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Important Updates

Financial aid awards for the 2024-25 year will be available in mid-May. Once you receive notice of your awards, please follow the steps below to view them online.

Log in to MyHeliotrope from: purchase.edu/current-students/ (*If you have not yet activated your Purchase account as advised by the office of Admissions via email, please do so first using the “Account Activation” link.)
Select the “Financial Aid” tab
Select the “Award” tab and then select the 2024-2025 school year when prompted

The 2024-2025 Excelsior Scholarship Application is available now.

In order to apply, students must meet eligibility requirements, including:

Be residents of New York State
Plan to attend a SUNY or CUNY two or four-year college
Complete 30 credits per year towards their program of study
Be on track to graduate on time with an Associate’s Degree in two years or a Bachelor’s Degree in four years

To complete the application, you will need:

2022 IT-201 NYS Income Tax Return(s) for you and your parent(s) or your spouse, as applicable

More information can be found at www.hesc.ny.gov/excelsior.

The federal government has temporarily expanded the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligibility for the duration of the pandemic. Details can be found online at: Students | USDA-FNS

The Consolidated Appropriations Act 2021, temporarily expands SNAP eligibility to include students enrolled at least half-time in an institution of higher education, who either:

Are eligible to participate in state or federally financed work study during the regular school year, as determined by the institution of higher ed, or
Have an expected family contribution (EFC) of $0 in the current academic year.

If you meet the criteria above, you can access and download your SUNY Award letter (PDF) as proof through the following:

Go online to your MyHeliotrope account
Click on the Financial Aid button
Click the Award button
At the top of the page click the blue text “Print SUNY Award Letter PDF”

Due to COVID-19 there has been a suspension of loan payments, collections, and waiver of interest on ED-held student loans. Loan repayments begin after September 1st, 2023. You can read more regarding this on the Federal Student Aid website.

Student loans normally go into repayment after a 6 month grace period from your last date of attendance. You have options to repay these student loans or request deferment/ forbearance depending on your circumstance. To arrange this you will contact your Federal Loan Servicer.

To identify your own Federal Loan servicer and to review the federal loans you’ve borrowed to date please do the following:

Go online to: https://studentaid.gov/ & log in with your FSA ID
The screen that appears will display your total loan balance and grants:
- Click on the View loan servicer details text at the bottom right hand side of this box to view your federal loan servicer.
- You can also click on View Details text to review each loan you’ve borrowed to date.

On Oct. 6, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) announced a change to Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program rules for a limited time as a result of the COVID-19 national emergency. Throughout the pandemic, ED has provided a variety of benefits to borrowers.

Now, for a limited period of time, borrowers may receive credit for past periods of repayment that would otherwise not qualify for PSLF.

Applying For Financial Aid

We urge every Purchase College student to file a FAFSA.

Significant Changes Ahead

The recent FAFSA Simplification Act represents a significant overhaul of the processes and systems used to award federal student aid starting with the 2024–25 award year.

How Will This Affect Me?

The new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) will simplify the process by asking fewer questions and allowing for the seamless upload of information from the IRS.

See a detailed list of changes for 2024–25.

The Process to Date

The release of the new FAFSA has been delayed.

Typically, the FAFSA is available on October 1; however, this year, it was not released until December 31. There have been additional delays in sending information to colleges and universities.

Expect Delays in Processing Nationwide

Once the information is processed and sent, colleges and universities will need additional time to implement and test their systems to account for the sweeping changes.

Unfortunately, this will result in students receiving their award letters later than usual. Please note that this issue impacts schools nationwide and is not unique to Purchase.

The Office of Student Financial Services is working with SUNY and the U.S. Department of Education to prepare to process awards as quickly as possible once FAFSA information becomes available for the 2024–25 academic year.

We ask for your patience and understanding.

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