I chose to attend Harold Washington College solely because of its location, diverse student body and because of it being listed as one of our "military friendly" colleges in the Chicago and Chicagoland area. The campus itself is beautiful, located in the heart of the Chicago, and an easy commute via CTA train with CTA State/ Lake being the closest train stop to the campus. Other than a few mental health, psychology, child development and social service classes I took mostly my prerequisites at this campus, such as english, reading, math, art, and speech. My program, Addictions Studies transferred to Kennedy King College in 2017, but since I took a majority of my classes at Harold Washington College, it ended up being my 'projected graduation college'. Thinking about it as I share this review, I am happy I took the classes pertaining to my major at Kennedy King College and my prerequisites at Harold Washington College because teaching styles and class sizes were different where Harold Washington College, the classes were a tad larger, and Kennedy King College, the classes were smaller and more intimate. I have had a mixture of good and not so good professors, but for the most part a majority have been good with teaching styles that vary. With that, if you have a good adviser, or know current students they can steer you away from choosing that not so good professor. I also recommend utilizing website 'Rate My Professor', while choosing your classes or once you have chosen them because it will prepare you for what to expect, but do not expect an easy ride. And I highly recommend utilizing tutoring if you need extra assistance other than from your professor. The Veteran Services Center at this campus is amazing and by far the best out of all City Colleges of Chicago. Well informative of scholarships, job fairs, veteran events, and also makes sure my paperwork is up to date prior to the start of the semester. I have never had any issues with my Post 911 GI Bill or IVG (Illinois Veterans Grant) being submitted in a timely manner. The center is located on the second floor and has an area where veterans can do their homework other than in the library or computer lab. As a military veteran, I always feel as though I can let loose being around fellow servicemen & servicewomen. As for administration, I have looked at some of the old reviews and yes! I agree with some, but I have had more positive experiences than bad. And I'am sure that it is no different on any other college campus, so prepare yourself beforehand. As like many other college campuses, you can easily identify the post-high school students by the way they act and because most hang out in groups. The campus used to have a cafeteria in the basement which is now a lounge area for students where video gamers and musicians unite. With the absence of the cafeteria, there are an ample amount of restaurants within the area for students to grab food or snacks prior to or in-between classes. A few of my favorites were Billy Goat Tavern & Grill, 7 Eleven, Chick-fil-A, Protein Bar, Subway and Jason's Deli. The campus was everything I wanted in a college campus and truly the setting standard I look for as I search for a transfer college. From its diverse student body to it being a military friendly college there are few colleges like it with an easy commute to-and-from. Thomas G read more

See all

The Security Guards in this school are the most unprofessional and rudest people I have ever seen. Majority of the staff are terrible however, the professor's in HWC is the only redeeming factor about this school they actually help you out and will respond to your emails not like advisors and other staff members. Goodluck trying to contact advisors or certain staff members these guys never pick up and no matter how many times you send emails you don't get a response back. read more

The staff is rude and very off putting. They do the bare minimum and wonder why students transfer out. You would do better going somewhere else, if you want to be treated with respect for the amount of money you are paying. read more

It's a community college not a university. With that, it can be hit or miss on all areas related to instructors, personnel, and environment. I have a MA degree from an Ivy League and BA from a state university, so I've experienced a range of teachers, teaching styles, and university personnel. Some of the teachers at HWC have been quite good. I took a summer accounting class which was taught by a CPA. She was awesome! However, I took another accounting class by an instructor who wasn't a CPA and read PowerPoint slides that were prepared by the publisher. The material from the slides were taken directly from the book. As a result, the instructor didn't provide any added insight during the lecture. That was disappointing. You could ask questions, but it seemed his reply was rather limited and rarely offered real world examples. The cleaning crew could do a better job of cleaning off the desks from time to time as I usually have to use a tissue to wipe it off before I sit down, but I'd rather do that than pay quadruple in tuition. I can also say that the HWC school personnel have been friendly, but that could be because I've lowered my expectations. I like that you can pay the tuition in installments. For example, if you have two classes that total $600.00, you can pay a $30.00 installment fee and spread the payments over three months. I've been fortunate to have some good and smart classmates which can make the class interesting as well. I think the majority of students hold full-time jobs, so many people are bringing their life/work experiences to the classroom which can be useful when discussing the class material. read more

This City College has a nondescript appearance on the outside next to the "L" tracks, although it is undergoing a rehab that hopefully will give the exterior a fresh makeover. You can get a degree here, or just take a class or two to improve yourself. read more

Harold Washington College - Harold Washington College - Colleges & Universities Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

