(b) An applicant who has earned a bachelor's degree is ineligible to receive an award pursuant to this section.

(c) An applicant who has earned an associate's degree is ineligible to receive an award for a two year program of study pursuant to this section.

(d) Notwithstanding paragraph c of subdivision four of section six hundred sixty-one of this part, a school shall certify that a recipient has achieved a grade point average necessary for successful completion of his or her coursework to receive payment under the award.

(e) A recipient shall agree to reside exclusively in New York state, and shall not be employed in any other state, for a continuous number of years equal to the duration of the award received within six months of receipt of his or her final award payment, and sign a contract with the corporation to have his or her full award converted to a student loan according to a schedule to be determined by the corporation if such student fails to fulfill this requirement. The terms and conditions of this paragraph may, as established by the rules and regulations of the corporation, be deferred: (i) to complete undergraduate study; or (ii) to attend graduate school on at least a half-time basis. Any obligation to comply with such provisions as outlined in this paragraph may be cancelled upon the death of the recipient. Notwithstanding any provisions of this paragraph to the contrary, the corporation is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations to provide for the waiver or suspension of any financial obligation which would involve extreme hardship.

(f) Notwithstanding paragraph (c) of subdivision one of this section, a student who otherwise satisfies all of the requirements under this section but fails to complete at least thirty combined credits, or its equivalent, applicable to his or her program or programs of study in any year shall be eligible to receive an award payment for the first semester of such year, provided however, the student shall be ineligible for any further payments under this section. 5. Recipient selection. The president may establish: (a) an application deadline and (b) a method of selecting recipients if in any given year there are insufficient funds to cover the needs of all the applicants provided that priority shall be given to eligible applicants who are currently in attendance at a public institution of higher education. 6. Rules and regulations. The corporation is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations, and may promulgate emergency regulations, necessary for the implementation of the provisions of this section including, but not limited to, the criteria for distributing the awards, which may include a lottery or other form of random selection.