Marijuana Education

What to Expect

Depending on the institution, cannabis may be offered as a major, minor, certificate program or a class.

Minot State University and Northern Michigan University are two schools providing degrees in medicinal plant chemistry. However, most university offerings tend to be minors and classes at this time.

As the marijuana industry buds in New Jersey, Raritan Valley Community College is offering a new program designed to fill a void in an emerging workforce.

The Medical Cannabis Dispensary Technician program is the first non-credit medical marijuana program run by professionals and academia at a New Jersey college or university, said Joananne Coffaro, director of the RVCC Workforce Training Center overseeing the certificate program.

Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC) in Branchburg, New Jersey will launch a certificate program on March 9, 2020 for residents interested in becoming cannabis dispensary technicians.  The 15  hour non-credit bearing certificate program is designed to provide “knowledge of the legalities, the state’s guidelines and the medical implications of medical cannabis that are key to working in a medical dispensary.” in New Jersey.

Field experts will teach students about the legal status of medical cannabis; the human body’s endocannabinoid system and cannabis as medicine; the basics of cultivation, harvesting and processing and the different products available in New Jersey and elsewhere; and the ins and outs of working in a medical cannabis dispensary in New Jersey including rules and regulations of product handling and patient interaction.

Raritan Valley Community College will be the first college or university in New Jersey to offer a non-credit new medical cannabis program this spring.

"RVCC is offering a non-accredited, multi-day program run by professionals and academia. This is truly the first-of-its-kind at a New Jersey community college," said Joananne Coffaro, director of the Workforce Training Center.

Even serious marijuana ventures are not above a good pun. That much is clear in the new zero-credit course being offered at Atlantic Cape Community College: "Cannabis 101: Essential Knowledge for a Growing Industry."

According to a report, 13 students enrolled in the six-week online course.

“It’s an overview," said Josette Katz, vice president of academic affairs at Atlantic Cape. “Rather than starting out with a credit class, we wanted to gauge the interest that the constituents in Atlantic and Cape May counties had on the topic.”

Adding to the growing list of college courses nationwide in cannabis studies, Atlantic Cape Community College this fall debuted a continuing education program to give residents an industry overview.

Thirteen people signed up this year for the noncredit, six-week online course called “Cannabis 101: Essential Knowledge for a Growing Industry," which began last month.

New Jersey CannaBusiness Association Executive Director Tara Sargente is launching a Cannabis 101 course at Atlantic Cape Community College as part of a collaborative agreement announced by both parties earlier this year.

The six week online course, which starts Oct. 11, will begin with the foundations of cannabis history and basic plant knowledge. Sargente, owner of legal edibles company Blazin’ Bakery, will discuss what’s going on with cannabis legalization, explore the supply chain’s see-to-sale process, and discuss the business challenges unique to the cannabis industry.

Medical cannabis has gained highlight, even in the academic ground. The University of Maryland is going to be the first US university to be offering a graduate program in medical cannabis.

The program will be offering the students an in-depth insight into the medical management of cannabis patients. Moreover, there will be an extensive study for continuing research in the field.

This will be giving a new way to transform policies regarding medical cannabis. The program will be for two years for the students of the university.

With campus police officers strolling by and school administrators within earshot, students openly discussed marijuana Friday.

What would have once been risky behavior is now a networking opportunity. At a cannabis industry fair at Stockton University, students mingled with employers and vendors. Those interested in the subject range from business students to environmental studies students, said Ekaterina Sedia, coordinator for the school’s Cannabis Studies program.