Somerset County Vocational & Technical Schools (SCVTS) is a public county vocational high school for students in grades 9 to 12. It has no adult programs of its own: its Adult Education page says all adult vocational education falls under Raritan Valley Community College, so adults cannot enroll in any program on this page. Adults should see the section on Raritan Valley Community College at the end of this page.
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | Public county vocational school district with one high school, Somerset County Vocational & Technical High School; day classes, in person |
| Who can enroll | High-school students in grades 9-12, full-time or shared-time (half the day, with academics at their home high school). No adult enrollment |
| Location | 1 campus: 14 Vogt Drive, Bridgewater, NJ 08807 |
| Programs | 21 career and technical programs for 2026-27, plus the Academy for Health & Medical Sciences |
| Credentials | A state-endorsed high school diploma and a certificate in the student’s career program; industry certifications and college credit vary by program |
| Oversight and accreditation | Supervised by the New Jersey Department of Education; Automotive-Diesel Technology is ASE Education Foundation accredited |
| Cost | No tuition or transportation cost to families |
| Federal aid | None (high school, no tuition) |
| Program length | Most programs are four-year sequences (Years 1-4), about two hours a day |
| Students | 878 on 13 September 2026: 377 full-time and 501 shared-time (board agenda, 28 September 2026) |
| Facts checked | October 2026 |
Somerset County’s vocational high school
SCVTS is Somerset County’s vocational school district. Its one school, Somerset County Vocational & Technical High School, teaches career and technical programs to full-time students, who take all their classes there, and to shared-time students, who spend half the day there and take academics at their home high school. Most programs are four-year sequences that meet three periods, about two hours, a day, five days a week. The district’s board agenda of 28 September 2026 counts 878 students, more of them shared-time than full-time.
A $23 million expansion, a new career and technical education building and an auxiliary gym, opened for the first day of the 2025-26 school year, with a ribbon cutting on 3 October 2025, Patch reported. The building houses eight programs, among them four new ones: HVACR, Finance, Biomedical and Global Business Operations, all shared-time only. The same September 2026 board agenda recommends discontinuing the Mechanics & Repair program for 2026-27.
21 programs, all for high-school students
The school’s 2026-27 career and technical program catalog and program pages describe the 21 programs below. All are high-school programs, and every graduate earns a state-endorsed high school diploma and a certificate in the program. Separately, the Academy for Health & Medical Sciences, run with Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC), leads to an RVCC associate degree in General Science alongside the diploma.
| Program (2026-27) | Credential or college credit named by the school | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Automotive-Diesel Technology | ASE Education Foundation accredited program | Work-study in regional repair shops after Year 3; paid co-op in Year 4 |
| Auto Body | I-CAR academy badges, including hands-on welding (Year 2) and plastic nitrogen welding (Year 3) | Paid co-op in Year 4 |
| Carpentry | Certifications offered but none named; no college credit | Basic masonry and cabinetry; paid Year 4 employment through the school’s co-op department |
| Electrical Construction | Certifications offered but none named; college credit | National Electrical Code; Year 4 work-study or apprenticeship |
| HVACR | EPA refrigerant certification (Year 2) | New in 2025-26; shared-time only; Year 4 co-op with local HVAC contractors |
| Plumbing – Environmental Technology | OSHA 10 and CSST; 1 year of education credit and 1 year of field-work credit toward a plumbing apprenticeship | National Standard Plumbing Code; basic and advanced HVAC; co-op |
| Welding | Certifications available through the American Welding Society | SMAW in Year 1 to 6G pipe in Year 4; Year 4 work-study |
| Mechanical Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing | NC3 certifications; NJIT credit for MET 103 and MET 105 | PLCs, sensors, fluid power, CNC and metal milling |
