UC Davis Extension Facts
UC Davis Extension is the continuing and professional education arm of the University of California, Davis. In the tradition of a public land grant university, University Extension was established to engage the university in meaningful ways that benefit society through providing lifelong learning opportunities for adults. In keeping with that tradition, UCDE's mission is to provide education that transforms the lives of people, organizations and communities.
A proud history
UC Davis Extension at a glance
Since the first continuing education class was held in San Francisco in 1891, the University of California's Extension program has blossomed into a multi-campus, statewide program of professional and continuing education for adults—serving hundreds of thousands of adult learners every year. UC Davis Extension was established in 1960 as the Sacramento region's premiere provider of professional and continuing education. In 2006-07, UCDE offered more than 4,000 courses with 60,000 enrollments from learners in 42 different countries.
Engaging learners in new and different ways
Public courses for individuals
A hallmark of UC Davis Extension is the rich array of courses and programs it offers for adult learners. UCDE helps adults learn new skills, prepare for a career change, keep up with career trends or explore new interests. We also offer dozens of academic certificate programs—focused areas of study—as well as part-time professional degrees. Subjects range from business topics such as finance, marketing and human resources to winemaking, land use planning, applied sensory science and forensics. Programs are generally offered in Sacramento, Davis or online.
Custom training for organizations
UC Davis Extension partners with hundreds of organizations to provide education for more than 40,000 employees every year, including county social services professionals, K-12 teachers, public and private agency managers, water resources professionals and many others. UCDE is uniquely positioned to bring both public and private organizations the vast resources of a major research institution coupled with the savvy of an outreach division that specializes in serving the learning needs of working professionals. UCDE is a full-service provider offering educational needs assessment, instructional design, education delivery (face-to-face and online), facilitation, program evaluation and technical assistance all centered on a common goal: to deliver quality educational products and services that make an impact.
Some of UCDE's more distinctive custom program initiatives include:
- Education for social service employees in all 58 California counties
- Education for professionals in regional water agencies in low impact development practices
- Technical assistance to dozens of federal tribes on the administration of social welfare programs
- Leadership development for medical professionals in the UC Davis Health System
- Mediation of public disputes for USDA in California
Applied research to benefit professional practice
A major thrust of UC Davis Extension's programs and services is to provide education to increase the capacity of individuals and organizations to improve society—taking research to practice where it can be used to serve people, organizations and communities. UCDE also contributes to new discovery through its Center for Public Policy Research and its Center for Water and Land Use. These centers support applied research in the areas of social services, corrections and sustainable development that is aimed at improving policy and practice.
A self-supporting academic division
As a self-supporting entity, UC Davis Extension relies on student fees, contracts and grants.
