Educational Advisement FAQs
FAQs - Find answers to Frequently Asked Questions
RETURNING TO LEARNING
What are some first steps for going back to school?
PAYING FOR SCHOOL
How can employees pay for school?
Where can employees find information about grants, loans, and scholarships that are available ?
Are scholarships available for adult students?
Are tax credits available to help pay for school?
How can an employee apply for financial aid?
NON-TRADITIONAL WAYS TO TAKE COURSES AND OBTAIN CREDIT
Are there other ways to obtain a degree? Most employees
don’t have
time to sit in a classroom.
How and where can a non-traditional degree be obtained?
How can an employee get college credit for training and work experience?
For courses taken at two or more schools, how can the credits be combined
toward a degree?
What are the different credit-by-examination programs? Do all schools
accept credits from these programs?
OTHER
What is a portfolio?
How is a portfolio developed?
How can an employee find out if a school is accredited?
How and where can study guides be obtained for NYS Civil Service exams?
How can employees find out about traineeships in their agency?
Who can employees talk to about returning to school?
Discuss these questions with an advisor at the Partnership at 1-800-253-4332 or at advisors@nyscseapartnership.org.
Also see Educational Advisement Guides and Flyers.
RETURNING TO LEARNING
What are some first steps for going back to school?
- Determine the purpose for returning to school - advancement, new career, retirement.
- Identify some career goals to achieve and types of degrees or programs
to help achieve those goals.
- Find a school that has the desired programs and services and meets
geographic and personal needs.
- Meet with an academic advisor at the school for help in choosing
a program or major.
[Return to Questions]
PAYING FOR SCHOOL
How can employees pay for school?
Don’t just consider how to get money – look at how to save
money or to get college credits for less money. Use the Tuition Benefits Program available
to CSEA-represented NYS employees. Some agencies might have their own tuition
benefit program, so check with the agency’s human resources or training
office. [Return to Questions]
Where can employees find information about grants, loans, and scholarships that are available?
Find this information through the financial aid office at colleges, in
libraries, and on the Internet. Some helpful web sites include www.ed.gov/studentaid and www.cfda.gov. [Return to Questions]
Are scholarships available for adult students?
Yes. Adult students should check with their agency and the financial
aid office at colleges to see what scholarships are available. CSEA publishes
an annual scholarship book listing scholarships for members and their dependents.
Call the Partnership at 1-800-253-4332 or (518) 486-7814 for the listing.
Scholarships can be researched at local public libraries and on the Internet
(e.g. www.studentaward.com;
www.fastweb.com, www.collegeboard.com).
(See Education Guide 5: Scholarships.)
[Return to Questions]
Are tax credits available to help pay for school?
Yes! Tax credits are available for both federal and state taxes. The federal
Hope Credit is available for the first two years of college (if enrolled
half-time) and can pay back up to $1500 per year. The Lifetime Learning
Credit is available for an unlimited number of years and will pay back
20% of paid tuition, up to $2000 per year, even if an employee is not in
a degree program.
On the NYS tax return, use the Claim for College Tuition Credit for NYS
Residents, to get back up to $150 per year. www.tax.state.ny.us/forms form
IT-272. (See Hope & Lifetime
Learning Tax Credits www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8863.pdf.) [Return to Questions]
How can an employee apply for financial aid?
Employees should apply for financial aid at the school they will be attending.
A Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) needs to be completed,
but the school may require other forms as well. If an employee has applied
for federal aid in the past, he/she can apply for financial aid on the web
using the Renewal FAFSA at www.fafsa.ed.gov, www.studentaid.ed.gov) [Return to Questions]
NON-TRADITIONAL WAYS TO TAKE COURSES AND OBTAIN CREDIT
Are there other ways to obtain a degree? Most employees don’t have
time to sit in a classroom.
Yes, on-line programs, independent study with faculty mentors, credit-by-exam
programs, and external degree programs an alternative methods for obtaining college credit.
For on-line programs, start with the SUNY Learning Network www.sln.suny.edu.
These are actual SUNY and community college courses offered for credit.
Obtain credit by taking exams through CLEP, DANTES and other exam programs.
The Partnership’s Tuition Benefits Program will reimburse employees
for these exams. Call at 1-800-253-4332 or (518) 486-7814 to talk with an advisor.
[Return to Questions]
How and where can a non-traditional degree be obtained?
Consider the following two non-traditional schools that participate in
the Partnership’s Tuition Benefit Program:
Excelsior College www.excelsior.edu enables students to pull together
college level learning from various sources into degrees in arts and sciences,
business, education, and nursing.
SUNY Empire State College www.esc.edu provides students with flexible
degree programs through independent studies, courses taught via the web,
study groups, and cross registration at other institutions.
Many traditional schools offer credit for prior learning through credit-by-examination
programs and through portfolio assessment. Check with specific institutions
since every school has different policies on accepting credit by non-traditional
means. [Return to Questions]
How can an employee get college credit for training and work experience?
Some schools grant college credit if learning acquired on the job can
be demonstrated. Develop a portfolio to document significant learning in
subject areas covered in specific courses at the college. PONSI (Program
on Non-collegiate Sponsored Instruction www.nationalponsi.org) evaluates
courses sponsored by corporations, unions, and the armed services and issues
program guides that recommend credit.
Take a college level exam as a way to document learning. [Return to Questions]
For courses taken at two or more schools, how can credits be combined
towards a degree?
Assemble all transcripts before showing them to a prospective college.
Generally, for a first meeting with someone from the college, transcripts
do not have to be official. To become an effective consumer, find out which
college will give the best deal, taking into consideration tuition and the number of credits
that can be transferred. Sometimes non-traditional schools like Excelsior
College www.excelsior.edu and SUNY Empire State College www.esc.edu are
more liberal in the number of transfer credits they will accept. [Return to Questions]
What are the different credit-by-exam programs? Do all schools accept
credits from these programs?
Four Credit-by-Examination Programs are available: CLEP (www.collegeboard.com/clep),
DANTES (www.getcollegecredit.com), Excelsior College Exams (www.excelsior.edu),
and TECEP (www.tesc.edu). Each exam can be worth from 3-8 college credits.
Some exams cost as little as $50. These programs are only useful if a person
is in a degree program. Schools won’t consider granting credit for
these exams unless the person is a degree student.
Every school has its own unique policies for granting credit based on
exam results. Check with the school for their policies on acceptance of
these exams. [Return to Questions]
OTHER
What is a portfolio?
A portfolio is a written compilation of autobiographical information;
statements about the type, method, and length of your learning experiences;
and examples of work completed during those experiences. [Return to Questions]
How is a portfolio developed?
Some schools grant college credit for documented prior learning. The
portfolio is evaluated by the faculty of the school granting credit. Some colleges
offer a portfolio course that serves as an aid to creating a portfolio
for later evaluation. [Return to Questions]
How can an employee find out if a school is accredited?
Check with the school. Its web site and/or catalog will usually contain
a list of its accreditations. For non-traditional schools, check Bear’s
Guide to Earning College Degrees Non-traditionally. Most libraries carry
this book, as well as other resources on various schools. Also, look up
institutional accreditations at the Middle States Commission on Higher
Education www.msache.org. [Return
to Questions]
How and where can study guides be obtained for NYS Civil Service exams?
Civil Service study guides are available from the CSEA Work Institute
(518)782-4427 or 1-(866) 478-5548 and www.csealocal1000.org (select Career
Resources). Booklets are free to CSEA members on the site’s “Members
Only” page. Some public libraries and local CSEA presidents have
these booklets. Other published study guides are available from National
Learning Corporation at (516) 921-8888 or Peterson’s at 1-(800) 338-3282
ext. 5370. [Return to Questions]
How can employees find out about traineeships in their agency?
Check with the agency’s human resources and/or training office.
For traineeships that exist in other agencies, check the NYS Department
of Civil Service web site at www.cs.state.ny.us. [Return to Questions]
Who can employees talk to for more details about returning to school?
Call the Partnership at 1-800-253-4332 or (518) 486-7814 to speak to an advisor
or contact an advisor by e-mail at advisors@nyscseapartnership.org. Advisors
can help with many topics related to taking courses or getting degrees.
Employees can also talk with an advisor at the school they are interested
in attending. [Return to Questions]
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