Cerritos College Counseling Services: A Comprehensive Guide

Cerritos College is committed to supporting its students' academic, personal, and professional growth. A cornerstone of this support system is the comprehensive counseling services offered to students. These services are designed to assist students in achieving their educational goals as fully, smoothly, and as efficiently as possible. Provided by a professional staff of trained counselors, these services address a wide range of student needs and concerns.

Orientation and Initial Counseling

For all first-time, new-to-college students, Orientation-Counseling is a mandatory requirement. An Orientation-Counseling (ORI) hold will appear in their MyCerritos account, preventing enrollment in classes until this requirement is fulfilled. The online Falcon Edge Orientation, available in both English and Spanish, offers a flexible way to meet this requirement. Students can start, stop, and resume the orientation at any time by logging into MyCerritos at www.cerritos.edu and selecting Falcon Edge Orientation.

While not mandatory, transfer, returning, and dual enrollment students are highly encouraged to complete orientation. Exemptions apply to re-admit and transfer students, as well as some additional categories of students. Regardless of mandatory status, all students are encouraged to discuss their educational goals and develop an educational plan with a counselor.

Scope of Counseling Services

Cerritos College counseling services encompass a broad spectrum of support, including:

Academic Counseling: Counselors assist students in planning their program of study and selecting appropriate courses. They provide guidance on educational goals, course selection, and academic progress.
Educational Planning: Developing an educational plan with a counselor is highly encouraged, especially for students who have not declared an educational goal, are enrolled in pre-collegiate basic skills courses, or are re-admit and transfer students. Program maps are available to guide degree and transfer-seeking students in identifying suitable courses for various programs of study.
Personal Counseling: Counseling services extend to personal matters, offering support to students facing challenges that may impact their academic performance or overall well-being.
Career Counseling: Although not explicitly detailed in the provided information, career counseling is a common service offered at community colleges, helping students explore career options, develop job search skills, and connect with resources for employment.

Accessing Counseling Services

Students can access counseling services through various means:

Appointments: Counseling appointments can be made in person at the Counseling Office, located in the Administration Building, or by calling (562) 467-5231.
Drop-in Counseling: Due to high demand before the start of each semester, only drop-in counseling is available during the four weeks prior to each semester.
Workshops: Students should schedule an appointment or attend a workshop.

Special Programs and Services

Cerritos College provides targeted support for specific student populations:

Students on Academic Probation: Students on academic and/or progress probation are limited in the number of units they may take each semester, based on their GPA and course completion rate. Special services are provided to these students, as well as those in basic skills courses and those undecided about their educational goal.
Cerritos Complete: Students who graduated from designated school districts, submitted an intent form during their senior year, and completed the mandatory steps for Cerritos Complete by the established deadlines receive specific benefits.
Continuing Students: Students who were enrolled in the previous academic year or summer session are considered continuing students. Students who do not attend summer session will not lose continuing student status.

Enrollment Policies and Procedures

Understanding enrollment policies is crucial for students to navigate their academic journey successfully:

Open Enrollment: All courses, course sections, and classes of the College are open for enrollment to any person who has been admitted to the College.
Prerequisites and Co-requisites: Enrollment is limited to students meeting properly validated prerequisites and co-requisites. Prerequisites are checked at the time of enrollment (Auto-enroll and Instructor adds). Students currently enrolled in a prerequisite course at Cerritos College will be allowed to enroll in the next sequenced course; however, it is the student’s responsibility to verify they have passed the prerequisite course. To avoid being denied enrollment, students should complete the Cerritos College placement procedures or submit transcripts if prerequisite coursework was completed at another institution.
Enrollment Priority: Continuing students, except eligible current and former foster youth, are subject to loss of enrollment priority if they have earned 100 degree-applicable, non-basic skills, and non-ESL units. Students subject to enrollment priority exclusion will have a “PRB” negative service indicator placed on their enrollment account.
Closed Classes: Students seeking admission into a “closed” class must attend the first day of class and respectfully request the instructor to be added. If the instructor approves, an electronic enrollment will be submitted on the student’s behalf to Admissions and Records.
Waitlists: Auto-enroll will automatically enroll students from the waitlist to the official roster when space becomes available. Each student is limited to a maximum of 10 wait-listed units. Attendance at the first class meeting is required in order to enroll or remain on the wait list.

