Schools that guarantee to meet 100% of need (list)

Parents Forum
1

<p>Harvard University (MA)
Princeton University (NJ)
Yale University (CT)
University of Pennsylvania
Stanford University (CA)
Duke University (NC)
California Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Inst. of Technology
Dartmouth College (NH)
Columbia University (NY)
Washington University in St. Louis
Northwestern University (IL)
Johns Hopkins University (MD)
Cornell University (NY)
Rice University (TX)
Vanderbilt University (TN)
Emory University (GA)
Georgetown University (DC)
University of Virginia*
U. of North Carolina – Chapel Hill*
University of Rochester (NY)
Boston College</p>

<p>Went through the US News top 117 and looked at the Financial Aid data on the College Board. Schools were only listed if they were 100%, no 99%'s were listed, and those who didn't provide data weren't listed.</p>

<p>Didn't do any LACs. If anyone has any 100%'s to add please do.</p>

2

<p>THanks for posting this! Grinnell meets 100% of need.</p>

3

<p>Just keep in mind that each of these schools will have its own opinion about the magnitude of your need that may be miles from what your opinion of it is, and miles from each other as well. Also, some will meet your need with grants where others primarily dish out loans.</p>

4

<p>yea.. i think most of those schools use profile, so its not as predictable as fafsa.. Its not guaranteed but Depauw University meets 99% need on average and from what i have seen its mostly grant/merit aid</p>

5

<p>You have not included any of the LACs. Most of the very top ones meet 100% of need, and a few lower ranked ones as well.</p>

6

<p>I think that list, plus a corresponding list for LAC's, would be extremely helpful if one more piece of information was added: average loan amount. So the list would look something like this, using the US News reported average for the first year loan, & average yearly loan amount for all students:</p>

<p>Harvard University (MA) ($2489/$2,377)
Princeton University (NJ) ($0/$0)
Yale University (CT) ($1,447/$2,410)
University of Pennsylvania ($3,143/$4,049)
Duke University (NC) ($3,700/$5,009)
Stanford University (CA) ($2,675/$2,860)
California Institute of Technology ($1,798/$1,318)
Massachusetts Inst. of Technology ($3,321/$3,897)
Columbia ($3,465/$4930)
Dartmouth College (NH) ($3,168/$4,318)</p>

<p>I think this information is valuable because it gives the a good indication of how the college structures the aid. If you multiply the second figure by 4, you would have a good prediction of the average amount of debt that students woud be taking on over 4 years.</p>

<p>I don't have time right now to go over the full list, but I do want to note that University of Chicago should have been included among the list of top 50 Universities that meet 100% need - here's the entry using my system. </p>

<p>U. of Chicago ($4,474/$5,484)</p>

<p>And while I will also leave it to someone else to go over the top-50 LAC list, I'll fil in the figures for Grinnell (mentioned by anxiousmom), and also add my daughter's college:</p>

<p>Grinnell ($4,355/$5,150)
Barnard ($2,625/$4,107)</p>

<p>I'll do some cutting & pasting and start a second, cumulative list that others can supplement.</p>

7

<p>OK, I got ambitious -- so here is my list of all US News top universities & LACs that meet 100% need of all undergraduate students, together with info as to the average need-based loans for students. There are some changes from the OP's original list, which will be explained in a subsequent post.</p>

<p>The value of my including loan information can be seen if you look at figures from Cornell. (Kind of puts a new light on the concept of meeting 100% need.) </p>

<p>Schools that meet 100% of need + (average first year loan amount - average yearly loan for all undergrads)</p>

<p>US News top 50 National Universities:</p>

<p>Harvard University (MA) ($2489 $2,377)
Princeton University (NJ) ($0 $0)
Yale University (CT) ($1,447 $2,410)
University of Pennsylvania ($3,143 $4,049)
Duke University (NC) ($3,700 $5,009)
Stanford University (CA) ($2,675 $2,860)
California Tech ($1,798 $1,318)
Mass Inst. of Technology ($3,321 $3,897)
Columbia (NY) ($3,465 $4930)
Dartmouth College (NH) ($3,168 $4,318)
Northwestern University (IL) ($2,424 $4,148)
Cornell University (NY) ($10,400 $8,157)
U. of Chicago (IL) ($4,474 $5,484)
Rice University (TX) ($2,532 $3,069)
Univ of Notre Dame (IN) ($3,603 $5,278)
Emory University (GA) ($3,129 $4,890)
Georgetown University (DC) ($2,010 $3,634)
University of Virginia* ($3,771 $4,395)
Tufts University (MA) ($2,911 $4,219)
Boston College (MA) ($3,707 $4,721)</p>

<p>US News Top 50 LACs:</p>

<p>Williams (MA) ($2,187 $2,860)
Amherst (MA) ($1,839 $2,263)
Swarthmore (PA) ($2,047 $3,061)
Wellesley (MA) ($2,488 $3,097)
Carleton (MN) ($3,140 $4,307)
Bowdoin (ME) ($3,253 $3,595)
Pomona (CA) ($2,500 $2,825)
Haverford (PA) ($2,674 $3,872)
Middlebury (VT) ($2,971 $3,690)
Claremont-McKenna (CA) ($2,728 $3,441)
Davidson (NC) ($3,090 $3,903)
Wesleyan (CT) ($2,466 $4,427)
Vasser (NY) ($2,165 $2,846)
Colgate (NY) ($2,296 $4,200)
Grinnell (IA) ($4,355 $5,150)
Hamilton (NY) ($3,352 $3,921)
Harvey Mudd (CA) ($3,554 $3,472)
Smith (MA) ($2,109 $3,730)
Colby (ME) ($2,984 $3,343)
Mt Holyoke (MA) ($3,321 $4,925)
Oberlin (OH) ($3,612 $4,187)
Macalester (MN) ($2,503 $3,302)
Trinity (CT) ($2,901 $4,237)
Barnard (NY) ($2,625 $4,107)
Bucknell (PA) ($4,000 $5,200)
Scripps (CA) ($3,166 $3,647)
Sewanee (TN) ($3,629 $3,338)
Connecticut College ($2,861 $4,229)</p>

