The California Department of Education does not have the authority or resources to collect and/or store transcripts or records for students in California public or private schools. However, there are steps you can take to try to recover your academic records. This page provides resources for obtaining student records and transcripts for various educational entities.
Public Schools
To obtain a transcript from a California public school, you will need to contact the school directly. If the school is closed, we suggest contacting the local school district where the school was located for assistance. Contact information for these entities may be obtained from the California School Directory.
Private Schools
To obtain a transcript from a California private school, you will need to contact the school or one of its officers directly. Contact information for private schools may be obtained from the California School Directory, or from the Private School Directory data files, which are posted on the CDE Private School web page.
If the school is closed, you may contact the below individuals or organizations. Please note that there is no guarantee that these contacts will have your records.
- The school’s custodian of records. The custodian of records is listed in the Private School Directory data files, which are posted on the CDE Private School web page.
- If the school was religious in nature, or affiliated with a church that still exists, contact the associated church, regional denomination office, or the local Catholic Diocese.
- The school district in which the school was located. You may use the California School Directory to locate which district the school was located and to obtain contact information for that district.
- Parchment
, which is a private company that offers transcript recovery services.
Private Postsecondary Institutions
To obtain a transcript from a private or vocational college, you will need to contact the institution directly. If the institution appears to be closed, we recommend that you ensure the institution is closed, as some institutions will close a branch or location, yet remain open. Also, institutions may be a member of a larger organization, therefore we recommend that you try to contact the parent organization, if applicable. If the institution is closed, or not part of a larger organization that maintained their records, you may contact the below organizations to try to obtain your records.
- Bureau for Private Postsecondary Secondary Education (BPPE)
, which provides information on which records are in their possession, as well as a link to their transfer request form on their Transcripts web page
.
- The Art Institutes
, which provides information for obtaining academic records from the Art Institutes on their Closed School Information web page
.
- Parchment
,
which is a private company that offers transcript recovery services.
Corrections and Juvenile Justice Entities
To obtain a transcript from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ; formerly the California Youth Authority), please contact the CDCR DJJ by phone at 916-322-5759 or visit the CDCR How to Request Transcripts and Certifications from the California Education Authority web page
.
Unable to Obtain High School Records
If you are unable to obtain your high school records and you’ve tried the recommendations mentioned above, you may want to consider taking a high school equivalency test (HSET). More information about HSETs are available on the CDE High School Equivalency Tests (HSET) web page.
Helpful Links
Federal Student Aid, Has Your School Closed? Here's What to Do
Information from the Federal Student Aid Office of the U.S. Department of Education on what to do if your school has closed.
How to Get Your High School Transcripts
Blog from the PrepScholar SAT/ACT Online Prep Blog.