| Cosmetology | Salon permit after 600 hours; New Jersey State Board cosmetology exam after 1,000 hours | RVCC summer semester added for 2026-27 |
| Culinary | ServSafe Food Production Manager certificate (seniors); Johnson & Wales University articulation | Student-run Trade Wins restaurant |
| Computer Science | RVCC college credit (CSIT 103); no industry certification named | Cybersecurity essentials, CS Principles and CS A |
| Business Entrepreneurship & Management | CLEP eligibility (marketing, management); RVCC dual enrollment in Years 3-4 | — |
| Finance | Basic Intuit QuickBooks certification pursued in Year 2 | New in 2025-26; shared-time only |
| Global Business Operations | — | New in 2025-26; shared-time only |
| Law & Public Safety | First Responder certificate (Year 1); national 9-1-1 dispatcher certification (Year 3) | — |
| Health Occupations | CPR/First Aid and First Responder; optional CNA or phlebotomy course through an outside provider | — |
| Biomedical | — | New in 2025-26; shared-time only |
| Agricultural Science | — | — |
| Graphic Communications | — | — |
| Dance | — | — |
| Theater | — | — |
What the main programs cover
Automotive-Diesel Technology and Auto Body
Automotive-Diesel Technology is a four-year program accredited and certified by the ASE Education Foundation. After Year 3, students can join work-study in regional repair shops, and Year 4 offers a paid co-op placement. The program page names no certifications that students earn. Auto Body is a separate four-year program built on I-CAR academy badges, including I-CAR hands-on welding in Year 2 and plastic nitrogen welding in Year 3, with paid co-op placements in Year 4.
Plumbing and HVACR
Plumbing – Environmental Technology runs four years, two hours a day, and teaches the National Standard Plumbing Code, with basic HVAC in Year 3 and advanced HVAC in Year 4. Students earn OSHA 10 and CSST cards, plus one year of education credit and one year of field-work credit toward a plumbing apprenticeship. HVACR began in 2025-26 and is shared-time only. The catalog includes EPA refrigerant certification in Year 2 and a Year 4 cooperative placement with local HVAC contractors.
Electrical Construction and Carpentry
Electrical Construction is a four-year sequence, two hours a day, that introduces the National Electrical Code and carries college credit. Year 4 offers work-study or an apprenticeship placement. The school says professional certifications are available but does not name them, and the program does not lead to a licence. Carpentry, also four years, includes basic masonry and cabinetry; it carries no college credit, and Year 4 students can take paid jobs arranged through the school’s co-op department.
Welding
Welding is a four-year program that starts with shielded metal arc welding (SMAW) in Year 1, moves to pipe welding in Year 3 and reaches the 6G pipe position in Year 4. The school says certifications are available through the American Welding Society and encourages students to join it. Year 4 includes a work-study placement. The program carries no college credit.
Cosmetology
Cosmetology meets two periods, one hour and 20 minutes, a day. Students can apply for a salon permit after 600 hours, in Year 2, and become eligible for the New Jersey State Board cosmetology exam after 1,000 hours, in Year 4. The 2026-27 catalog adds a summer semester at Raritan Valley Community College, with 575 hours transferring to RVCC and a 100-hour practicum, and says students will graduate with 1,200 hours. We found no published State Board pass rate.
Mechanical Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing
The program’s 2026-27 name is Mechanical Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing (MEAM); it was formerly called Mechatronics, Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing. Students work toward NC3 certifications in DC electricity, CNC fundamentals, Allen Bradley PLCs, sensor technology, pneumatic fluid power and metal milling. They can also earn New Jersey Institute of Technology credit for MET 103 and MET 105, two credits each. The program was expanded with the new building in 2025.
No tuition or transportation cost to families
Families pay no tuition or transportation costs. New Jersey county vocational schools are funded by the county, local taxes and state and federal aid, and the student’s home district pays any tuition charged, according to Career Tech NJ. We found no published per-student rate for sending districts. Because it is a high school, there is no federal student aid, net price calculator or veterans’ benefit.