Dropping and Withdrawing from Courses

Students may need to drop or withdraw from courses for various reasons. It is important to understand the deadlines and procedures:

Dropping Classes: Dropping a class is authorized through the last day of the 14th week of an 18-week term or 75% of a shorter term. Students are strongly advised to officially drop themselves to avoid potential negative consequences.
Withdrawal ("W" Grade): A "W" grade is considered an "honorable withdrawal" and is not used in calculating grade point averages. However, excessive "W"s can affect probation and dismissal procedures, and a student with a "W" in the same class two or more times loses priority enrollment for that class.
Late Withdrawal: Withdrawal after the drop deadline may be authorized in the event of extenuating circumstances, such as accidents, illnesses, or other circumstances beyond the student's control. A student may submit an Extenuating Circumstances petition to the Admissions & Records Office with supporting documentation.
Military Withdrawal: Members of an active or reserve United States military service unit who receive orders compelling withdrawal from courses may be assigned a military withdrawal (MW) symbol at any time, with no penalty.

Course Repetition

Cerritos College has policies regarding course repetition:

Repeating Courses: Students may repeat a course in which a substandard grade (D, F, NP, FW) or “W” has been received one time. When a student repeats a class to alleviate substandard academic work, the previous grade and credit are disregarded in the GPA calculation but remain on the student's permanent record.
Course Equivalency: Students may use an equivalent course from an accredited college or university to replace a Cerritos College course in which a substandard grade was recorded, if earned subsequent to the substandard grade at Cerritos College.
Limitations on Repeatability: Intercollegiate athletics and some music and theater courses required for transfer programs are the only courses that allow for repeatability. There are limitations on repeatability for dance, drama, physical education, visual arts, and most music courses, which are offered as single enrollment courses.
Families of Courses: Students are limited to a maximum of four courses in any family of courses (courses related in content), and all grades, including “W”s, count toward this limitation.

Credit for Prior Learning

Cerritos College offers Credit for Prior Learning, allowing students to gain course credit for previous educational and work experiences:

Evaluation of Military Service/Training: Students interested in credit for military service/training must submit official transcripts to the Office of Admissions and Records. Veterans who have served on active duty for one year or longer and received other than a dishonorable discharge may be granted four units of "Military Credit," which are elective credits for the A.A. or A.S. degree only.
Other Forms of Prior Learning: Credit may also be awarded for industry-recognized credentials, student-created portfolios, scores on standardized examinations, or satisfactory scores on college-administered examinations (Credit by Examination).

Mental Health Support

Cerritos College recognizes the importance of mental health and offers resources to support students' well-being. While the provided information is somewhat fragmented, it suggests the following:

Counseling Services: Counselors can provide emotional support and help students address mental health concerns.
Student Health Services: Students can call Student Health at (562) 860-2451 Ext. for assistance.
Community Resources: The college may provide referrals to community mental health resources for students who require more specialized or long-term support.
Master of Social Work (MSW) Student Interns: The college utilizes MSW student interns who are training to become licensed clinical social workers. These interns provide services under the supervision of licensed professionals.

Additional Resources

The provided text also mentions various mental health apps that students may find helpful:

Headspace: Provides guided meditation and mindfulness practice techniques.
Other Apps: Several other apps are listed (though without names or descriptions) that may help with sleep, organization, goal setting, motivation, and managing PTSD symptoms.

Important Considerations

Voluntary vs. Required Counseling: While the use of counseling services is generally voluntary, all entering first-time, new-to-college students, F-1 VISA students, and some students on financial aid are required to receive counseling services for program planning before enrollment.
Confidentiality: Counseling services are typically confidential, meaning that information shared with a counselor will not be disclosed to others without the student's consent, except in specific situations where there is a legal or ethical obligation to do so.
Appropriateness of Services: College counseling services may not be appropriate for students with severe mental health conditions. In such cases, referrals to community-based mental health providers are necessary.

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