Yale to Eliminate Financial Burden for Lower-Income Families

NEW HAVEN, Conn.
Yale College will eliminate the financial contribution that lower-income parents have to make toward their children's education, President Richard C. Levin announced March 3.

Families with incomes below $45,000 will no longer be required to pay any portion of the cost of their children's education, Levin said, and families with incomes between $45,000 and $60,000 will see their required contribution reduced significantly.

"We want to attract the most promising students from all economic backgrounds to Yale," Levin said. "These financial aid enhancements will make Yale even more affordable to students in need of aid and underscore Yale's strong commitment to the broadest access."

Yale admits all students without regard to their financial circumstances, a policy called "need–blind" admissions, and meets the full demonstrated financial need of all admitted students. Yale adopted its need–blind principles more than 30 years ago. More than 40 percent of Yale undergraduates qualify for need–based scholarship grants. The average grant for 2004–05 from Yale funds is over $22,000 and the top grant is more than $39,000. The new financial aid enhancements  will be effective for the 2005–06 academic year and will apply to all returning Yale students, as well as to the entering class of freshmen.

For those families in the $45,000–$60,000 income range, the largest reductions in the parents' contribution will go to the families with the lowest incomes, reflecting their greater need for financial aid. Families with higher incomes will receive proportionately smaller reductions in the contribution required of parents. Families in the middle of the income range will see their required contribution reduced by about 50 percent.

In addition to eliminating or reducing the parents' contribution for low–income families, Yale College will provide international students on financial aid with funds to pay for one trip home each year. Yale currently meets the cost of one trip home for those students during their four–year undergraduate careers.

The annual Yale financial aid budget is expected to grow to more than $52 million for 2005–06.