Continuing Studies
Take advantage of continuing education courses for artists interested in fine arts, architecture, and design. Explore a new discipline, add to your portfolio, and take your work to the next level.
Overview
Continuing education for students and professionals
Advance your creative skill set
The Office of Special Programs offers student and adult education, including a number of opportunities for engagement in art classes and career-advancing workshops. These programs are open to the public, including everything from intensive summer courses for individuals to custom programming for companies.
Credit programs
CCA has a wide range of summer credit programs for continuing studies. Choose from a wide selection of humanities and sciences or studio courses to advance your creative education or further develop your artistic talents.
Non-credit programs
Whether you’re a student, alumni, or working professional, non-credit programs at CCA offer a convenient, inspiring way for you to pursue your creative interests. With topics covering digital tools, fine arts, and design, there’s something for every artist.
Credit Programs
Courses created to help grow your creativity
Expand your skill set
Develop your talents or explore new ones with CCA’s credit programs for student and adult education. We have approximately 35 for-credit summer courses for current and incoming CCA students and students from other colleges.
Make summer more productive
Students can make the most of their time at CCA by taking advantage of summer courses for continuing education. You’ll explore a new discipline, develop skills, and satisfy a requirement or elective, all while stay on track for graduation by earning extra units.
Summer course information
2019 session dates
Six-week sessions
May 20–June 28, 2019
July 8–Aug. 16, 2019
Three-week intensive
July 29–Aug. 16, 2019
Seven-week online session
July 1–Aug. 16, 2019
13-week session*
May 20–Aug. 16, 2019
*A few courses are scheduled within a 13-week session that spans the summer. Courses begin in May and end in August with a few initial and final on-campus meetings. In between, students work on their own, checking in periodically with the instructor.
Note: No shuttle service is offered between campuses during summer; however, the Mission Bay Shuttle at 9th Street and Market in San Francisco will run an expanded service to CCA’s San Francisco campus.
Available disciplines
Summer 2019 undergraduate courses are offered at the reduced tuition rate of $3,000 per 3-unit course ($1,000 per unit). This lower tuition applies to both on-campus and online courses.
Summer offerings typically include:
Humanities and Sciences
- Diversity Studies Seminar
- Foundations in Critical Studies
- Literature/Performing Arts
- Math/Science
- Philosophy and Critical Theory
- Social Science/History
- Visual Studies
- Writing and Literature
Studios
- Animation
- Architecture
- Ceramics
- Diversity Studies
- Fashion Design
- Furniture
- Graphic Design
- Illustration
- Industrial Design
- Interior Design
- Painting
- Upper Division Interdisciplinary
Graduate courses
A list of graduate degree courses available in the coming summer are typically posted by late November. In addition to these specific courses, graduate students are eligible to enroll in CCA’s summer study-abroad courses. Many summer study-abroad courses offer a section or two that will satisfy your CCA graduate-wide elective requirement.
If an elective course is not available in the summer, graduate students are generally eligible to enroll in at least one undergraduate course during the course of their graduate studies. Please check with your program manager for details.
Eligibility for non-CCA college students
Students who are in good standing at other accredited colleges and meet course prerequisites (where applicable) are welcome to register for summer degree courses at CCA. Contact us to learn more.
Summer course registration
Overview
Summer 2019 registration opens on Feb. 27 and ends on March 24.
If you haven't paid tuition in full by April 19, you’ll be dropped from your courses. Please be aware that if you drop, or are dropped for lack of payment, from summer courses, you’re still responsible for the $50 nonrefundable summer registration fee.
If you withdrawal from your summer courses, you’re still responsible for the $50 nonrefundable summer registration fee and any portion of tuition per the withdrawal and refund policy below. CCA students enrolling in summer courses may be eligible for financial aid. Contact our Financial Aid office to learn more.
Tuition costs
Undergraduate (with summer discount): $1,000 per unit
MFA in Comics: $1,367 per unit
All other graduate summer courses: $1,707 per unit
Note: Registration fee for summer session is $50, which is nonrefundable. Please contact us at +1 510-594-3710 to learn more.
Eligibility for non-CCA college students
While summer degree courses are designed for current CCA students, students who are in good standing at another accredited college and meet course prerequisites (where applicable) may register on a space-available basis. Please contact us at +1 510-594-3710 to learn more.
Withdrawal and refund policy
Our withdrawal and refund policy is relative to the number of sessions your course includes.
13 sessions or less
If you withdrawal from a summer course that meets on campus and has 13 or less sessions, you’ll receive the following refund as long as you withdrawal one business day beforehand:
First class: 100% tuition refund
Second class: 90% tuition refund
We’re unable to offer refunds for withdrawal made on the day of or after the second class session.
14 sessions or more
If you withdrawal from a summer course that meets on campus for 14 or more sessions, you’ll receive the following refund as long as you withdrawal one business day beforehand:
First class: 100% tuition refund
Second class: 90% tuition refund
Third class: 85% tuition refund
Fourth class: 75% tuition refund
We’re unable to offer refunds for withdrawal made on the day of or after the fourth class session.
Online courses
For online courses that run for eight weeks, June 18–Aug. 10, you’ll receive the following refund as long as you withdrawal one business day beforehand:
June 18: 100% tuition refund
June 20: 90% tuition refund
June 25: 85% tuition refund
June 27: 75% tuition refund
We’re unable to offer refunds for withdrawal made on the day of or after the fourth class session.
Note: Summer study-abroad programs have earlier refund and withdrawal deadlines.
Current CCA student?
Non-Credit Programs
Courses for professional and creative development
Explore new realms of creativity
California College of the Arts offers a wide range of year-round, non-credit extension courses for professional, intellectual, and creative development.
Continuing education courses are offered on the San Francisco and Oakland campuses in the evenings or on weekends.
CCA Extension courses offer deep dives into a wide range of topics including fashion, interior design, painting, drawing, Photoshop, Illustrator, and more.
Tuition discounts
You may be eligible for a course tuition discount if you’re a donor or a middle or high school art teacher. To check eligibility, go to Registration and scroll down to “Discounts.”
If you qualify, you must register by phone at +1 510-594-3680 or in person at the CCA Student Records office to ensure you receive your discount.
San Francisco address and hours
80 Carolina Street*
San Francisco, CA 94107 (map)
M–F, 8:30 am–5 pm
*adjacent to 1111 Eighth Street, CCA’s main address
Oakland address and hours
5212 Broadway
Oakland, CA 94618 (map)
M–F, 8 am–4 pm
Get course news and notifications
Custom programming for companies
Whether you wish to explore a new career or strengthen existing skills, custom programming can provide you with a cutting-edge advantage. CCA’s Office of Special Programs can design customized classes and workshops to develop and strengthen employee skills within your company. Examples of recent customized programs include:
- An ideation sketching course, for the design team of a national clothing and accessories retailer, scheduled Friday afternoons on our San Francisco campus
- Software-specific workshops, for designers from a national paper products and gifts retailer, scheduled in a two-day workshop format during the week on our Oakland campus
- Sustainability practices workshops, for fashion industry professionals, scheduled over two to three days
In addition to developing the curriculum, we can also make arrangements for food and beverage accommodations to ensure the success of your company’s offsite experience. To discuss customized programming for your company, email Nina Sadek, dean of Special Programs, at [email protected].
Expand your creative talents and broaden your professional path