 |
Institutional grant awarding patterns differ considerably at private colleges with different tuition and fee levels. In 2007-08, institutional grants covered about 25% of tuition and fees for students at the highest-priced colleges and about 35% at lower-priced private colleges. |
In the figure above, the bottom two blue sections of
the bars show average dollars per student in institutional
grant aid (non-need-based and need-based). The upper
section of the bars shows average dollars per student
in federal and state grants in 2007-08. The numbers at
the tops of the bars show the total average grant
dollars per student.
Non-need-based aid is defined here as any aid awarded
without regard to financial circumstances.
Note: Data are based on dependent students who attended exclusively full-time in 2007-08. Income groups are based on quartiles of families in the U.S. Census Bureau 2006 income data (corresponding to the 2007-08 academic year). Income ranges in 2007-08 are: less than $32,500; $32,500; to $59,999; $60,000 to $99,999; and $100,000 or more.
Sources: NPSAS, 2008. U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement, 2007
Download Excel for this figure. Download Excel for all figures and tables. This figure was prepared in October 2009. - At all categories of private not-for-profit four-year institutions,
the average proportion of tuition and fees
covered by grant aid from federal, state and...
More
institutional sources decreases as incomes increase. For the lowest-income students, the proportion of tuition and fees covered by grants from these combined sources in 2007-08 ranged from 79% at the lowest-priced private colleges, to 61% at the highest-priced colleges. - At the highest-priced private colleges,
where 11% of dependent students were
from the lowest income bracket and 52%
were...
More
from the highest income bracket, the proportion of tuition and fees covered by institutional grant aid ranged from almost 40% for students from families with incomes below $60,000, to 16% for those from families with incomes of $100,000 or higher. - At the lowest-priced private colleges,
where 22% of dependent students were
from the lowest income bracket and 31%
were...
More
from the highest income bracket, those from the lowest-income families received the least institutional aid, while those from families with incomes greater than $32,500 received the most. - At the most expensive private colleges, in
2007-08 the lowest-income students received
over two and a half times as much institutional
grant aid and over three and a half...
More
times as much total grant aid from institutional, federal and state sources as students with parent incomes of $100,000 or higher. However, the higher grant aid for the lowest-income students at these colleges still left them with net tuition and fees of about $13,340, compared to about $10,180 and $7,010 at the mid-priced colleges and just over $2,000 at the lowest-priced private colleges.
Also Important
- Many of the most selective private
colleges offer grant aid only to students
with financial need.
More
A number of these schools have recently implemented aid policies that promise to, for example, meet the entire need of their students with grants or to reduce to zero the expected contribution from parents with incomes below a certain level (typically $40,000 or $60,000). Because these schools enroll only about 5% of all undergraduates in private four-year institutions, these generous aid policies are not clearly visible in the results reported here for all colleges in the highest-price category.
