According to New York State Education Law, if eligible, you are entitled to receive up to eight years of Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) awards: four years at the undergraduate level and four years at the graduate level. However, the law limits you to three years of TAP if you are enrolled in a certificate program or an associate level (two-year) degree program.

If you enroll for a second undergraduate degree and have not yet used up your four years of undergraduate TAP, you are eligible for additional award payments. At the graduate level, however, if you receive any TAP for a graduate degree program, you cannot receive TAP for a second degree of the same type, e.g. master’s degree; first professional degree (M.D., J.D., etc.) or doctoral degree (Ph.D, Psy.D., etc.).

If you receive TAP for study leading to a graduate degree but you do not complete that degree, you can continue to receive TAP while you pursue the same type of graduate degree. If you are enrolled simultaneously for two graduate degrees of the same type (e.g., two master’s degrees), you can receive TAP only until the first degree is conferred.

The restriction on TAP for graduate degrees does not affect scholarships or other academic performance awards.