How to Get Your Transcript or Diploma From a Closed College

If your college closed, your records didn't vanish with it. When a school shuts down, it's required to hand its academic records to a custodian — usually a state agency, the National Student Clearinghouse, or a transcript service like Parchment. The tricky part is that the custodian is different for each school, so the first step is simply knowing where to look. This guide maps the major closures and gives you the general rule for any school that isn't listed.

Quick answer: Start at your state's higher-education or licensing agency and the U.S. Department of Education's closed-school resources, then go to the specific custodian for your school (below). For ITT Tech that's Parchment; for Corinthian's Everest/Heald/WyoTech it's Zenith Education Group and the California BPPE; for The Art Institutes it's the National Student Clearinghouse.

The general rule for any closed school

Before the school-by-school list, here's the pattern that holds almost everywhere:

1. Check the U.S. Department of Education's closed-school information (studentaid.gov). It points to record custodians and explains your options, including loan discharge if the closure interrupted your program.
2. Contact your state's higher-education or private-postsecondary agency. States generally require a closing school to deposit student records with them or with a named custodian, so the state agency can tell you who holds your file.
3. Try the National Student Clearinghouse and Parchment. Between them they hold or process records for a large share of US institutions, including many that have closed.
4. Keep proof of your own. If you have an old transcript, grade report, or even a class schedule, hold onto it — a custodian's record is sometimes incomplete, and failure to locate a record does not invalidate your attendance or completion.

Now the specific routes.

ITT Technical Institute (closed September 2016)

ITT Tech's student records were transferred to Parchment. Former students request transcripts through Parchment's dedicated ITT ordering page (parchment.com/ITT): create an account, verify your identity, and choose where the transcript should be sent.

A few state notes:

• Wisconsin maintains records for some former Wisconsin ITT students through its Educational Approval Program — you can submit a Student Record Request Form there.
• Tennessee's higher-education commission holds ITT transcripts for some older graduating classes; for more recent records, use Parchment.
• One caveat from the custodians: ITT did not retain complete transcripts for every non-graduate, so some files are partial.

Corinthian Colleges — Everest, Heald, and WyoTech (closed 2015)

Records for the Corinthian schools are handled in two main places:

• Zenith Education Group processes many Everest, Heald, and WyoTech transcript requests (a completed request form is emailed, faxed, or mailed to Zenith).
• The California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (BPPE) and its Office of Student Assistance and Relief (OSAR) can process most requests from former Corinthian students, especially for California campuses.

If you're not sure which applies to your campus, the California BPPE "closed Corinthian College schools" resource and the Department of Education's Corinthian FAQ are the right starting points.

The Art Institutes (closed September 22, 2023)

When The Art Institutes closed, enrolled students were sent five free official transcripts beginning around October 2023. Going forward, the National Student Clearinghouse is the primary way to order a transcript from a closed Art Institutes campus (24/7 online, for a fee), and Parchment handles diploma reprints for some closed campuses. State agencies — for example the education departments in California, Texas, New York, and Utah — also maintain closed-school records and can help if the Clearinghouse doesn't have your file.

Other closed colleges

For any school not listed above, work the general rule: studentaid.gov → your state higher-ed/licensing agency → National Student Clearinghouse / Parchment. Most states publish a "closed school transcripts" page that names the custodian for each institution. If you already have a copy of your diploma or transcript, a clear scan is valuable proof while you track down the official custodian.

What if no one can find your record?

It happens, and it isn't the end of the road:

• Ask the custodian for a formal records search — older or non-graduate files are sometimes archived separately.
• Provide supporting documents (old transcripts, grade reports, enrollment letters, financial-aid records).
• Remember the custodians' own caveat: a missing record does not invalidate your attendance or your completion of a program. You can document your education other ways while the search continues — our guide to proving you graduated covers the alternatives, and what's on a college transcript explains what a complete record should show.

A display copy while you sort the official record

Tracking down records from a closed school can take weeks. If you'd like something to frame in the meantime — or simply a keepsake of a credential you earned — DiplomaCraft makes novelty replica college diplomas and transcripts recreated from your details (diplomas on heavyweight acid-free parchment with a metallic gold foil seal; transcripts on bright-white security stock).

To be clear: a replica is a novelty and display keepsake. It is not an official record, it isn't issued by the school or a state, and it shouldn't be used for employment, enrollment, licensing, or any government process. For anything official, use the custodian routes above.

FAQ

My school closed — is my degree still valid?
Yes. A closure doesn't undo a degree you earned. The challenge is retrieving the record, not the validity of your education.

How long does it take to get records from a closed school?
It varies by custodian — anywhere from a few days (Clearinghouse/Parchment online orders) to several weeks if a state agency has to pull an archived file.

Is there a fee?
Usually a modest per-transcript fee through services like the National Student Clearinghouse or Parchment; some state agencies charge little or nothing. Costs vary.

Can I still get federal loan relief if my school closed mid-program?
Possibly — the Department of Education's closed-school discharge may apply. Check studentaid.gov for eligibility.

The bottom line

Your records survive your school. Start with studentaid.gov and your state agency, then go to the named custodian — Parchment for ITT Tech, Zenith and the California BPPE for Corinthian's Everest/Heald/WyoTech, the National Student Clearinghouse for The Art Institutes. Keep any proof you already have, and don't let a slow search make you doubt a credential you genuinely earned.

Sources

• U.S. Department of Education, Federal Student Aid — closed school records and transcripts and the Art Institutes closure fact sheet.
• Parchment — ITT Technical Institute transcript requests.
• California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education — Corinthian Colleges student guide and transcripts.
• New York State Education Department — transcripts from closed colleges; Utah DCP closed-school transcripts.