Jan 22, 2008 9:22 pm US/Eastern
Dartmouth Introduces Free Tuition For Some
HANOVER, N.H. (AP) ―
Dartmouth College announced Tuesday that beginning in the fall, undergraduates from families with incomes below $75,000 will receive free tuition.
Dartmouth also will replace loans with scholarships and extend need-blind admissions to all international students.
The steps are similar to ones taken recently by Harvard, Yale and other elite schools to make college more affordable for middle-class families.
"The college has long been committed to helping superbly qualified students attend Dartmouth, regardless of their financial means, and financial aid has been a personal priority of mine for many years," college president James Wright said. "Building on our more than threefold increase in financial aid since 1998, I am pleased that we could make this further enhancement to our financial aid program as we seek to keep Dartmouth affordable and to enroll the most talented students from around the world."
He said many students who will get free tuition also will get scholarships for costs such as room and board, books and other expenses.
Tuition this year is $34,965; room, board and mandatory fees add $10,518, for a grand total of $45,483.
Dartmouth trustees approved the changes at a special meeting Jan. 16.
The school cited census data indicating that 70 percent of U.S. households earn less than $75,000, and median family income is $46,326.
It said it already enrolls one of the most economically diverse student bodies in the Ivy League, and the aid expansion should enable it to continue doing so.
Already, 13 percent of Dartmouth students are the first members of their families to attend college and 14 percent receive federal Pell grants, which are for students from low-income families.
For citizens or permanent residents of the U.S., Mexico and Canada, the school already makes admissions decisions without knowing the student or family's ability to pay. The school commits to meeting all of each admitted student's demonstrated financial need through a combination of grants and loans.
Effective immediately, Dartmouth will offer scholarships worth just under $3,000 to let students who receive financial aid take advantage of research or internship opportunities in their junior year.
Financial aid costs Dartmouth $61 million a year, up from $24.5 million in 1998.
Dartmouth said the expansion will cost an additional $10 million a year when it is in full swing. The money will come from reallocating spending and a bigger annual draw approved last year -- 6 percent instead of 4.7 percent -- from Dartmouth's endowment of about $3.8 billion.
Dartmouth is in the midst of a fundraising campaign to add $1.3 billion to the endowment, including $150 million for financial aid. The campaign passed the $1 billion mark last month.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
Comments