<p>In order to assist some in their college search process, I have prepared a series of threads that will compare colleges on a variety of measurements. In making these comparisons, I have created three broad groups (private national universities, public national universities and liberal arts colleges) and provide comparisons involving 117 colleges (national universities ranked in the USNWR Top 75 and LACs ranked in the USNWR Top 40). </p>
<p>Following is a comparison of the AVERAGE FINANCIAL AID PACKAGES FOR FULL-TIME, FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS. For students looking for need-based financial aid, this can be a critical statistic in judging the affordability of a college. </p>
<p>It is in areas related to finances and financial aid that the relative financial strength of colleges is seen. It takes more than just a large endowment. It also takes a willingness to commit those resources for the benefit of undergraduate students. For all observers of the college scene, this can be a good indicator for how willing an institution is to spend its resources to support undergraduates. Those colleges with large resources AND a willingness to use them to assist undergraduates will compare more favorably in this presentation. </p>
<p>Avg Fin'l Aid Package for Full-time, First-year Students , Private National University</p>
<p>$40,533 , Harvard</p>
<p>$39,000 , Stanford
$38,067 , Yale
$37,890 , Vanderbilt
$37,138 , U Chicago
$37,055 , Dartmouth
$36,429 , Princeton
$36,215 , George Washington
$35,530 , Georgetown
$35,274 , USC</p>
<p>$34,960 , Case Western
$34,948 , Columbia
$34,452 , Brown
$34,390 , MIT
$33,823 , U Penn
$33,817 , Duke
$33,412 , Tulane
$33,009 , Pepperdine
$32,707 , Rensselaer
$32,505 , Cornell
$32,140 , Notre Dame
$31,863 , Rice
$31,690 , U Rochester
$31,564 , Wash U
$31,469 , Lehigh
$31,069 , Caltech
$30,935 , Boston University
$30,646 , SMU
$30,298 , Tufts
$30,002 , Johns Hopkins</p>
<p>$29,934 , Brandeis
$29,868 , U Miami
$29,618 , Boston College
$29,334 , Emory
$28,753 , Wake Forest
$28,362 , Northwestern
$28,238 , Carnegie Mellon
$26,823 , NYU
$26,110 , Syracuse
$25,312 , Worcester</p>
<p>$23,809 , Fordham
$20,899 , Yeshiva</p>
<p>$2,816 , BYU</p>
<p>Avg Fin'l Aid Package for Full-time, First-year Students , State University</p>
<p>$18,628 , UC BERKELEY
$17,357 , U VIRGINIA
$17,022 , UC S BARBARA
$16,844 , UC SAN DIEGO
$16,626 , UC S CRUZ
$16,568 , UCLA
$15,811 , UC DAVIS
$15,551 , TEXAS A&M</p>
<p>$14,846 , RUTGERS
$14,621 , UC IRVINE
$13,511 , CLEMSON
$13,454 , WILLIAM & MARY
$13,272 , U MINNESOTA
$12,927 , U FLORIDA
$12,142 , U CONNECTICUT
$11,696 , U N CAROLINA
$11,359 , U ILLINOIS
$11,267 , VIRGINIA TECH
$11,254 , GEORGIA TECH
$10,789 , MICHIGAN ST
$10,639 , U DELAWARE
$10,587 , U WASHINGTON
$10,549 , INDIANA U
$10,393 , OHIO STATE
$10,340 , U PITTSBURGH</p>
<p>$9,991 , U WISCONSIN
$9,723 , U MARYLAND
$9,716 , PURDUE
$9,500 , U TEXAS
$9,422 , U GEORGIA
$8,959 , U MICHIGAN
$8,453 , PENN STATE
$7,191 , U IOWA</p>
<p>Avg Fin'l Aid Package for Full-time, First-year Students , LAC</p>
<p>$39,641 , Williams
$37,077 , Amherst
$36,413 , Vassar
$36,389 , Colgate
$36,232 , Pomona
$35,967 , Trinity
$35,625 , Barnard
$35,624 , U Richmond
$35,544 , Bowdoin
$35,534 , Claremont McK
$35,289 , Wellesley</p>
<p>$34,849 , Middlebury
$34,781 , Scripps
$34,737 , Swarthmore
$34,171 , Occidental
$34,102 , Bryn Mawr
$33,740 , Wesleyan
$33,730 , Grinnell
$33,717 , Smith
$33,665 , Hamilton
$33,561 , W&L
$32,961 , Carleton
$32,913 , Mt. Holyoke
$32,872 , Bates
$31,769 , Haverford
$31,657 , Bard
$31,431 , Colby
$30,726 , Oberlin
$30,402 , Colorado College
$30,242 , Macalester</p>
<p>$29,827 , Sewanee
$29,526 , Harvey Mudd
$29,202 , Kenyon
$28,076 , Lafayette
$27,930 , Whitman
$27,569 , Holy Cross
$26,800 , Bucknell
$26,229 , Furman</p>
<p>$21,624 , Davidson</p>
<p>na , US Military Acad
na , US Naval Acad</p>