Information for Student Receiving EDD Unemployment Insurance (UI) Benefits & Attending Foothill or De Anza College:

Note: The following is not an Employment Development Department (EDD) document and is not a substitute for official EDD information. It is meant to assist you in gathering appropriate information. For clarification, please consultEDD publications, agents, or the EDD web site.

EDD website at www.edd.ca.gov
EDD Phone: (800) 300-5616

Reminder: Students seeking assistance with enrollment verification for EDDpurposes need to visit a Registrar staff person in the campus Admissions and Records Office with the necessary forms. No student enrollment information will be shared by phone with EDD agents. (Students already enrolled through an OTI advisor should speak with him/her.)

Option 1: Enrolling & Paying for College 

“I'm planning to enroll as a full-time student and pay my college expenses. How do I become/remain eligible for my Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits?”

Follow these eight (8) recommended guidelines:

  1. Read carefully the EDD handout on California Training Benefits (CTB), a special type of UI benefit. You will be securing training on your own behalf (not through ETP, WIA, CalWORKs, etc. - see handout section “Other”) and designing your own training plan.
  2. Important : If you haven't already, contact the EDD to indicate that you are interested in training, even if you haven't decided exactly what you will study, or which college to attend. (Note in the CTB handout the EDD time limit to notify EDDabout your training intention.)
  3. Determine what you want to study and in which college to enroll. You will need to choose a vocational subject area, such as Accounting, Computer Database Management, Paralegal Studies, Health Tech., etc. You will probably be denied if you are primarily taking general education classes or pursuing your AA/AS degree.
    • If you need help, visit the college counseling office, get the college's annual Catalog (not the quarterly schedule of classes), or visit the college web site ( www.deanza.eduor www.foothill.edu ) and look under academic divisions. Foothill also has information in the Student Success Center in the Administration building.
    • Reminder : College staff are not able to answer for certain which vocational programs will be approved nor whether a particular student receiving UI benefits will qualify for CTB. Please refer to EDD publications & web pages, or call the EDD to get the exact guidelines for your situation.
    • Under CTB eligibility guidelines, you will need to be a full-time student at the college you choose. At De Anza or Foothill Colleges, full-time is considered 12 quarter units minimum (summer min. is 6 units), or 20 hrs. of class/lab time per week.
    • You must plan to complete within 12 months maximum. College certificates in vocational areas usually are acceptable since most last a year or less.
  4. Apply to the college (www.deanza.edu orwww.foothill.edu ). Register for classes on your assigned regist. date. Pay your fees. (Note: All students are welcome to apply for college Financial Aid, which can be in the form of grants, fee waivers, loans, scholarships, or work study.)
  5. Contact the EDD, or mark #5 on your biweekly UI form that corresponds to your first week of classes (mark this the 1 st week only), to indicate your start date for training.
  6. The EDD will probably schedule a short phone interview with you regarding your proposed training. You should receive a notice in the mail in advance about this interview. Tip: you can ask to have the EDDagent contact you by cell phone if you will be away from home at the scheduled time.
  7. Important : Since in these matters college policy does not permit releasing student information over the phone, be sure to receive the proper EDD enrollment verification documents by mail. Once classes for you have begun, bring these forms to a Registrar staff person in the campus Admissions and Records office. Get signature(s), and mail back to the EDD as instructed.
  8. If approved for CTB, you will need to bring your biweekly claim form (the one attached to your check) to a Registrar staff person for continuing enrollment verification before mailing back. Do this throughout your training period.

Concerns with the above should be directed to the EDD.

Option 2: Training Referral Programs

“I require special assistance with my training goal and paying for college expenses. What is available?”

Training Referral Programs (below): Investigate programs in your area where you might access services. If available, you could be referred to college with subsidized funds.

  • CalWORKs:For one or two-parent families receiving cash aid (TANF) . This is accessible through county offices under Social Services.
  • Workforce Investment Act (WIA) 
    Resource for employment services that might include training. Accessible through local “one stop” centers in your county. Try searching the web under Workforce Investment Boards in your area.
  • North American Free Trade Act/Trade Re-Adjustment Act (NAFTA/TRA) : 
    For workers who lost jobs due to competition from another country. 
    Examples: a company sent manufacturing overseas or to Canada/Mexico, or a major distributor shifted to a foreign supplier, causing your employer to cut jobs. Try searching Dept. of Labor web site under Training for details. Accessible through representatives located in EDD offices and/or “one stop” centers in your county.
  • Workers compensation :
    If you were injured on your old job and have received benefits from the insurance company to retrain.

If you contact one of the above agencies and qualify for their services, please contact the Occupational Training Institute for Foothill/De Anza with the name and contact information of the agency's representative to make arrangements.

  • OTI De Anza College Contact: (408) 864-8869
  • OTI Foothill College Contact: (650) 949-7465
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