College of Staten Island of the City University of New York

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From the College

Founded in 1976 from the merger of two existing colleges, the College of Staten Island (CSI) is a four-year senior college within the City University of New York (CUNY) and is Staten Island’s only public institution of higher learning. CSI is dedicated to both access and excellence and currently serves over 13,000 students.

The College of Staten Island was established through the union of Staten Island Community College (CUNY’s first community college, founded in 1955) and Richmond College (CUNY’s first upper-division college, founded in 1965).

The College ensures that students receive a thorough liberal arts education through core requirements which include classes in the arts and humanities, mathematics, science, and social sciences. Requirements for the associate degree provide a curriculum based on study in a specific area which is often directed toward a career. Requirements for the bachelor’s degree provide disciplined and cumulative programs of study in fifty-three majors.

The Campus Center incorporates cocurricular activities for a complete personal growth experience. The two-story rotunda space at the heart of the structure contains the main dining facilities, the College’s health services, a bookstore, offices for student organizations, study and sleep lounges, a small performance/cafe space, game rooms with the latest game consoles, and the state-of-the-art studios of WSIA, the student-operated FM radio station.

CSI is located on a sprawling 204-acre campus located in the heart of Staten Island. The campus is the largest site for a college (public or private) within New York City and with its scenic landscape; the grounds and facilities create a rural oasis in an urban setting. Classrooms and academic offices are located in fourteen neo-Georgian buildings that form two quadrangles connected by the campus walk, which extends between the library and the Campus Center. Five well-built and equipped buildings–the library, the Campus Center, the Biological Sciences/Chemical Sciences building, the Center for the Arts, and the Sports and Recreation Center–provide outstanding facilities for scholastic and community-based activities.

CSI’s location offers students the best of two worlds, with Staten Island providing a suburban environment with some of the most interesting landscapes in the metropolitan area, while Manhattan, the center of cultural and social life of the city, is only 25 minutes from the island by ferry. The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge provides direct access to the island from Brooklyn.

CSI offers an Associate in Arts degree in liberal arts and sciences. The Associate in Science degree is offered in engineering science, liberal arts and sciences, and liberal arts and sciences with a prearchitecture concentration. The Associate in Applied Science degree is offered in business, civil engineering technology, computer technology, electrical engineering technology, medical laboratory technology, and nursing.

The Bachelor of Arts degree is conferred in African American studies; American studies; art; art with a photography concentration; cinema studies; economics; English; English with a dramatic literature concentration; history; international studies; music; philosophy; political science; psychology; science, letters, and society; sociology/anthropology; social work; Spanish; and women’s studies.

The Bachelor of Science degree is offered in accounting; art; art with a photography concentration; biochemistry; bioinformatics; biology; business; business with a finance concentration, an international business concentration, a management concentration, or a marketing concentration; chemistry; communications; computer science; computer science/mathematics; dramatic arts; economics; economics with a business specialization or a finance specialization; engineering science; information systems; mathematics; medical technology; music; music with an electronics concentration; nursing (upper-division program); physician assistant studies; and physics.

In addition to the exciting array of undergraduate degrees and majors available, CSI also awards the Master of Arts degree in cinema and media studies, English, environmental science, and history and liberal studies; and the Master of Science degree in biology, computer science, neuroscience, mental retardation and developmental disabilities, and nursing education. Special education and post-master’s advanced certificates are offered in leadership in education, nursing education, and nursing cultural competence.

The graduate teacher education program prepares students to teach at the early childhood, elementary, and secondary levels. The academic work and field experience meet the requirements for the certification and licensing examinations given by the state and city of New York.

Further, CSI collaborates with the CUNY Graduate School and University Center and Brooklyn College in a doctoral program in polymer chemistry; with the Graduate School and University Center in doctoral programs in computer science, physical therapy, and physics; and in concert with the Center for Developmental Neurosciences and Developmental Disabilities, the College participates in CUNY doctoral subprograms in neuroscience (biology) and learning processes (psychology).

CSI offers two-year programs in career areas and in liberal arts and sciences and four-year programs with majors in the traditional fields of study. General education requirements have been established for all degrees. The associate degree programs require 60–64 credits, depending on the field; the bachelor’s degree programs require 120 credits, with a few exceptions. Credit may be awarded for experiential learning, internships, and independent study and credit may also be earned by examination. Minors may be taken in several fields, and double majors are permitted. Students may graduate with honors in their field of study in most bachelor’s degree majors.

The College follows a two-semester calendar, with classes scheduled both day and evening. The Office of Weekend and Evening Services offers a variety of course combinations leading to associate and bachelor’s degrees, providing opportunities for nontraditional students with weekday career commitments to pursue a college education at more convenient times. Intensive summer and winter sessions are also offered to students who would like to complete their degrees more quickly.

The College gives a number of courses for credit at off-campus locations throughout the city through internships at major corporations and other fieldwork. Study-abroad opportunities are available through CSI’s Center for International Service which offers students the option of earning academic credit for study in China, Denmark, Ecuador, England, Greece, Italy, Spain, or South Africa.

