Free and Low-Cost Colleges!

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Great news for strong students! More and more colleges are FREE for students from families with lower incomes. Students accepted to these colleges receive grants (that's FREE money!) to cover tuition, room, and board! Please note that many of these colleges are prestigious private institutions and have selective admissions policies. It can be hard or very hard to get admitted, so you should choose several possible schools to increase your chances.

To research just how selective each school is, look up the college at the College Board’s College Matchmaker. Since the colleges are selective, don't rely on these schools as your only college option! View this as a wonderful opportunity that you can try for, but one that you cannot count on as a sure thing. You should also look into CSU's, UC's, community colleges, etc. Also, please note that many of the schools require U.S. citizenship or permanent residency. Not all do, however; visit our AB 540 page to learn more.

Please check each school's website, because types of assistance and qualifying criteria vary somewhat from college to college. The best way to learn more is to email or call the college's admissions and financial aid offices directly.

School	No-loan financial aid for families meeting these eligibility requirements:
Amherst College	No max of income
Arizona State University	Arizona residents with family income of up to $60,000 ^[1]
Bowdoin College	No max of income ^[2]
Brown University	Family income below $100,000 ^[3]
Caltech	Annual income below $60,000 ^[4]
Claremont McKenna College	No max of income ^[5]
Colby College	No max of income; all students ^[6]
Columbia University	All students eligible for financial aid regardless of family income^[7]
Cornell University	Annual income below $75,000
Dartmouth College	Annual income below $75,000 ^[8]
Davidson College	No max of income
Duke University	Annual income below $40,000^[9]
Emory University	Annual income below $50,000
Haverford College	First-year students with financial need. ^[10]
Harvard University	Annual income below $60,000
Lafayette University	Annual income below $50,000^[11]
Lehigh University	Annual income below $50,000^[12]
MIT	Annual income below $75,000^[13]
University of Maryland, College Park	Maryland resident with 0 EFC. ^[14]
Michigan State University	Michigan resident with family incomes at or below the federal poverty line. ^[15]
Northwestern University	Family income lower than approx. $55,000. ^[16]
North Carolina State University	Income less than 150% of the poverty line. Requires the family to have "limited assets," regardless of state residency. ^[17]
University of Chicago	Students who demonstrate financial need and whose annual family income totals $75,000 or less.^[18]
UNC Chapel Hill	200% of federal poverty line ($24,000 to $37,000)
University of Pennsylvania	Annual income below $100,000 ^[19]
Pomona College	No max of income ^[20]
Princeton University	No max of income
Rice University	Annual income below $80,000
Stanford University	Annual income below $45,000
Swarthmore College	Anyone with financial need ^[21]
Tufts University	Annual income below $40,000^[22]
Vanderbilt University	No cap.^[23]
Vassar College	Annual income below $60,000.^[24]
University of Virginia	200% of federal poverty line ($24,000 to $37,000)
Washington and Lee University	No max of income
Washington University in St. Louis	Annual Income below $60,000^[25]
Wellesley College	$60,000^[26]
Wesleyan University	$40,000^[27]
College of William and Mary	$40,000 (VA residents only)
Williams College	No max of income
Yale University	No max of income

Loan cap Schools

Some universities have opted to have a "loan cap" program, which is a maximum loan — either per year or for the four years combined — designed to reduce the cost of attendance for low-income and middle-class students. The following schools have a loan cap program:

School	Loan Cap for students meeting these eligibility requirements:
Brown University	Family earning less than about $125,000: Caps total loans to $3,000 per year. Family earning up to $150,000: Caps total loans to $4,000 per year. Family earning up to $150,000: Caps total loans to $5,000 per year.
University of Chicago	"Those whose families make between $60,000 and $75,000 will have 50% of their loans replaced."^[18]
Cornell University	Undergraduates with family incomes less than $120,000 will have loans limited to $3,000 per year.
Duke University	Undergraduate students with family income between $40,000 and $100,000 will have their loans limited on a graduated basis ($1,000 to $4,000 per year) and loans "frozen" at the freshman level. ^[9]
Emory University	"Annual assessed incomes of $50,000 to $100,000 who demonstrate need for financial aid. The program caps total need-based loans at $15,000, assuming on-time progression toward graduation with up to eight semesters of study."^[28]
Grinnell College	"Beginning in the 2008-09 academic year, need-based loans for all eligible students will be capped at $2,000 per year."^[29]
University of Maryland, College Park	Students with need-based financial aid will have their loans capped at $15,900 for their four years of attendance.^[14]
Middlebury College	Family income below $40,000: $1,500 per year; family income $40,000 to $80,000: $2,500 per year; family income above $80,000: $3,500 per year. ^[30]
Rice University	Students with a family income below $60,000 will not have loans. Families with incomes over $60,000 will have their loans capped at about $14,500.
University of Virginia	200% of federal poverty line ($24,000 to $37,000). Loans are capped at 25% of the in-state cost of attendance, regardless of state residency.

Ø Bryan College (Tennessee)
William Jennings Bryan Opportunity Program Full tuition and fees First-time full-time student with total family income of $35,000 or less. Students must maintain a 3.0 GPA for continued eligibility.

Ø Carleton College $4,000 scholarship (70% reduction in debt) Students from families earning less than $40,000.

Ø Grinnell College Caps need-based loans at $2,000 per year, replacing loans with grants. Students with financial need. 2008-2009

Ø Kenyon College No loans in the financial aid package. 25 students with greatest financial need, eventually more. 2008-2009

Ø Miami University (Ohio)
Miami Access Initiative Covers full tuition and fees Students with family incomes of $35,000 or less. 2007-2008

Ø Michigan State University
(Spartan Advantage) Replaces loans with grants and work study. Low income students with family incomes at or below the federal poverty line. 2006-2007

Ø University of Chicago
Odyssey Scholarships Eliminates loans from the financial aid package. Includes a minimum student contribution of $1,980 and work-study of $2,200 to $3,000. Students with family income less than $60,000. 2008-2009

Ø University of Maryland, College Park
(Maryland Pathways) Replaces loans with work-study and grants in the financial aid package. Zero EFC students 2007-2008

Ø University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Carolina Covenant Eliminates debt in the financial aid package Students from families with incomes up to 200% of the poverty line. (A 150% threshold was in effect in 2003-2004.) 2003-2004

Ø University of Pennsylvania Eliminates loans from the financial aid package. Students from families earning less than $50,000. 2006-2007

Ø University of Washington Full tuition and fees (but not room and board). Students from families earning less than or equal to 65% of the state median income (about 235% of the federal poverty level) who qualify for Pell Grants or State Need Grants. 2007-2008

Other colleges, such as Deep Springs, Webb Institute, Cooper Union, Curtis School of Music, Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering, College of the Ozarks and Berea College, don't charge any tuition, but they do charge for room and board, so loans are still required, just not as frequently or as much.