I am a Theater and Acting major at QCC. When I graduate, I would like to pursue a higher degree. I will be the first in my family to graduate with a completed degree. I receive financial aid: both TAP and FAFSA. I would like them to expand the minimum award size. My biggest challenge is that I was denied from the ASAP program because I apparently had too many credits from the past, almost four years ago. Because I was denied from this program, I was unable to qualify for a free Metrocard. The costs of MetroCards and transportation are burdensome, so I think ASAP should be more inclusive in allowing people into the program. Food is also really unaffordable. In terms of the quality of what campus has to offer, my professors are great and very supportive in my academic journey. However, I’ve had a lot of trouble finding an advisor. I definitely think they can update our classrooms as well. The classrooms are either scorching hot or freezing cold, with no in between. They can certainly stand to improve the technology.

My major is Communication Sciences and Disorders at QCC. I would like to pursue a job in speech pathology. I am the first in my family to attend college. It is a lot of pressure to succeed but I am proud to be the first to pursue a degree. I work and pay for college out of pocket. Rent and affording housing have been the biggest financial challenges because there are a lot of overhead costs to consider when attending college. Food and transportation have been among the greatest costs. In terms of struggles on campus, I also feel like there is a huge disconnect between my advisor and me, with my advisor being hard to find. There is a severe lack of mental health resources on campus as well. We should also have more comprehensive recycling options on campus. CUNY should be free and fully funded.

I study Business Administration at QCC and would like to pursue a higher degree after graduation. I will be the first in my family to complete my degree and graduate. It inspires me; I want to make my parents proud and be the first in our family to graduate from college. My ASAP advisor helped me get a head start in succeeding at building my programs and setting up my schedule. I receive FAFSA, TAP, and have been awarded a merit scholarship. The minimum awards for TAP should be increased significantly. The specific allocation of funds from my financial aid is disproportionate and does not cover the cost of non-tuition items. The skyrocketing costs of textbooks has been a huge obstacle to completing my degree. They are unaffordable and a huge burden. One thing on campus that is helpful is the food pantry, which I utilize from time to time for a quick snack after practice. The advising at QCC is all very disorganized. There is never immediate assistance, problems never get solved right away, and there is always a wait-list. In addition, the website is almost always down, and our Wifi is spotty. I don’t ever take the elevators because I do not trust them; a lot of my friends have been trapped in the elevators before.

I am a Sophomore majoring in Psychology. When I graduate from QCC, I plan on going to John Jay to pursue a degree in Forensic Psychology. I receive FAFSA and TAP and received a small scholarship last semester. I am hoping to become the first one in my family to complete and graduate college. However, I have faced a lot of challenges paying for college, including the unnecessary and seemingly random fees that we receive. Every time I try to modify my schedule, there is a fee associated with it. Any modifications to your schedule (professor dropping a class, etc) can result in you becoming a part-time student, which can negatively impact your financial aid. Another of the biggest obstacles to affording college is the cost of transportation. We need free OMNY card options for students. Furthermore, the skyrocketing costs of textbooks as well as professors requiring us to pay for access to websites for homework, have become burdensome. Not only does this assume that students have access to a computer, but it also assumes they have access to stable wifi. If you don’t do the homework or have the textbooks, you can’t pass the class, which further endangers your standing with financial aid. The price of food on campus is also too high, which leads to students taking the bus to get food off campus, which adds to the cost of transportation. As far as class options go, there might not be enough classes open next semester for me to complete my degree. The upkeep of our campus is nonexistent. There are dangerous potholes and cracks in the concrete. Sometimes, when I have a class on the 4th floor, the elevator is broken.

I am a sophomore studying Health Science at Queensborough Community College. I pay for college out of pocket myself and do not receive any form of TAP and the cost has been one of the biggest challenges on campus for me. The class options are also very low, and trying to get in touch with advisement is hard and sometimes takes up to 3 hours just to see someone. The state of the campus is also really bad with elevators that never work. Please make CUNY free!

Currently, I am in my last semester at Queensborough Community College where I am working on an Associate Degree in Criminal Justice. After I graduate from QCC my plan is to move on to a 4 year degree at John Jay. I am also a full-time student so I have to take 13-14 credits each semester. I am an ASAP student, which pays for a multitude of expenses like my Metro card, Textbooks, and part of my tuition. The rest of tuition gets covered by FAFSA and TAP. I don’t work and I wanted to when I applied for federal work study but I was denied because I already “met” financial needs. I pay for my food out of pocket or I would take food from home.

If I didn’t receive financial aid I probably wouldn’t have the chance to gain a place in the professional workforce or acquire new skills needed for my personal and professional development. I am very concerned about graduating on time because that is my time that I am dedicating to earning this degree and I want it to be maximized and put to good use with no impediments.

It still amazes me that CUNY used to be a free institution but now we have to pay for our future and our success. We have to constantly be worried about certain programs being cut like ASAP or SEEK. I come from a single parent household where my mother has to hold down two jobs just to support my family. Education has been a big staple in my household as well because not a lot of people get to go to college or take advantage of the opportunities given. This is why we need a fully funded CUNY because students like me. It would be very beneficial to raise efforts in doubling the Pell grants because that would allow for more students of color like myself to be able to enroll in college and diversify admissions as well as the workforce. We wouldn’t be discouraged to take a stand.

I am a sophomore at Queensborough Community College majoring in sociology. I am graduating after the summer semester 2021 and have applied to Hunter College – Silberman School of Social Work. I want to be a LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker). I am 31 years old, and I was not able to go to College after graduating high school in 2007. I was one of the many students who was undocumented and was not able to afford going to college. I was not able to get any aid to pursue an education after High school, and it was also very difficult because I had to also work to support my family. I was the eldest of 3 and came to The United States when I was 9.

