The Silicon Valley Career Technical Education (SVCTE) is a program that offers students with vocational training and hands-on experience in their desired profession, senior Karina Wong said in an interview. Students can sign up for the program when signing up for courses for the following year, Wong added. With 15-16 spots open, students are admitted into the program on a first-come first-served basis, Wong said.
Wong is taking the Veterinary Science course at SVCTE. She has to wake up every morning at 4:30 a.m. to make it to her class on time, Wong said. In her course, she only does lectures once a week, and most of the time she does heart practicals by checking the pulses, respiration, and temperature of the different animals that come in every day, Wong added.
“I’ve always been into veterinary science or veterinary field since I was young, and I saw this opportunity during my junior year, so I …[thought], it’s finally time for me to take a course that actually aligns with what I wanted to do,” Wong said.
Senior Tristan Tumacder is part of the program and is taking the metals technology course at the SVCTE program.
“I noticed one of the classes that I’m doing, metal technology, is actually really similar to what I want to do right after high school, which is going to [be] sheet metal,” Tumacder said in an interview. “I basically get to learn about it before I actually go apply for a job.”
The main difference between an MHS class and a class at SVCTE is the amount of hands-on work you do, Tumacder said. 90 percent of the time he does hands-on work and the other 10 percent he does book work, Tumacder added.
The book work in the class is graded based on completion and comprises 15 percent of the grade, Tumacder stated. The other 85 percent is skill and is based on how well a student welds, Tumacder said. If a student has decent welding skills and does the paperwork, they will have at least a B+ in the class, Tumacder, further added.
“You could actually get certified in whatever area you’re doing in the classroom,” Tumacder said. “For my class, we can become certified welders. The interesting thing about welding is that there [are] different types of certifications, so we can get just the very first certification. But we do have to complete a welding test, which is just welding a part together.”
Senior Celia Merino Sanchez is taking the animation course at SVCTE.
“I’ve always wanted to pursue a career in animation,” Merino Sanchez said. “When I saw that these courses were really career-specific and they had what I was looking for in the animation class, I thought it would be a good opportunity to learn more about what I was getting into, and try out if I really wanted to pursue this career in the first place.”
Merino Sanchez has learned how to draw characters, jester draw, and has learned basics such as ball bounds, movement, and action anticipation, Merino Sanchez said. She is in the process of learning character walking cycles, Merino Sanchez stated.
The SVCTE animation course has advanced computers and lets students have more one-on-one time with their professor because of the smaller class sizes, Sanchez said. For her course, she receives 15 semester elective credits, 30 yearly elective credits, and college credit at West Valley, Sanchez added.
“We only get to go to the third period and then we leave, but I usually have to cut a little bit of the third period like 10-20 minutes so that I can get to the bus and leave,” Sanchez stated. “I did have to change my classes because I had Calculus third period and I didn’t want to miss that. In terms of extracurriculars though, I don’t miss that much apart from working because I get home at 4:30 every day instead of 3:30 because the bus takes like an hour to get me home.”
Senior Catherine Nguyen is taking the medical assisting course at SVCTE. In her course, she has learned how to maintain the privacy of patients, how to take vital signs, blood pressure, pulse oximetry, and chief complaints, Nguyen said. She has also learned how to organize medical records in an office and how to do a physical examination, she added.
“So this year, I was planning to take AP Biology and anatomy and physiology,” Nguyen said. “But since SCVTE, the morning course, takes up two periods, I can’t take these two classes, which I don’t really mind because I am learning bio and anatomy and stuff in the class. And it’s more focused on the medical field, which I think is pretty beneficial.”
She recommends that students who are interested in exploring a specific career path option more in-depth join the program. Another advantage of the program is meeting new people around the Bay Area and getting their perspective, Nguyen said.
Students can find additional information on the program and what courses are offered at https://www.metroed.net/Page/144.