CCCID: The Use and Significance of the CCCID to the CCC SSO Initiative

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OpenCCC & The CCCID

OpenCCC is the federated identity initiative and systemwide student account system for the California Community Colleges system. Developed by the CCC Technology Center, the OpenCCC system has generated over 25 million unique student accounts (as of June 2023) supporting single sign-on access to many systemwide technology applications.

What is the CCCID?

When a new OpenCCC student account is created the system generates a unique student identifier for the user called the CCCID (California Community Colleges ID) and stores the user's validated credentials and minimum personal identifiable information in a secure identity management system enabling single sign-on access to admissions applications and other systemwide web-based services.

CCCID & Authentication

The CCCID is the master link between the identity management system, community colleges, and all systemwide technology services.  When a user is authenticated to use an application or service such as CCCApply, Canvas or MyPath, the CCCID is passed to that service to identify the unique individual. In this way, services and applications can maintain personal accounts for the user anonymously, thus ensuring the privacy and security of the user’s data.

CCCID Facts

• The CCCID is unique to each individual student

• The CCCID is generated when the student/user creates an OpenCCC account

• The CCCID is used to identify the student during sign-on by systemwide technology applications

• The CCCID is securely stored in a systemwide identity management system and delivered to the college via SuperGlue for Apply or via Data Warehouse Direct Connect service

• The CCCID can be used for student identification and deduplication by the college

• The CCCID is the mandated student identifier for every California Community College student

How do students get a CCCID?

Every student is assigned a unique CCCID during the OpenCCC account creation process which is required in order to apply to a California Community College or use any systemwide web application or service. Thus most students create their OpenCCC account when they apply for admission via the CCCApply online application or as part of the MyPath onboarding process. In some cases existing students who do not yet have a CCCID will encounter the OpenCCC Sign In page the first time they attempt to access a systemwide application, such as Canvas. Either way, every student will begin the account creation process from the Sign In page by clicking the Create an Account link.

How long does it take for a student to create an OpenCCC account?

Creating an OpenCCC account is simple, secure and user-friendly using a desktop computer or a mobile device. With access to their personal email account handy, students on average are able to setup and validate their account in under 7 minutes, including creating a secure password and completing the short account profile section.

What information do students need to create their OpenCCC account?

To create an account students need a unique email address to receive a time-sensitive security code in order to validate their identity. Once validated, only a few other details are required to complete the student account, including:

• Name & Address

• Birthdate

• Secure password

These are the only data required to create a new OpenCCC account. Additional information may be needed to submit an application for admission or a financial aid application. 

How do colleges get the CCCID?

Most students create their OpenCCC Account - which generates their unique CCCID - during the application for admission process to their selected California Community College, either via CCCApply or the CVC/OEI program. The CCCID is passed to the college with the student’s account data when the application is submitted. Application and account data is delivered to the college via SuperGlue for Apply; however there are alternative ways to get a student’s CCCID:

• SuperGlue for Apply: Student account data (which includes their CCCID) is delivered with every CCCApply submitted application via SuperGlue for Apply and the College Adaptor.

• Data Warehouse Report Server: Colleges can also retrieve account data from submitted and in-progress applications via the CCC Data Warehouse Report Server.

• CCCApply Report Center: Real-time submitted application data (including student account data) can also be accessed in the CCCApply Report Center.

• SSO Proxy: For continuing students who don’t have an OpenCCC account and therefore cannot sign-in to systemwide technology services, the SSO Proxy will prompt account creation.

For accounts created via the SSO Proxy, how do colleges get the data into their systems?

For continuing students who do not yet have an OpenCCC account and therefore no CCCID, will be prompted to create an account by the SSO Proxy service the very first time they attempt to access a systemwide technology application - such as Canvas. Once the account is created, the college can retrieve the student’s account information and CCCID through the CCC Data Warehouse Report Server.

What is included in the full account data set delivered to the college?

All account data fields are delivered to the college with the student’s submitted CCCApply application for admission or CC Promise Grant application. Alternately, colleges can access student account data via the CCCApply Report Center or the CCC Data Warehouse Report Server. For a complete list of self-reported and system-generated account fields, see the latest CCCApply Standard & Noncredit Application Data Dictionary, or any of the other CCCApply application data dictionaries.

Is there a significant number of duplicate CCCID records found across the system?

No. The number of duplicates CCCID account across the entire CCC system is approximately .2% and decreasing. Though some colleges have raised concerns about the potential for duplicates, at this time we are finding that very few duplicates are being reported (less than 100 duplicates at most colleges, and in even more cases - less than that). 

The Significance of the CCCID for Single Sign-On (SSO)

The CCCID is used for multiple purposes across the California Community Colleges system. The CCC Chancellor's Office and other systemwide organizations rely on the CCCID to track a student’s progress and the educational choices made throughout the course of their academic journey. Students that attend multiple colleges across the system are tracked in one central location (OpenCCC Student Account System) and their CCCID can be used for research (locally and systemwide) to better align support and services across the system, and to prevent fraud.

The objective of the CCC SSO Proxy is to provide back-up to the OpenCCC system and ensure that every CCC student has a CCCID. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that colleges store student CCCIDs in their Active Directory or LDAP directory in order to pass this attribute with the EPPN when the student signs in (authenticates) to a CCC web application, such as CCCApply, Canvas, MyPath, and more.

What is the EPPN?  

The EduPersonPrincipalName (EPPN) is the unique identifier for a user (applicant, student, faculty, staff) across all college IdPs.  

The EPPN has the syntax of an email address, but it should be considered a "globally unique federated identifier" rather than an email address. It is generally the most important attribute to be shared with federated services. Note that the value of EPPN does not have to match what the user enters as their username when they login, and the user does not need to know what their EPPN is, as it is shared between the IdP and the service. It should be unique, rarely change, and not be reassigned to another user.  

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The significance of the EPPN to the CCC SSO Federation

For the the Student population, a California Community College ID (CCCID) is a unique correlation ID for a single student across the entire CCC system and is a key SAML attribute requirement across all service providers.  Many colleges will be able to lookup the CCCID from their directory servers, but for the colleges that don't store CCCID, the central IdP proxy will be used to lookup the CCCID for a given EPPN and included it in the list of SAML attributes sent to the final Service Provider.