This guide provides information for community colleges on the recruitment, retention, and job placement of women and men in occupations nontraditional for their sex, based on two programs offered at the College of Marin, machine metal work for women and secretarial/office work for men. Part I discusses barriers confronting men in secretarial/office programs and women in machine metal programs on the basis of a statewide survey of instructors in these fields and on interviews with 17 women machinists, 16 male secretaries/typists, employers/supervisors, and program dropouts. Part II examines strategies used by community colleges to encourage men and women to consider nontraditional programs and provides advice on the use of role models, self-assessment, employment information, job experience, and publicity. In Part III, strategies are presented for student retention through classroom techniques and campus support services. Part IV provides guidelines on job placement, including information on job-hunting techniques and on-the-job strategies. Part V gives information on special considerations in developing nontraditional programs, such as the shared characteristics of male and female participants, and provides criteria for assessing the success of nontraditional programs. Exhibits include examples of model flyers, programs, and activities. An appendix provides the instrument used in the instructor survey. (Author/HB)