I was raised in a single parent household with my two sisters. My mom worked full time to support us all. She didn’t get the opportunity to go to college but wanted better for me and my sisters. No one in my family has finished a four year degree yet and that is mainly because of the financial burden.

I am a full time student enrolled in the EOP program and do receive financial aid, but that covers tuition. I still have multiple loans in my name I had to take out and have worked 1-2 jobs during the school years to pay for living expenses such as books, food, my car, and most recently off campus rent because seniors aren’t allowed to live on campus anymore. I would love to just focus on school but that’s not possible.

I am worried about paying back those students loans and possibly wanting to further my education because of the costs. Investing in higher education will greatly improve the future students of New York.

I am a pre-law student.  I have always received tuition assistance through FAFSA, New York State TAP, and/or merit scholarships. English is my third language. I am first generation American, both of my parents came from Paraguay.  

I’m a single parent, I have a five-year old. I work part-time for a litigation attorney in White Plains. Now that I’m newly divorced, it results in an increase in money I get from FAFSA and the state.

I already qualify for financial aid through TAP, so I didn’t have to apply for the Excelsior Scholarship.

I was a General Education major at Bronx Community College. I wasn’t able to graduate and needed to get a full time job. I couldn’t do both. I had participated in the workstudy program but I wasn’t making enough. I had to pay rent, food, cable, and utilities. I was awarded a partial Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) award and the Pell Grant.

I found out about ASAP too late, but if I had known about it, I would have applied to it for the tutoring to bring my grades up! I wanted it for the tutoring. Everyone should have ASAP. While I was at BCC I received SNAP assistance. The transition from high school to college was really horrible. Textbooks were the biggest cost. I couldn’t keep up with my studies because I couldn’t afford the materials, and this is when I was receiving TAP and Pell. Pell helped for some but I also had to pay for all of my living expenses it was way too much.

My name is Stephanie Almodovar and I am a freshman at CUNY City College. I am currently looking to go into Civil Engineering. Right now, I work as a group leader at a local YMCA and this job allows me to save a little for school. Unfortunately, I do not receive Pell Grants and I do not qualify for the Excelsior Scholarship because my mother’s income is just above the cut off level. Often times I struggle with paying tuition and buying the necessary textbooks for school.

I do not qualify for work-study so most weeks I have to choose between saving money towards school or buying lunch. I usually only eat lunch 2-3 times a week but sometimes that’s too much because buying snacks will deplete my savings and I would not be able to eat for the rest of that week. Thankfully, with the help of outside scholarships, I am now able to pay tuition without worry. However, at any time, that could change. I try my hardest to not let these troubles overcome my college experience but sometimes it all becomes too much. In all honesty, I dream of tuition-free CUNY so that one day I will no longer have to worry about paying for school and just enjoy learning.

I am a first semester freshman at Bronx Community College from The Gambia looking to study International Relations.  I have four children, and my wife and I are both in school and have to work to support our family.  I drive a cab as a way to earn money.  I wouldn’t be able to go to school without the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), the Pell Grant and the ASAP program.

I am planning to go to a four year college and am worried because I won’t have ASAP for my bachelors.  I will continue to get Pell and TAP.  But if NY isn’t giving secure funding for more course offerings, it is unclear if I’ll have the courses available to ensure that I graduate on time.  Since I have a family to support, there is no way I will be able to afford to pay out of pocket if I run out of financial aid. This is why I we must have a Maintenance of Effort from our state government.

I am a freshman studying liberal arts.  I receive TAP and the Pell Grant and I am part of ASAP.  I use Pell to help pay for the bills since I live with my mom.  I would like to go to Brooklyn Institute to be a sonographer.  I think I am going to have to take out loans for my bachelors.  I used to work, but I am taking 17 credits this semester.  I used to work on weekends when I took 12 credits which would be the maximum amount of credits I’d want to take while having a job.  If I didn’t receive financial aid I’d have to take out a loan.

I am a freshman psychology major. I would like to eventually work at a school and work with teenagers or do social work. I receive the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) and the Pell Grant and I am looking for a job to pay for the bus, food and clothes. I didn’t qualify for ASAP because they said I had too many remedial courses. But I had taken those classes in the summer already. When I went to try again to appeal, the spots in ASAP were already filled up. If I was able to get into ASAP I would get my metrocard covered which would be a huge help. I am the first person in my family to go to college. My family and I are from the Dominican Republic. If I didn’t get financial aid I’d have to take out loans. I am trying to work to save money in case there is a semester that I don’t get enough financial aid.