<p>TheDartmouth.com</a> | Yale increases aid for middle class families</p>
<p>Yale increases aid for middle class families
By Mat Grudzien,
Published on Tuesday, January 15, 2008</p>
<p>Yale University President Richard Levin announced on Monday that the cost of undergraduate education at the university would now be reduced by an average of 50 percent for each student currently receiving financial aid. Families earning less than $120,000 per year will now pay less than half of the university's tuition, while families with annual incomes that fall between $120,000 and $200,000 will see tuition cuts of a third or more, Levin said in a press release on Monday. Yale's decision to expand its financial aid is another episode in the recent series of financial aid reforms incorporated by several Ivy League institutions. Harvard University cut the tuition costs for families earning less than $180,000 per year to 10 percent of their incomes, at most, on Dec. 10, 2007. The University of Pennsylvania followed suit a week later, replacing loans with grants for families with incomes lower than $100,000 per year. </p>
<p>Yale University President Richard Levin announced on Monday that the cost of undergraduate education at the university would now be reduced by an average of 50 percent for each student currently receiving financial aid. Families earning less than $120,000 per year will now pay less than half of the universitys tuition, while families with annual incomes that fall between $120,000 and $200,000 will see tuition cuts of a third or more, Levin said in a press release on Monday.</p>
<p>Yales decision to expand its financial aid is another episode in the recent series of financial aid reforms incorporated by several Ivy League institutions. Harvard University cut the tuition costs for families earning less than $180,000 per year to 10 percent of their incomes, at most, on Dec. 10, 2007. The University of Pennsylvania followed suit a week later, replacing loans with grants for families with incomes lower than $100,000 per year.</p>
<p>The first among its peers to revolutionize its financial aid program was Princeton University in 2001, when it replaced all student loans with grants in its financial aid offer, inciting the current trend among prestigious national universities to revisit the way in which they distribute financial aid.</p>
<p>Since then, many institutions have made it a priority to make an undergraduate education accessible to students from all socioeconomic backgrounds.</p>
<p>Dartmouth, however, has not changed its financial aid program in over three years.</p>
<p>Dartmouth last altered its financial aid policies in 2004 when the College replaced loans with grants for families with incomes of $30,000 or less, according to Maria Laskaris, dean of admissions and financial aid at the College. Loans were partially replaced with grants for families whose annual incomes fell between $45,000 and $30,000.</p>
<p>The Office of Financial Aid is in the process of reviewing its policies, according to Director of Financial Aid Virginia Hazen, although neither she nor Laskaris were able to say when the College will announce changes to its current financial aid program.</p>
<p>What [the changes] will be and how extensive they will be is not clear at the moment. Hazen said. The final statement will be made by the Presidents Office.</p>
<p>President of the College James Wright could not be reached as of press time.</p>
<p>Although Dartmouth has not made any official decisions, Wright announced that the College intends to make Dartmouth more accessible to students from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds in his Tenth Annual Report to the Faculty on Oct. 8, 2007.</p>
<p>In his speech, Wright said he plans to implement need-blind admissions for international students and to provide scholarships for additional expenses to financial aid students studying abroad. He also expressed an interest in developing provisions that would allow students on financial aid to take one leave-term without College-imposed earning expectations, so that these students can consider non-paying internships or other activities.</p>
<p>In addition, Wright said that the College hopes to find ways to reduce significantly the loan expectations for financial aid students.</p>
<p>Laskaris said expanding financial aid has also been a top priority for her since she took office in May.</p>
<p>I wanted to ensure Dartmouth stays as strong of an institution as it is and continues to attract a very academically talented and diverse student body from around the world, she said. Financial aid is critical for our success.</p>
<p>Hazen said that other institutions decisions regarding financial aid should not pressure the Colleges administration to make hasty changes.</p>
<p>You have to look at whats best to other students rather than what other schools are doing, she said. Im hoping there will be an announcement [regarding financial aid] soon, but our financial aid is strong now.</p>
<p>Students receiving financial aid who were interviewed by The Dartmouth said they are content with their respective packages.</p>
<p>They really make an effort to make sure you can get every dollar you can, Garrett Simpson 11 said. I still have to pay some loans, but they are not that bad.</p>
<p>Simpson said he was not aware that, had he attended some other Ivy League institutions, his loans might have been replaced with grants.</p>
<p>Currently, Dartmouth considers the financial need of international students in deciding to offer admissions.</p>
<p>Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Massachussetts Institute of Technology, Middlebury College and Williams College, among others, have a need-blind admissions process for international students. Wesleyan University and Williams have also made additional funds available to replace some of their loans with grants.</p>
<p>Kirill Bogdanov and Madi Kunayev, two international students currently attending Marianapolis Preparatory School in Thompson, Conn., said Dartmouths financial aid policy affected their application decisions.</p>
<p>I didnt want to risk [the application fee], I know Dartmouth is not need-blind for internationals, Bogdanov said. I would rather go to a little worse school, like Middlebury, that would not discriminate my financial aid application based on my citizenship.</p>