How students apply and when classes meet
Applications for 2027-28 opened on 8 September 2026 and close on 30 December 2026, for both the career programs and the Academy. Applicants to the career programs take an admissions test. New Jersey students may apply to the county vocational school of the county they live in, per Career Tech NJ. Biomedical, Finance, HVACR and Global Business Operations are shared-time only. Most program classes meet three periods, about two hours, a day, five days a week; cosmetology meets two periods.
State oversight, ASE accreditation and results
The school describes itself as a fully accredited high school under the supervision of the New Jersey Department of Education; it names no accrediting body. Automotive-Diesel Technology is accredited by the ASE Education Foundation.
The New Jersey Department of Education’s 2023-24 School Performance Report gives a four-year graduation rate of 100% for the 2024 cohort and a five-year rate of 98.8% for the 2023 cohort. In 2023-24, 202 students earned at least one industry-valued credential, 212 credentials in all. We found no published placement figures or licensing exam pass rates, such as for the cosmetology State Board exam.
Before you enroll
- Adults cannot enroll. Every program is for high-school students in grades 9 to 12; the school says all adult vocational education falls under Raritan Valley Community College.
- Admission is by application and test, with a 30 December 2026 deadline for 2027-28, and New Jersey students may apply to the vocational school of the county they live in.
- Four programs, Biomedical, Finance, HVACR and Global Business Operations, are shared-time only, so students in them keep their academics at their home high school. HVACR began in 2025-26, so no class has finished all four years yet.
- Two programs say certifications are available without naming them (Electrical Construction, Carpentry). The CNA and phlebotomy options in Health Occupations come through an outside provider.
- We found no published job placement figures or licensing exam pass rates.
Co-op jobs and college credit
Year 4 cooperative education places students in paid jobs in automotive, auto body, HVACR, plumbing, carpentry, welding and electrical work. Culinary students run the Trade Wins restaurant. College credit comes through Raritan Valley Community College, the New Jersey Institute of Technology, Johnson & Wales University and Rutgers, depending on the program.
What students and parents say on Niche
On Niche, the high school scores 3.83 out of 5 from 69 reviews (checked October 2026). Reviewers praise hands-on project work, especially in computer science and engineering, supportive teachers, and preparation for college or a career. Complaints concern staff training on LGBTQIA+ inclusion, too few music and arts options, and, in Niche’s own summary, inconsistent communication and schedule changes from the administration. These are reviews by high-school students and parents, not by adult trainees, and we could not check when they were posted.
Adults in the area
Adults in Somerset County who want trade training should look at Raritan Valley Community College, a separate college accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. Its current workforce trade programs, including Automotive Technology, Machining Technology, AWS MIG Welding, HVAC and Cosmetology, list the main campus at 118 Lamington Road, Branchburg, NJ 08876, as their location.
These are RVCC’s prices, not SCVTS’s: for Fall 2026, RVCC credit tuition is $198 per credit for Somerset and Hunterdon County residents and $278 per credit for other New Jersey and out-of-state students, plus a General Services Fee of $65 per credit, per RVCC’s tuition and fees page. Non-credit workforce programs are priced separately.
Facts checked October 2026.
Programs & Courses
Construction Trades (high school)
- Carpentry
- Electrical Construction
- HVACR (shared-time only)
- Plumbing - Environmental Technology
- Welding
Automotive (high school)
- Automotive-Diesel Technology
- Auto Body
Engineering and Manufacturing (high school)
- Mechanical Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing (MEAM)
Health Science (high school)
- Health Occupations
- Biomedical (shared-time only)
- Academy for Health & Medical Sciences (with Raritan Valley Community College)
Culinary and Personal Services (high school)
- Culinary
- Cosmetology
Computer and Information Technology (high school)
- Computer Science
Business (high school)
- Business Entrepreneurship & Management
- Finance (shared-time only)
- Global Business Operations (shared-time only)
Criminal Justice and Law (high school)
- Law & Public Safety
Agriculture (high school)
- Agricultural Science
Arts and Media (high school)
- Graphic Communications
- Dance
- Theater
Campus Locations
Bridgewater, NJ 14 Vogt Drive, Bridgewater, NJ 08807