Document And Entity Information	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2012	Apr. 30, 2012
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Mar. 31, 2012
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q1
Trading Symbol	ceco
Entity Registrant Name	CAREER EDUCATION CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0001046568
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		67,233,533