Harper College will be closed Friday, July 4, in observance of Independence Day.
You have many opportunities ahead of you, and Harper College is a great place to start. Through the Paths to College and Career program, you can think about your future in a new way, explore career fields, and take advantage of intensive training. Paths to College and Career non-credit courses are FREE to you if you qualify for a scholarship, and additional financial aid is available when you are ready to take the next step.
Individuals who may qualify for assistance include adult students (18 and older) who are unemployed or underemployed and lack sufficient skills to find suitable employment. The program targets those pursuing careers in health care, transportation and warehousing, business management, information technology, and manufacturing.
Click on the plus (+) icons below to learn more about the support services and courses available:
The Guided Basic Skills Tutoring Lab is a free individualized, self-paced basic skills tutoring using educational software. A teacher is available to help you get started and provide additional support.
What Career is Right for You? (CPE - LCE8000)
You may also check out this online career workshop or attend a virtual live career workshop where you will take career assessments, learn how to understand the results, and see how they relate to Areas of Interest and Programs of Study at Harper College.
Paths to College and Career participants may be eligible for financial assistance toward:
Learn More about Credit for Prior Learning at harpercollege.edu/start/credit-for-prior-learning
Technical skills may get your foot in the door, but soft skills move you forward. In this interactive course, HR expert and Harper alumna Farah Ali will guide you through key professional competencies that drive career success—from communication and time management to leadership presence and emotional intelligence. Through real-world scenarios, role-play, and coaching-style exercises, you will build confidence and clarity to thrive in any workplace.
This course provides students with an introduction to basic digital skills needed for today’s workforce. Includes an overview of operating systems, cloud-based word processing, spreadsheets, presentation applications, collaboration and remote work basics and online job seeking strategies.
Explore strategies to make your resume stand out, craft compelling cover letters, and follow up effectively. Learn how to design, format, and save your resume in cloud-based platforms for easy access from any device. You will also learn how to save and share your resume in formats like Microsoft Word, Google Docs, and PDF. Get the tools you need to land your next opportunity.
This course teaches students how to manage the main tasks of an online job search. Learn how to keep track of jobs and to manage the application process using a spreadsheet, explore strategies to use Google Search to find open positions, learn the basic strategies and tips for online interviewing and more.
Enhance your career with clear communication and persuasive writing. This course equips you with strategies to structure ideas logically, convey diplomacy in correspondence, and craft compelling discussion points in a business context. Learn to analyze your audience, organize content, and employ persuasive techniques for impactful communication.
Explores how artificial intelligence is impacting various aspects of society. Utilizes machine learning tools to provide students with knowledge of how to improve efficiency in the workplace and use cloud computing for networking and storage. Covers how the increased use of autonomous vehicles, smart home devices, and Generative AI tools like ChatGPT is revolutionizing how we interact. Examines the ethics of AI, including data bias and transparency, and provides an understanding of careers and educational pathways for this emerging industry.
This course provides students with an understanding of essential cybersecurity concepts
within the context of a cloud computing environment, focusing on how cloud technologies
are central to emerging AI technologies and high-demand software landscape.
Elevate your communication skills for your professional life and step into a world where your words leave a lasting impression. You will review the rules of grammar, identify common errors, and learn to streamline your ideas and messages. You will practice creating presentations and reports using proper grammar and a polished writing style. Whether you are a native or non-native English speaker, if you're interested in enhancing your grammar skills for more effective communication in formal and informal business settings, this class is for you.
Introduces the fundamental skills and knowledge needed to use the Internet and build basic web pages. Covers introductory functions of the web, Internet communications, and project management concepts. Explores social networking tools and the use of multimedia on the web. Discusses industry career opportunities. Applies toward academic credit for WEB110 Internet Fundamentals upon successful completion.
Gives students a well-rounded view of some of the professional skills needed in today’s workforce. Covers topics to help students learn how to communicate well and manage time. Reviews the principles of equity and inclusion and how to collaborate with others with different points of view. Teaches students about leveraging technology, solving problems and the principles and practices of strategic innovation.
