The College/Career Indicator (CCI) is the metric California uses to measure how many graduating seniors are actually prepared for college or a career. It shows up on every school's dashboard. It is tied to LCAP funding. And most families have never heard of it.
What the CCI is
The CCI is one of the measures inside California's Dashboard, the state's public accountability system for schools. It tracks the percentage of 12th-grade graduates who fall into one of three categories:
Prepared: The student has met one or more criteria showing they are ready for college coursework or a career pathway. This is the target status.
Approaching Prepared: The student is on track but has not yet completed all criteria for full Prepared status.
Not Yet Prepared: The student has not met the criteria for either of the above categories.
Every California public high school's CCI rate is visible to anyone who looks up the school on the Dashboard. Low rates are flagged. Districts with persistent low rates must address them in their LCAP.
How students earn College Prepared status
A student earns College Prepared status through any one of the following:
- A-G completion with GPA and a college exam: Completed A-G courses with a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher, plus a college entrance exam score on the SAT, ACT, CLT, CAASPP, or another approved assessment.
- Dual enrollment: Completed college-level courses at a California Community College with passing grades while still in high school. This is one of the fastest-growing pathways to College Prepared status.
- AP or IB credit: Earned college credit through Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate coursework.
A student only needs to qualify through one pathway. A student who completes dual enrollment with passing grades is College Prepared, regardless of their A-G status or test scores.
How students earn Career Prepared status
Career Prepared status is earned through CTE (Career Technical Education) pathways and credentials. A student qualifies through any one of the following:
- CTE pathway with an industry certification: Completed a CTE course sequence and passed a recognized industry certification exam in their field.
- CTE pathway capstone with a B or better: Completed a CTE pathway sequence and earned a B or higher in the final capstone course.
- Dual enrollment CTE (AB 288): Completed dual enrollment courses in a CTE field through a California Community College. AB 288 allows districts to partner with community colleges to bring these courses to high school campuses.
- Recognized industry credential: Earned a state-approved industry credential, sometimes called a CCI Key or Badge. These are credentials tied to specific sectors like healthcare, construction, technology, and automotive.
What this means for alternative education students
Students in continuation schools, community day schools, and independent study programs are not blocked from CCI Prepared status. They can earn it through Career Prepared pathways even if they are not completing A-G coursework. CTE certifications, dual enrollment under AB 288, and industry credentials are all available to them.
This pathway is widely underused. Most alternative education sites do not have the counselor capacity to connect students to industry certifications or dual enrollment partnerships in time to count toward CCI before graduation. Building those connections is a district systems problem, not an individual student limitation.
Where CCI progress is tracked
CCGI (CaliforniaColleges.edu) is where student CCI progress is tracked statewide. Counselors can view a student's status directly inside the platform. Students can also see their own progress and understand which pathway they are on.
For counselors managing large caseloads, the CCGI dashboard is one of the most efficient tools for identifying which students are close to Prepared status and which ones need a specific intervention to get there before they graduate.
The LCAP connection
The CCI is one of the eight state priority areas under California's Local Control Funding Formula. Districts must report on CCI outcomes in their Local Control Accountability Plans (LCAPs). When a school's CCI rate is low or declining, that performance flag appears on the public California Dashboard and the district must address it in writing.
This makes the CCI directly relevant to how districts allocate LCAP funds. Programs that move students toward Prepared status, including career pathway partnerships, dual enrollment expansion, and counselor training, can be funded as LCAP strategies. Districts that have invested in those systems tend to see their CCI rates improve year over year.
Why families should know this
A student with Prepared status has more options after graduation. Prepared status can affect dual enrollment eligibility during high school, the strength of a college application, and how quickly a counselor prioritizes a student who needs individualized support.
Families can look up their student's school on the California Dashboard and see the CCI rate directly. If the rate is low, that is useful information to bring to a meeting with the school counselor. Asking "what is the plan to get my student to Prepared status?" is a fair and specific question.
We help districts build the systems that move more students to Prepared status.
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