Cerritos College in Southern California offers a bachelor’s of science in dental hygiene and will begin offering a bachelor’s of science in field ironworker supervision in spring 2027.
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Two California bills that would expand community college bachelor’s degree offerings in the state have advanced through the Assembly and could be up for final votes before the session ends on Monday.
The California Community College system has been offering bachelor’s degrees within strict parameters for more than 10 years. The new proposals would increase the kinds of programs community colleges can offer, in some cases even if a nearby public four-year university already offers similar programs. AB 2694 would require that colleges meet certain performance standards in order to offer bachelor’s degrees, and SB 960 would cap the number of bachelor’s degrees a community college could grant at 15 percent of the total number of associate degrees granted.
Despite the success the bills have seen so far in the Legislature, the question of whether community colleges should offer bachelor’s degrees at all has divided higher education leaders in the state. And even if the bills do pass, it’s unclear whether California Gov. Gavin Newsom would sign them into law. In 2024 and 2025, Newsom vetoed bills that would have allowed community colleges to grant bachelor’s degrees in nursing.
