U.S. & UK · NEW YORK
You can apply to SUNY, CUNY, and private colleges in the same year, and each has its own application, fees, and dates. If you’re a New York resident, state aid such as TAP and the Excelsior Scholarship can change what SUNY or CUNY would cost you, so plan your list and your budget together.
For fall 2027 entry
START WITH YOUR HIGH-SCHOOL RECORD
New York State students can earn a local diploma, a Regents diploma, or a Regents diploma with advanced designation. Colleges read yours together with your courses, your grades, and what your school offers.
REGENTS DIPLOMA
Every New York diploma needs 22 credits. A Regents diploma adds Regents exams in the core subjects, and advanced designation adds more math and science exams and a world language, arts, or career and technical education (CTE) sequence.
ADVANCED COURSES
If your school offers Advanced Placement (AP) courses and exams, or the IB Diploma, colleges look at which of them you took.
YOUR SCHOOL
You might be at a large public school, a specialized or screened school, a charter school, or an independent school. Your school profile explains its courses and grading, and colleges read your record against it.
TESTING
Testing rules differ from one college to the next, so check each college’s own page before you decide whether to test or send scores.
Letrado’s adviceAsk your counselor for your school profile early. It explains your courses, grading, and which advanced courses your school offers, and colleges read it alongside your transcript.
Credits: Every diploma needs 22 credits, including four in English, four in social studies, three in science, three in math, and one in a world language.
Regents exams: For a Regents diploma, you pass one Regents exam, or an approved alternative, in each of English, math, science, and social studies, plus one pathway.
Advanced designation: You pass three math exams and two science exams, one in a life science and one in a physical science. You also complete two more world language credits with the Checkpoint B exam, or a five-unit sequence in the arts or CTE.
Your school’s rules: Schools and districts can add their own, so ask your counselor what yours expects.
COMPARE THE SYSTEMS
You can apply to all three in the same year, and we help with SUNY, CUNY, and private applications. Each has its own form, fees, and dates, so give each one its own plan.
SUNY
SUNY’s university centers, university colleges, and technology colleges offer bachelor’s degrees, and its community colleges offer associate degrees. Its application costs $50 per campus, and some campuses also take the Common App.
Letrado’s adviceChoose campuses for the programs you want, then check each one’s early action dates and supplemental applications.
CUNY
CUNY has 26 colleges across the five boroughs, including senior colleges and community colleges. The application costs $65, and CUNY gives priority to fall applications completed by February 1.
Letrado’s adviceCompare commute times as well as programs, and apply while it’s free if you’re eligible.
PRIVATE AND OUT-OF-STATE
Selective private colleges look at your grades in the context of your school, alongside your essays, activities, teacher and counselor letters, and test scores where they ask for them. You apply to each separately, often through the Common App, and many have an early round in November.
Letrado’s adviceRead each college’s early rules before you apply. Columbia’s Early Decision, for example, is a binding commitment to attend if you’re admitted.
CUNY’s application is free for New York City public high school seniors from September 15 to November 16, 2026, and for other New York seniors from October 15. SUNY’s Free App Weeks, October 19 to November 2, let you apply to up to five campuses at no cost, and nearly 60% of New York seniors qualify for its fee waivers year-round.
PLAN YOUR YEAR
SUNY, CUNY, private-college, and UK deadlines, decisions, and replies fall at different times. Seeing them together shows where the busy weeks are and when you’ll need to decide.
Aid and results Now open
For college from July 1, 2027. New York’s TAP application follows it.
SUNY and CUNY From Sep 15
Until November 16.
UK Oct 15
18:00 UK time.
SUNY and CUNY From Oct 15
Until November 16.
SUNY and CUNY Oct 19–Nov 2
Apply to up to five campuses with no fee.
Private and out-of-state Often Nov 1
Harvard’s, Yale’s, and Columbia’s are all November 1.
SUNY and CUNY Nov 1
The same day as many private early deadlines.
SUNY and CUNY Nov 15
SUNY and CUNY Nov 16
SUNY and CUNY Dec 1
There’s no formal deadline, but SUNY suggests it for the best chance at aid, housing, and your chosen major.
Aid and results Mid-December
Harvard’s and Columbia’s come by mid-December.
Private and out-of-state Often Jan 1 or 2
Harvard’s and Columbia’s are January 1, and Yale’s is January 2.
UK Jan 13
18:00 UK time.
SUNY and CUNY Feb 1
For your application and supporting documents.
Aid and results Late March
Harvard’s come by the end of March, and Yale’s and Columbia’s in late March.
Private and out-of-state May 1
The usual U.S. reply date.
Private colleges’ dates vary, so check each college’s own page. Many SUNY campuses decide on a rolling basis. HESC hasn’t published 2027–28 Excelsior dates yet.
TRY THIS WITH EACH COLLEGE ON YOUR LIST
Open each college’s own pages and note an answer for every row. Bring the gaps and questions to our conversation, or work through them with your counselor.
| What to check | What to note for each university |
|---|---|
| Your record | Which courses, grades, or tests does the program expect? |
| Dates | Is there an early, priority, or program deadline, when will you hear back, and when must you reply? |
| Cost after aid | What would you pay each year after TAP, Excelsior, and the college’s own aid? |
| Commuting or living on campus | Could you live at home and commute? Compare the cost and the daily travel time. |
| Would you go? | If this were your only offer, would you be glad to go? |
PLAN THE COST
SUNY and CUNY charge New York residents less, and state aid can lower tuition further. Private colleges publish higher prices but give their own aid, so compare what you’d actually pay.
YOUR YEARLY BUDGET
Letrado’s advicePrice each college twice: once living on campus and once living at home, where commuting is possible. Then compare both with the aid you’re offered.
SUNY’s basic rule: At state-operated campuses, you’re generally a resident if your permanent home has been in New York for at least 12 months before registration ends. If you depend on your parents financially, SUNY looks at where they live.
New York high-school graduates: If you attend a New York high school for at least two years and graduate, you may qualify for resident tuition without the 12 months, including if you’re undocumented. You need to apply to SUNY within five years of graduating.
Each campus decides: Each SUNY campus sets your residency status, and its decision is final. CUNY lists its resident and nonresident rates on its tuition page.
State aid: TAP and Excelsior both ask that you’re a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen and have lived in New York for 12 continuous months.
State-operated campuses: Tuition, average fees, and housing and food come to $26,080 a year if you live on campus, or $14,040 if you commute.
Community colleges: The same costs come to $19,590 if you live on campus, or $12,330 if you commute.
With Excelsior: SUNY says the net tuition charge for Excelsior recipients in bachelor’s programs is $0, after the scholarship and certain other aid. Fees, housing, and food still count.
RELATED JOURNEYS
Real journeys from our records. Each card shows how it connects to applying from New York.
AI illustration
AI illustration
AI illustrationWHEN YOU’D LIKE A HAND
Bring your questions to a free 45-minute introduction with your proposed mentor. Afterward, we’ll email a personalized plan with recommended next steps.
