How good is financial aid at Tufts?

I’m wondering about schools and I want to know how much financial aid Tufts offers.

Tufts meets 100% of demonstrated need, so the amount of financial aid that Tufts offers depends on the student’s need.

We found that while Tufts met need, they did so with more than just the usual $5500 federal loan. My D applied for fall 2007. so it’s been a long time - maybe things have changed. But she had a hefty private (maybe institutional?) loan included. That surprised us, as none of the other schools did this. She would like to have gone to Tufts, but she went to a school that met need with fewer loans.

@Mayflower785

What is your parent annual income? The school will calculate your financial need based on your parent incomes and assets.

Without knowing those, it’s impossible to tell you an amount.

@kelsmom we know recent students, and their need was met. No private or Plus loans in the need based aid package. However, Tufts does not have as generous need based aid as some of the other schools that meet full need. What I mean is…higher income earners won’t see the same kind of need based aid as they might at Stanford, or Yale.

Wow, my D’s experience was totally different the year she was accepted (before Kel’s D). Tufts met 100% demonstrated need, and we did not have the $5500 in loans (less). My EFC was a little higher than it was at other school, but all in all they were generous. They were also need blind, which I think is no longer the case.

Did you get your Visa issue straightened out?

It’s odd how aid can be all over the place!

Financial aid is mostly decided by income and assets. Families of different income levels may have different expectations on FA packages that can work out but the schools decide according to their FA formulas, which are subject to change (for better or worse) every year.

From my experiences Tufts NPC is very reliable, so are the NPCs of most of the colleges meeting 100% financial need. I believe that Tufts FA for lower income families is very good. It’s not a no-loan school and it’s need-aware in admission (mostly in RD). My child at Tufts got subsidized Stafford loan only and the amount was reasonable, below the maximum of federal loans. We expect the total debt after graduation will be around $15K. YMMV.

Does financial aid work the same for international students?

No. Not at all. Do look up the many threads here on International students.

thank you!