BURSTALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — In an effort to lower financial barriers for high schoolers heading to college, New York is expanding financial aid and waiving college application fees. Governor Kathy Hochul proclaimed October New York State College Application Month and announced free applications for almost 130 institutions statewide, including the State University of New York, the City University of New York, and dozens of private colleges.
Waived application fees typically range from $50 to $90 each.
| Institution | Sector | Free application period starts | Waiver ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adelphi University | Independent | October 1 | November 15 |
| SUNY Adirondack | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| The State University of New York at Albany | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Alfred State | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Baruch College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC only) November 10 (all NYS) | November 21 |
| Berkeley College | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| The State University of Binghamton | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Brockport | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Bronx Community College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC ) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Brooklyn College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| SUNY Broome | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| University at Buffalo | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Canisius University | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| SUNY Canton | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Cayuga County Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| The City College of New York | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Clinton Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Cobleskill | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Colgate University | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Columbia-Greene Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Corning Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Cortland | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Culinary Institute of America | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| D'Youville University | Independent | October 1 (undergraduate only) | October 31 |
| SUNY Delhi | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Dutchess Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Elmira College | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Empire State University | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Erie Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Farmingdale State College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Fashion Institute of Technology | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Finger Lakes Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Finger Lakes Health College of Nursing & Health Sciences | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Five Towns College | Independent | October 7, 20; November 13, 24; December 2, 16 | |
| Fordham University | Independent | October 1 | November 1 |
| SUNY Fredonia | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Fulton-Montgomery Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Genesee Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Geneseo | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Guttman Community College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Hartwick College | Independent | Year Round | |
| Herkimer County Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Hofstra University | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Hostos Community College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Houghton University | Independent | Year Round | |
| Hudson Valley Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Hunter College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Jamestown Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Jefferson Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| John Jay College of Criminal Justice | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Keuka College | Independent | Year Round | |
| Kingsborough Community College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Le Moyne College | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| LaGuardia Community College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Lehman College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| LIM College | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Macaulay Honors College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Borough of Manhattan Community College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Manhattanville University | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Maria College | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Marion S. Whelan School of Practical Nursing | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Maritime College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Medgar Evers College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| The New York School for Medical and Dental Assistants | Independent | September 23 | October 31 |
| Metropolitan College of New York | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Mohawk Valley Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Molloy University | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Monroe University | Independent | October 1 | October 31 (code: SENIOR) |
| Monroe Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Morrisville | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| University of Mount Saint Vincent | Independent | Year Round | |
| Nassau Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Nazareth University | Independent | Year Round | |
| The New School | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| SUNY New Paltz | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| New York Institute of Technology | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| New York Automotive & Diesel Institute | Independent | Year Round | |
| New York City College of Technology (City Tech) | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Niagara University | Independent | Year Round | |
| SUNY Niagara County Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| North Country Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Old Westbury | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Oneonta | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Onondaga Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Optometry | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Orange County Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Oswego | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Pace University (NYC) | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Pace (Westchester) | Independent | Year Round | |
| Pacific College of Health and Science | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Paul Smith’s College | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| SUNY Plattsburgh | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Plaza College | Independent | October 1 | December 31 |
| SUNY Polytechnic Institute | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Potsdam | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Purchase College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Queens College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Queensborough Community College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| Rochester Institute of Technology | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Rockland Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| SUNY Schenectady County Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| School of Visual Arts (SVA) | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Siena University | Independent | Entire Application Season | |
| St. Bonaventure University | Independent | Year Round | |
| St. Francis College | Independent | September 1 | March 1 |
| St. John's University | Independent | Year Round | |
| St. Joseph's University New York (Brooklyn) | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| St. Joseph's University New York (Suffolk County) | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| College of Staten Island | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
| The State University of New York at Stony Brook | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Suffolk County Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Sullivan County Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Swedish Institute College of Health Sciences | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| St. Thomas Aquinas College | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Tompkins Cortland Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Trocaire College | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Upstate Medical University | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| Vassar College | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| Wagner College | Independent | October 1 | October 31 |
| The College of Westchester | Independent | Year Round | |
| Westchester Community College | SUNY | October 20 | November 3 |
| York College | CUNY | October 27 (NYC) November 10 (NYS) | November 21 |
While the fee waivers remove one obstacle, students will still have to pay tuition. Applications for state and federal financial aid—Free Application for Federal Student Aid, the New York State Tuition Assistance Program, and the NYS Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Incentive Program—are all open for students enrolling in the 2026/2027 school year.
TAP distributes about $800 million a year in aid based on need. Hochul's office said higher income thresholds and expanded access for part-timers and non-degree students made tap available to almost 38,000 more students. The governor's office announced that the FAFSA and TAP applications for the 2026/2027 school year are open until June 30, 2027.
The STEM program's scholarships cover tuition for students who graduate in the top 10% of their class in high school, pursue a STEM degree at SUNY or CUNY, and commit to working for five years in the field in New York after graduation. The deadline for STEM applications for 2026/2027 is August 15, 2026.
FAFSA, which determines eligibility for federal aid like the Pell Grant, work study, and loans, also helps determine eligibility for TAP, STEM, and the Excelsior Scholarship that combines with other aid to make SUNY or CUNY tuition-free. According to Hochul, completed FAFSAs increased by nearly 12% since enacting the Universal FAFSA Completion legislation, placing the state sixth in the nation for FAFSA completions.
The New York State Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC) coordinates College Application Month with the NYS Education Department, SUNY, CUNY, and private college associations. Students who don't meet citizenship or residency requirements can apply for state financial aid through the Senator José Peralta New York State DREAM Act. According to HESC, it connects eligible undocumented students to grants and scholarships.
An analysis from WalletHub released October 2 showed that New Yorkers have the sixth-highest average student loan payment in the country, paying about $229 a month. Vermont faced the highest average at $248 and Mississippi's was lowest at $142.
Nationally, roughly 42.3 million Americans owe a $1.67 trillion total in student loans, averaging over $39,000 each. WalletHub crunched the numbers, figuring that with a fixed interest rate of 6.39% for federal undergraduate loans, you'd need to pay about $288 a month for 20 years to pay off that $39,000 average.
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