University is Waiving Application Fee for NYC Public School Seniors During Month of October
And Sponsoring Over 100 Events for College Application Month
CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez and NYC Schools Chancellor David C. Banks give welcome letters to seniors at City College Academy of the Arts.
The chancellors of CUNY and the New York City Public Schools today visited the City College Academy of the Arts, an early-college high school in Upper Manhattan, to hand out personalized “welcome to CUNY” letters to seniors and announce that the University is waiving the application fee for NYCPS students throughout the entire month of October. The initiatives are part of Gov. Hochul’s agenda to eliminate barriers to higher education.
CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez and NYC Schools Chancellor David Banks announced that the two systems have begun sending personalized welcome letters to all NYCPS high school seniors who are on pace to graduate in 2024. The letters offer them admission to the University’s community colleges and provide additional information about CUNY’s 19 undergraduate college options, along with a QR code that leads to the application. The letters and the application fee waiver are part of a broad initiative to make the transition from high school to college seamless for NYC Public Schools students.
To showcase the University’s breadth of academic, athletic and career offerings, prospective students and their families will be welcome to attend any of more than 100 in-person and virtual events throughout October, which is coined CUNY Month, including campus tours and information sessions. More than 80% of CUNY freshmen come from the NYC Public Schools system.
“We want to welcome seniors to CUNY as early as we can, and especially for those first-generation students who might believe college to be too expensive or out of reach, remind them that given our variety, ease of access and affordability, there is no substitute or equivalent,” said CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez. “This collaboration between the country’s largest public school system and the largest urban university will streamline the admission process, increase the number of college-bound students and combat the systemic inequities that are so prevalent within higher education admissions.”
“We are embarking on a transformative journey with CUNY, ensuring that every senior in our NYC Public Schools sees a clear path to higher education and a well-paid career. With over 65,000 CUNY welcome letters sent out, we are reinforcing the message that a college education is not just a dream, but a reachable reality for all,” said NYC Schools Chancellor David C. Banks. “Together, with the work of FutureReadyNYC, our signature college and career readiness program, we’re building a brighter future for our city’s youth and dismantling barriers that have kept many from realizing their potential.”
The welcome letters, which guidance counselors began handing to approximately 65,000 high school seniors today, give students a broad overview of University life and include lists of two- and four-year colleges and student support programs. The QR code directs them to a comprehensive admissions page where they can start an application, research financial aid and scholarships and chat with a CUNY virtual enrollment counselor. Students can apply to up to six CUNY schools, and be accepted at more than one.
For its seven two-year colleges, CUNY offers guaranteed admission for any student with a high school diploma or its equivalent. Availability for popular programs may be limited, and some majors, such as nursing, have specific academic prerequisites.
The welcome letter and CUNY Month coincide with the launch of “A Degree for Every Dream,” the University’s new advertising enrollment campaign already visible across the tri-state area. The print and digital ads in the NYC subway, buses, bus stops, LIRR, Metro-North and NJ Transit feature current and former CUNY students and direct prospective students to a new landing page at cuny.edu/learnmore.
Gov. Hochul laid out the personalized letters and other steps in her 2023 State of the State agenda, as part of a Transformation in Higher Education initiative to eliminate barriers to enrollment and make it easier for New York high school seniors to attend college.
The City University of New York is the nation’s largest urban public university, a transformative engine of social mobility that is a critical component of the lifeblood of New York City. Founded in 1847 as the nation’s first free public institution of higher education, CUNY today has seven community colleges, 11 senior colleges and seven graduate or professional institutions spread across New York City’s five boroughs, serving over 226,000 undergraduate and graduate students and awarding 55,000 degrees each year. CUNY’s mix of quality and affordability propels almost six times as many low-income students into the middle class and beyond as all the Ivy League colleges combined. More than 80 percent of the University’s graduates stay in New York, contributing to all aspects of the city’s economic, civic and cultural life and diversifying the city’s workforce in every sector. CUNY’s graduates and faculty have received many prestigious honors, including 13 Nobel Prizes and 26 MacArthur “Genius” Grants. The University’s historic mission continues to this day: provide a first-rate public education to all students, regardless of means or background. To learn more about CUNY, visit https://www.cuny.edu.
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