Considering College In California? Here's How To Get Started

How To Get To College In California

Will higher education get you where you want to go? What are all the ways to get free tuition? Who can you talk to for advice? We did a bunch of research and want to help.

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What We Mean By Higher Education

We’re talking about a lot of things: bachelor’s or associate’s degrees, a certificate, or job training through an educational institution. A lot of this information can apply to advanced degrees like master's or Ph.D.s, but we don't discuss those in depth.

We’ll highlight resources from public schools (the community college, California State University, and University of California systems) because they’re the largest school networks in the state, but we’ll also spotlight what might be available at online-only schools, trade schools, and private schools in general.

Experts

We had many long phone calls with higher education advocates, consultants and officials all around Southern California whose expertise informed this guide. Here are just some of the people we spoke to:

Shukry Cattan, Tiyya Foundation
Avisha Chugani, Pasadena City College
Armineh Dereghishian, Los Angeles City College
Sarah Fay, Safe Place for Youth
Rebecca Fishman, Upwardly Global
Tamar Frolichstein-Appel, Upwardly Global
Jenna Gausman, Santa Monica College
Grace Halvey, Understood
Elizabeth Hamblet, Learning Disabilities Consultant
Eric Hubbard, Jovenes, Inc.
Henan Joof, Los Angeles City College
Nancy Jodaitis, Immigrants Rising
Jina Krause-Vilmar, Upwardly Global
Jessica Ku Kim, L.A. County Economic Development Corporation
Romarilyn Ralston, Project Rebound, Cal State Fullerton
Victoria Rothman, Santa Monica College
Kelsey Torosyan, Colledge
Tatum Tricarico, YO! Disabled & Proud
Jenny Umhofer, Colledge
Rocio Veliz, Central American Resource Center (CARECEN)
Danielle Ward, Understood
Deacon John Wilson, Education & Enrichment Program, West Angeles Church of God in Christ

Student Readers

As part of our editing process, we shared an early draft with current, former, and prospective students to get feedback based on their experiences. Special thanks to those who shared their thoughts with us:

Angelica Ayala
Janel Blessing
Brenda Cruz
Christian Jackson