Southeast Community College

Admissions

Business Information Technology

Welcome

Today’s offices require employees who are effective and valuable assistants to their employers. These administrative office professionals must prove themselves daily using cutting-edge technology, professional attitudes, and enhanced skills. The Office Professional program prepares students to meet the challenging needs of these ever-changing offices. New technology such as speech recognition, graphic tablets, and PDAs and soft skills such as teaming, ethics, attendance, and attitude play an integral part in the education of our students. Hands-on training prepares our students to have the edge they need to become a vital part of business—the administrative office professional.

Our Office Professional program offers you a variety of options to make your education fit your needs and interests. Select your path to your goal. Choose specialized areas of your interest in the medical, legal, or administrative office field.

Take your march up the professional ladder a step further. Once you have completed appropriate elective courses and the requirements for an associate of applied science degree, you are prepared to take the Certified Professional Secretary (CPS) examination or Certified Administrative Professional (CAP) examination awarded through the International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP). Professional certification shows employers that you are committed as a professional; you want to stay on top. The CPS or CAP rating is a mark of excellence you can proudly display.

Mission

Program Mission Statement:

The mission of the Office Professional Program is to prepare competent general and specialized office professionals.

Program Goals:

Offer three award options: (1) a certificate, (2) a diploma, and (3) an associate of applied science degree in three focus areas—administrative, legal, and medical.
Provide a lifelong learning environment whereby students develop skills, knowledge, and leadership with guidance, support, and assistance from a qualified faculty.
Prepare post-secondary vocational/technical training for students who intend to gain employment and retraining for those already employed.
Develop at three levels—understanding, familiarity, and application—the skills required of competent office workers as defined by our advisory committee, which is comprised of administrative, legal, and medical office professionals from the community.
Provide encouragement, support, and feedback in a required co-operative work experience.
Advise Office Professional students in the selection of courses required to reach their goals.
Provide the Office Professional faculty with facilities, equipment, and appropriate professional development.
Develop courses using an objective competency-based format structured to appeal to and be effective for a diverse student population.

Overview

Your success is the highlight of the Office Professional program. The flexibility you find with our program will help you complete your studies. For example, you can:

Choose to focus, or specialize, in one or more of these areas:
Administrative (Associate of Applied Science Degree)
Legal (Associate of Applied Science Degree)
Medical (Associate of Applied Science Degree)
General Office (Diploma)
Medical Transcription (Diploma)
Microsoft Office(Certificate)
General Office (Certificate)
Choose day and/or evening classes as available.
Most courses are available online.
Take classes on the Beatrice or the Lincoln campus.
Class sizes are small ranging from 8 to 30 students.
Class load is determined by you, which allows you flexibility.
Register with an adviser in person before starting your first quarter as a new student.
One-on-one advising is available while you complete your program.
You can avoid long registration lines by registering online each quarter after your first quarter.
Graduate with an Associate of Applied Science Degree in as little as 18 months or a Diploma in as little as 12 months.
Earn an average starting salary of $9.70 per hour, based on the earnings of 41 graduates from the Lincoln and Beatrice campuses in 2004. Their salaries ranged from a low of $6.50 to a high of $12.85 per hour.

To discover how the Office Professional program is right for you, please call:

Lincoln Campus:

1-800-642-4075, Ext. 2426, or 402-437-2426 for Program Chair Karen Hermsen, or e-mail khermsen@southeast.edu.

Beatrice Campus:

1-800-233-5027, Ext. 1284, or 402-228-3468, Ext. 1284 for Program Co-chair Sharon Dexter, or e-mail sdexter@southeast.edu.

1-800-233-5027, Ext. 1332, or 402-228-3468, Ext. 1332 for Program Co-chair Toni Landenberger, or email tlandenb@southeast.edu.

