Applying for Financial Aid
Guttman disburses both Federal and New York State financial aid to eligible students, and the Office of Financial Aid offers assistance for completing financial aid applications. To be considered for financial aid eligibility, you must take the first step and submit a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and a NYS Student Aid Payment Application.
Federal and state financial aid applications open on October 1 every year – apply as soon as the application launches. Once you have been admitted to Guttman, the Office of Financial Aid will receive your applications electronically. Remember to list Guttman as one of your college choices on your FAFSA.
Did you know?
New students don’t have to wait to receive an admissions acceptance letter to apply for financial aid.
Types of Financial Aid
Financial aid is assistance to help cover your college expenses. Guttman students receive financial aid from various sources, such as federal, state, city, and outside organizations. There are different types of financial aid including grants, scholarships, work-study and loans.
- Grants – money that does not have to be repaid.
- Loans – money that you borrow and agree to pay back with interest.
- Federal Work-Study – money that you earn from a job obtained through the Financial Aid Office.
- Scholarships – money that is awarded on the basis of academic merit and/or financial aid.
Applying for Federal Student Aid
Approximately a week after filing the FAFSA, a Student Aid Report (SAR) or FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS) will be sent to you usually via email. The information on the SAR or FSS is used to determine your eligibility for Federal Student Aid.
To qualify for Federal Student Aid, you must be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen. You must renew your application yearly to determine eligibility for each academic year.
How to complete the 2023-2024 FAFSA
- Apply at studentaid.gov
- Create, reset or retrieve your FSAID.
- Use 2021 federal tax return information.
- If you are a dependent student, your parents’ information is required.
- Use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool to transfer tax return information onto your FAFSA.
- List Guttman’s school code:
How to complete the 2024-2025 FAFSA
- Apply at studentaid.gov
- Create, reset or retrieve your FSAID.
- Use 2022 federal tax return information.
- If you are a dependent student, your parents’ information is required.
- All FAFSA contributors* must provide consent and approval to having their Federal Tax Information (FTI) transferred directly into the FAFSA via direct data exchange with the IRS.
- Each contributor must have their own StudentAid.gov account (FSAID).
- List Guttman’s school code:
About one week after submitting your FAFSA, you should receive an email confirmation with a link to your FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS) from the U.S. Department of Education. The FSS (formerly known as Student Aid Report – SAR) is an online document acknowledging the processing of your FAFSA. Be sure to review the document for accuracy.
Do not skip this step! After completing the FAFSA, click on the state application link from your FAFSA confirmation page to begin the NYS Student Aid Payment Application.
*A contributor is anyone who is required to provide information on a student’s FAFSA (student, biological or adopted parent, stepparent, student’s spouse). If a required contributor does not provide consent to have their federal tax information transferred into the FAFSA, the student will not be eligible for Federal Student Aid – even if they manually enter tax information into the FAFSA form. The application will be rejected. Consent is required of all contributors, regardless of tax filing status:
- tax filers
- non-tax filers,
- foreign tax outside of the U.S.
- contributors with no social security number
Note: Being a contributor does not imply financial responsibility.
Applying for NYS Aid
How to complete the NYS Student Aid Payment Application:
- Apply at https://www.tap.hesc.ny.gov/totw/
- Create, retrieve, reset your HESCPIN
- Use 2021 Tax Return information if applying for the 2023-2024 aid year.
- Use 2022 Tax Return information if applying for the 2024-2025 aid year.
- Guttman’s NYS School code:
- To qualify, you must renew your application yearly.
Undocumented students can receive state aid through the Senator José Peralta New York State DREAM Act application.
How to complete the Excelsior Scholarship Application:
- Apply at hesc.ny.gov/excelsior.
- Families who earned $125,000 or less are eligible to apply.
- If you would like to receive Excelsior Scholarship Application updates, including when future applications are available, sign up for email or text notifications.
See more resources from New York State Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC).
Additional Steps and Resources
View your Tasks and Holds on CUNYfirst
After completing your financial aid applications, you may be required to take additional steps to finalize your financial aid eligibility. The “To Do List” in your CUNYfirst Student Center will list if you have any unresolved financial aid items to complete. These items must be resolved before you can receive your full financial aid package.
- Log into CUNYfirst.
- Click on “Student Center”
- Select the “Tasks and Holds” tile.
- Follow the instructions listed for each item on your “To Do List”.
School Code
| Financial Aid Application | School Name | School Code |
|---|---|---|
| Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) | Stella and Charles Guttman Community College | 042101 |
| NYS Student Aid Payment Application (TAP) | CUNY Stella and Charles Guttman CC | 1421 |
Video Tutorials
- What Has Changed on the 2024-2025 FAFSA Form
- Who is a Contributor on the 2024-2025 FAFSA Form?
- How to Fill Out The 2023-2024 FAFSA Form
- FAFSA Overview
- Why is the FAFSA Important?
- Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC) Overview
- State Aid Step-by-Step Guide to Correct Errors and Submit Required Documents