Tuition Waivers

Hunter College offers full or partial tuition waivers to certain students who are employed by the school or qualify in some other way.

All waivers must be received prior to your payment due date to avoid the cancellation of your registration and timely payment. If your waiver is going to be late, please contact the Bursar’s Office and your counselor/program at Hunter to avoid cancellation. If you provide the Bursar’s Office with your waiver late and the College has already billed CUNY for the term, you will be responsible for paying for your class(es) that the waiver covered.

Most waivers will not pay for: fees, class drop charges, late payment fees, or late registration fees.

Types of Accepted Waivers

A cooperating teacher must mentor a Hunter College student for an entire semester in order to be eligible for a tuition waiver for one (1) 3-credit course. Only one (1) waiver will be given per semester. The tuition waiver will be valid for three (3) consecutive semesters, not including the semester immediately following service as a cooperating teacher.

Students MUST present their signed waiver to the Bursar’s Office at least one (1) week PRIOR to the payment due date so that a tuition adjustment can be posted.

Any student who is enrolled or will be enrolled as a matriculated student in a CUNY graduate program may be eligible for a tuition waiver of up to six (6) graduate credits per semester. A student must have a bachelor’s degree from a CUNY college and must be working 15-20 hours per week at a CUNY college.

Students MUST present their signed waiver to the Bursar’s Office at least one (1) week PRIOR to the payment due date so that a tuition adjustment can be posted.

If you are a full-time United Federation of Teacher’s (UFT) paraprofessional, you may qualify for an undergraduate tuition waiver for up to six (6) credits.

Students must submit a tuition payment certification form to the Bursar’s Office at least one (1) week PRIOR to the payment due date. The payment certification form lists the course(s) that will be covered by the Board of Education minus any grants received.

Tuition may be waived for undergraduate and graduate courses at any CUNY college on a space available, no cost basis depending upon the term the employee is registered for, their category/title, the number of credits attempted and their amount of service time. (Please see charts below.)

Staff members must visit the Human Resources department in their college/administrative office to get their tuition waiver approved. This must be done for EACH term.

Waivers are applied to tuition charges based upon how the class is being credited towards the employee’s degree. If a staff member has a waiver for 6 graduate credits and 3 undergraduate credits and the undergraduate credits are being used towards a graduate degree, the employee cannot use the undergraduate waiver and must pay for the class.

*Adjunct Teaching Titles: An adjunct is eligible for tuition remission of up to one course if he or she has taught one or more courses in the same department at the same college for ten consecutive semesters (not including summer sessions) and is appointed to teach a course of not fewer than three contact hours per week per semester. A Teaching Adjunct is eligible for a waiver for either one undergraduate or graduate course in the fall or spring semester. Tuition waiver is not available in the summer or winter session.

Staff waivers DO NOT pay for fees!

Music waivers are provided by the Hunter College Music Department for students enrolled in a graduate music program that requires a special course consisting of expert instruction that is taken outside the College at the student’s expense. The waiver serves as a reimbursement for the student’s expense to take the class necessary to fulfill their requirements for the program.

A police officer waiver provides a one (1) course tuition waiver (no limit as to the number of credits for the one course) for members of the NYC Police Department employed in the rank of Police Officer ONLY who are enrolled in any program leading to a baccalaureate or higher degree at a CUNY senior college. The course must be related to the Police Officer’s employment with the department.

This is a one-time waiver and does not extend beyond the one semester the waiver is granted in. In order to obtain the waiver, the NYC police officer must:

• Present their NYC police department shield (badge) and a photo ID that contains both the tax ID # and their date of birth on the back. The photo ID must specifically note them as the rank of NYC Police Officer.

• Complete a certification form that states that they are an NYC Police Officer and that they have never received the waiver previously.

Firefighters and Fire Officers of the New York City Fire Department who are enrolled in CUNY programs that lead to a baccalaureate or higher degree at a senior college are statutorily entitled to a one-time, one course tuition waiver (with no limit to the number of credits) pursuant to NYS Education Law § 6206 (7)(d).

• The one-time course tuition waiver and does not extend beyond the semester in which the waiver is granted, and the course must be related to their employment with the NYC Fire Department.
• To apply for the waiver, the Firefighter and Fire Officer must present his/her NYC Fire Department shield (badge) and department issued photo ID.
• The Firefighter and Fire Officer must complete a certification form stating that he/she serves in the rank of Firefighter or Fire Officer and that he/she has never received this type of tuition waiver at any other CUNY College.
• The waiver may apply to any semester, intersession or summer term.*
• There is a specific code for this waiver.

*Note: NYS Education Law § 6206 (7)(d) expires biennial and must be renewed by the State Legislature. Before granting the Firefighter Tuition Waiver, confirm that the statute has been renewed for the year in which the Waiver is sought.