TAP Academic Progress Standards

Financial Aid » TAP Academic Progress Standards

TAP is a tuition-based grant program for New York State residents attending postsecondary institutions full-time in the state. The Program provides grant assistance to help eligible students meet tuition charges. To be eligible for a TAP award, students must be enrolled for at least 12-15 credits or the equivalent. Courses may be counted toward full-time study only if they are applicable toward a degree. Elec􀆟ves are acceptable when taken in accordance with published degree requirements. A student may take courses not applicable to a degree in a given semester as long as the coursework is above the minimum full-time requirement of 12-15 degree-applicable credits. NYS’s Higher Education Service Corporation (HESC) dictates the following maximum TAP payment allotments:

  1. Students in associate degree or certificate programs are eligible for up to three years of assistance (36 payment points).
  2. Students in bachelor’s degree programs are eligible for up to four years of assistance (48 payment points).
  3. SEEK students are eligible for up to five years of assistance (60 payment points).

Similar to TAP, PTAP is a tuition based grant program for New York State residents attending postsecondary institutions part-time in the state. With the exception of the full-time criterion, students must meet all TAP requirements, along with specific PTAP requirements:

PTAP Requirements (2024-2025 and Prior)

To be eligible to receive PTAP awards for terms prior to the 2025-2026 academic year, students must:

  • Be matriculated in an eligible program of study at CUNY, independent degree-granting or, starting in the 2025-26 academic year and thereafter, eligible proprietary colleges
  • Be approved for a full-time TAP award after submitting a traditional TAP application or the NYS DREAM Act TAP application
  • Be enrolled in 6-11.5 credits applicable towards their degree program per semester.
  • Maintain a cumulative C-Average (2.00) *
    • Exception: First-time freshman or transfer students who have no prior grades at the institution for which PTAP is being sought are exempt
  • Have attended college as a first-time freshman within the 2006-2007 academic year or later. Students who matriculated in college and/or received TAP prior to the 2006-2007 academic year are not eligible for Part-Time TAP awards

PTAP Requirements (2025-2026 and thereafter)

To be eligible to receive PTAP awards for terms within the 2025-2026 academic year and thereafter, students must:

  • Be approved for a full-time TAP award after submitting a traditional TAP application or the NYS DREAM Act TAP application
  • Be enrolled in 3-11.5 credits applicable towards their degree program per semester.
  • Maintain a cumulative C-Average (2.00) *
    • Exception: First-time freshman or transfer students who have no prior grades at the institution for which PTAP is being sought are exempt
  • The C-Average criterion for PTAP is mandatory and can neither be waived nor appealed via the TAP Waiver, or any other, process.

For financial aid purposes, good academic standing consists of two elements: “Program Pursuit” (also known as “Pursuit of Program,” or POP) and “Academic Progress” (also known as “Satisfactory Academic Progress,” or SAP)

Pursuit of Program (POP)

Pursuit of Program is a measure of the student’s effort to complete a program. Students must have completed a minimum number of credits in the last semester in which a TAP, PTAP, and/or APTS payment was received. A course is considered completed when a grade of A+, A, A-, B-, B, B+, C-, C, C+, D-, D, D+, P (Passing), F (Failing), or INC (Incomplete) is awarded at the end of the semester. Grades of W (Official Withdrawal), WU (Unofficial Withdrawal), WA (Administrative Withdrawal), WN (Never Attended) or WD (Withdrawal Drop) are not considered completed grades. The NYS Pursuit of Program (POP) chart outlines the minimum number of completed credits required per payment number and last grant program received.

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)

Satisfactory Academic Progress is a measure of the student’s achievement of earning credits toward a degree or certificate with a specified grade point average. Students must have accrued a minimum number of credits—and have earned a minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) prior to each term for which an award payment is sought. The NYS Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) outlines the GPA and minimum number of earned credits required per payment number, student group, degree length, and first Academic Year in which a TAP, PTAP, and/or APTS payment was received.

  • Students enrolled in certificate programs should be evaluated against Associate Degree standards on the SAP chart.

NOTE: Students who believe that they may not meet the new TAP/PTAP standards should consider registering for additional credits. In all cases, students should consult with their academic advisor and the Office of Financial Aid to assist in weighing the impact of failing or withdrawing from courses on their current and future eligibility for TAP or PTAP.

“Remedial student” is defined as a student:

  1. Whose scores on a recognized college placement exam or nationally recognized standardized exam indicated the need for remediation for at least two semesters, as certified by the college and approved by the State Education Department (SED);
  2. Who was enrolled in at least six semester hours of non-credit remedial courses, as approved by SED, in the first term they received a TAP award;
  3. Who is or was enrolled in an opportunity program.

Those meeting the definition of “remedial student” will not be subject to the new academic standards but rather will stay on the 2006-2007 chart.

The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) Students

Beginning with the 2015-16 academic year, for ADA students who received their first state award during the 2010-11 academic year and thereafter and who are enrolled less than full-time, good academic standing will be determined using new SAP standards which does not modify the requirements for disabled students, but aligns them to be equivalent with those required of full-time students. See charts #1 and #2 of the NYS Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) chart for academic progress standards of ADA Bachelor’s and Associate’s Degree students (respectively) who received their first TAP, PTAP, and/or APTS award during the 2010-2011 AY, or after.

Students with a part-time course load that includes non-credit remedial courses must carry at least three semester hours of credit-bearing work, pursuant to section 145-2.1(a)(1) of the Commissioner’s Regulations: “Effective for academic terms beginning on or after July 1, 1984, a student carrying a part-time program that includes noncredit remedial courses shall carry at least three semester hours a semester.” That means, for example, that a student taking the minimum three semester hours must enroll only in credit-bearing courses.

Appeals: Applying for a TAP Waiver

Per HESC guidelines, students who fail to meet either the academic progress, or program pursuit, standards of TAP/PTAP are allowed to appeal via the TAP Waiver process ONLY if eligibility was lost due to an extenuating, extraordinary, or unusual circumstance outside of the college—and relevant documentation supporting the waiver request is provided. Such circumstances include:

  • Personal illness involving either hospitalization or extended home confinement
  • Illness in the immediate family requiring your absence from classes for an extended period of time
  • Emotionally disabling condition that prevented you from attending classes
  • Military duty, incarceration, or other involvement with agencies of government

Please note that normal family responsibilities, work, or fear of failing a class do not meet the eligibility criteria for filing a TAP Waiver.

There are 2 types of TAP Waivers that a student may receive during their undergraduate studies:

  • The One-Time TAP Waiver
    1. Can be granted only once during the course of a student’s undergraduate career
    2. Can reinstate both TAP and PTAP eligibility due to failure to meet the Program Pursuit (POP) or Academic Progress standards (SAP)
      1. NOTE: The “C” Average (2.0 GPA) criterion for PTAP is mandatory and cannot be appealed via the TAP Waiver, nor any other, process
  • The “C” Average Waiver
    1. Can be granted more than once during the course of a student’s undergraduate career
    2. Can reinstate TAP eligibility due to failure to meet the minimum cumulative GPA average of 2.0 required of students being considered for their 5th payment of TAP (or beyond)

For more information on eligibility requirements of—and the application process for—the TAP Waiver, refer to the TAP Waiver Application Form.

  • NOTE: To view the TAP Waiver Application, log in using your CUNYfirst username (FirstName.LastName##@login.cuny.edu) and password.