Overview

The Addiction Studies program prepares students to work with the alcohol and other drug dependent population, and the family and employer of the chemically dependent person. The program addresses community needs for trained alcohol and other drug prevention specialists to work and volunteer in both public and private agencies in the Bay Area.

Career opportunities in this field include Primary Addiction Counselor/Supervisor, Case Manager, Program Director, Prevention Educator, Mental Health Dual Diagnosis Counselor, Crisis Intervention Specialist, Incarceration Counselor, and Assessment/ Placement Specialist. Other opportunities include working with adolescents, seniors, multicultural populations, and those who have been affected by HIV/AIDS.

Persons who are awarded the certificate may be employed by in-patient and out-patient treatment clinics, transitional housing centers, mental health clinics, job training/placement programs, shelters for various homeless populations, detoxification units, crisis intervention centers, incarceration facilitates, and education/prevention programs in the schools and community.

The certificate program conforms to the Proposed Guidelines for Alcohol and Other Drug Studies Programs within Higher Education prepared for the California State Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs and meets the accreditation standards set forth by the California Association for Alcohol/Drug Educators (CAADE).