Use the tabs to find the relevant question for you.
If the student inputted the wrong quarter on the CTC Bellevue College Application (Step 1) on the Running Start admission page, you would simply resubmit a new Bellevue College Application.
If the student inputted the wrong quarter on the Running Start Intent form (Step 2) on the Running Start admission page, you would simply resubmit a new Running Start Intent form.
If you inputted the wrong quarter on both Step 1 and Step 2 on the Running Start admission page, then simply resubmit both forms.
Check weekly the email which the student inputted on the Running Start Intent form for the “Student Email”.
If the student used a High School email (typically the high school’s firewall will block Bellevue College emails), then please check your Junk/Spam folder. Additionally, make sure that you change the primary email in the ctcLink system, to your BC email address after you activate your ctcLink account.
If you are still unable to find it email runningstartnewstudent@bellevuecollege.edu
If the student has applied and received their ctcLink number, then they would follow the instructions in their email to activate their ctcLink account.
If the student is trying to activate their account before receiving this information, then the student will need to wait until their application and intent are processed. Once processed the student will receive their instructions and ctcLink number.
If you still have issues you can look to ctcLink for Students: Activate Your ctcLink Account.
If there is a Running Start/ Underage hold on your account, it is because your Running Start Enrollment Verification Form (EVF) has either not been turned in or it has not been processed.
For processing timeline please review Bellevue College Student Central Processing Dashboard.
Current Students can refer to the Current Student page to submit their RS EVF
If there is a Running Start/ Underage hold on your account, it is because your Running Start Enrollment Verification Form (EVF) has either not been turned in or it has not been processed.
New Students can refer to the New Student Admission page or use the email provided on that page to submit their RS EVF.
Running Start does not cover
- Credits above the number listed on the Enrollment Verification Form
- Classes below the 100 level (i.e., Math 098)
- Class and student fees
- Books, supplies, and other materials required for classes
- Transportation and parking fees
- Audited classes
- Any other expenses not related to tuition
Even though RS students do not pay tuition, after you enroll you must pay any fees due to the college by the payment deadline located on the Academic Calendar. Failure to pay by the deadline can result in the college dropping the student from all classes.
A description of your fees can be found by navigating to Admissions & Aid, Tuition & Fees, and then Description of Fees.
If you have addition questions about your financial account please reach-out to Student Financial Services office.
There are two steps to follow below.
The way the enrollment system is set up all courses have this, proceed to enroll.
If after you click “Enroll” you get an error message, read the error message and follow the instructions.
If Step 1 produces and error then be sure to read what that error is.
- “Prerequisite” error
- Then you should read our “When trying to enroll in classes, the system says I don’t meet the prerequisites?” FAQ listed on this page. Follow the directions on that specific FAQ in order to clear the prerequisite.
- Some other error
- Follow the directions listed on the FAQ “When trying to enroll I received an error. What does this mean?”. Depending on the specific error we will direct you accordingly.
Unfortunately, there could be multiple reasons why. Below are a few reasons why.
- The class is full
- The waitlist is full
- The class doesn’t allow waitlist
- You don’t meet the prerequisites
- You don’t have an enrollment date, or you are not term activated
- Your Running Start Enrollment Verification form was not submitted or processed yet.
- Input error or some other kind of error
Be sure to read what the error is when you try to register and send an email to the Center for High School programs office with your ctcLink number, picture of the error you are seeing, and any additional info you think would be useful.
You can send your email to chsprograms@bellevuecollege.edu
Read the two situations below and follow whichever matches your specific situation the best.
This means you most likely have not submitted anything to the Placement and Testing Center, or the Placement and Testing Center have not processed it yet. Note it does take that office time to process requests. Be sure to review the Bellevue College Processing Dashboard to see their respective timelines.
When the student’s placement is processed, the student should receive an email to their Bellevue College email address stating what your placement is from the Placement and Testing Center office.
If the student has already completed placement and is still receiving the error then the student should carefully read the prerequisite for the specific course that they are trying to register for. The student can navigate to Clear/Verify Prerequisites Requirements.
Submitting the form listed on that page will indicate Bellevue College should review the students account to make sure there are no internal errors in the system.
You have two options
This is used when students experience an unusual or exceptional circumstance that may warrant an exception to college policy and established procedures. If the reason for missing the deadline was because of a medical hardship, death in the direct family, or a documented reason for being unable to access ctclink to withdraw by the posted deadline, then please look to Student Central Withdrawal Appeal Process.
Students can simply retake the course. Students can repeat courses to improve their skills, course grade, and grade point average (GPA).
When students repeat a course, the college places a notation next to the original grade on the transcript. The original grade remains on the transcript, but is not included in the GPA calculation. Learn more about repeating a course.
Our office does not handle grade disputes, this is done by accessing Bellevue Colleges list of Policies and Procedures/Grade Disputes.
How to see your Degree progress in CTC:
- Log into CTC
- Click CTC Link Student Home Page
- Left menu click Academics
- Click degree progress
- Click button View PDF
If your degree is not listed correctly you can submit “WHAT IF” report and choose a degree. If the student has further questions, they can contact one of our Running Start advisors and we can directly them accordingly. Student can find our Advising and Educational Planning information by navigating to the Running Stat website.
If the student inputted the wrong quarter on the CTC Bellevue College application (Step 1) on the Running Start admission page, you would simply resubmit a new Bellevue College Application.
If the student inputted the wrong quarter on the Running Start Intent form (Step 2) on the Running Start admission page, you would simply resubmit a new Running Start Intent form.
If you inputted the wrong quarter on both Step 1 and Step 2 on the Running Start admission page, then simply resubmit both forms.
Check weekly the student email which the student inputted on the Running Start Intent form. If the student used a High School email, typically the high school’s firewall will block Bellevue College emails so please check your Junk/Spam folder. If you have used your high school email, make sure that you change the primary email in the CTC system, to your BC email address.
If you are still unable to find it email runningstartnewstudent@bellevuecollege.edu
Students can qualify for the RS Fee Waiver in 1 of 2 ways.
Running Start Fee-Waiver form. Once this online form is submitted, reviewed, and processed the student will be coded with the Running Start Fee Waiver student group if they are eligible. If the student is not eligible an email will be sent to the student explaining why.
While completing the Running Start Enrollment Verification Form (RSEVF) the students high school counselor can complete the Free and Reduced-Price Lunch (FRPL) section on the form. When the RSEVF is submitted, reviewed, processed, and the FRPL section is correctly filled out the student will be coded with the Running Start Fee Waiver student group if they are eligible. If the student is not eligible an email will be sent to the student explaining why.
Running Start Fee-Waiver form. Once this online form is submitted, reviewed, and processed the student will be coded with the Running Start Fee Waiver student group if they are eligible. Below is a list of forms which are typically submitted. Note: Only one document is needed not all.
- Parents’ 1040 tax return with your name listed
- Free reduce lunch verification letter from your school district with your name listed
- DSHS benefit statement letter with your name listed
- Medical card from public assistance with your name listed (printed both sides) and approved letter
- Foster Youth, letter from the student’s case manager
Once this form is submitted, reviewed, and processed the student will be coded with the Running Start Fee Waiver student group if they are eligible. If the student is not eligible an email will be sent to the student explaining why.
While completing the RS Enrollment Verification, your high school counselor can complete the Free and Reduced-Price Lunch (FRPL) section on the form. When the Enrollment Verification form is submitted, reviewed, processed, and the FRPL section is correctly filled out, the student will be coded with Running Start Fee Waiver student group. No further documentation would need to be submitted. However, every quarter the student plans to attend the Running Start Program; the student will need to make sure the FRPL is completed with each new Running Start Enrollment Verification form to stay eligible for the Running Start Fee Waiver.
Once this form is submitted, reviewed, and processed, the student will be coded with the Running Start Fee Waiver student group if they are eligible. If the student is not eligible, an email will be sent to the student explaining why. However, in this case the student should state they wish to be considered for the RS Fee Waiver program.
The fee waiver covers the student fees and class fees for the number of credits approved on the students’ Running Start Enrollment Verification Form.
Below is a list of some items that are not covered by the Running Start Fee Waiver:
- Consumable fees, specifically digital material fees, or rented equipment
- Below 100 level classes
- Tuition for classes if the student chooses to enroll in MORE credits than approved on their Running Start Enrollment Verification form
- Placement fees
- Cost of ordering BC official transcript/s
- Any fines
- Meals at the college
- Transportation unless otherwise specified
- Laptops or other materials that are usually provided by high schools
- Internet
- Any other fees not listed in the students’ ctcLink account under Student Financials
Here are some examples of fees that are covered by the Running Start Fee Waiver:
- Comprehensive Fee
- Technology Fee
- Environmental Sustainability Fee
- Distance Education Fee
These specific fees are listed on the students ctcLink account under Student Financials.
Running Start does not pay for:
- Credits above the number listed on the Enrollment Verification Form
- Classes below the 100 level (i.e., Math 098)
- Class and student fees
- Books, supplies, and other materials required for classes
- Transportation and parking fees
- Audited classes
- Any other expenses not related to tuition
The student can find the Academic Calendar by navigating to Information For, Current Students, and then View Academic Calendar. Be sure to select the correct quarter. https://www.bellevuecollege.edu/current-students/student-central/calendar/
A description of your fees can be found by navigating to Admissions & Aid, Tuition & Fees, and then Description of Fees. https://www.bellevuecollege.edu/admissions-aid/tuition-fees/required-fees/
Students can find the form here and submit it with the link provided, or students can use our general email.
Website: https://www.bellevuecollege.edu/runningstart/navigation/current/
If new students can refer to the new student admission process or use the email provided to submit their RSEVF.
Website: https://www.bellevuecollege.edu/runningstart/navigation/admissions/
Unfortunately, there could be multiple reasons why. Below are a few reasons why.
- The class is full
- The waitlist is full
- The class doesn’t allow waitlist
- You don’t meet the prerequisites
- You don’t have an enrollment date, or you are not term activated
- Your Running Start Enrollment Verification form was not submitted or processed yet.
- Input error or some other kind of error
Be sure to read what the error is when you try to register and send an email to our office with your ctcLink number, picture of the error you are facing, and any additional info you find useful.
You can send your email to chsprograms@bellevuecollege.edu
You have two options.
Do an appeal request through enrollment services if the reason for missing the deadline was because of a medical hardship, death in the direct family, or a documented reason for being unable to access ctclink to withdraw by the posted deadline. These can be done in the navigation drop down menu titled ‘Information For’ then select Current Students, chose ‘Explore Enrollment Services’, and click on ‘Class Withdrawal Information’. The direct link to the general appeal is https://www.bellevuecollege.edu/services/appeal/.
If you had a medical reason then you would submit a Medical Withdraw appeal. Info regarding this can be found on the same page but the direct link would be https://www.bellevuecollege.edu/current-students/enrollment/medical-withdrawal-refund/
Students can simply retake the course, however, note the GPA bearing is the only thing that would be “replaced”. Meaning the F would still show up on your college transcript. More info about retaking courses can be found by navigating to “Information for”, Current Students, Enrollment, and then Repeating a Course.
Navigate to Bellevue Colleges list of policies and procedures by navigating to the bottom of the Bellevue College website, click on Policies and Procedures. On the Policies and Procedures page locate the section tilted ‘Instruction’ then Grade Dispute. Follow the procedures listed on this page. The direct link to this policy can be found by going to https://www.bellevuecollege.edu/policies/3000p/.
If the student has applied and received their ctcLink number, then they would follow the instructions in their email to activate their ctcLink account.
If the student is trying to activate their account before receiving this information, then the student will need to wait until their application and intent are processed. Once processed the student will receive their instructions and ctcLink number. The student can email our office at runningstartnewstudent@bellevuecollege.edu
This means you most likely have not submitted anything to the Placement and Testing Center, or they have not processed it yet. Note it does take that office time to process your requests. Be sure to review the Bellevue College processing dashboard to see the their timeline for processing. https://www.bellevuecollege.edu/current-students/student-central/processing-dashboard/
When the student’s placement is processed, they should receive an email to your Bellevue College email address stating what your placement is from the Placement and Testing Center office.
If the student has already completed placement and is still receiving the error then the student should carefully read the prerequisite for the specific course that they are trying to register for. The student can then navigate to Information for, Current Students, Placement & Testing Services, Clear/Verify Prerequisites Requirements. https://www.bellevuecollege.edu/current-students/placement-testing-services/prerequisites/
Running Start students are not required to take a FYS course unless the student is completing an Associate’s Degree at Bellevue College. New Bellevue College students whose primary intent is earning the AAS-DTA, or equivalent degree are required to take a First-Year Seminar (FYS 101 or, STEM 101 and STEM 102) course(s) in their first two quarters at Bellevue College effective Summer 2021. For more information please refer to the FYS FAQ located at https://www.bellevuecollege.edu/fys/faq/.
