Office Technology

Students completing the Office Technology Program will receive an Associate of Applied Science degree in Administration Technology (AAS-AT) from Clarion University. Upon successful completion of the specialist exams, students will be awarded an Official Microsoft Certified Application Specialist certification.

Graduates of the Office Technology concentration will be prepared to work as office managers, administrative assistants, or manage their own businesses. In addition to a practical foundation of business education, students will receive valuable preparation in business computer software applications in publishing, Web design, and computer network basics. Students will sit for the Microsoft Certified Application Specialist exams in Microsoft Word and Excel. The Learning Center in Seneca is the technical education partner for the office technology program.

The following courses are not all required to complete this program. Students will work closely with their adviser to determine which courses best fit their needs and goals. Your adviser will also help you to determine how to combine these courses with the required core curriculum courses each semester.

Students are also able to sit for the Microsoft Certified Application Specialist Exams in PowerPoint, Access and Outlook through The Learning Center if desired - although not required.

If you currently hold any Microsoft Certifications you may be eligible for transfer credits. Please contact Dr. Bill Hallock in the Department of Applied Technology, 814-676-6591, ext. 1307, for evaluation of possible transfer credits.

Word/Excel Comprehensive - 6 credit hours

Students begin with the basics of using both Word and Excel and progress to an advanced level. The course is designed to develop a high level of proficiency in both Microsoft applications. Students must pass the official Microsoft Certified Application Specialist exams to receive credit for the course.

PowerPoint and Publisher - 4 credit hours

Given the scenario of creating a PowerPoint presentation that describes a company of their choice, students learn how to design a presentation for clarity and effectiveness. They are required to create a business card layout, flyer and letterhead for the chosen company using Publisher as well as a newsletter for the company. Students must create their own templates and manipulate text, graphics and photographs effectively to create a coherent portfolio of corporate information.

Access 2007 - 4 credit hours

As part of learning Access, students learn how databases function, how to design tables effectively, how to link tables, how to create queries, design forms and produce output with customized reports. While no prior experience with Access is required, prior use of Word or Excel is helpful.

Outlook 2007 - 2 credit hours

This course focuses on using Outlook in the workplace, i.e. with an Exchange Server. Students will learn how to organize emails, use categories, work with journals and tasks, use the collaboration tools in Outlook, effectively handle a calendar, share calendars, assign and track tasks and understand how to develop and use distributions lists.

Expression Web I - 3 credit hours

Using Microsoft's Expression Web, students will create multi-page website for a company of their choice. They will learn how to create and modify forms, templates, cascading style sheets,

Expression Web II - 3 credit hours

This course builds on Expression Web I. Additional skills will be added to the area of web design. Students will authenticate their web sites for accessibility, create interactive portions of web pages, design hover buttons, work with multiple style sheets, understand tables and frames as layout tools, and publish their own, original web site.

Photoshop Elements - 4 credit hours

Covering the manipulation of photos and the turning of text into artwork, students learn about layering, color, filters, retouching, compositing, creating patterns and textures, photo slide shows with audio and narration and working with Camera RAW files.

Microsoft Small Business Accounting/QuickBooks - 4 credit hours

The two most popular computer accounting packages are worked with in this course. Students will work with standalone and multiple user accounting systems, learn how to handled customer and vendor account, setup businesses, handle payroll, create transactions, open and close a fiscal year and work with online payments.