How will the economic crisis affect our students
In these difficult economic times, The Graduate Center's primary concern is the well-being of our students. Although we cannot yet assess the full implications of the financial crisis for City University, we do know that our students will be significantly affected. In the best of times, they struggle to support their studies with poorly paid teaching positions. In this climate, that task becomes all the more difficult. Indeed, without assistance some of them may not be able to continue their progress toward the doctorate. Our concerns are four-fold:
- Tuition increases: The Board of Trustees of the City University of New York Trustees has authorized a tuition increase of as much as 20% for graduate students. We estimate that more than 2,800 students are likely to experience tuition increases totaling $2,000 annually.
- Hardships for international students: 20% of our students come from outside the United States; 90 countries are represented within our student body. Since research and the consequent production of knowledge are global enterprises, The Graduate Center is immeasurably enriched by their presence. We are concerned that because international students pay tuition at a much higher "out of state" rate, they will be particularly disadvantaged by the tuition increase—so much so that they may not be able to continue their studies.
- Decrease in dissertation-year financial aid: The decline of our endowment's value will seriously impact the financial aid it underwrites. That shortfall will be experienced most dramatically in endowed fellowships that support students in their final year of dissertation writing. We project a potential loss of $700,000 in this area.
- Decrease in adjunct teaching positions: If the CUNY colleges experience significant budget cuts over the next few semesters, teaching positions for our students will become much harder to find. Should that occur, affected students would lose not only their income but also the tuition support and health insurance which are tied to their employment.
- Decrease in other sources of income: Adjunct teaching positions pay less than $18,000 annually. To make ends meet, our students hold a variety of part-time jobs. As the economy softens those positions become much more difficult to find and to retain.
Please consider a gift to the Annual Fund to help support our students.
For additional information about the Annual Fund, please contact:
Raymond C. Soldavin
Vice President for Institutional Advancement
Executive Director, The Graduate Center Foundation
The Graduate Center
The City University of New York
365 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10016-4309
1.212.817.7130
