2019 Financial Condition Report

For Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2019

Higher Education

2019 Financial Condition Report
For Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2019

  • In academic year 2018-19, New York State public and private higher education institutions had the following students in degree-credit enrollments: 
    • 852,073 full-time; and
    • 348,211 part-time.
  • The State has a higher proportion of private colleges than most states, with 189 independent and proprietary college campuses accounting for over 44 percent of statewide full-time equivalent (FTE) enrollment.
Higher Education Full-Time Equivalent Enrollment - New York State
  • In the 2018-19 academic year, average costs of tuition and fees for full-time, in-state students for the State University of New York (SUNY) and the City University of New York (CUNY) were the following: 
    • SUNY, $8,480 ($5,400 for two-year colleges); and
    • CUNY, $7,205 ($5,275 for two-year colleges).
  • In the 2017-18 academic year, an estimated 337,536 students received State Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) awards, totaling almost $924 million. New York State also provided an estimated 57,639 other scholarships and awards totaling over $136 million in aid, including 20,049 Excelsior scholarships totaling $66.6 million.
  • From academic years 2013-14 through 2017-18, average tuition charged for full-time students in four-year programs in public colleges and universities in New York was roughly 20 percent of comparable tuition at private institutions. Over that period, room and board costs represented almost two-thirds of total charges (including tuition, mandatory fees, room and board) at public institutions. Room and board costs were slightly higher but represented just over one-quarter of all costs at private institutions, where tuition and fees are much greater.
Average Tuition and Fees, Room and Board, Four-Year – New York State
  • In SFY 2018-19, the State spent $309 per resident on higher education, ranking 16th in the nation for higher education spending per capita.
  • According to the Federal Reserve, the average balance for student loan borrowers in the State grew by 24.5 percent from 2014 to 2018, slower than the 27.7 percent rate of growth for the nation during the same period. The percent of student loan borrowers in New York State that were 90 or more days delinquent (and in default) was 11.6 percent in 2018, down from 13.8 percent in 2013 and less than the national rate of 15.6 percent.
Student Loan Borrowers Average Balance