High School Graduation Requirements
for Students Applying to
California Community Colleges

If you are sitting in class right now unsure of what to do next year, consider a Community College. Community Colleges offer students the opportunity to continue studying towards an advanced degree, complete a specialized certificate program, or explore career options through classes inexpensively.

The Community College system in California consists of two-year public institutions, composed of 108 colleges statewide organized into 72 districts, and serves more than 2.9 million students. It represents the largest system of higher education in the world.

A community college is a good choice for any student who may want to attend a four-year school later but who is not yet academically, personally, or economically ready to begin study at a university. In a community college, students can choose to work toward an associate (two-year) degree in hundreds of academic and technical fields that will enable them to transfer to a college or university to complete a baccalaureate degree; or, they can complete a one- or two-year training or certificate program in a choice of occupational fields, various health professions, and/or high-technology job fields.

Any California high school graduate is eligible for admission to a community college. However, you do not have to have a high school diploma as long as you are over eighteen years of age and can benefit from instruction. High school students may be permitted to enroll for "advanced placement" courses provided they have the consent of their school principal and their college president and meet grade-point requirements. For additional information about the Community College system in Californai, we recommend visiting http://www.cccco.edu/.

Attending a Community College does not mean that you have to stay at home and go to the school down the street. Community Colleges, like 4-year colleges, offer different programs of study, have different clubs and sports, and unique transfer agreements with various 4-year colleges. Throughout the state of California, there are approximately 108 community colleges and with a high school diploma, you qualify to attend any of them. So if you really want to be in San Diego, but are not ready for UCSD or SDSU, try community colleges...and donŐt be deceived, several community colleges throughout California have on-campus housing.

Community College Timeline

December

Begin filling out the FAFSA (financial aid form).

January

Mail the FAFSA after January 1, 2003.

Feb/March

Attend the Community College fair at Fremont High School.

March

Begin filling out applications for community colleges. Applications are available in the Career Center or online.

March 15 - Priority deadline for community college application.

April/May

Take the Math and English placement tests at the community college you plan to attend.

May/June

Register for your fall semester classes.

Helpful tip: For many community colleges, an Orientation class is mandatory before you can register for classes. Apply for the Summer session and take the required Orientation class over the summer. If you do this, then the placement tests and class registration are included in the course and you would not have to take them separately.

June

Have your final transcript sent to the community college of your choice at Senior checkout.