Santa Monica College has received approval from the California Community Colleges Board of Governors and the Accrediting Commission of Community & Junior Colleges to launch a Bachelor of Science degree in Cloud Computing.
“This new baccalaureate degree marks an important moment for Santa Monica College in fulfilling our mission of continuing to be a leader in preparing students for careers, as well as transfers,” SMC Superintendent/President Dr. Kathryn E. Jeffery said.
The four-year degree will be SMC’s second, after its B.S. in Interaction Design (IxD)—which was launched as part of a landmark statewide pilot program in 2015—and is slated to meet regional needs in one of the fastest-growing sectors in the global economy.
The new baccalaureate program will build upon the lower-division cloud computing curriculum SMC developed and launched in collaboration with Amazon Web Services. Currently, the college offers a short-term department certificate, a certificate of achievement, and an Associate degree option in the field.
A labor market study commissioned by the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office noted that SMC’s proposed Bachelor of Science in Cloud Computing was slated to meet strong demand for software developers and cloud-related occupations in the Los Angeles region, with projections estimating 2,777 annual job openings, with 65% of workers in the field requiring a baccalaureate degree.
For California residents, the cost of SMC’s baccalaureate degree in cloud computing—not including financial aid—is an estimated $10,000 annually. Median annual earnings in the job exceed $150,000, according to the college.
SMC’s Bachelor of Science in Cloud Computing program is expected to officially launch in Fall 2027. The college has said that updates will be posted at smc.edu/Cloud.
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