Pension & Retirement Education Program

Many retirees wish they began focusing on financial and retirement planning much earlier in their lives. No matter how far along you are in your career, careful financial and retirement planning is critical. That’s why our Pension & Retirement Education Program (PREP) is so valuable.

About PREP Seminars

The PREP seminar helps you understand your NYSTRS benefits and offers tips for retirement planning. 

Each free half-day session runs from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. (registration begins at 8 a.m). Topics include:

• NYSTRS Benefits: Pension, disability coverage, loans, vesting and death benefits.
• Financial Planning: Saving early, catching up, withdrawals and financial advisors.
• Social Security: Benefits, eligibility rules, when to collect and earning limits.
• Estate Planning: Wills, trusts, powers of attorney, health care proxies and living wills.
• The Retirement Process: Retirement options, "resigning" vs. "retiring," choosing a retirement date, ensuring you have a bona fide retirement, retirement checklist, monthly payments, taxes and earnings limitations on NYS public employment.

PREP seminars often fill up, so book early. Can't attend a seminar now? We begin taking reservations for our three PREP schedules during the year in mid-September (fall schedule), mid-December (winter/spring), and mid-May (summer).

The PREP seminar is not designed for individual retirement counseling. To schedule a one-on-one consultation, visit the Benefits Consultations page.

Reservation and Attendance Information

There are two ways to make a reservation:

1. Online using your MyNYSTRS account. After logging into your account, visit the Tools/Schedule a PREP page.
2. By calling NYSTRS at 800-348-7298, ext. 6180 during business hours.

Please bring your latest Benefit Profile with you to the session. 

For the most up-to-date estimate of your retirement benefits, use the MyNYSTRS Pension Estimator. This tool allows you to create estimates using various retirement dates.