The Field

Cabinetmaking is a specialty area within the field of carpentry and building trades. This field of study includes basic woodworking as well as more advanced cabinetmaking and furniture-making techniques. Cabinetmaking can be done within a production, manufacturing environment, or as an individual artisan specializing in custom design and building.  

The Instructional Program

SUNY Delhi offers a one-year Cabinetmaking certificate as part of the Carpentry and Building Trades curriculum. The certificate program can be taken by itself, or it can be combined with further instruction in Carpentry to yield an associate degree. This program's objective is to educate students in both the theory and practice of woodworking and cabinetmaking. The program includes extensive laboratory hours during which students develop and practice the skills of the cabinetmaker.

Students who enroll in the Carpentry and Building Trades associate-degree programs have the option of including one or two semesters of woodworking/cabinetmaking in the second year of their program.

Career Options

The job titles associated with graduates of the Cabinetmaking certificate program are:

• Woodworker
• Cabinetmaker
• Remodeler

There are career opportunities in residential construction, in sub-contracting, and in sole ownership of a cabinetmaking shop. Students who continue on for the associate degree increase their options for employment in the carpentry and construction fields.

Graduates of the associate-degree programs also have options for further study at the bachelor-degree level. For example, the College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) at Syracuse offers a B.S. degree in Wood Products Technology.

A related career option would be to transfer to a school with a Technology Education or a Vocational Education bachelor degree, which would lead to a teaching career at the high school level. In New York State, two schools that offer this degree are SUNY Oswego and SUNY Buffalo.

Curriculum

SUNY Curriculum Code:  0923 

This sequence of courses is available to those who want a single year of woodworking and cabinetmaking. Successful completion of the certificate program will allow a student to transfer all courses to the A.O.S. option should he/she decide to continue their studies.

First Semester

Second Semester

Certificate Requirement: 33 credit hours

Notes

*MATH 102 Mathematics for Applied Technology is the minimum exit-level requirement for this program.

Admissions Requirements

High school graduate with a minimum 73% overall average or a minimum 2500 GED test score. A 70% or higher on the Math A Regents exam is recommended.

Program Objectives

A graduate of the Cabinetmaking certificate program should be able to:

1. Demonstrate knowledge of the safe operation and maintenance of major power tools used in cabinetmaking.
2. Build a series of woodworking projects which demonstrate an increasing level of skill and familiarity with the basic woodworking hand and power tools.
3. Discuss and demonstrate familiarity with the fundamentals of furniture design and joinery techniques.
4. Understand and apply knowledge concerning cabinet design, joinery, abrasives, adhesives, coloring, and finishing as it applies to cabinetmaking.
5. Demonstrate knowledge of advanced finish carpentry techniques such as complicated interior trim work and advanced stair construction as well as other aspects of residential millwork.
6. Understand and apply the fundamental techniques, skills, and computer usage necessary in the construction industry including word processing, spreadsheets, and CAD.