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Grants are often called “gift aid”—financial aid that doesn’t have to be repaid, except under certain circumstances. See below for the different types of New York State grants.
New York State’s Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) provides grants to students to assist them in paying tuition. The TAP program is administered by the NY State Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC).
Application Form
The first step in the TAP application process is the completion of the FAFSA. When you get to the FAFSA on the Web Confirmation Page, there will be a link for New York State residents to complete an application for TAP. You must submit a FAFSA and TAP application before June 30, 2021 for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Residence and Citizenship
Be a United States citizen or eligible non-citizen and be a legal resident of New York State.
To be eligible for TAP, students must:
Income Limits
Families with New York State Net Taxable Income (gross income less deductions and allowances for exemptions) of $80,000 or less qualify to receive a TAP grant.
Award Amounts
TAP awards range from $500 to $5165 a year.
Qualifying Program and Credits
Pursuit and Progress
APTS is a grant from New York State for students pursuing a degree as a part-time undergraduate student. The amount of the grant is determined by CUNY and is based upon the availability of funds from New York State.
Application Form
To apply you must have completed the FAFSA, TAP application and the CUNY Financial Aid Supplement form.
Qualifying Program and Credits
Resident information
You must be a New York State resident.
To be considered for an APTS award, students must:
Income Limits
Eligibility for an APTS award is based on New York State net taxable income from the preceding calendar year.
Part-Time TAP is a new program from New York State that allows for partial TAP payments for students taking between 6-11 credit. This program is available to CUNY, SUNY and Not-for-Profit independent degree granting college students who meet the specified requirements. To apply you must complete a FAFSA and a TAP application.
To receive Part-Time TAP you must meet the following requirements:
The Financial Aid Eligibility and Certification Tracking System (FACTS) is a financial aid online tool designed to help students understand and monitor their eligibility for selected financial aid programs - New York State Tuition Assistance Programs (TAP) and scholarships.
FACTS is a financial aid advisement system, not your official financial aid record. All official financial aid information is stored on CUNYfirst.
Access Facts
Hunter College will provide you an estimate of your TAP award. The information you provide is verified and the TAP award subject to change if there are any discrepancies in income, cost of attendance, family members in school, etc. Use the TAP Estimator on www.hesc.ny.gov to determine an estimate of your award. The school must verify your eligibility and certify your award.
Once the College certifies you are eligible and meeting all of the requirements, the TAP funds will be disbursed.
In addition to the FAFSA application you must also file a TAP application every year.
The amount of TAP you receive depends on your family income, the number of family members attending college full-time, the number of semesters you have received TAP, and the size of the annual appropriation for the program. Maximum TAP awards can be equal to but not greater than the full tuition charge at the college. State budgetary restrictions can further limit TAP awards to a portion of your tuition. A PTAP award will be based on your part-time credit load and will be calculated as a proportional fraction of the normal full-time TAP award.
For an associate degree you may receive TAP for up to six (6) semesters. You will be limited to six (6) semesters of TAP even if you change majors or transfer to another community college. When you enroll in a four-year college program at a senior college, you will become eligible for an additional two full-time semesters of TAP bringing your undergraduate total to eight (8) semesters. If you are enrolled in a special program, such as SEEK, you may receive up to ten (10) semesters (or the equivalent) of TAP as an undergraduate.
If you repeat a course that you previously passed, you may not count the repeated course towards full-time enrollment for TAP purposes. This means that in order to receive TAP in a semester where you may be repeating a course you passed previously that you have, in addition to the repeated course, at least 12 credits or equated credits of non-repeated courses. If you repeat a course that you previously failed, you may include that course towards full-time enrollment for TAP purposes.
Remedial courses may be counted towards either full-time or part time enrollment for TAP purposes. However, to qualify for TAP, you must always be registered for a certain number of degree credit courses
The HESC Customer Communication Center can be reached by telephone toll-free at 1-888-NYS-HESC (1-888-697-4372) or 1-518-473-1574. The Customer Communication Center answers general inquiries. If you are calling about your TAP grant or student loan, please have your account number ready. You could also reach them on the web by going to www.hesc.ny.gov.
Visit the HESC Website