Harvard University is now offering free tuition to students whose families make $200,000 or less per year.
The significant expansion of its financial aid is part of Harvard’s efforts to make it affordable and accessible to a more diverse pool of students, especially from middle-income families.
Previously, the school offered free tuition to families who made less than $85,000 annually.
The new criteria will go into effect this upcoming academic year.
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“Putting Harvard within financial reach for more individuals widens the array of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives that all of our students encounter, fostering their intellectual and personal growth,” Harvard University President Alan M. Garber said in a statement. “By bringing people of outstanding promise together to learn with and from one another, we truly realize the tremendous potential of the University.”
The school said that students whose family income is $100,000 and below will have their billed expenses – including tuition, food, housing, health insurance and travel costs – covered by financial aid. They will also receive a $2,000 start-up grant in their first year and a $2,000 launch grant during their junior year to help support the transition beyond Harvard.
The University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have also recently expanded their financial aid options.
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