Nicholls has united with Gatlin Education Services (GES) to offer online job training courses for those looking to switch careers or first-time job hunters who are in need of specialized training.”We wanted to offer a different option for the community to stay in line with the University’s mission and to provide an education to the community,” Brandie Toups, director of continuing education and non-credit programs, said.

GES offers training in courses such as healthcare, business, construction technology, Microsoft certification, Internet design and programming and video game design and development. GES is available to any university, and the courses available to each university vary. So far, Nicholls is offering Administrative Medical Specialist, Advanced Coding for the Physician’s Office, HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) Made Easy, Home Inspection Technology and Medical Transcription courses.

“This is separate from the University’s credit. Current Nicholls students can enroll,” Toups said. “We’ve seen some students take interest in this and ask questions. For instance, he or she is going to school and maybe the student works either part-time or full-time in a doctor’s office. He or she [might] want to get a promotion and [this program] can increase his or her job skills.”

Each course has a different fee that is paid to take the course. For instance, taking the Administrative Medical Specialist course costs $1395, while taking the Home Inspection Technology course costs $1895. According to Toups, the price is associated with the number of contact hours. By taking part in GES, Nicholls gets a percentage of the registration fee, Toups said.

These self-paced courses are all open enrollment and take an average of 90 days to complete. If the courses are not completed within 90 days, extensions are available, but Gatlin encourages completion within 90 days. GES combines on-line content, textbooks, CD-ROMs and an online instructor/mentor who will be committed to the student. The instructors are available via E-mail or phone. Since the courses are entirely online, the students do not necessarily have to live near the campus they will be using to enroll in GES.

Upon successful completion of the course, the student is awarded a certificate of completion from Nicholls. In order to receive a certificate, students must obtain a grade of at least 70 percent.

Taking a GES course does not guarantee employment, but according to GES, the instructors will help the student build a resume in order to find a job.

If anyone is interested in taking any GES courses through Nicholls, www.gatlineducation.com or www.nicholls.edu/cnc/ provides more information. To register, visit the office of continuing education and non-credit programs.

“I think it’s something new and it’s on the edge of technology. It’s important that Nicholls stays [up to date] with current learning tools and methods,” Toups said. “Nicholls has an excellent E-learning department. This is just an extension through our department for non-credit programs.