I am undecided but likely going into Accounting. My college experience has been impacted by budget cuts when it comes to advisement.  In high school you don’t get to pick your classes, but in college you have to suddenly do that and there are so many different factors we don’t know about going in.  

To get into certain majors you need a certain GPA, but this is something I was never told.   I figured that out by chance when I saw a poster for International Business which I’ve been thinking about majoring in.  When I was in high school, I maintained a certain GPA because I knew I needed it to get into college. Having knowledge of that stuff is important.

Another issue I’ve had is with class registration.   When you get a good enough grade in certain classes you can skip another class.  I took college algebra and got a B which meant that I didn’t need to take precalc.  I went to an advisor before picking my classes for the spring, and they could have explained to me that the grade I got in college algebra could allow me to skip taking precalc.  But that didn’t happen. Taking a class I don’t need to take is a waste when I could be taking other classes toward my graduation. So many people don’t graduate in 4 years. If the college had more money, they could hire more advisors.  The TAP Gap is cheating the university out of money.

I am majoring in Psychology.  I want to become a mental health counselor for teens and young adults either at a school or have my own private practice.  I am a first generation college student. Both of my parents are from Haiti my dad went to college my mom didn’t. I am in limbo, hoping to graduate by next semester.  

In my Social Behavior course it was often so packed that I couldn’t get a seat and would show up and then just leave.  I didn’t do as well as I hoped to, as a result and am retaking the course in the fall. If high-demand classes were available in the summer and winter, and financial aid covered them, that would greatly help students graduate on time.  We need more class availability for classes that are highly in demand such as pre- or co-requisite classes. We need better paid adjuncts. Every single semester they’re trying to teach and do their best and not being paid as much as they should be.  There should be better trained advisors. One day I was in advisement and I had work at 2pm. I did a walk in and put my name down and waited almost 2 hours.

I am currently a freshman majoring  in political science and minoring in Urban Studies. After graduation, I plan on going to law school.  I pay for tuition through TAP and Pell Grants, and my parents assist me with the costs of textbooks. TAP only covers four years of financial aid, so I must take fifteen credits per semester to graduate on time. If TAP would cover summer and winter courses then it would lighten my load over the fall and spring semesters. Along with being a full time college student, I also work part time to financially assist my family.  It is nearly impossible to make college my first priority when I feel overwhelmed with the overload of credits and working.

CUNY and SUNY should be fully funded, so that specifically my two siblings will not have to feel pressured to work in order to afford college. In terms of my college experience, CUNY needs to be better funded. I had difficulty registering for a calculus class which I needed to fulfill a core requirement.

Additionally, finding an academic adviser who will be able to give me accurate advice is very hard. At the beginning of my Freshman year, I had a question regarding financial aid. One adviser gave me inaccurate advice which almost caused me to lose my financial aid due to the fact, that there are not enough advisers for the amount of students. She had to rush when giving me advice in order to make time for the long line of students waiting to be advised. This budget deficit at CUNY could have had detrimental effects on my college career.

Due to advisement I don’t expect to graduate on time. I just kind of advised myself and just signed up for the classes that I thought I needed to take, but then one of my classes didn’t fit my degree. So suddenly I wasn’t full time and also wasn’t eligible for TAP anymore.

There are not enough advisers, there are too many kids. If your issue is solvable at the main desk the main desk will help you, but beyond that – especially if you’re not a freshman – they will just help you the best way they think they can, but they won’t assign you to an adviser. I asked for an adviser, and the main desk person asked ‘what’s your problem?’ instead of actually scheduling me with an adviser.

I am an Accounting and Finance major. I have had more trouble getting into my accounting classes, not my engineering (transferred from engineering to accounting). I tried to sign up 2-3 weeks before classes started and one of my classes was closed already. So I had to drop to a part-time course load this semester and hopefully it’s open the next one.

It hasn’t been easy finding an adviser. I went up to the accounting business finance department and I was greeted by a secretary and I was trying to get advisement and she’s like we don’t really do that here… I talked to a professor and he was like, “you know, I’m not really an adviser,” and he directed me to go online and find the information there. 

I’ve needed other services as well like mental health. I did go a couple times to the counselors. They were very nice to me but they really are there to just give you a referral. They did give me a good referral…but I had to pay for it out of my own pocket. It was expensive. If there were people who would do that here, it would help students a lot, financially.

In terms of physical space in our classes, I have been in a lot of situations where the teacher would give up his desk and people would sit at their desk and the professor just stands up and lectures the whole time. When I first signed up here – I was trying to go to class in one of the elevators [but it malfunctioned and] spit me out into a locked maintenance closet and I was sitting in there for like 20 minutes banging on the door. I eventually had to call 911 and the firefighters came up and opened the door. There were 10 firefighters and NYPD standing outside. Some of these elevators have been out of service for who knows how long.

The biggest reason I had to drop out of the electronics engineering program is because there was no support for people in the program. Any support there was you’d have to hopefully be available during your professor’s office hours, and even then they’re not obligated to do that. The lack of support- the lack of readily available tutors on a schedule that I could make is what led me to drop out of that program and seek something that was my second choice, just because there was nobody here.

I am a junior at Hunter College majoring in Political Science with a minor in Black Studies. I am also the first person in my family to go to college. Right now, my main priority is to graduate as soon as possible so I can get a job to provide for my family and pay my student loans.

I was first a college student at SUNY New Paltz where I was part of the Education Opportunity Program (EOP). One of my main challenges at New Paltz was the price of textbooks. Even though I was working two on-campus jobs, I found myself spending two thirds of my paycheck towards textbooks. I addressed the issue to my EOP advisor, who cared and loved me like their own, and they were able to help me with an EOP book voucher. This voucher helped me to pay for the rest of my school supplies. The downside is that this book voucher is limited. I know that I am one of so many students who struggle with textbook costs.

In the fall of 2018, I transferred to Hunter College. The first thing that comes to mind when people ask me why I transferred is the fact that the cost of tuition at SUNY New Paltz was overwhelming. As a full-time college student, it was impossible for me to get a job that would cover my tuition so every semester I had to take out loans.  

I’m now in SEEK. Like EOP, Search for Education Elevation and Knowledge Program (SEEK) helps me with my textbooks and provides me with an advisor. Thanks to the SEEK program, my transition from New Paltz to Hunter College was very smooth. This is why we need true leadership from our representatives to defend and expand opportunity programs.

I am currently in my second semester at Nassau Community College, and every day I have to take 3 different buses just to get to campus, taking me almost 2 hours. Recently, the bus that comes near my house was cut and now it only runs every 5 hours. So my time to be at school and do what I need to do as a student is limited.

Right now, I am working towards becoming a physical therapist but have had issues trying to find the classes I need. I went to the advising office on campus, but was only told what classes I would need to get my general degree and not what would best prepare me to transfer. The office attempted to help, but because they had to help so many other students I wasn’t able to get the advising that I need to make sure that I will be prepared for life after college.  Also, due to budget issues the school does not have all of the classes I will need to continue my education, so I will be behind when I transfer schools.

Right now, I am able to afford to go to school due to financial aid programs. I am very lucky to receive these, but what I will receive will not nearly cover the costs of the four year college that I will need to attend to receive my degree. I’m not sure how I’m going to afford it, right now I already have an on-campus job while I’m in classes full time an am stretched so thin.