The Pierce College Applied Business Program is designed to help students gain the knowledge, skills, experience and abilities employers desperately seek from top employees.

Careers

Gain a competitive edge in any field, trade or industry with the Pierce College business programs. Take a variety of courses, develop critical skills, and stand out in the marketplace. Earn a specialized certificate in just one year or an associate's degree in two. Getting ahead was never this easy.

Our degrees and certificates give graduates an excellent boost in obtaining career job entrance and advancement opportunities as leaders, managers, social media marketers, entrepreneurs, human resource professionals and experts in project management.

Special funding assistance may be available for unemployed workers or low-wage working parents.

Transfer

Students who earn an Associate in Business from Pierce are prepared for entry-level positions in that field. However, some of the credits included in the associate degree option are transferable to four-year colleges.

Transfer Institution Information

Course Maps

Our Applied Business Program degree and certificates are on the Fort Steilacoom Campus or in the evening at our Puyallup Campus, as well as at the JBLM military base. You can take our Associate in Applied Business Degree online or in the daytime, and it takes approximately two years depending on placement tests, experience and credits required. We have many certificates designed to help students gain specialized skills and training in fields in which employers are hiring.

Students must have a GED or high school diploma, and are advised to take a skills assessment test through the Pierce College testing center.

Certificates can be earned in about a year.

Career Pathway Course Maps

Program Outcomes

About the Program

Our program is governed by an advisory board of community members working as leaders in industry and faculty who help shape a cutting-edge curriculum that gives graduates an education that makes them competitive in the workplace and highly desirable to employers and four-year institutions.

Our program is for:

  • Individuals who want to grow their career in any industry as a leader, entrepreneur, manager, human resource generalist, project manager or marketer.
  • People who wish to enter the management field with credentials that open doors.
  • Established supervisors or managers who want to advance their careers.
  • Individuals returning to college with some work experience who wish to transform their experience into college credit.

Connect With Us

Related Pages

Contacts

Paul
Gerhardt
Professor and Department Chair
253-964-6429
Annette
Sawyer-Sisseck
Business Accounting Navigator
253-864-3362