Finding the Right Educational Degree Plan for You

Step 1: Career Cluster

Step 2: Educational Pattern

Step 3: Degree Plan

3. Creating a Workforce Career Degree Plan Workforce Career Plan for the Visual and Performing Arts Cluster You have chosen the Workforce Career pattern of education in the Visual and Performing Arts (VPART) career cluster. The Workforce Career Pattern means that you will be taking mostly Technical Job-focused courses and a few General Education courses for the completion of your Marketable Skills Achievement Award (MSA), Certificate of Completion and/or Associate in Applied Science degree at Houston Community College. Careers related to Art, Art History, Dance, Drama, Music, Music Business, Fashion Design & Merchandising, Interior Design. Your educational degree plan will be a Certificate of Completion or an Associate in Applied Science Email your HCC Student ID number to a counselor to let him/her know that you are choosing one of the degree plans listed below from the VPART Career Cluster. A Counselor will respond within 24-36 hours. Email contacts: nw.counseling@hccs.edu Workforce Education Awards offered at Houston Community College: AAS indicates Associate in Applied Science degree (~2 years full-time or 4 years part-time study) Certificate indicates Certificate of Completion (length varies from 1-3 semesters study) MSA indicates Marketable Skills Achievement Award (~1 semester study) AAS Fashion Design (72 sem. hours) MSA Apparel Construction (9 sem. hours) Certificate Fashion Design - Custom Dressmaking and Alterations (36 sem. hours) Certificate Fashion Design - Men's Tailoring and Alterations (21 sem. hours) Certificate Fashion Design - Pattern-Making (27 sem. hours) Certificate Fashion Design - Theatrical Costume Design (47 sem. hours)  MSA Theatrical Costume Crafts (11 sem. hours)   AAS Fashion Merchandising (69 sem. hours) MSA Fashion Sales Consultant (12 sem. hours) Certificate Fashion Merchandising - Fashion Image Consultant (33 sem. hours) Certificate Fashion Merchandising - Visual Merchandising (36 sem. hours)   AAS Interior Design (72 sem. hours) Advanced Technical Certificate Interior Design - Professional (30 sem. hours) MSA Interior Decorating (12 sem. hours) MSA Interior Design Office Assistant (12 sem. hours) MSA Interior Design Colorist (12 sem. hours)   AAS Music Arranging, Composition, and Production (65-72 sem. hours) Certificate Music Arranging, Composition, and Production (15 sem. hours)   AAS Music Business (69 sem. hours) Certificate Music Business (15 sem. hours)   AAS Music in Performance (65 sem. hours) Certificate Music in Performance (15 sem. hours) Note: Each award above is designed to be an exit point to the world of work enabling the graduate to have the skills for entry level and more advanced occupations. Each award above is also designed to build upon each other. Thus, a student can achieve a Marketable Skills Achievement Award (MSA) and then go to work. The MSA Completer can continue his/her education applying the MSA courses toward a Certificate of Completion in the same field. The Certificate of Completion graduate can continue his/her education and apply the Certificate courses toward the Associate in Applied Science degree (AAS) in the same field. There are also many creative and non-traditional accredited universities who will transfer the AAS degree toward a bachelor degree either in the same field or in a related field. Thus, at each point of completion, the student will possess skills directly impacting performance in the work world and the student can continue progressing in his/her educational pathway eventually attaining the associate and the bachelor degree. The courses in each award above are detailed in the college catalog in force at the time of your first enrollment at HCC. Look at the Academic Transfer Pattern in this Cluster Choose a different Career Cluster