Student Success Story 

Paola Perez

Certificate: Automotive Collision Repair
Automotive Refinishing
Automotive Damage Appraisal and Management

When did you decide to come to Cerritos College? Why?

I always had an interest in automotive because my father owned a radiator/muffler shop for thirty years and I was always around cars growing up. I even took some automotive classes in high school. After graduating I started to look into some local automotive programs and Cerritos College popped up and had one of the top programs around. I immediately applied to Cerritos to start in Fall 2007.

Where there challenges you had to overcome (personally or academically) to attend?

I was attending college during the recession and always felt the pressure of having to work. I started as a full-time student for my certificate and then decided that I wanted to further my education by getting my AA and transferring out. I started to work part time and became a part time student. Another challenge that I had face was multiple colleges started to downsize their programs due to the recession. With the help from a counselor at Cerritos, they were able to find a similar program in Cal State Dominguez that Cal State Long Beach was no longer offering.

Have any faculty/staff members helped you in particular?

All the faculty there helped me out. Bob Asperen was the dept chair at the time, Darlene Hagenbach, Charlie Robertson and Tony Chisum. They were all so helpful and taught me so much while I was attending the program.

What are/were your plans after college?

My ultimate goal was to become a body shop technician but after working at the dealership as an apprentice technician, I soon realized that I wanted to be an estimator instead. I already had my Certificate and AA in automotive Collision Repair and started to take some extra courses to start my transition from technician to estimator. After that I went back to Cerritos College to complete my transfer units to work towards my Bachelor’s degree through Cal State Dominguez.

Is there any advice you would like to give to a new student considering and/or entering the same field as you?

I believe that Cerritos College is the best place to go get your education or to further advance your education. There is a need in to the automotive industry that Cerritos Colleges programs have. It’s the better option to go get your career started while still being cost-effective and very instrumental to the student’s educational path.

Certificate Requirement Courses

Automotive Collision Repair
AB 51 Non-Structural Repair
AB 54 Advanced-Design Panel Repair
AB 56 Non-Structural Automotive Welding
AB 61 Preparation and Spot Refinishing 
AB 181 Non-Structural Damage Estimating

Automotive Refinishing

AB 51 Non-Structural Repair
AB 61 Preparation and Spot Refinishing 
AB 61L Automotive Refinishing Lab
AB 63 Production Refinishing
AB 65 Mixing and Adjusting Color
AB 181 Non-Structural Damage Estimating

Automotive Damage Appraisal and Management

AB 51 Non-Structural Repair
AB 83P Computerized Damage Estimating-Pathways
AB 83U Computerized Damage Estimating-Ultramate
AB 181 Non-Structural Damage Estimating
AB 182 Structural Damage Estimating
AB 188 Introduction to Automotive Claims Handling
AB 281 Structural Damage Analysis for Estimators
AB 282 Steering, Suspension and Powertrain Analysis for Estimators
AB 283 Advanced-Frame Analysis for Estimators