Universities That Claim to Meet Full Financial Need

These institutions report meeting any gap in families' funding.

By KATY HOPKINS February 11, 2013

Colleges have a variety of ways to bring down costs for students. Some lock in
tuition rates, while others don't charge tuition at all.

And 64 colleges have pledged to meet the full financial need of any admitted
undergraduate, regardless of sticker prices they may publish.

In a 2012 U.S. News survey, 1,164 colleges reported the average percentage of
financial need they met for their incoming undergrad students in fall 2011. Sixty-four
of those institutions, including both National Universities and National Liberal Arts
Colleges, reported meeting 100 percent, on average, of their admitted students'
financial need.

A college that meets full financial need won't necessarily cover every dollar a family
owes, but they will use some form of financial aid to cover the gap between total
costs (including tuition, room and board, books, travel, and other expenses) and
expected family contribution (EFC).

[Avoid these assumptions about college financial aid.]

The calculation of an EFC can vary by institution, as schools may use their own
formulas including indicators such as household income, assets, and family size to
help determine what they think a family can reasonably pay for college. Schools can
also use the federal EFC, calculated from a student's Free Application for Federal
Student Aid (FAFSA).

Once an institution has determined an EFC, the means they use to fill outstanding
financial need can vary. While some schools on the list below may make up the
difference with scholarships and grants, others may offer subsidized student loans or
work-study opportunities. Still others may use a combination of the former (which
students won't have to pay back) and the latter (which will ultimately cost the
student either money or time and effort).

In what's likely to be good news for students, colleges on the list below are
widespread, both in terms of geographic location and U.S. News rank. Whether
students are interested in the Northeast or the West Coast, there are schools that
claim to meet full financial need. And from top-ranked Harvard University and
Princeton University to Concordia College, designated as Rank Not Published (RNP)
by U.S. News because its numerical rank would have fallen in the bottom one fourth
of schools, prospective college students have a variety of institutions to consider.

[Explore the U.S. News Best Colleges rankings.]

Some institutions, such as Grinnell College, have reported meeting full financial need
for years, while others, including the University of Notre Dame, are on the list now
after not making the cut last year.

Universities That Claim to Meet Full Financial Need

Only schools that are defined by U.S. News as National Universities or National
Liberal Arts Colleges were considered for this report.

These colleges claimed to have met 100 percent, on average, of the financial need of
their admitted full-time undergraduate students in fall 2011.

School name State U.S. News rank & category

Amherst College MA 2, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Amridge University AL RNP, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Austin College TX 63, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Barnard College NY 28, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Bates College ME 22, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Boston College MA 31, National Universities

Bowdoin College ME 6, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Brown University RI 15, National Universities

Bryn Athyn College of the New Church PA RNP, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Bryn Mawr College PA 26, National Liberal Arts Colleges

California Institute of Technology CA 10, National Universities

Carleton College MN 8, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Carroll University WI 43, Regional Universities (Midwest)

Claremont McKenna College CA 10, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Colby College ME 18, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Colgate University NY 18, National Liberal Arts Colleges

College of the Holy Cross MA 32, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Columbia University NY 4, National Universities

Concordia College AL RNP, Regional Colleges (South)

Cornell University NY 15, National Universities

Dartmouth College NH 10, National Universities

Davidson College NC 12, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Duke University NC 8, National Universities

Emory University GA 20, National Universities

Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering MA Unranked

Georgetown University DC 21, National Universities

Gettysburg College PA 46, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Grinnell College IA 22, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Hamilton College NY 16, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Harvard University MA 1, National Universities

Harvey Mudd College CA 12, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Haverford College PA 10, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Macalester College MN 24, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Massachusetts Institute of Technology MA 6, National Universities

Middlebury College VT 4, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Mount Holyoke College MA 32, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Northwestern University IL 12, National Universities

Oberlin College OH 26, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Occidental College CA 39, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Pitzer College CA 43, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Pomona College CA 4, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Princeton University NJ 1, National Universities

Rice University TX 17, National Universities

Scripps College CA 24, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Smith College MA 18, National Liberal Arts Colleges

St. Olaf College MN 55, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Stanford University CA 6, National Universities

Swarthmore College PA 3, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Thomas Aquinas College CA 82, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Trinity College CT 38, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Tufts University MA 28, National Universities

University of Chicago IL 4, National Universities

University of North CarolinaChapel Hill NC 30, National Universities

University of Notre Dame IN 17, National Universities

University of Pennsylvania PA 8, National Universities

University of Richmond VA 28, National Liberal Arts Colleges

University of Virginia VA 24, National Universities

Vanderbilt University TN 17, National Universities

Vassar College NY 10, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Washington University in St. Louis MO 14, National Universities

Wellesley College MA 6, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Wesleyan University CT 17, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Williams College MA 1, National Liberal Arts Colleges

Yale University CT 3, National Universities

The financial need data above are correct as of Feb. 11, 2013. For complete financial
aid data, full rankings, and much more, access the U.S. News College Compass.

http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-
college/articles/2013/02/11/universities-that-claim-to-meet-full-financial-need