How to see your Degree progress in CTC:
- Log into CTC
- Click CTC Link Student Home Page
- Left menu click Academics
- Click degree progress
- Click button View PDF
If your degree is not listed correctly you can submit “WHAT IF” report and choose a degree. If the student has further questions, they can contact one of our Running Start advisors and we can directly them accordingly. Student can find our advising and educational planning information by navigating to the Running Stat website. From the Running Start website navigate to RS Advising & Education Planning.
No, Bellevue College is an open enrollment college and thus does not have a GPA requirement for admissions into the college. This also means that the Running Start Program does not have a GPA requirement for admissions. However, note that specific programs at Bellevue College may have other specific admission requirements. Additionally the Running Start programs at other Washington State colleges will have different admission requirements compared to Bellevue College.
On the Bellevue College Running Start website, navigate to the Running Start Admissions page. If we have Information Sessions at that time, sign up to attend one of the sessions!
Complete “Step One” (complete the college admission application) and “Step Two” (complete the RS Intent form). Ensure communication with your high school counselor and notify them for your interest in doing Running Start.
EVF forms are processed in the order received. Once the EVF form is processed, you will receive an email informing you that you are cleared to enroll or if the EVF form is not complete/incorrect we will request a correction and resubmission. For processing timeline please review Bellevue College Student Central Processing Dashboard.
Clear and simple instructions for this can be found on the Bellevue College website “How to Enroll for Classes“.
Note: RS students cannot enroll until the Running Start Enrollment Verification form (EVF) has been submitted and processed and enrollment is open.
How do I know if I enrolled in classes?
Navigate to the Bellevue College ctcLink tutorials and watch the tutorial named “Class Schedule“.
The student will need to click on the specific class that they want to learn more about. Within the course description is where you will find the “Instruction Mode”.
Note, sometimes teachers may give specific windows for exams. The student should refer to the course syllabus which they get from the instructor regarding expectation for the course.
Yes you can. Our office does not handle this transaction, please look to Transfer Credits to Bellevue College.
Running Start students are not required to take a FYS course unless the student wishes to complete an Associate’s Degree at Bellevue College. New Bellevue College students whose primary intent is earning the AAS-DTA, or equivalent degree are required to take a First-Year Seminar (FYS 101 or, STEM 101 and STEM 102) course(s) in their first two quarters at Bellevue College effective Summer 2021. For more information please refer to the FYS FAQ.
To continue your education at Bellevue College after graduating high school, all you need to do is enroll in courses for the following quarter after finishing Running Start.
Here are a few recommendations to ensure your success:
Update your contact information:
After leaving high school, you might still have your school district email set as your primary email address. It is important to review and update your contact information (including your phone number and mailing address). Here is a guide to updating your contact information in ctcLink.
Determine what classes you should take:
If you have not done so already, you should meet with an Academic Advisor who can help you create a quarter-by-quarter educational plan, answer questions about the transfer process, help you understand the advantages of a Direct Transfer Agreement (DTA), and more.
Apply for Financial Aid:
Get started on your financial aid application as soon as you can. See how to apply for Financial Aid. The priority deadline for completion is often several months prior to the start of the quarter. Missing the deadline means you might need to self-pay for tuition and fees first, then have financial aid reimburse you for any eligible funds later. Learn more about financial aid deadlines here: [Academic Calendar and Important Dates and Deadlines – Bellevue College]. If you need more guidance about the financial aid process, Contact the Financial Aid Office.
Pay your tuition and fees:
Be mindful of tuition due dates, which are posted on the Academic Calendar. Each time that you enroll in a class (or are enrolled into a class from a waitlist), you will incur a balance on your account. If you do not make payment or payment arrangements, you may be dropped from all your classes – even if the owing balance is for just one class.
Double check that you are being charged the correct amount by reviewing Bellevue College’s tuition rates and fee descriptions. If your initial Bellevue College application had inconsistencies with residency for tuition purposes (which determines whether you pay “in-state” or “out-of-state” tuition rates), you might not have noticed while you were in the Running Start program, since your tuition was mostly covered. Once you have left Running Start, you might have a higher tuition rate if your residency status is not correct. In these cases, our Residency Department will assist you with updating your residency status when appropriate.
Attend the New Student Orientation:
The New Student Orientation (NSO) for general students answers many questions about starting out as a new-to-college student. Although this is similar to the Running Start Orientation, it is still a good idea to complete the NSO Canvas course to understand processes outside of the Running Start program.
State of Washington RS Program FAQ’s | October 2025
Last Updated April 13, 2026