Admissions

At City Colleges of Chicago (CCC), we are committed to providing our students a broad range of educational opportunities and services to help them achieve their education and career goals. We serve a highly diverse student population, including full-time, part-time, transfer, disabled, under-represented, military veteran, and international students         

CCC is an open-enrollment institution and students are accepted year-round.        

KEY APPLICATION DATES & DEADLINES

The Admissions Application Calendar below shows key dates for credit students during the 2025-2026 year. Please contact the Admissions Office at hwc-admissions@ccc.edu.    

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CREDIT                                                             

Students working towards a degree or certificate should visit ccc.edu/apply to complete and submit an application. Review the Harold Washington College New Student Checklist for a complete list of all of the admission steps including submitting residency verification.      

Please note that 30-90 minutes after applying, you should receive an e-mail from AccountManagment@ccc.edu​ with your CCC login credentials. If you do not receive an email with your username and CCC student ID, please email hwc-admissions@ccc.edu with your full name and date of birth for help.     

Once you have applied, please take your placement exams and then connect with an academic advisor to help you register for classes. New students (and transfer students with less than 15 credit hours) are encouraged to attend New Student Orientation to register for classes.        

If you are using financial aid, please be sure to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application at https://studentaid.gov/ as soon as possible (HW code 001652) or an Alternative Application at https://www.isac.org/Alternative-Application. Please review this guide on how to submit financial aid verification documents via the CCC student portal or contact the Office of Financial Aid for questions.                                                                                   

TRANSCRIPT CREDIT PROCEDURES

Students submitting transcripts from colleges or universities can submit official transcripts to the Registrar’s Office where the student intends to register and/or request a transcript evaluation to receive transfer credit.  We strongly encourage requesting official transcripts to be sent electronically. Please note, official transcripts are required to receive transfer credit.  Students transferring credit to City Colleges of Chicago are required to submit official college transcripts reflecting all college credits earned at other regionally accredited institutions previously attended.  Please email your college Registrar’s Office​ with any questions.

Note: If unofficial transcripts are submitted as part of the admission process, they will not be evaluated for transfer credits and official transcripts will still be required for future enrollment and transfer credit evaluation.

TRANSCRIPT WAIVER

If you meet one of the criteria below, you can apply for a transcript waiver which, if approved, will allow you to register for classes without submitting an official transcript.

• Your transcript is from a non-regionally accredited college/university.
• You did not complete any college credit at your college/university (withdrawal) as validated by an unofficial transcript.
• You did not earn any transferable grades (A, B, or Cs) at your college/university as validated by an unofficial transcript.
• Your official transcript cannot be obtained due to college/university closing or natural disaster.
• You have proof your official college transcript was sent to CCC. An unofficial transcript must be submitted in the interim.
• You cannot obtain an official college transcript due to prior debt, and you have proof of being enrolled in a payment plan or of a recent payment transaction to that institution. However, you agree to submit an official transcript to CCC once your debt is cleared.
• You have proof of an official international college/university transcript evaluation order (within the past 30 days).
• You have earned multiple degrees and do not need to submit non-relevant college/university transcripts such as a masters or doctorate degree. Only undergraduate college work is required via official college transcript(s).

If you think that one of the above criteria applies to you, please complete the transcript waiver form Official_College_Transcript_Waiver_Form_Final [PDF]. If you have any questions, contact your Admissions Office.

EARLY COLLEGE FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

City Colleges of Chicago offers free college-level classes to high school students through our Dual Enrollment and Dual Credit* programs. These programs help students reduce the amount of time and money needed to complete two- and four-year degrees. For more information about Early College, visit ccc.edu/earlycollege.        

To start, visit https://applyearly.edu and fill out an online application for admissions. Please review the Early College Admission Guide and Early College Admission Checklist before applying.                                         

*Students interested in the Dual Credit program should speak with their high school representative to learn more.​​  ​   ​