In 2012 when President Obama passed the Dreamer’s Act. I filed for D.A.C.A and a year later in 2013 I was able to work in the country legally and support my family with a decent paying job. Even after receiving D.A.C.A I was not able to go to school. Because D.A.C.A does not aid students with any financial support. I just had to keep working to support my family because even though I received D.A.C.A my parents did not. So, the responsibility lied heavily on me.

I met my husband in 2013 and we dated for 5 years, before getting married in 2018. He is an American citizen, and I got my Green Card a year after we got married. I applied to Queensborough Community College on my 30-birthday rewarding myself with progressing my education, trying to achieve my goals. I thought it would be easier now paying for school and I would qualify for getting financial aid but that was definitely not the case. I applied for FAFSA and was denied because now together my husband and I made over the threshold amount to receive financial aid. At this time, I was still working trying to support my family.

Soon after in 2020 the pandemic hit, I lost my job. My husband and I had some savings which are getting used to pay for school and textbooks. FAFSA still will not approve me for any aid, since they use taxes from years prior to see if you qualify. I have made numerous attempts to apply to the Excelsior Scholarship, TAP and PELL for assistance but got denied yet again. My husband works, and I go to school. It has been really tough, but we make it work. We do not have any children; I am an excellent student and have been on the dean’s list since I started college. I was not even aware of being on the Dean’s list, till I saw my transcript. I then proceeded to ask my advisor if that shows for anything, and his answer was “Unfortunately, that doesn’t do much but congratulations”.
Fortunately, I am not below the poverty line but living in New York and paying high prices for everything means paying for college has not gotten any easier. It has been a really long journey for me to achieve my goals. We need a fully funded CUNY because there are students like me who are still stuck in limbo. First, I was undocumented I couldn’t afford tuition because of no tuition assistance and I had to take care of my family, then I was approved for D.A.C.A still couldn’t afford school because D.A.C.A does not make you eligible for any financial assistance, it just makes you legal so you can pay taxes and continue to work. When I received my green card, I was still left out with any financial support because the combined income was over the threshold.

There are millions of me out there, who would like to pursue their dreams but are not able to because of finances. Having a fully funded CUNY would help New Yorkers like me, finish school, get a decent job so we are not stuck in limbo when it comes to our future. I am fortunate enough that I have a partner who supports me and my dreams. But most do not, and a Fully funded CUNY would really help those who have struggled and are struggling to get a higher education to pursue their goals and dreams.

I am studying Business Administration at Queensborough Community College, and I want to pursue accounting in the future. This is my second year, and I am graduating in Fall 2020. I’m currently in ASAP and they help cover some expenses and books, but I don’t receive any financial aid and pay out of pocket for tuition during the summer or winter sessions. Because of COVID-19 I haven’t been able to work for a month, but I still have to pay off my bills and help support my family. 

I am an immigrant. The only way I can pay for this college is by working and working too much. I have to deal with my travel expenses, meals, and then my tuition or textbook expenses. I work three jobs to get myself going and also help my family financially too as we are here to make our future. A fully funded CUNY would take a big load of stress off of me and my family, and would especially help immigrant families who are trying to save as much as they can to have a secure and better future. 

Being QCC’s Student Government President I think if people didn’t have to worry about paying for college, they could have more time to study or get involved with campus life and opportunities, rather than running to work right after class.

I am majoring in Psychology.  I want to become a mental health counselor for teens and young adults either at a school or have my own private practice.  I am a first generation college student. Both of my parents are from Haiti my dad went to college my mom didn’t. I am in limbo, hoping to graduate by next semester.  

In my Social Behavior course it was often so packed that I couldn’t get a seat and would show up and then just leave.  I didn’t do as well as I hoped to, as a result and am retaking the course in the fall. If high-demand classes were available in the summer and winter, and financial aid covered them, that would greatly help students graduate on time.  We need more class availability for classes that are highly in demand such as pre- or co-requisite classes. We need better paid adjuncts. Every single semester they’re trying to teach and do their best and not being paid as much as they should be.  There should be better trained advisors. One day I was in advisement and I had work at 2pm. I did a walk in and put my name down and waited almost 2 hours.

I have been at Queensborough for two years studying music production. I am very invested in my classes but also produce and write my own music and poetry. I want people to see that I am a student, not a disability and actually working toward my goal of one day owning a record label. I am lucky to have great support at home and at QCC.

I do receive financial aid and I make sure I utilize every resource on campus. My advisers for VAPA (Visual and Preforming Arts) academy know me very well and help me to register for classes. I go to tutoring every day for statistics and writing. Everyone on campus knows me because I bother everyone. That is the only way to get help sometimes. My greatest issue here is getting around comfortably. I don’t even go to the student union where the NYPIRG office is because it is actually dangerous for me to wheel myself. 

For me, full funding for CUNY would mean open sourced or cheaper textbooks. Most of my books I can just get in the library, but it isn’t easy for me to get to the library, find a book and study with it for two hours. It is always too crowded and isn’t worth my time, so I just order my books. Also, accessibility could be way better. Most doors are not automatic. The double doors close on me. I’m pretty strong, but yesterday I was struggling to get through a door for 5 minutes! When elevators are broken, that is the worst. I have to leave for my class at least 45 minutes early from anywhere on campus just to make sure I get there on time. An unexpected broken elevator can be a big problem.