To a young college student, there is no word more appealing than “free.” What many City University of New York students don’t know is that there are many free offers they are missing out on with the help of something they carry on them each day.
When students are accepted into CUNY schools, they are given a student ID. This ID is not only used for campus, dorm or library entry. This ID card can grant them free or discounted admission to countless New York City museums, shows, gardens, and more. Sadly, most students go about their two to four years on campus unaware of these offers and miss out on opportunities.
“I’m graduating this Spring and I had no idea about this,” says Jada A. a Hunter College senior. “I feel like the school always has these great things going but no one ever knows about them or where to find the info.”
In 2015, a program began after a survey showed that NYC cultural institutions were underrepresented at all levels, by audiences, staff members and students. There was a lack of racial and gender diversity between the population of staff workers at these institutions as well as the daily visitors. A proposal was made and former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s office approved for CUNY to collaborate and create a plan to close the gap. Through this partnership two programs were launched in 2016, CUNY Arts and Cultural Corps.
CUNY Art’s mission, as written on their website is to, “Create opportunities for all students to experience the richness of New York City’s arts and cultural institutions. CUNY recognizes that exposure to the arts improves students’ critical thinking skills, broadening their ability to think strategically while acknowledging the absence of the arts in most of higher education.”
Guillermo Fuentes, a Hunter College junior says he used these benefits to grant admission to an NYC museum. “I needed to go to the MoMA for an assignment and I ended up getting free admission with my ID as opposed to paying the fee for adults.” Adults at the MoMA must pay $25 for entry.
Fatima Hernandez, Executive Coordinator and Chancellor’s Chief of Staff, said they try to spread the word out social media on their Instagram page, @CUNYARTS. “This is one of those hidden gems,” she said. “There are 25 campuses and hundreds of thousands of students, not everyone is interested in the arts, however, if they don’t know about these benefits, they may never take advantage.”
All these students need is one thing, their student ids!
Here is a list of CUNYArts partnerships students can enjoy for free or discounted:
- El Museo del Barrio
- Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
- Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art
- Jazz at Lincoln Center
- Museum of Modern Art
- New 42nd Street Corp
- Poster House
- Queens Botanical Garden
- TDF: Theatre Development Fund
- The Frick Collection
- The Jewish Museum
- The Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay & Lesbian Art
- The Museum of Jewish Heritage
- The Museum of the City of New York
- The National September 11 Memorial & Museum
- The Shed
- Whitney Museum of American Art
Some benefits are also available for CUNY faculty and staff!
Students can also get free priority tickets to “The Late Night Show with Stephen Colbert,” “The View” and “The Tamron Hall Show.” Students must make an account with 1iota and use code CUNY.
Different from CUNY Arts, the Office of the Arts at Hunter College focuses on more cultural partnerships and events to help students and strengthen the community. The Office of the Arts at Hunter was established in 2016 by President Jennifer J. Raab and they have been building the college’s partnerships with institutions over the years. These events include access to museums, concert halls and theaters, field trips and career insight panels and workshops for students interested in working in the arts.
The following partnerships were created by Hunter College for Hunter students by the Office of the Arts:
- Americas Society – Free admission to gallery and most performances for students, staff, and faculty.
- Asia Society and Museum – Free admission for students and staff.
- The Frick Collection & Art Reference Library – Free admission for students and faculty, plus one guest.
- Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum – Free admission for students, staff, faculty, and one guest.
- Society of Illustrators/ Museum of Illustration – Free admission for students, staff, and faculty.
- BAM student rush tickets – $10 (+$2 facility fee) rush tickets for full- and part-time students ages 29 and under.
- Lincoln Center – Student discounts for The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, The Film Society of Lincoln Center, Jazz at Lincoln Center, The Juilliard School, Lincoln Center Presents, Lincoln Center Theater, The Metropolitan Opera, New York City Ballet, New York Philharmonic, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
- New York Live Arts rush tickets – $10 student rush tickets available 2 hours prior to production.
- Off-Broadway rush and student tickets – Playbill has compiled student discount, rush, & discount ticket policies for 25+ Off-Broadway theaters.
- Carnegie Hall student insider pass – Hunter College students can sign up for Carnegie Hall’s Student Insider Pass for free. Click here to sign up.
- TDF Broadway Passport Series – CUNY students can join TDF for free for $20 and $40 tickets to Broadway, Off-Broadway, and off-Off Broadway theater shows, dance performances and music concerts. Click here for instructions on how to sign up as a CUNY student.
- Mubi – A hand-picked selection of films available for streaming. Free for students.
- MET Opera on demand – Enjoy instant access to more than 600 full-length Met performances with the online streaming database for college and university libraries. (Must log in through Hunter Net/Hunter College Libraries)
- Kanopy – Stream over 26,000 films for free through Hunter College Libraries.
Dara Meyers-Kingsley, Director of the Office of the Arts shares that the office advertises their free or discounted tickets through several channels. “A bi-weekly newsletter that goes out to 13,000+ students, an eblast goes out to 2,000 students, as well as our Instagram @artsathunter,” she said. Currently, Hunter has 23 partnerships and you can find them listed here: ooa.hunter.cuny.edu/cultural-partners/.
The office also focuses on helping students find internships with art partnerships that are paid, stipend or fulfilling credits. Cultural Corps is partnered with CUNY Arts and when students apply they may be granted the opportunity to become interns and gain experience as curators, archivers, marketers, or more for $17 an hour.
All of these offerings are essential for the opportunity and educational lives of CUNY students. While the partnerships are still new, there will be more to come in the future and Fatima Hernandez says to keep an eye out because more opportunities will be announced by early summer!
Additionally, here is a listing of institutions with free* or suggested admission prices for any New York City student ID holders that are not CUNY or Hunter affiliated:
- American Folk Art Museum*
- American Museum of Natural History
- Bronx County Historical Society
- Bronx Museum
- Bronx Zoo
- Brooklyn Botanic Garden
- Brooklyn Children’s Museum
- Brooklyn Museum
- The Cloisters
- Green-Wood Cemetery*
- International Print Center*
- Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning
- Metropolitan Museum of Art
- MoMA PS1
- Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology*
- Museum of the Moving Image
- National Museum of the American Indian—Smithsonian Institution*
- New York Hall of Science
- The Public Theatre’s New York Shakespeare Festival*
- Queens Museum of Art
- Sculpture Center*
- Socrates Sculpture Park
- Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden
- Staten Island Historical Society
- Staten Island Children’s Museum
- Staten Island Museum
- Staten Island Zoological Society
- Storefront for Art & Architecture*
- Studio Museum in Harlem
- Wave Hill
- Waterfront Museum