See all

So, I'm back in school, getting the prerequisites out of the way to begin the Nutrition (RD-N) program at UIC. I didn't take a whole lot in the way of science courses during undergrad, so I'm paying/making up for it now. Anyhoo, I looked into my options to get it done, and City Colleges of Chicago are the most affordable I found. Now, I took classes at Malcom X and Harold Washington after high school, before transferring to a 4-year university, but that was over 20 years ago. I also took my first ServSafe Sanitation class at Harold Washington many moons ago. The location is still prime and ideal, easily and readily accessible. The registration process was efficient and painless. There are (very reasonable) flat rates for each credit hour category, and not a ton of fees. Since I had to pay out of pocket, that was a big deal! I paid less than 1/10th of what I would have had to pay at CSU. To top it all off, all of the employees I've encountered so far have been helpful, pleasant, and professional. The building has gotten quite the face-lift, the classrooms are very modern, and the bathrooms are clean and well-lit. My instructors are very knowledgeable in their fields of study (Ph.Ds or candidates), willing to share said knowledge, and seem to be passionate about the subject matter. Win after win after win! read more

Went in the college at Harold Washington and saw that the atmosphere was pleasant. Security going to sign you in they don't play. After that you ask the people at the desk what you want to do . And you're on your way. I took the placement for English the same day I believe I did very well. I know what you maybe thinking big deal right ? Wrong you see I'm finally doing something for myself I'm 52 years been working since 1988 and still working. Provided for myself and my family also people on the street. I believe it's never to late to get a chance to start over again in life for more knowledge of development in being an overall functional human being that's what's it's going to take in the up coming 2000 era read more

It really takes a colossal fuck up to earn a one star review from me. Nuevo Leon earned one when I found a dead cockroach in my chips. Wilson Red Line earned one for resembling a crackden 24 hours a day. Comcast earned one for obvious reasons. The newest member of this elite group is Harold Washington College. Congrats, Harold Washington, you earned your one-star with flying colors this morning. For some reason, you have to register at the City College of Chicago campus that you intend to take classes at. They're all linked. They all use the same website. They all use the same registration software. I don't know why it's necessary to physically register AT the college you're taking classes at if everything is linked. I showed up at Harold Washington on Friday. Apparently, Academic Counselors don't have to come in on Fridays. I was told this by a bunch of women who were beaming with shit-eating grins - as if they enjoyed giving me this news. These women are the same set of women that put my name is as "Kerrin" in the City College of Chicago system (they copied my name from my drivers license, so I suspect this mistake was intentional), and they also originally marked that I was taking classes for fun and not for credit. I had clearly checked a box on my info sheet that I needed to take classes for credit, so I also suspect this was intentional. Since counselors here aren't in on Fridays, I showed up on a Monday which was a general registration day. Holy Mother of God. It was a complete clusterfuck of humanity. After waiting in a line that moved at snails pace for 45 minutes, I made it to the front and was directed into a room on the fourth floor, which was a large computer lab. If I could have registered myself at home, I would have. I had to come in because I needed a class waived in order to register. Eventually a woman made her way over to me, looked at my roster of previous classes and refused to waive the class I needed. I wanted to take College Algebra, and I needed remedial math classes waived. Even though I've taken algebra, statistics and geometry before, it was a no go. Nope. She wouldn't waive it (even though Truman waived it....but what Truman does doesn't translate to Harold Washington EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE PART OF THE SAME COLLEGE OH MY FUCKING GOD). I was told to go to the Math Office to get a chair's permission. Jokes on me! All math staff is out of the office for the next 2 weeks. The administration here needs to be purged. They hate people, they hate their jobs and they are hostile. I am going to avoid this college until the administration cleans up their act...which will be the second Tuesday from never. I drowned my sorrows in some Do Rite donuts while I'm plotting my next move against these asshats. read more

ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL, HALF THE TEACHERS DIDN'T SHOW UP. ARE YOU SERIOUS??? Before enrolling, one Google review read it would be an embarrassment to have this school on your resume. I should have listened! This place is a nightmare. The staff are rude and unprofessional. NO ONE KNOWS WHAT THEY ARE DOING. I registered for Spring 2013 and it took 3 days. Orientation the first day. Testing the second day, and the third day, you're given a date when to come in and meet with your adviser. You have NO CHOICE in the matter. So as a full time worker, I had to take days off only to find I could have come in at a later time had the staff members leading orientation gave us the right times for testing. I ended up having to take a 4 day (half day) off (unscheduled) to pick up my UPASS. A process that took nearly four hours!!!! Again, NO ONE KNEW WHAT THEY WERE DOING. We were told by one staff member to sit in a certain area. While seating ourselves, another staff member literally YELLED at us to sit somewhere else (which happened to be no where). Eventually one of the older students yelled back, which led both staff and student, in each others face, yelling. Had I not stepped in, defending the student explaining we were TOLD to sit there, the (from what it looked like) staff would've threw the first punch. As for the teachers. SMFDH. I am in the transfer program, and I can tell you right now...there is no way in hell I would've been prepared for a Bachelors program. Half the teachers showed up 20-30 minutes late, and released us sometimes 40 minutes early! My Social Science teacher talked about the Syllabus the first 2 weeks. YES. Like a broken record we went over the whole Syllabus before he taught anything. I got tired of hearing, "Sorry I'm late. You're my fourth class today." or "Oops. I grabbed the wrong book. This book is for my other math class." What a waist of time & money!!! If you're serious about your education, this is NOT the place to be. read more

