Legislation
A new state law signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo on August 18 will give New York student veterans in-state tuition rates at state colleges and universities even if they wouldn’t otherwise qualify.
New York National Guard Educational Benefit:
Pays tuition for credit bearing courses. Minimum enrollment for part-time is six credit hours per semester or at least four semester hours per quarter. Members may receive no more than eight semesters of full-time study, four academic years, or ten semesters if the program requires five years to complete.
Eligibility: National Guard service member.
New York Recruitment Incentive and Retention Program:
The Recruitment Incentive and Retention Program pays the cost of tuition for credit bearing courses only. Minimum enrollment for part-time is at least six, but less than twelve, credit hours per semester or at least four, but less than eight, semester hours per quarter at an institution. Members may receive no more than eight semesters of full-time study, four academic years, or ten semesters if the program requires five years to complete. Members may not receive more than sixteen semesters of part-time study. Funds are limited and applications should be submitted quickly.
Eligibility: National Guard service member upon his or her enrollment in a degree-producing curriculum in any institution.
New York Veterans Tuition Awards:
Provides through the New York State Higher Education Services Corporation up to $1,000 per semester for full-time study or $500 per semester for part-time study to Persian Gulf Veterans matriculated at an undergraduate or graduate degree-granting institution or in an approved vocational training program in New York State.
Eligibility: Veteran must have served in the U.S. Armed Forces during one of the following periods: in Indochina between December 22, 1961 and May 7, 1975; served in the U.S. Armed Forces in the hostilities that occurred in the Persian Gulf from August 2, 1990, through September 10, 2001; served in the U.S. Armed Forces in the hostilities that occurred in the Persian Gulf from September 11, 2001, to the end of hostilities; served in the U.S. Armed Forces in the hostilities that occurred in Afghanistan from September 11, 2001, to the end of hostilities. Veteran must also be a New York State resident, have been discharged from the U.S. Armed Forces under other than dishonorable conditions, be matriculated full or part time at an undergraduate or graduate degree-granting institution in New York State or in an approved vocational training program in New York State, have applied for a Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) award if full-time, have applied for a federal Pell Grant award for full-time or part-time undergraduate study, or enrollment in a vocational training program.
Address:
5 Empire State Plaza, Suite 2836
Albany, NY 12223-1551
Phone: 518-474-7606
Fax: 518-474-5583
Sources: Student Veterans of America, American Legion