Bruce Guerra has changed his major a number of times, always wanting to experiment with something new and not settling until he found a vocation that would support him and his family.

Thanks to the wide array of vocational classes offered on campus, Guerra and many students in his situation are able to find their perfect niche in the career world.

“Every time I’ve changed my major, the college has had every course that I needed,” Guerra said.

Guerra tried pursuing several different educational goals, but they did not meet his criteria for a comfortable lifestyle. Then he discovered machine tool technology.

“Everything that you touch has been made and, somewhere down the line, a machinist has been involved,” Ed Hoffman, machine tool technology instructor, said.

Guerra is already a paid machinist on the weekends, but gets up early twice a week to attend Hoffman’s introductory machining course to refine his skills.

“El Camino is one of the best colleges because they cover the whole A to Z of machining,” Guerra said. “Not every college offers as many classes.”

Vocational classes, such as machining, offer students employment opportunities sometimes as soon as eight weeks into the course, Hoffman said.

“It’s kind of scary,” Hoffman said. “After a student gets a paycheck, he stops coming to class.”

In cosmetology, students also have the ability to earn their degree and to start work sooner than they would have if they had pursued a higher academic degree.

“Once a student has earned a certain amount of hours and has been tested, we allow them to work on clients while being overseen by an instructor,” Shirley Williams, cosmetology instructor, said.

Vocational classes offer students in-demand jobs and universal skills that can help them find employment just about anywhere, Samuel Dantzler, welding technology instructor, said.

There will always be a necessity for workers to build and create, which opens job opportunities and provides a comfortable living, Tim Maza, construction technology instructor, said.

“Look around at all of the construction going on,” Maza said. “It is parallel to what is going on in real estate. There are a number of contractors calling who are needing help.”

Making more money to provide comfortable living is another benefit for students who take up a vocational education program. For example, a student can also “make big bucks,” Rick Hughes, computer aided drafting/design instructor, said.

“We need design professionals: People who are more detail-orientated with math skills and like the challenge,” Hughes said.

“Technology grows everyday,” Guerra said.

“Machines are what allow new ideas to come to life in today’s fast growing industry,” he said.