Wed AUGUST 8 2012 I came into Harold Washington College to see what my status was with the city colleges of Chicago. I was told I was a transfer student becasue I went to Truman College. An administrator told me "There was no reason to test or do much ofanything but register." I was lead into a room to register for Fall 2012 classes. After two hours of waiting for an advisor, said advisor told me that I would have to take a placement exam. I waited an hour and a half in a placement exam line to then be told I have to come back on Monday to goto an orientation to even be let into a placement exam. Monday AUGUST 13th 2012 At orientation, I was given a sheet of paper that instructed me to come in for a placement exam at 9AM. Wed August 15th 2012 I showed up at 7:30AM to make sure I was early enough to get an already guarenteed seat in the placement exam. At 9AM HWCC's Dean of Students showed up and it was clear that there were too many students to test in one day. The dean then used his best judgement and sent half of the "gurenteed" people home and told them to come back earlier if they REALLY wanted to enroll this fall . I was one of those people. Thursday August 16th 2012 I arived at HWCC at 6:30AM At 7:30 I was given a pink ticket number "A36" The dean of students told us that all people with pink tickets "A01-A99" were gurenteed to test at 9AM on the dot. The Dean of Students told us that we should get some breakfast and relax untill then becasue at that point there was another two hours of waiting because there would be no early seating. 8:30 AM I cameback from breakfast. People were already in the placement class and an instructor givng instructions This instructor took my ticket and orientation paper and said I would not be able to test at 9AM because they were over booked. She told me I should come back at 10AM. I told her that I needed to take the test at 9AM because I have work.She told me that I should call my boss and come in later if I really wanted to register she then procedded totell the entire class that I am an example of what happens when you wait last minute to register for classes. In retrospect I feel pretty defeated and as a returning student, quite discouraged. I only wanted to take one English class and feel like I was always aware and active in staying informed about where to go to and who to talk to. It is very apparent that the staff I've dealt with so far are only concerned about their stations and unwilling to take the initiavtive to assess each student's real situation. read more

I've never reviewed a school before, so here it goes. Beginning with administration, it was pretty easy to get signed up. Doing everything within one long day. It's obviously better to do things early than late/ I've seen those lines close to deadlines, and a lot of unhappy unprepared faces. So get your shit together and register quick, or you'll be standing with the rest of the dummies, trying to get your semester in order. Other wise mediocre counseling, and very little assistance. You really need to know exactly what you need before you step through the doors to register. Staff is pretty nice, granted the level of rudeness given to them by the tons of students in a rush to register. As for classes, all my professors get five stars. The only problem i had is that they had to dumb down the classes for all the dummies. It was pretty annoying to hear how people "didn't get " art in a humanities class. Being it was a city college in the heart of the loop, i guess i could expect worse. Needless to say i was not impressed by the caliber of wit amongst the student population. Which made the classes less challenging during discussions and debates. The college is super easy to get to by train or bus, surrounded by places to eat on break, and provided a nice little lounge in the basement with a cafe attached. The layout of the building is nothing special, but it's pretty easy to find your ea around since every floor looks the same. Library is expansive for a city college, and there is plenty of computers, and assistance for your research needs. Th re is also writing lab, to assist in those hard to write papers. All in all Harold Washington was impressive in the way i didn't expect much. It gave me what i needed for one semester and I'm off. So i would suggest going here for a very short amount of time, in order to finish up prerequisites or whatever. read more

I've had the unfortunate luck to have to keep coming to the school. First things first, REGISTRATION. AT HWC registration = nightmare! This school is not for working people because in order to register you need to take 2 days off of work. 90% of the people who work there are either lazy, or incompetent. Or a good combo of both. Add to that a dose of rudeness and ghetto people and you have yourself a headache that will last a day! There were a couple of great people one being Mr. Rihani. I'm pushing 30 and the staff treats me like a 12 year old imbecile. No matter how prepared I am with paperwork and ID's I never seem to have enough. I guess you get what you pay for. read more

