Implementation stage & efforts to date

Design stage

• The City University of New York is the nation’s largest urban public university, a transformative engine of social mobility that is a critical component of the lifeblood of New York City. Founded in 1847 as the nation’s first free public institution of higher education, CUNY today has seven community colleges, 11 senior colleges and seven graduate or professional institutions spread across New York City’s five boroughs, serving over 243,000 undergraduate and graduate students and awarding 55,000 degrees each year. CUNY’s mix of quality and affordability propels almost six times as many low-income students into the middle class and beyond as all the Ivy League colleges combined.

Goals for participation

• CUNY’s work is focused on developing credential pathways in four key industries—business, healthcare, IT, and education. CUNY’s strategy is to create opportunities across the university for students to earn credentials that are relevant and valuable for both career advancement and progress toward degree completion.