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Q&A
Process for students and counselors to use CUNY application fee waivers
0:38:02
·
99 sec
The discussion focuses on the process for students and high school counselors to use CUNY application fee waivers. CUNY officials explain the streamlined, automated system now in place.
- Counselors can grant fee waivers through an automated counselor portal
- Students can request waivers during the application process
- The system has been simplified from previous paper-based methods
Eric Dinowitz
0:38:02
So about the application fee.
0:38:07
Okay?
0:38:07
Ideally, receiving a waiver for an application fee would not add a task for high school students when submitting an application because that risks the students not knowing how to use the waiver, thus deterring a student from completing the application.
0:38:24
The same administrative roadblock can be true for high school counselors who are juggling a lot of waivers for a lot of students in public high schools.
0:38:32
So what's the process for a student using a CUNY fee waiver now, and can it be streamlined to ensure that more students use it?
0:39:11
Good.
0:39:12
Who who likes paper?
0:39:15
Mean, you do.
0:39:15
You're in that binder.
0:39:16
Trees.
0:39:18
Yes.
0:39:19
Always find it interesting.
0:39:21
We we talk about all this technology, everyone who comes to testify brings these thick binders.
0:39:27
I happen to like paper as you could tell.
0:39:29
It's very interesting.
0:39:31
So just going back to Fresh Start for a moment, you know, I asked how many students currently have these balances, and I know you're getting back to me with other numbers.
Reine Sarmiento
0:38:41
Since the fee waiver began two years ago, we've worked to implement and streamline that.
0:38:46
So a counselor could go on a counselor portal and hit fee waiver and it would automatically be granted.
0:38:53
For students who apply to the program they would ask for a waiver.
0:38:58
The counselor would say yes.
0:39:00
So of that has been automated.
0:39:03
Previous to that, they had long sheets and checked off and they had vouchers they had to carry and all of that has been automated.