Its a community college, what do you expect? The instructors here are pretty good though. I've been to a big university where it feels like you're not connected with the instructor at all, but at harold washington all my profs at least make an attempt to learn everyone's name and that means something. Also, the student body is diverse so that always a plus. Overall, once you get pass the craziness of the registration and financial aid. This school is actually pretty good. From my perspective, if you know what classes you need to take that will transfer, then you could have a good experience here. This school really proves that the quality of the education really doesn't diminish in the community college level, its the same ole same ole read more

Believe most of the reviews here, the staff acts like they had someone with a gun forces them to come to work. UGLY ATTITUDE!! I talked to this one lady in the financial office and she was so rude OMG, I thought it was a lion about to jump on me. To take my placement test, I had to come back twice and they told us we couldnt take it and had to come back another day at 5AM ( sarcasm) . And the registration process is the worse. You have to wait in line for 3 days and to take your piture for your ID, it takes about 2 days. Anyway, one it's passed the registration process, everything is fine. I love the teachers and the courses are pretty good. The teachers make sure you understand the material and they try to help you the best they can. I'm going for my associate right now so I can transfer to UIC . I'm saving money and I get a pretty good education here so for that I give HWC 3 stars. read more

How do you rate a college? I'm rating overall experience, not just one class, one teacher, or the student body itself The three stars are there because the classes are super cheap, the building is easily accessible from public transportation, and the teachers which I have had so far appear to have a desire to be there. I've gone to another community college and most of the teachers appeared burnt out. The English and Math teachers I have had so far were smart and up to date on the topics in their area. I have learned a ton at Harold Washington from their teachers. The downside is the office staff. Signing up for class feels like I'm registering for a concentration camp (I assume so at least. I went to Dachau once and got the same impression). I'm in my fourth semester and plan on getting as many undergrad gen-eds out of the way before transferring. As for the student body, ignore them. Take online classes if possible to avoid them. read more

The student advisors give you false information. I said I wanted to take the CLEP test for math college credit and the career advisor said there was no CLEP test for math. On the CLEP website, there is a mathematics test for Harold Washington College. He told me spring registration starts next week, it starts this week. With incorrect information like this, I will not continue on ever speaking to that same advisor. I was told by an advisor when I first started that an A associates in Applied Science won't transfer to four year colleges. Thats not true. As a group we were told by an advisor that registration comes in December and that we have to pick our classes in that group, on that day. That wasn't true either. She said it was required that we see a student advisor before registering for second semister. A women at the from desk in the advising office said it was not required, just suggested. Everyone on the staff is running around with false information and differnt information. Also, Ive wanted to return a book for a class i dropped but their book depo has been closed. for some reason, the business office won't handle the matter. I suggest to everyone, double check what the career advisors and financial aid advisors tell you. Do your own research and read through the CCC websites. This is an updated review, please read my older one for this college to find out more. read more

I wouldn't recommend Harold Washington to the most desperate student. No one answers phones or calls you back, even after leaving 17 messages, and that's not an exaggeration. I've sent up to 8 emails to my advisor before getting a response back. And that's over weeks, not days. The financial aid office makes everything incredibly difficult as if they don't want you to go to school. The professors and classes were great if you can get past financial aid, your advisor and the business center to even get enrolled in the first place. Terrible terrible terrible read more

I'm really excited about going here. Looks like the place was just fixed up because it looks very nice on the inside , welcoming. Though, some of the staff seem to be tired, or annoyed. Attitude adjustments! :D Must say that there is a nice gentleman on the fourth floor that helped me out with test scores. There was also a professor that I came face to face with on the 10th floor who was very sincere. Good people in that building! It's my 4th week in the school and I love it, my professors are great! It's my second semester here at this school. 1/15/08 I love it. The professors are really nice, so are the students. Never had any problems. read more

It is a community college in the inner city. Expect all that comes with the territory--half-dead admin workers, policies that isolate and frustrate students, ridiculous lines that move slower than the granny in front of me at Jewel. The faculty do care though and the price is right. I plan on taking as much here as I can and then transfer it to Northwestern--half off Northwestern degree works for me. I have taken a bunch of stuff through the CDL( Center for Distance Learning) since I work full-time and travel often for work. Some classes are great, some suck. Try to ask other students first. read more

