by our College Data Analytics TeamA lot of students are not billed the advertised price of a school. Instead, they will be provided a financial aid package that will include a combination of scholarships, grants, loans, and work-study. The total cost of going to CUNY Graduate School and University Center can seem tremendous, but do not forget that almost all students are given some form of financial help.
What financial assistance options will The Graduate Center offer, and what will you qualify for? Read on for more information. Read on to see just how much financial aid could be open to you.
The amount of financial aid and scholarships you are eligible for will vary depending on your family’s income. The figures below will help you estimate the aid you might receive from CUNY Graduate School and University Center.
Financial aid, in the form of loans, grants, work-study, and scholarships, is one way colleges reduce the cost of attendance so most students can actually afford to attend. Bear in mind that not all aid is equal, and the amount any one student receives can vary widely.
Because grants and scholarships do not have to be repaid, they are the most sought-after type of financial aid. Across the undergraduate body at The Graduate Center, about 57% of the undergraduate population received grant aid that averaged $5,423 (across roughly 1830 students).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 57% | $5,423 |
| Federal Pell grants | 38% | $4,801 |
| Federal student loans | 14% | $7,631 |
A typical borrower at The Graduate Center leaves with $9,800 in federal loans.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $9,800 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $12,584 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $133.41/mo |
Spreading the median graduate debt over a standard 10-year repayment schedule works out to roughly the monthly payment shown above.
The numbers below show the full range, not just the middle of the distribution. The figures below chart the debt distribution at The Graduate Center.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,000 |
| 25th percentile | $3,210 |
| 75th percentile | $12,577 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $21,987 |
Debt outcomes are not uniform — they shift with income, first-generation status, and dependency.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $10,233 |
| Middle income | $8,295 |
| High income | $10,553 |
By First-Generation Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $9,588 |
| Continuing-generation students | $10,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $5,851 |
| Independent students | $10,000 |
These indicators are derived from the underlying debt data and summarize the overall picture at The Graduate Center.
Most undergraduate borrowing runs through the federal Stafford loan program. The totals below capture Stafford lending at The Graduate Center:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 8309 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $270,394,815 |
GI Bill and DoD Tuition Assistance are the two federal aid programs targeted at military-affiliated students.
Post-9/11 GI Bill recipients
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| GI Bill recipients | 32 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $163,010 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $5,094 |
DoD program volume
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| DoD Tuition Assistance recipients | 12 |
| Total DoD amount | $20,489 |
| Average DoD amount per recipient | $1,707 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.