Requirements

Developmental Course Requirements

Appropriate testing before admittance to the program will determine your need for any developmental courses to help you become successful in the program. You will complete the pre-admissions COMPASS test administered at Southeast Community College, or you may be able to use scores from ASSET or ACT tests.
The COMPASS, ASSET, or ACT tests will be in the areas of math, reading, and writing. Scores will be used to place you in appropriate math and writing courses as well as any developmental reading program that may be necessary. An adviser will assist you in interpreting placement scores and determining if you are required to take any developmental courses. Developmental courses include the following:
ENGL0850 Reading Strategies I
ENGL0880 Reading Strategies II
ENGL0840 Language Skills Tune Up
ENGL0950 Writing Skills
ENGL0980 Basic Writing
MATH0900 Math Fundamentals
If you are an ESL or ELL student, you must complete all prescribed ESL courses through Advanced ESLII (ESLX0830). Completion of additional testing at that time will determine the next writing course to take.

Prerequisite Course Requirements

Keyboarding competency—Prerequisite competencies required in the program include a typing/keyboarding skill of a minimum of 30 words per minute with three or fewer errors on a three-minute timing. Students who do not meet this requirement will complete Keyboarding I and/or Keyboarding II. (OFFT1010 and/or OFFT1020).
Accounting competency—Students’ high school or college
transcripts must validate successful completion of an accounting course. Two semesters of high school accounting or one semester or quarter of college accounting must have been completed with a B average or better. Students who have not met this requirement will be required to complete Office Accounting (OFFT1310).

You may take any of these developmental and prerequisite courses prior to admission into the program, or you may take them during the first part of the program. Credit hours earned for developmental or prerequisite courses will not count toward graduation requirements.

Tuition and Fees

All tuition, fees, books, and related costs are your responsibility. Financial aid may be available for you to assist in payment of these costs.

Student Responsibilities

Maintain attendance standards according to college policy/instructor policies.
Follow designated safety procedures while on campus.
Participate in all learning activities at the scheduled times.
Be responsible for program costs: tuition, fees, books and tools.
Contact advisers for registration.

Cooperative Education

Students at Southeast Community College are employed by area businesses and industries and have the opportunity to "learn while doing" through the College's Cooperative Education Experience.

Students will work in positions related to their career goals. Student objectives are established through mutual agreement by the student, the employer, and the cooperative education experience coordinator.
Progress is evaluated at designated time(s) during the period of employment.

How Cooperative Education Works

Southeast Community College's Cooperative Education Experience is designed for students who have completed specific courses in their program of study and have achieved a grade point average of at least 2.0 on a scale of 4.0.

Coordinators work closely with employers and students to determine the optimum Cooperative Education arrangement.

The student registers for the Cooperative Education Experience and earns college credit while being paid a salary for the cooperative experience; the salary is set by the employer and agreed upon by the student.

As a student in the Office Professional program, you will enroll in Co-op Supervised Employment (OFFT2020) near the end of your program at Southeast Community College. Co-op gives you an opportunity to learn on the job, earn college credit, receive pay, and work with a college supervisor to complement the office skills and knowledge you have learned on campus. You will work in an office in the area approved by the co-op supervisor and related to your career goal. Cooperative education is a three-way agreement among the student, the work supervisor, and the college co-op coordinator. Student objectives to be completed during the Co-op Supervised Employment course will be mutually established and evaluated at the end of the quarter.

Cooperative Responsibilities

The student will:
• Adhere to the policies of the employer, just as any other employee.
• Competently perform assigned work and complete agree-upon objectives.
• Complete all necessary records for the Co-op Supervised Employment course.
The employer will:
• Employ the student at a fair salary during the term of the college course.
• Provide training and supervision for the student.
• Help the student achieve his/her learning objectives.
• Evaluate the student’s performance at a designated time.
• Notify the Co-op Supervised Employment coordinator if there are any changes made or needed in the cooperative training agreement.
The Southeast Community College co-op coordinator will:
• Help resolve problems related to cooperative education.
• Maintain contact with the employer and the student in order to assure a successful experience.