This is an update from a review in 2012, after reading the ensuing reviews from 2012 to 2018, it seems as though not much has changed... "...Beware the lines for class registration, you have been warned..." Some things to consider... HWC is a centrally located City College (aka a "JuCo" or Junior College), in Chicago. Big city, lots of people. Most people go here because, duh, college is expensive. Considering the above, this is a fairly good recipe for many of the seemingly administrative and bureaucratic nightmares most of us have collectively experienced with this place. Just my humble opinion, and this is based solely from my experience...the folks that work administrative side, they fall into one of three categories. There are the good folk that actually do care about your administrative well-being, the "I don't know what I'm doing here," people, and then there are, the "I really just don't really care," people. The latter seem to be the most numerous. Watch out for them and avoid at all if you can. And then there are the "admissions advisors." No seriously, where do you find these people and how are they trained? Read the other reviews, most of the complaints are about administrative support staff being discourteous and just being unpleasant to deal with to downright LYING to students. In reference to the above, I would have to concur. I experienced this several times with admissions, program advisors, to even the class registrars. All of them just seemed to not know or not care. On a side note, I thought this was an isolated issue at HWC. It is not. I went to another CCC, Wilbur Wright College to try and work out options for a different track I was considering. The admissions advisor had me running all over the campus trying to fix one thing or another, all the while promising me and even daring to show me a credit hour audit, what it would take to qualify for what I was considering, come down to registration day, I've jumped through several hoops, it turns out, she's been lying the whole time about the program and just trying to get me into another degree program that I don't need. I walked away. Oh, and don't bother with a phone call, leaving a voicemail, or email, THEY WILL NOT CONTACT YOU. Several phone calls, voicemails, and emails and NO RETURN CONTACT, WHATSOEVER...NOT ONE. and then there is the sheer number of adult aged children that go here... Go here during any day of the week, watch and see how many kids are just hanging out outside the doors smoking cigarettes or doing whatever....and even inside now that they've put tables and chairs in the open computers on the second floor. All youtube-ing videos of whoever their favorite "rapper of the moment" is. This place is so inundated with people that so obviously want an education but have given up trying to make sense of the labyrinthian maze of ineptness (RE: admissions, course advisors, see above), that they just end up taking up space. These issues have made it tough for folks who have actually swam through this place and have actually put together a respectable amount of credit hours enough to graduate (escape). This all being said; Academic side is not actually all that bad. Depends on what class you take and which instructor you get. If you do have to take a day class, have a tough skin and learn to be patient with the comical level of stupidity of this place. You may have one or two classes in a semester with some ignorant, loud-mouthed, no home training future thot that just needs to share all of their insipid drama to the rest of the class, while the instructor is...you know...instructing. Want my advice? Take a night class. Most of the hooligans have left for the day, there are more serious mentally and emotionally mature students. Most of which, work a job and are probably paying their own way. Just remember, it's only transitional and eventually you will get to where you want to go. "College is a life exercise in learning how to deal with the inherent stupidity of humans, masked in a really expensive suit." ~unknown Good luck to anyone that goes to this place... read more

This school is OK. As for convenience it is located right by the Brown and Green lines and also close by the Millennium Station Metra. Applying for Fin Aid is a NIGHTMARE and if you have any outside scholarships be sure to take care of that early before the Semester begins! Overall the teachers do care a lot and want to help you transfer to a four year university or ear your Associates. The classes are NOT easy and are pretty challenging. This is a good transitional school so I would recommend coming here first to take courses before attending an expensive four year university! read more

Having taken classes here for personal enrichment, quest for learning and keeping relevant over the years, it really pains me to give CCC a one star review. This review reflects my experience with support mainly the Bursars office where the lady with the head wrap is the most unhelpful, unpleasant and down right rudest individual a person would have to encounter! Mind you I pay for all my classes with cash and have done this over the years of being a student. The instructors are hit and miss ranging from superb to shoddy! Most have been excellent though and outstanding, I have also had a few that clearly did not respect the fact that this is a learning institution and kept complaining about her pay and routinely was absent from class. I found this unnerving being that I am paying to learn something and felt as though it was a burden to have to teach or engage as expected. However overall instructor experience was excellent. I wouldn't continue at the CCC because I value my education and feel I would rather pay more and be treated with respect and given a chance to challenge myself, where I did not feel this was being accomplished here. I guess it is true you get what you pay for! So with that being said I don't recommend attending this institution for the lack of quality and yikes if you have to deal with student services in the bursars office especially the extremely rude lady wearing a potato sack on her head looks like a hat. read more

Only done the enrollment process. They say that's the hardest part and I sure hope so. My suggestion is to just get a good night's rest and then get the process out the way as soon as possible. They were going on two week Christmas hiatus so I was pressed for time doing my registration and you really don't need any extra hassle. What you need to do is see every person that is even recommended in passing, and I mean EVERY! Each person you go will tell you a different answer. Sometimes it is slightly different and sometimes it is completely contrary, so ask around, find out which answer you like the best and pull the trigger. I ended up taking a test I didn't need to and signed up for another that was gonna be like 4 hrs before I talked to an advisor who explained an option I had that none of the other parties (Registration desk, International Student Center, Financial Aid and Test Taking Center) told me about that made the registration process easy. The Student Advisors are on top of their game. Everyone in HWC I dealt with was friendly and cordial, but the Advisors actually seemed to care about your individual situation whereas the others adhere to rigid universal policies. I'm not saying the Academic Advisors will slip you money under a table or do something illegal, but they actually listen to what you say and all whereas the other people seemed to want to pidgeonhole you into a specific group to make their job easier. So again, get a good night's rest the day before, talk to everyone, pick what sounds and relax before the semester starts read more