The academic buildings are designed to house approximately 300 modern laboratories and classrooms. Each also houses a study lounge for students, departmental and program offices, and offices for faculty members. Academic and research programs are served by a computer network that allows students and faculty members full access to specialized software, the Internet, online library resources, and e-mail. All major computer languages and software packages are supported. The College is a wireless campus, and its network is available to all students.

The Center for the Arts complex provides facilities for teaching in the instructional wing and areas of public assembly in the public wing. The complex of public facilities includes a 900-seat auditorium, a 450-seat fully equipped theater, a recital hall, an experimental theater, an art gallery, and a conference center. Classrooms, lecture halls, studios, and offices for faculty members are located in the instructional wing.

The CSI Library is staffed with 14 full-time librarians and 7 adjunct librarians who also hold faculty status and rank. In addition, the library also has 40 support staff members. The library’s total collection consists of approximately 235,000 books; 900 print journal subscriptions; 77 electronic databases with more than 26,000 full-text journals; 3,000 videos and films; and more than 4,000 sound recordings. The library’s online catalog, CUNY+Plus, provides complete access to the collections, including access to holdings of other CUNY libraries. Students also have electronic access to database and research tools 24 hours a day via the Internet. In addition, the library maintains a collection of current textbooks donated by the CSI Student Government. These and other course materials are available at the Reserve Desk. Wireless laptops are loaned to students for use throughout the library. The library building also houses the office of Instructional Support Services and the Cybercafé which offers Starbucks coffee.

The laboratory science building provides facilities for teaching and for two research centers: the Center for Environmental Science and the Center for Developmental Neuroscience and Developmental Disabilities. It consists of a research wing and an instructional wing. State-of-the-art laboratories serve students and faculty members in their teaching and research.

The CSI Astrophysical Observatory is a world-class resource which has been recognized by the International Astronomical Union as an official asteroid tracking station.

The Sports and Recreation Center is a 77,000-square-foot multipurpose facility providing basketball, handball/paddleball, racquetball, and volleyball courts; locker rooms; a gym; instructional areas; an indoor 25-meter swimming pool; and offices for faculty members. Recreational fields occupy the meadows in the northwest quadrant of the campus, providing a green and landscaped open area at the main approach to the campus that includes a running track, indoor and outdoor tennis courts, a soccer field, handball/paddleball courts, softball fields, and a semiprofessional baseball field (original home field to the Staten Island Yankees minor-league baseball team).

For 2008–09, undergraduate New York State (NYS) tuition was $170 per credit for part-time matriculated students, $2000 per semester for full-time matriculated students, and $250 per credit for nondegree students. Out-of-state full- and part-time students were charged $360 per credit, and nondegree students were charged $530 per credit. Graduate NYS resident tuition was $3200 per semester for students attending the College full-time, $270 per credit for part-time students, and $65 per hour for excess hours. Nonresidents were charged $500 per credit for full- and part-time attendance with $85 per hour for excess hours.

Financial aid is available through state and federal programs and includes the New York State Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) awards, Federal Pell Grants, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG), Search for Elevation and Education through Knowledge (SEEK) awards, scholarships, Federal Work-Study Program awards, and student loan programs. Information about programs, application procedures, and deadlines is available from the Financial Aid Office.

CSI Presidential Scholarships are awarded annually to full-time students on the basis of academic proficiency and service. In addition, endowments have been established for scholarships in a number of fields. Further information about scholarships is available from the Career and Scholarship Center.

The College has a full-time faculty of 300, of whom approximately 80 percent hold a doctoral degree or the equivalent. The faculty members have made significant contributions in many areas of scholarship, creativity, and public service. Numerous faculty members have received prestigious grants and awards, and more than 30 serve as members of CUNY’s doctoral faculty.

A single body (Senate) comprised of 20 elected students represents the interests of the College’s students, serving as liaison to faculty and administrators. The Senate derives funding from the Student Activity Fee and through its various commissions and committees, the student government sponsors many academic and nonacademic programs.

A freshman applicant for admission to a bachelor’s degree program must pass the three CUNY Freshman Skills Assessment Tests unless he or she qualifies for exemption based on a satisfactory performance on the SAT or ACT standardized tests or Regents Examinations. Admission to a bachelor’s degree program is determined by an applicant’s score on the College’s admissions index. The index is based on the applicant’s high school courses and academic average and the combined verbal and mathematics SAT scores. An applicant whose score reaches or exceeds the College’s minimum index number is admitted to a bachelor’s degree program. A faculty admissions committee may consider the admission of applicants whose scores approach the College’s minimum index number. Transfer students to baccalaureate programs who have fewer than 25 credits must have a GPA of at least 2.0 and must meet freshman entrance criteria. Students must have passed the CUNY Freshman Skills Assessment Tests in mathematics, writing, and reading prior to enrolling in a bachelor’s degree program or if they are transferring from another college in CUNY.

Entering first-year students may be admitted to two-year programs if they have graduated from an accredited high school or have earned an equivalency diploma (GED) with a satisfactory score.

As a general rule, the College requires a grade point average equivalent to at least a C for transfer as a matriculated student into a two-year degree program.

Requests for further information and application materials should be directed to: