What You Need To Know

As a new student at BMCC you likely have some questions, some curiosities, or could be saying, “I don’t know what I don’t know yet. How can you help?” This is what New Student Programs is here to help with. With programs such as F.Y.E and Panther GPS New Student Orientation, we try to address the most common questions, concerns, and curiosities of our newest members of the community.

If you have any questions that are not addressed below please email us at newstudentprograms@bmcc.cuny.edu and be sure to include your full name and CUNY ID #.

What if I don’t know my CUNY/EMPL ID #?
That’s okay! There are a number of ways to find it:

  1. It is likely posted on your acceptance e-mail. Check there.
  2. Did you receive an e-mail from the Academic Advisement and Transfer Center? Check there.
  3. Log into CUNYfirst, click on Self Service, and click on Student Center. You should have your CUNY/EMPL ID # posted in the upper right hand corner of the screen.

Reminder:


First Year Experience (F.Y.E)

What is F.Y.E?
F.Y.E is a 13-week series of workshops hosted on Blackboard that will be listed on your CUNYfirst as a message course. F.Y.E. carries no cost and is completely free. F.Y.E. does not carry any credit value and will have any effect on your grade point average (GPA).

Is F.Y.E. synchronous or asynchronous?
FYE is mostly asynchronous, which means you can access the course and complete the assignments on your own time until the end of the semester. However, there are a few sessions that will be held in person.

How do I enroll in F.Y.E?

You are automatically enrolled in FYE. If you do not see the course in your Blackboard account, please email newstudentprograms@bmcc.cuny.edu with your name and EMPL ID.

If I am a member of College Discovery, ASAP, or the Learning Academy, do I need to complete F.Y.E.?
That is totally up to you! College Discovery, ASAP, and the Learning Academy all have their own versions of F.Y.E. (sometimes called by a different name). While New Student Programs’ version of F.Y.E. will cover much of what College Discovery, ASAP, and/or the Learning Academy covers, there may be some differences in material. Do you need to do both? No, you should do the version of F.Y.E. that is required by your program (CD, ASAP, LA) and if you have time to add on New Student Programs’ version, you can.


Panther Partners

Panther Partners is for first-generation college students, what does that mean?
First-generation college students come from families where neither parent or guardian has a two-year or higher degree from a college, university or other institution of higher education in the United States. Some students’ parents or guardians may have completed a degree in a country outside of the U.S.A. These students are still considered first-generation college students at BMCC and are welcome to apply to the program.

If I am a member of College Discovery, ASAP, Learning Academy, Degree Under Three or any other special success program at BMCC, can I also be in Panther Partners?
To support as many first-generation college students as possible, students enrolled in the following programs will not be accepted into the Panther Partners Program: Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP), BMCC Learning Academy (BLA), College Discovery (CD), CUNYStart or Degree Under Three (DU3). This is to ensure that every first-generation college student at BMCC has the opportunity to engage in at least one cohort experience/program.

I heard Panther Partners is nationally recognized, what does that mean?
The National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) is a national organization that works with colleges and universities all over the country. NASPA created the Center for First-generation Student Success. The Center recognized BMCC as one of only a few community colleges in the country to be awarded First-Forward designation in 2019 as a member institution. Due largely to the success of Panther Partners, the Center invited BMCC to participate as an Advisory Institution to help other regional institutions better serve their first-generation college students. Overall, it is a pretty big deal because there are only 205 First-Forward institutions in the country and only 20 Advisory Institutions.

New Student Programs

199 Chambers Street, Room S-136k
New York, NY 10007
newstudentprograms@bmcc.cuny.edu

Office Hours:
Monday-Friday
9 a.m.–5 p.m.