I registered for the fall semester but couldnt get some of the classes I needed or wanted due to late registration so waited until the spring semester. The first registration process was long and tiring and close to the end of open registration so it took a very long time. Placement testing, paperwork. Since I had already registered, once I came back for the spring semester all I had to do was input my classes and pay which didnt take long at all. Since I've started I can say Im pleased with the classes. Not very challenging but you get what you pay for. The school is very diverse and convienient for me. Some staff are uninformed or misinformed. Overall just average. read more

For what you pay, it's a fine place to go to school. The people who work in the offices haven't got so much as a clue about what is going on around them, so getting info is an exercise in patience and often, futility. Some teachers care and are great, but some understand that they have to pass a certain %, so they don't ask much of the student lest they not be asked back to teach again. Upsides: flexible class schedules, convenient location, and the price is right. read more

Teachers are excellent. Have had little to no issues in that area. The administrative staff is something else though. Can't say I've had too many good dealings in that area. I've found the people in the business office to generally be more friendly and helpful. In general though, the place seems like it needs and efficiency overhaul but I still give it four stars because it's a cheap, yet quality education that carries over to other 4 year schools without many issues. read more

I enrolled in an art class for a semester. The enrollment process was kind of chaotic. Several times I was unsure if I was standing in the correct line or had the right forms. The worst part was ID pictures. The machines were broken and they lost my forms. And then the woman who was running the show just stood up and said "I gotta go on break". Terrible. One of the security dudes stepped in and helped me out. After that mess, I was good to go. The class itself was great. Loved the instructor, assignments, lockers, classmates, etc... Plus....HWC is CHEAP! $300 for semester. For that, it's worth an hour of drama. read more

You have to do your work. The professors may not love it but I found "Rate my Professor" to be an accurate tool when choosing a class. If you pick a professor with a 4.0 rating or above (above 3.5 for science related classes, give them a break chemistry is hard!) you will have an excellent experience. After completing an associate degree in Biological Sciences at HWC, I am now in my second year at Northwestern University. Harold Washington gave me the tools I needed to be successful at a very competitive school, and I am grateful for that. It wasn't always rainbows and butterflies. There were two professors (Trig and Speech) that almost made me pull my hair out. Neither seem to be on the HWC faculty roster any longer. Learn from my mistakes, don't give someone with terrible reviews the benefit of the doubt, and use Rate my Professor! The science department (Barbara Berchiolli I'm talking to you) is awesome. By far the BEST professor at Harold Washington is Jeff Swigart. Are you ready for this... ? He's a calculus teacher. I swear. His 4.8 rating on Rate my Professor proves he's the bomb dot com. Anyone who can make Calculus genuinely exciting and fun deserves a raise, a promotion, a red carpet, a massage chair in his office (that he should share with Professor Berchiolli because she's a hard working lady), and a hand chiseled teacher of the century trophy. I almost started clapping once at the end of his lecture and then realized I was in a classroom and applause would probably be inappropriate. I have had several impressive professors at Northwestern, in fact they all are impressive. Jeff Swigart is a Northwestern caliber professor if not better, and his calculus class will always be my favorite class. It is the gift that keeps on giving. The mathematics in this class will help you understand concepts behind all of your future science classes, and NO ONE does a better job explaining those concepts than Jeff Swigart. Christopher Nolan movies will forever hold a special place in my heart. So many layers. read more

Harold Washington does not get anything higher than a 3 star rating. I went to Harold Washington because 4 year colleges are expensive. Also it's because it's convenient, you just hop on the orange line to State/Lake, get off and it'll be across the street. There is also a Dunkin Donuts across the street from Harold Washington for all the coffee lovers. Also there is Chick-fil-a that opened during the summer where students can just go eat after getting out of college. Why does Harold not get any higher than 3 stars? It is so unorganized! I registered for Fall 2013 classes on July 1st. Week before the semester starts I went to go pick up my U-Pass. I went to the room where they are passing them out. As I was got to the table with U-Pass already printed out, I gave them my ID but they told me mine wasn't in there and to go get my picture taken for the U-Pass and wait 3 days. I asked why do some people get theirs already and he said because I signed up too late. My friend who signed up 2-3 weeks after me got his on the first day of class. It doesn't make any sense. I give 1 star for the convenience to get to Harold, another star for the professors I had , and another star for the financial aid that is paying for my classes. read more

Took a 201 Psychology with HWC while on active duty in Germany. I had registrar ( "Marge" 312-553-5946).... send transcript to my transfer college. Well, how be it that, "Marge" tells the registrar at my transfer college, that my 201 Psychology was transferred from my Military transcript!!!! Really? I physically took the course with HWC and attained 3 credit hours and have an official transcript with HWC that states so. My transfer college asked for my military transcript and low and behold!!! There is no 201 Psychology on it!! Well, Well,....isn't that interesting? However, because "Marge" (312-553-5946) made this proclamation to my transfer college, I am having difficulty transferring this needed prerequisite over. My actual military transcript ONLY has my 71L Administrative training (service school) on it. Of course it wouldn't have my 201 Psychology course on it because I didn't take it as a military training course. I asked "Marge" (312-553-5946) to send my transfer college a description of the 201 Psychology course and she acted as if I had asked her to do something that was foreign to her or outside of her scope as a registrar! . I don't have a problem with this school as a whole. I have a problem with "Marge"(312-553-5946) and her incompetence and unwillingness to rectify this situation. "Marge" (312-553-5946) needs to send a written recant of her statement to my transfer college and to state that I did actually physically attend HWC and received 3 credit hours in 201 Psychology and that this 201 Psychology was NOT a transferred course from some military transcript. So, that I can be rewarded transfer credit. May all receive the credit that they so rightfully earned. Peace! read more

DO NOT ATTEND!!!!!!!!!!! Absolute waste of time. I attended for one semester and achieved a 4.0 GPA. Once the semester ended, the school retroactively canceled a financial aid grant that I had and forced me to pay it back, giving me less than 48 hours to do so, otherwise they would drop me from my courses for the next semester. Not only was I dropped, but I am now unable to request transcripts from the semester, which is keeping me from transferring to a different school. If I am able to transfer, which is unlikely because of HWC, I will have to re-take the courses I took last semester all over again. The professors and courses themselves are decent, but the administration runs the college like a sinking business on the verge of bankruptcy. They could care less about their students, and it could not be more blatant or insulting. This institution is nothing more than a scam and a money grab, and only serves to benefit the heads of administration. Proof: The president of the college, Dr. Martyn, advised that I drop out of school and work at a grocery store instead of pursue my academic career. This is an academic "leader" advising students with a 4.0 GPA to drop out of school and give up on their dreams. Harold Washington College is a HUGE waste of time. There are better options all over the city and in the suburbs. I cannot stress this enough - DO NOT ATTEND. Transfer if you are already attending. What a waste of time, money, and resources. Makes me sick. read more

It's an okay place. I'm currently attending UIC for classes and will be taking Calculus 2 here in the fall. Just from the couple of times I've had to deal with admissions and the advisors, I've heard so many different things from so many different people. Nothing is really done online and all registration and proof of address needs to be done in person. I also went to register for the class I want to take, after telling them on the phone that I won't be taking Calculus until over the summer. They had me come in anyway just to tell me I can't register until they have my midterm grades for Calc, which is what I had assumed prior to them telling me to show up anyway. I'm not sure about classes yet, but the administration is just a mess. You must have patience when dealing with them. read more

Just relax people. I had read all these horrible reviews and was expecting the worst! My daughter decided to go to summer school here in order to take a class and have it transfer to Illinois (where she is a full time Champaign student) All is well. The teacher is good. The other 20 or so students in the class are engaged. The school is conveniently located in the loop and she can walk to her internship directly afterwards. I thought I would write a good review since most often the complainers are more likely to post. I would have given a 5 star review but the registration process was challenging. But we did it and plodded through it! read more

