If you are a Bristol County business person, you do not have to go far for higher education opportunities, including customized training and professional development courses. Each semester, the Fall River-based Bristol Community College’s Center for Business & Industry – which has been around for nearly 30 years — opens its doors to between 500 and 600 students.
The center’s forte is professional training. It offers non-credit courses in practical business, technical and management areas. The center specifically tailors programs for clients. In addition, it specializes in developing alternative funding sources to help support company training.
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The Center for Business & Industry’s services include:
Customized programs for Business & Industry, both short and long term onsite training.
Technical, managerial and professional development courses and seminars.
English as a Second Language, GED preparation, reading and math skills upgrading.
Needs assessments.
Specific onsite technical training including use of a portable laptop lab.
Corporate educational discounts.
The center also features a series of year-long certificate programs.
Robin Smith is the center’s director. She said the programs available through the center are designed for business people looking to enhance what they are already doing or for those considering a change in careers. The courses cover a variety of areas, ranging from real estate to medical billing to the construction industry.
“We offer skills-based courses, and in addition, a lot of contract training for business and industry,” said Smith.
The courses are offered at six different locations through Bristol County and at times designed for business people with busy schedules.
“There are people who would probably not have gone back to school if we did not offer this program,” she said.
Bristol Community College’s main campus is in suburban Fall River, at the north end of town, off Routes 24 and 195. The college operates satellite campuses at Durfee High School nearby in Fall River, Holy Family-Holy Name School in New Bedford, Greater New Bedford Vocational Technical High School, Attleboro High School, and Taunton High School.
The University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth also offers an array of educational opportunities for Bristol County business people, primarily through its Charlton College of Business.
The Charlton College of Business’ Master of Business Administration program provides students with an advanced preparation in management. The MBA program is intended “to develop knowledge of the functions and techniques of management as well as an understanding of the social, technological, economic, and political environments that influence business administration.” It is designed for students with diverse undergraduate backgrounds and is suitable for students with non-business undergraduate degrees as well as for those with undergraduate degrees in business, according to school officials.
The Charlton College of Business completed a self-assessment in 1994, developed an accreditation plan and was accepted into The International Association of Management Education’s candidacy program for full accreditation. Less than a quarter of U.S. business schools have attained such accreditation.
The school has been busy during the past five years, during which time it has:
refined its curriculum
welcomed 28 new faculty members
received a multi-million dollar endowment
embarked on building renovations
allocated full-time faculty and staff to undergraduate and graduate programs
developed a pilot co-operative education program
made substantial improvements in information resources
The University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth is located on Old Westport Road in North Dartmouth. The campus is 60 miles south of Boston and 35 miles east of Providence.
