Academic Requirements

Full-time study requires enrollment in at least 12 credits applicable to the students' program of study, in a semester of not less than 15 weeks.  

Credit-bearing courses are applicable if they fill an unmet requirement in the student’s primary (first) major, general education requirements, or available restricted and free electives.  

The number of available electives, if any, in a student’s program of study will vary depending on the primary major. Coursework satisfying requirements for minors and additional majors is elective credit.  

Time of Assessment

• Students must be enrolled full-time before the TAP certification status date, which is the date when a student would have incurred full tuition liability for the term. Courses added after the certification status date do not count toward full-time status.

8 Week Courses

• To be full-time for New York State grant and scholarship purposes, a student who takes 8 Week 1 and 8 Week 2 courses must carry at least one semester-length course that meets for the full 15 weeks in a term to satisfy the durational requirement in section 145-2.1(a) on full-time and part-time study in the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education.

Final Year Exception

• In the student’s final semester, the full-time study requirement is met if the student takes at least one course applicable to the program of study, and enrolls in at least 12 credits.
• In the semester prior to the final semester, the full-time study requirement is met if the student takes at least six credits applicable to the program of study, and enrolls in at least 12 credits.

New York State STEM Incentive

• Students enrolled in more than one approved STEM majors may combine applicable coursework from multiple STEM majors to achieve full-time status.

Excelsior Scholarship

• Excelsior Scholarship recipients enrolled in more than one major may combine applicable coursework from multiple majors to achieve full-time status.

Students can receive a one-time waiver of the good academic standing requirement. However, the waiver is not automatic. It may only be granted in extraordinary or unusual circumstances beyond the student’s control, and with reasonable expectation that the student will meet future requirements. 

To request a one-time waiver, students must submit a completed one-time waiver application and any supporting statements or documentation. Please contact Student Financial Services at [email protected] or 518-442-3202 for a copy of the application. 

If the waiver is granted, it becomes part of the student’s financial aid record and the student is expected to meet good academic standing requirements moving forward. 

Students who have received the equivalent of two or more full years of state aid awards must have and maintain at least a C average — or a cumulative GPA of at least 2.0 on a 4.0 grading scale — to maintain their state aid eligibility. 

If you previously attended UAlbany (including for University in High School) and have been readmitted, your cumulative GPA will be based on all prior grades at UAlbany.  

Students who are denied a state award payment for failing to achieve the minimum cumulative GPA can regain their state aid eligibility by completing appropriate coursework, without state support, to achieve at least a C average. Students cannot regain eligibility by remaining out of school for a period of time. 

The C average requirement may be waived if there is a death of a student's immediate family member, the student suffers a personal illness or injury, or another extenuating circumstance creates an undue hardship on the student.  

To request a C Average waiver, students must submit a completed one-time waiver application and any supporting statements or documentation. Please contact Student Financial Services at [email protected] or 518-442-3202 for a copy of the application. 

If the waiver is granted, it becomes part of the student’s financial aid record and the student is expected to meet good academic standing requirements moving forward. 

Courses in which the student has already received a passing grade cannot be included in meeting full-time study requirements for state aid eligibility. 

Repeated courses may be counted toward full-time study requirements if a student repeats a failed course, if a student repeats the course for additional credit, or when a student has received a grade that is passing at the institution but is unacceptable in a particular curriculum. 

To be eligible for state aid, a student must be matriculated. A matriculated student is one: 

• who has filed a written admissions application at an institution offering approved programs of study to earn a degree, diploma or certificate; 

• whom the institution deems as being qualified to undertake the course of study for that degree, diploma or certificate; 

• whom the institution recognizes as a candidate for that degree, diploma or certificate; and 

• who has registered for courses or other academic activity the institution recognizes as contributing toward fulfilling the requirements for that degree, diploma or certificate. 

To be considered matriculated for State financial aid purposes, the New York State Education Department requires that a student must declare a major within 30 days of the end of the add/drop period of the junior year.  An “intended major” does not satisfy this requirement.  

At UAlbany, a student with 56 to 87 graduation credits is classified as a junior. Juniors and seniors who have not declared a major, or who have an intended major, are not eligible to receive New York State awards. 

Students who reach their junior year status early because of credits earned prior to matriculation may declare a major prior to their fourth term. However, such students must declare a major upon reaching their junior year status at the end of their fourth term as noted above. 

Students must meet citizenship, residency, high school graduation and good academic standing requirements as of the first day of classes to be eligible for an award during that term. 

Students must meet matriculation requirements, approved program requirements, full-time study requirements and tuition liability requirements sometime between the first day of classes and the certification status date to be eligible for an award during that term. 

To be eligible for state aid, students who first receive aid in: 

Academic year 1996-97 to academic year 2006-07 must have: 

• a high school diploma, or 

• the recognized equivalent of a high school diploma (e.g., GED), or 

• a passing score as determined by the U.S. Secretary of Education on a federally approved ability-to-benefit test. 

Academic year 2006-07 must have: 

• a U.S. high school diploma, or 

• the recognized equivalent, or 

• a passing score on a federally approved ability-to-benefit test independently administered and evaluated as provided by the NYS Commissioner of Education. 

Academic year 2007-08 and thereafter, must have: 

• a U.S. high school diploma, or 

• the recognized equivalent, or 

• a passing score on one of the four tests approved by the Board of Regents. The approved ability-to-benefit tests to be used to determine eligibility for State financial aid are: the Accuplacer, ASSET, COMPASS, and CELSA (Combined English Language Skills Assessment). The CELSA is approved providing the applicant also takes a math component from one of the other approved tests. 

Summer 2008 through academic year 2014-15 must have: 

• a U.S. high school diploma, or 

• the recognized equivalent, or 

• first-time recipients must take and pass an approved ability-to-benefit test within the institution's add/drop period to establish award eligibility in that term. The approved ability-to-benefit tests to be used to determine eligibility for State financial aid are the Accuplacer, ASSET, COMPASS, and CELSA (Combined English Language Skills Assessment). The CELSA is approved providing the applicant also takes a math component from one of the other approved tests. 

Academic year 2015-16 and thereafter: 

• a U.S. high school diploma, or 

• the recognized equivalent, or 

• first-time recipients must take and pass an approved ability-to-benefit test before the first day of classes to establish award eligibility in that term. The approved ability-to-benefit tests to be used to determine eligibility for State financial aid are the Accuplacer, ASSET, COMPASS, and CELSA (Combined English Language Skills Assessment). The CELSA is approved providing the applicant also takes a math component from one of the other approved tests.