I've been going here for half of a semester so far. First, registration is a complete nightmare. I registered for fall classes in the end of June. You'd think they would have their act together and the process would be more expedited that far in advance, but that would be too easy. The faculty were apathetic and a few were downright mean. Absolutely no one knew what they were doing. There was one counselor there to register hundreds of students. This poor woman looked so defeated, and I watched her register student after student for almost 7 hours. I couldn't believe that they only had one person registering students for classes. U-Pass and student ID registration was also a nightmare. It took me over 3 hours to get my U-Pass, and if I had gotten my ID in the first few days of school the wait was 5+ hours. Thankfully I waited. Despite that madness, my professors are great (with the exception of one, but that is next). One of my professors is possibly one of the best teachers I've ever had. I didn't expect that at a community college, but I am pleasantly surprised. Another one of my professors also teaches at a university, so I'm basically getting that exact same education for a fraction of the price. I only planned on going to HWC for one semester, but now I am thinking of staying another semester because I am so impressed by my professors. The worst: I am taking one online class (CDL). It. is. AWFUL. I have taken only online classes through another CC for over a year and those classes were fine. I was actually taught and I learned. I don't know if it is just the BIO115 online class or what, but it is a complete waste of both my time and money. The 'professor' is hardly that, she is basically there to answer questions related to due dates and specific issues. The course is self-taught. Each exam covers about 4 entire chapters, about 90 pages of text. Our proctored exam was on so much material that I actually went to a tutor. The HWC tutor didn't know most of what I had to and she said that the amount of content we had to memorize would challenge a graduate student majoring in biology at a university. WTF, HWC? After over 8 hours of studying and tutoring I still got a D, and I am an A student. Thankfully it ended up being curved, and magically my D turned into a high B. I guess a plus side is that the entire course comes straight from the text book's publisher, so the answers to all of the 'labs' we have to do and some quizzes are listed on the publisher's website. That sounds convenient, but it upsets me that I am paying hundreds of dollars for this class and its materials yet all I have to go is Google McGraw Hill Biology and find the answer keys. How lazy can a college be? This class is a complete disaster and I am shocked that even a community college would try to pass it off as being legitimate. HEY HAROLD WASHINGTON, CUT THIS BULLSHIT OUT, HIRE SOME REAL TEACHERS AND HAVE THEM ACTUALLY TEACH UNIQUE CONTENT. OR GIVE ME MY MONEY BACK. THANKS. PROTIP: Do NOT buy or even rent your text books at the school's book store. What would have cost me over $700 there only cost me $250 online. read more

Their administration is kind of shitty but most places are like that. When I signed up for my chemistry class woman told me it was filled, but I knew it wasn't. Rather than argue I just went and asked another advisor and got in. And for some reason I'm in the computer 3 times and am supposed to bring in my SS card, but I'm not going to because no one really cares. The UP side though, it's a real education and training based school. It's not some jerk-off college that is just interested in taking your money, I really feel like the teachers care more and the students are more serious that they were at UIC. Perhaps because the students are not rich suburb potheads living off their parents money but people actually trying to educate themselves. I take their more advanced level courses though, they might not be serious in the lower level stuff but that's no real surprise. I like the "campus" too, it's very new and clean and student friendly. Their labs are new and very nice as well. I don't know why someone called it "scary." I've never seen or observed anything scary, and the people there aren't bad people. I acidently left my cell phone in a sitting area and a nice girl found it and called my dad to see if he could call me at a home phone and then she turned it in to secuirty. When I went back to look for it she was there and told me what she did. If it was a bad place someone would have stolen it. read more

The financial aid department is the worst. They rejected my daughters fafsa saying something was wrong and they needed to do manual check of my information. Which was bullcrap because talking to actual fafsa staff they said the didn't see anything wrong with my information ( but the school had the authority to ask for extra information) Needless to say they made it to where she was to late to secure grant funding. No explanations or anything...almost certain the lady that "needed" to see all this extra information was previously from the Malcolm X branch...smh. I can't stand when people hate their jobs that they make it damn near impossible for you to do yours....the lady in the financial aid department is this person...just sad. Just quit already! read more

Man this establishment is wack!!!! I bet the late Harold Washington is rolling over in his grave at how this place is run. I put in a transcript request over a month ago and the university that I applied to never received them. They are incompetent, rude, and lazy! Their only saving grace is that they hire good instructors and the tuition is inexpensive. read more

I agree with everyone about the registration staff; they are lazy. However the teachers are coll and helpful. I strongly recommended this school to all my friends and you guys read more

If I could give no stars I would . This college needs to be shut down or re evaluated because it is ridiculous . No organization, no credibility .. I cannot . I thought I was going to take summer courses here to transfer to my university but never mind lol I sat in advising / admission for two hours to be told they couldn't see me for some bullshit reason which I was told over the phone five minutes before arriving that unofficial documents were valid for summer registration only . Never again. I would advise others to simply look into another community college because this one is a shit show . read more

Teachers are the only redeeming quality to this clusterfuck of an institution where you will encounter the most unhelpful and soulless demons of admin that scoff at your presence and don't recognize that you are human. If you need anything from this school other than to go to class, prepare for yourself to spend a whole fucking day trying to get whatever it is you need done because you will be sent on a wild goose chase of conflicting information from different sources. Don't ever call the school because whoever you need to reach will not answer their phone and/or all circuits will be busy. Basically the school might as fucking well not have a phone number, nor any dept. in the achool have one either. Also don't count on anyone emailing you back unless it is a teacher. Apparently the school is to busy to care about the students that they are there to help. read more