El Camino’s recent purchase of the online program, Career Coach, is a convenient alternative to crowded counseling lines that are a nuisance to El Camino students every semester.

Career Coach (CC) is a website that allows students to see direct connections between careers and salaries in the L.A. area and programs that are offered at the college.

Every semester, students make sure to go online and make their counseling appointments early. Topics ranging from academic plans to just not knowing what you want to major in and do with your life are discussed at these talks. All this is a common and necessary part of being a college student.

However, given the over 20,000 students at EC compared to the precious few counselors available, 20 as of last week, some students will realistically never have an opportunity to have these conversations.

Ways to decrease this have been brought up in the past. One such alternative is the express counseling line in the administration that is walk-in, no appointment required and is a chance for students to get quick questions about their college life answered on the fly.

Does this cover all students who need counseling at EC? The answer to that is no.

There are students who need detailed information on topics ranging from career research to a section entitled,”Not Sure Where to Start?”, a six-question test and CC will give you career suggestions based on your interests.

As much as the school has made steps to facilitate this process, some students have such a congested work schedule or are out-of-state future students who want information on what EC offers to them academically and a sit-down counseling appointment is not realistic.

From 2009-2014, EC has averaged 820 international students, according to EC’s 2014 Annual Fact Book.

For this huge population of the school, Career Coach is an ideal starting point to vital access of information that would otherwise be spread across the internet.

The simplicity of the CC’s home page is also an appealing factor for less than tech-savy students.

The home page has six distinct sections: Career Search, Program search, Military Background, Not sure where to Start, Career Services at EC, and See Hot Jobs.

While some may say that all the information and support given by CC can be found elsewhere online, other sites are not specifically tailored for EC students or are as easy to grasp a hold on compared to CC.

Ultimately, CC is an excellent starting point for current and future students who want to research what lies ahead of them after finishing their college careers.