College

Applying to a Community College

Read these facts from the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office:

With more than 2.1 million students on 112 campuses, the California Community Colleges is the largest system of higher education in the United States.
The California Community Colleges is the largest provider of workforce training in the state and nation.
Attending or graduating from a community college doubles an individual’s chance of finding a job compared to those who failed to complete high school.
Californians with a college degree will earn $400,000 more in their lifetime than their peers with only a high school diploma.
Students who earn a degree or certificate from a California community college nearly double their earnings within three years.
The Public Policy Institute of California estimates by 2025 California will face a shortage of 1 million college degree and certificate holders needed to fuel its workforce.

The most wonderful feature about California community colleges is that everyone who applies can attend. It does not matter how old you are, if you did not finish high school, if you did poorly in school in the past, or if English is your second language. Community colleges welcome everyone.

In fact, at $46 per unit for California residents, California community colleges offer an affordable way to complete the general education units before transferring to a university. If university study is not your goal, each college offers a number of short-term career and technical certificates.

In this brief learning unit, you will prepare for and practice applying for college.

Learning objectives. By the end of this learning unit, you will be able to do the following:

1. Interpret key information from an authentic text using a variety of reading strategies (for example, comprehend vocabulary words and phrases using context clues, make inferences, skim, scan).

2. Complete an authentic form with accuracy and neatness.

In order to achieve the learning goals above, complete the following assignments by following the steps below. If you have questions about any of the materials or if there is anything you do not understand at any point in the learning unit, please contact your instructor.

1. College Application Preview.

See what a college application contains. Preview the MiraCosta College application.

You may print it, if you like, to practice filling it out. Later you will fill out the form and submit it for grading.

2. Application preparation.

Prepare to fill out a college application. Download this application preparation sheet and follow the instructions. Write your answers and show the paper to your teacher.

3. Application Practice.

Practice filling out the college application. Download and enter your information in the fillable PDF application.

Please note: For the social security number, telephone number, and other sensitive/private information, you should not enter your real information. Instead, you can use 555-55-5555 for your social security number, for example.

Enter all other information on the form as accurately as possible. Save the filled-in application form and print, sign, and submit it to your instructor. Optionally, you can email the completed form to your instructor.

4. Assessment.

Get feedback on your learning. This rubric shows how your application will be graded.

This learning unit modified from MiraCosta College EL Civics Education Advanced Unit.

Now you are ready!

At MiraCosta College, the application and enrollment process is all conducted online. To get started, you will create an OpenCCC Account. After that, you will enter similar information as the paper application online. After your application has been reviewed by the Registrar’s Office at MiraCosta College, you will receive an email indicating the date that you can register for classes on SURF.

For complete details on applying to MiraCosta College as a new student, see How to Apply and Enroll in Credit Classes.

Continue your learning with the Work Learning Unit.

“Nearly all Americans have ancestors who braved the oceans – liberty-loving risk takers in search of an ideal –

the largest voluntary migrations in recorded history…

Immigration is not just a link to America’s past; it’s also a bridge to America’s future.”

-- former U.S. President George W. Bush

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