However, a student may take the first four terms at the Abilene or Brownwood Centers and then transfer to Sweetwater. After completing this two year program, a student earns an associate degree. Students in the electronics-based programs must certify that they have attained basic core competencies by passing a standardized, nationally recognized examination on skills and knowledge in the field. This exam is referred to as the CET Test. Students completing the fourth quarter of study in an associate degree program requiring the Electronics Core will be required to take the CET Test either late in that fourth quarter or early in their fifth quarter.
Students are responsible for the cost of the exam.
Students passing the CET Test will, upon completion of all other degree requirements, be issued their associate degree in the appropriate discipline. Students not passing the CET Test will be required to retake the test until they achieve a passing grade. No students in an associate degree program requiring the Electronics Core courses will be issued an associate degree until they have passed the CET Test. In 1994, the Texas Department of Transportation awarded a major grant project to the Department. The Department also received benefits from a Smart Jobs grant from the State of Texas.