all industrial technology education students in California. There are eight focus areas that fall under the Transportation sector, each with different career opportunities. The pathways in the Transportation sector emphasize real-world, occupationally relevant experiences of significant scope and depth in three areas: Operations, Structural Repair and Refinishing, and Systems Diagnostics, Service, and Repair. The standards are designed to integrate academic and technical preparation and focus on career awareness, career exploration, and skill preparation in the three pathways. Integral components include classroom, laboratory, and hands-on contextual learning; project- and work-based instruction; and leadership development. The standards in this sector prepare students for continued training, postsecondary education, and entry to a career.

CalAPS current offers courses in the Systems Diagnostics, Service and Repair Pathway.

The Fashion and Interior Design sector provides students with the academic and technical preparation necessary to pursue high-skill, high-demand careers in these related and growing industries. California recognizes three distinct career pathways: Fashion Design and Merchandising, Interior Design, and Personal Services. The standards are designed to integrate academic and career technical concepts. The anchor standards include Consumer and Family Studies comprehensive technical knowledge and skills that prepare students for learning in the pathways. The knowledge and skills are acquired within a sequential, standards-based pathway program that integrates hands-on projects, work based instruction, and leadership development such as that offered through SkillsUSA. Standards in this sector are designed to prepare students for technical training, postsecondary education, and entry to a career.

The standards in this sector represent the academic and technical skills and knowledge students need to pursue a full range of career opportunities in health science and medical technology, from entry level to management as well as technical and professional career specialties. The standards describe what workers need to know and be able to contribute to the delivery of safe and effective health care. California recognizes six career pathways which are grouped into functions that have a common purpose and require similar attributes. The pathways are Biotechnology, Patient Care, Health Care Administrative Services, Health Care Operational Support Services, Public and Community Health, and Mental and Behavioral Health. Standards for each career path build on and continue the anchor standards with more complexity, rigor, and career specificity.

CalAPS currently offers courses in the Patient Care pathway.

The Hospitality, Tourism, and Recreation sector provides students with the academic and technical preparation necessary to pursue high-skill, high-demand careers in these related and growing industries. California recognizes three distinct, yet interrelated, career pathways: Food Science, Dietetics, and Nutrition; Food Service and Hospitality; and Hospitality, Tourism, and Recreation. The standards are designed to integrate academic and career technical concepts. The anchor standards include Consumer and Family Studies comprehensive technical knowledge and skills that prepare students for learning in the pathways. The knowledge and skills are acquired within a sequential, standards-based pathway program that integrates hands-on projects, work-based instruction, and leadership development such as that offered through SkillsUSA. Standards in this sector are designed to prepare students for technical training, postsecondary education, and entry to a career.

CalAPS currently offers courses in the Food Services and Hospitality Pathway.

California recognizes four career pathways in the Information and Communication Technologies sector: Information Support and Services; Networking; Software and Systems Development; and Games and Simulations. Information and Communication Technologies have expanded the need for employees who can understand, manage, and support all rapidly emerging, evolving, and converging computer, software, networking, telecommunications, Internet, programming, and information systems. Essential skills for careers in the Information and Communication Technologies sector include understanding systems that support the management and flow of data, the ability to work well and communicate clearly with people, and the ability to manage projects efficiently. The Information and Communication Technologies sector meets national criteria for high demand, high wages, and high skills and provides students with excellent opportunities for interesting work and good pay.

CalAPS offers courses in the Games and Simulation pathway.

The Manufacturing and Product Development sector provides a foundation for secondary students in California in manufacturing processes and systems, including graphic design production, machine tooling and forming, welding and materials joining, and product innovation and design. Students engage in an instructional program that integrates academic and technical preparation and focuses on career awareness, career exploration, and skill preparation in four pathways. The pathways emphasize real-world, occupationally relevant experiences of significant scope and depth in manufacturing. The knowledge and skills are acquired within a sequential, standards-based pathway program that integrates hands-on, project-based, and work-based instruction. Standards in this sector are designed to prepare students for entry to a career, postsecondary education, or advanced technical training.

CalAPS offers courses in two different pathways: Graphic Production Technology and the Product Innovation and Design.

The Marketing, Sales, and Services sector is designed to align career-path course work with current and projected employment opportunities. There is a basic business foundation in this sector: marketing and innovation are two major competitive issues for business today. Marketing includes the processes and techniques of identifying, promoting, and transferring products or services to consumers and is a function of almost every business. It exists within an environment of rapidly changing technology, interdependent nations and economies, and increasing demands for ethical and social responsibility. The three pathways in this sector (Marketing, Professional Sales, and Entrepreneurship/Self-Employment) emphasize training to meet the growing need for marketing professionals with skills in communication, small business, self-employment, advertising, marketing strategies, product and service management, and promotion and selling concepts. These pathways provide a firm foundation for advanced education, entry to a career, and success in the global marketplace. All industry sectors include entrepreneurship and marketing, and therefore students in the Marketing, Sales, and Services sector have a variety of career options.

CalAPS offers courses in the Entrepreneurship/Self-Employment pathway.