Discover pathways that lead to a rewarding and fulfilling career and explore the exciting world of renewable energy. If you are considering a career pathway in sustainability, solar, or renewable energy, this course is for you. Gain familiarity with career development opportunities within this rapidly growing industry, including apprenticeships and other opportunities for professional growth.
By the time you complete this digital badge, you will be skilled in the Canva graphic design application. Through this journey of creative expression and digital artistry using Canva, you will be able to confidently navigate the application's user-friendly interface. You will create captivating projects by seamlessly incorporating elements, images, and animations. Moreover, you will learn to unleash the power of Canva's advanced features, crafting dynamic videos, gifs, animations, presentations, and eLearning assets with finesse.
The Office Essentials Digital Badge program is designed to provide learners with essential skills and knowledge in using Microsoft 365 applications, including Windows 11, Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Participants will gain proficiency in these core tools, enabling them to effectively create, manage, and collaborate on various tasks and projects.
The Office Management Essentials PLUS Digital Badge program is designed for individuals looking to enhance their proficiency in essential office tools, with a focus on Microsoft Word, Excel, and Teams. Learners will acquire proficiency in office technology integration to streamline workflows and improve productivity. Instruction in these courses utilizes Microsoft 365, however, information presented is also appropriate for users of the desktop versions.
Prerequisite: Completion of Microsoft 365 Office Essentials digital badge or equivalent experience is required to enroll in this program.
Covers fundamentals of professional digital image-editing software (Adobe Photoshop). Emphasizes skills to manipulate photos using current software tools and special effects filters. Explores program tools, color correction, channels, layers, and masks. Computer skills are required for success in this course. Upon request this course can be converted to college credit for course GRA103.
Teaches the fundamentals of the graphic arts industry. Uses industry based software to create professional layouts for print media. Introduces basic operations of Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign will allow for the hands-on development of documents. Explores graphic arts workflow, various printing methods, typography, design elements, color management and the many career possibilities the industry has to offer.
Describes tools and functions within the current software. Demonstrates creating illustrations, working with type, color, and all tools needed to create multi-colored illustration and separation. Applies techniques to create illustration files for use in digital print production. Applies vector graphics software and its applications to the graphic arts industry. Computer skills are required for success in this course.
Learn the fundamentals of payroll accounting including the preparation of payroll records and tax returns for old age benefits and employment insurance. Learn to construct a Quarterly Federal Tax Return, Employer’s Annual Unemployment Tax Return, and Illinois Employer’s Contribution Report. Upon request this course can be converted to college credit for course ACC155 and partially fulfills the requirement to earn the Accounting Bookkeeping Clerk Certificate for college credit.
Prerequisite ACC100, ACC101, LBS8010, or LBS8011.
This course sets the stage for your future studies in accounting, equipping you with essential knowledge to understand and analyze financial reports. You will gain a solid foundation in key accounting concepts and explore accounting as an information system that generates financial statements for external users. Learn how transactions and economic events impact a business's financial condition and operating results.
Topics include: Basic accounting concepts and terminology, the accounting equation, financial statements, accrual and cash basis, and the accounting cycle. The course assumes a corporate form of organization.
Whether you’re a business owner or someone who needs to know how to use QuickBooks in your employer's company or organization, this course will deliver the skills you need to perform. Learn how set up, backup and store company files; create custom reports and graphs; prepare budgets and payroll; and track changes in your financial accounts. Students should have knowledge of accounting and have taken LBS 8010, Intro to Accounting, or have approval from the College. Upon request, this course can be converted to College credit. This blended course combines online and campus instruction.
