You'd be surprised how many members send us personal salary information, dates of service and other information to try to figure out what their monthly pension might be.

Any member who wishes individual estimates for retirement would be well advised to contact the Teachers' Retirement System at (800) 348-7298 and ask for a video consultations. You can arrange for an interactive meeting in your geographical area.

Rather than publishing answers to highly-personalized requests, the questions from members that we use in this column are of a more general nature regarding retirement. Here are some recent e-mails.

Q: I taught in Florida for a few years before I started working in New York. Is there any way I can recoup some years because I started here at 30 and I do not want to work until I'm 60. Options I've heard about are buying years, working at another state agency like a community college and praying for an incentive. Are these myths or are any of them viable for my situation?

A: Members cannot buy service credit. Service must be rendered in New York state to be earned toward retirement calculation. Working for another state entity would only help to increase your final average salary, but would NOT add time to your service record. There is a statute that prohibits more than one year of retirement credit in a school year.

Regarding a state incentive, hopefully that might occur this school year. We never really know until it is signed by the governor. One NYSUT-backed proposal that would help you would allow employees to retire without penalty at age 55 with 25 years of service. (Currently you need 30 years of service.) You might wish to contact your state legislators on this issue via the action page at www.nysut.org.

Q: I have two part-time jobs, one with the city school district and the other with the city police department. When I signed up for benefits with the police department, I told the woman that when I was hired by the district 17 years ago I was told that I did not qualify for retirement benefits because I am part-time. She said whoever told me that was wrong ... every public employee, whether full- or part-time, is eligible. Help! Do I have any options?

A: If you are a teacher or teaching assistant, you want to be a member of the TRS. If you work in any other capacity you could be a member of the state Employees' Retirement System. Regardless of which system you are eligible to join, I suggest you do so immediately. The woman at the police department is correct: all part-time and substitute workers are eligible for the appropriate retirement system. After two years of service credit you could apply to the retirement system for prior service credit and purchase your previous part-time service over those 17 years. That does NOT mean two school years; you are part-time, so you have to work enough to earn the equivalent service to match two years of credit (For example, if you are half-time, you would have to render four years of member service to earn two years of service credit.)

Q: I heard a rumor that if you teach nine summer schools, it adds up to a year of pension credit. Is it true?

Absolutely not! You can only get one year of retirement credit in a school year.