Provides instruction to students to meet the 36-hour IDPH requirement for activity directors, activity aides/assistants, and others involved with long-term care residents. Instructs participants on how to develop unique programming to meet the recreational needs of residents with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, intellectual disabilities, and serious mental illness
Prepare for emergencies with this hands-on American Heart Association (AHA) CPR class designed for healthcare workers and students aspiring to work in clinical settings. Learn to assess cardiovascular risks, perform CPR, use an AED, and assist choking victims of all ages. You will practice the techniques and must demonstrate competency in CPR and AED use for adults, children, and infants. Upon passing, you will earn an AHA Healthcare Providers CPR card, valid for two years.
Step into the world of horse and equine healthcare with this full day, hands-on experience. Shadow an experienced large animal veterinarian for a day and observe real-world diagnostic procedures, treatments, and patient care.
Ideal for students exploring veterinary careers or equine studies, this unique course offers insight into the rewarding, fast-paced field of equine medicine.
Prepare for the ATI Test of Essential Academic Skills (ATI TEAS®), intended for use primarily with adult health science program applicants to measure entry-level academic readiness of health science program applicants. In this class, Sylvan Learning Center experts will review key topics—reading, math, science, and English—and share test-taking strategies to help boost your score and build confidence.
The TEAS® test is used for admission to Harper's Nursing (RN), Practical Nursing Certificate, Dental Hygiene, Diagnostic Cardiac Sonography, Diagnostic Medical Sonography, Physical Therapist Assistant, and Radiologic Technology programs. Program admission requirements are subject to change.
The TEAS® test is a computer-based test that contains four sections:
This program provides a comprehensive exploration of entrepreneurship, guiding students from ideation to the development and presentation of a business concept. In this 40-hour program, students will cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset, conduct market research, and design viable business models. Topics include financial planning, legal considerations, marketing, sales strategies, and product development. The curriculum emphasizes leadership, team development, operations management, and strategies for scaling and managing risk. The course culminates in final pitch presentations, preparing students to effectively communicate and execute their entrepreneurial visions.
Earns a Digital Badge
This badge consists of four practical skills-building workshops led by industry professionals who will equip you with tools to improve your productivity and elevate your business. Gain cutting-edge insights, master essential business strategies, and position yourself for growth in today’s competitive market.
Teaches experienced project managers who desire to increase their project management skills how to apply a standards-based approach to project management. Offers a job-related approach to successful project management across application areas and industries. Prepares students for the Project Management Institute, Inc. Project Management Professional Certification. Recommended preparation: Project management experience.
Learn food safety practices to protect individuals from food-borne illness and gain the knowledge needed to become certified as a Food Service Sanitation Manager. This course is a nationally approved, ANSI accredited course and is designed to meet the requirements of local, state, and federal guidelines. As part of the course tuition and fee, students will receive a course manual and scantron for the exam on the day of class. The exam will be administered in the last 2 hours of the course. With prior arrangement, the exam can be taken in Spanish.
Build a solid foundation in electricity and circuits through a mix of lecture and hands-on practice. You’ll apply Ohm’s and Watt’s laws, work with series and parallel circuits, read schematics, explore control logic and motors, and troubleshoot circuits using timers and switches. The course wraps up with key safety tips, an overview of the National Electrical Code, and a hands-on “build it, break it, fix it” session.
Get the essential knowledge you need to confidently interpret the 2018 International Building Code® in this 12-week course designed for future commercial building inspectors. You’ll explore key topics like occupancy classifications, construction types, egress and accessibility requirements, fire-rated construction, and more. You'll also review wind and seismic provisions, special inspections, and how to navigate construction documents. Build your understanding step by step and prepare for success in the field.
Emphasis will also be placed on the 2015 ICC Building Code. This class includes an array of practice tests and multiple timed comprehensive exams for those preparing to test for ICC Commercial Building Inspector Certification (B2).
Prepare for the ICC Commercial Electrical Inspector (E2) exam with this 12-week course focused on the 2020 National Electrical Code®. You will build a solid foundation in commercial and industrial electrical systems, covering key topics like services, bonding and grounding, wiring methods, hazardous locations, health care facilities, and more. Learn what you need to succeed on the test—and in the field—with expert guidance and practical code knowledge.
The class will also include an array of practice quizzes, study guides, multiple timed comprehensive exams, and an expanded guide of applicable code sections pertinent for the final exam. Students will be encouraged to test for ICC Commercial Inspector (E2).
This course is designed to provide students with the tools and resources needed to become safe and effective forklift operators. Upon completion of the program, students will have working knowledge of the basic use of lift truck as well as the ability to safely inspect and operate lift trucks. The curriculum includes theory and practical training. Upon successful completion, students receive a National Safety Council Forklift operator card and Certificate of Completion from Harper College.
Reviews the many aspects of handling trade internationally and discovers the basics of what trade is and how companies utilize it. Discusses the particulars of processes, legality, and oversight for import procedures. Gains the skills and knowledge about how the entire company contributes to the international trade process. Learns about export regulations and 19 Code of Federal Regulations requirements.
The Supply Chain Specialist Badge reinforces knowledge in the supply chain management process, manufacturing principles, and distribution and warehousing practices. Completers of these 3 classes will have learned the controls used to ensure needs are fulfilled in a satisfactory and cost-efficient manner and understand importance of an effective and ethical supplier relationship to the achievement of supply chain goals.
Learning outcomes:
Learning Advanced Excel contains these tools that can help you prepare your worksheets accurately, examine your data for authentication, and then find those answers to your most difficult questions. This course will help you learn these required business functions along with the tools required to analyze data efficiently within the workplace. Save time for yourself by protecting your valuable data and know with assurance that the entered data is accurate without any errors. By completing the course, discover how to attractively visualize your data into meaningful information with confidence.
Covers the creation of basic 2D drawings using drawing and editing tools, organization of drawing objects on layers, addition of text and basic dimensions, preparation for plotting and more sophisticated techniques for drawing setup and productivity. Designed for new users of AutoCAD software.
Covers the duties of those responsible for implementing, managing, and maintaining computer systems and a networking architecture in the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud environment platform as well as preparing students to take the AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate certification exam. Supports an array of cloud service models, including Infrastructure-As-A-Service, Platform-As-A-Service, and Software-As-A-Service. Introduces the tools and knowledge needed to support existing cloud resources incorporated in these service models or on-premises resources that will eventually migrate to the cloud.
Identifies foundational level knowledge of cloud services and how those services are provided with Microsoft Azure. Covers general cloud computing concepts as well as general cloud computing models and services such as Public, Private and Hybrid cloud and Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), Platform-as-a-Service(PaaS) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). Explores some core Azure services and solutions, as well as key Azure pillar services concerning security, privacy, compliance and trust. Prepares for Microsoft certification exam AZ-900.
Teaches how to implement and manage the operational aspects of cloud-native and hybrid data platform solutions built on Microsoft Azure data services and Microsoft SQL Server. Explores how to use a variety of methods and tools to perform day-to-day operations, including applying knowledge of using T-SQL for administrative management purposes. Prepares for Microsoft certification exam DP-300. Recommended Preparation: basic knowledge of the Microsoft Windows operating system and its core functionality; working knowledge of relational databases.
The Excel Specialist (Microsoft 365) Digital Badge is designed to provide a solid understanding of the advanced features of Microsoft Excel. Completers can summarize and analyze raw data, automate complex or repetitive tasks, utilize PivotTable features and create PivotCharts to maximize effectiveness, and use conditional logic for complex formulas and functions.
The PowerPoint Specialist (Microsoft 365) Digital Badge covers essential presentation skills in Microsoft 365 PowerPoint, including text formatting, graphical element manipulation, design template customization, and advanced transitions/animations. Learn to create impactful presentations, work with media, and master the features and functions of PowerPoint.
Prepare for a career as an information technology (IT) professional or personal computer (PC) technician. Learn how to install, upgrade, repair, configure, troubleshoot, optimize, and perform preventive maintenance of personal computer hardware and operating systems. This course helps prepare you for theCompTIAA A+ certification examinations in order to become aCompTIAA A+ Certified Professional. Prerequisites: Be able to browse and search the Internet, operate a personal computer, and work with operating systems such as Microsoft Windows.
Gains the knowledge and skills required to identify and explain the basics of computing, IT infrastructure, software development and database use. Learns to install software, establish basic network connectivity, and identify/prevent basic security risks. Obtains knowledge in the areas of troubleshooting theory and preventative maintenance of devices. Learns some of the basic principles and techniques of providing PC, mobile, applications, and network support. Prepares the student for the ITF+ certification exam.
Badge earners understand predictive models that create business value from Big Data solutions. Participants recognize the technology (databases, query languages, architectures) and statistical techniques of Big Data Analytics. Badge earners have completed a hands-on Predictive Analytics project.
Prerequisite: Basic understanding of statistics, databases, and data management
Program objectives:
Explores how to be part of new technologies that will shape how we live and work. Provides an understanding of artificial intelligence, machine learning, cybersecurity, cloud computing, big data, internet of things IoTT), augmented reality, virtual reality,blockchainn, digital privacy, and more. Designed to help students discover their tech path, from a basic understanding of emerging technology or to pursue a career or advanced training in this field.
Covers essential skills in data analytics and lays the groundwork for exploring and implementing advanced big data technologies. Delves into potential career trajectories and explores the existing education and certification pathways available in the field of data analytics.
If you are considering a career in Information Technology (IT), or want to gain a solid understanding of IT to help with your professional career, this course will provide you with the foundational knowledge on personal computers and Information Technology concepts. Explore which devices, operating systems and computer applications are commonly used at the workplace. Focus will also be applied to more advanced IT topics such as Networking, Databases and Security Concepts.
Establish knowledge to become sufficient as a beginner Python programmer. Identify the benefits and usefulness of Python including excellent readability and uncluttered simple-to-learn syntax which helps beginners to utilize this programming language. Basic computer experience is required. Programming experience is preferred.
Explores complex areas of Python programming. Discovers how to use this knowledge to work with data structures. Develops custom scripts, GUI applications, and portable exe programs. Recommended Preparation: experience with Python or object-oriented programming.
Designed specifically as a web back end, MySQL is a database management system that powers many of today's high-traffic websites such as YouTube, Facebook, Flickr, and Yahoo. This course will show you how to quickly and efficiently set up and administer a MySQL database. Using real-world exercises, you will become proficient in running SQL queries against the server and in customizing an SQL database using the tools in the MySQL tool kit. Prerequisites: LCT0193 Intro to JavaScript Programming and LCT0292 Intro to PHP or equivalent experience.
Demonstrates how tools connect to and transform massive amounts of data into visualizations, dashboards and interactive worksheets. Teaches how to identify and configure basic functions of Tableau. Helps to create views and customized data visualizations. Creates maps, dashboards, and stories. This course is intended for individuals using desktop or web-based data management tools to perform numerical data analysis.
Reports on data insights and trends with Tableau®. Learns to manipulate data with calculations to show insights, make visualizations interactive and perform statistical analysis. Learns to enrich visualization with advanced calculations and showcase data insights from statistical analysis. Recommended preparation: Tableau Desktop I or equivalent experience.
This course introduces the foundational skills needed to create web pages utilizing HyperText Markup Language (HTML), Cascading Style Sheets CSSS), and an overview of theJavaScriptt language. Topics include web design best practices, web site hosting, internet protocols, graphics, media and security. Student will create a business-oriented web site as a class project.
Contact the Paths to College and Career Program at paths@harpercollege.edu or 847.925.6000, Extension 2287 or paths@harpercollege.edu.
Information and offerings are subject to change. This program is made possible by the Illinois Community College Board's Innovative Bridge and Transition Grant.