8

<p>Brown's numbers are 100% for first year students and 99% for others. </p>

<p>They also replace the work study award with a grant for freshmen.</p>

9

<p>Explanation of changes to OP's list & criteria for inclusion in my post #7:</p>

<p>The OP was apparently relying on data at the College Board site; I have used data from the US News premium site, which is based on 2004-2005 financial aid data. The College Board site doesn't clearly indicate the year of its data, and it has less detail available. </p>

<p>After reviewing US News data, I removed the following universities from the OP's original list:</p>

<p>Washington Univ. of St. Louis:
Students whose need was fully met (excluding PLUS or other private loans) 98% 99%</p>

<p>Johns Hopkins
Students whose need was fully met (excluding PLUS or other private loans) 100% 87%</p>

<p>Vanderbilt
Students whose need was fully met (excluding PLUS or other private loans) 98% 95%</p>

<p>UNC- Chapel Hill
Students whose need was fully met (excluding PLUS or other private loans) 90% 92%</p>

<p>Univ. of Rochester
Students whose need was fully met (excluding PLUS or other private loans) 100% 52%</p>

<p>I'd note that the College Board site financial aid figures do not indicate whether they are for first year students or for all students. This can be a problem, as shown by the stats from Johns Hopkins & Univ. of Rochester- where apparently aid is guaranteed for the first year only, with significant fall off among upperclassmen.</p>

10

<p>University of Southern California. Not sure what the US News premium site says, but USC claims: "USC has a long tradition of meeting 100% of the USC-determined financial need for those undergraduate students who satisfy all eligibility requirements and deadlines." <a href="http://www.usc.edu/admission/undergraduate/fa/undergrad/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.usc.edu/admission/undergraduate/fa/undergrad/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Also, the list would be really useful if some wiggle room on 100% were given. 98-99% is equivalent to 100%, in the reality of people deciding where they can afford to attend. Limiting it to "pure" 100%s is just an excercise in minutiae.</p>

11

<p>The statistics tell another story:
University of California: Students whose need was fully met: 96% (first year) 93% (all undergraduates)</p>

12

<p>Top 40 "best values" for LACs in US News rankings....</p>

<p>College, %receiving grants based on need, average cost after grants, average discount from total cost</p>

<pre><code>1. Williams College (MA) 42% $16,791 59%
2. Amherst College (MA) 44% $17,012 60%
3. Wellesley College (MA) 57% $18,477 56%
4. Pomona College (CA) 53% $17,511 57%
5. Swarthmore College (PA) 48% $18,148 57%
6. Colgate University (NY) 42% $16,849 59%
7. Macalester College (MN) 69% $17,855 51%
8. Claremont McKenna College (CA) 52% $19,085 53%
9. Centre College (KY) 62% $15,713 49%
</code></pre>

<ol>
<li>Carleton College (MN) 58% $20,339 48% </li>
<li>Bowdoin College (ME) 46% $19,358 54% </li>
<li>Wells College (NY) 74% $12,711 45% </li>
<li>Colorado College 40% $16,001 58% </li>
<li>Grinnell College (IA) 49% $17,995 47% </li>
<li>Bryn Mawr College (PA) 53% $18,799 54% </li>
<li>Colby College (ME) 37% $17,597 58% </li>
<li>Smith College (MA) 60% $20,281 52% </li>
<li>Middlebury College (VT) 42% $19,690 54% </li>
<li>Occidental College (CA) 63% $18,034 55% </li>
<li>Hillsdale College (MI) 86% $14,300 42% </li>
<li>Mount Holyoke College (MA) 62% $20,310 51% </li>
<li>Agnes Scott College (GA) 63% $16,191 51% </li>
<li>Lafayette College (PA) 50% $18,232 53% </li>
<li>Washington and Lee University (VA) 24% $17,270 52% </li>
<li>Hanover College (IN) 72% $14,553 50% </li>
<li>Hamilton College (NY) 54% $20,612 50% </li>
<li>Scripps College (CA) 46% $18,019 55% </li>
<li>Haverford College (PA) 40% $20,328 52% </li>
<li>Trinity College (CT) 40% $18,166 57% </li>
<li>Harvey Mudd College (CA) 52% $20,641 51% </li>
<li>Wabash College (IN) 67% $17,556 47% </li>
<li>Wesleyan University (CT) 48% $21,166 50% </li>
<li>Sewanee – University of the South (TN) 45% $17,145 50% </li>
<li>Presbyterian College (SC) 62% $14,550 56% </li>
<li>University of Richmond (VA)‡ 33% $16,333 52% </li>
<li>Union College (NY) 50% $18,523 54% </li>
<li>Thomas Aquinas College (CA) 58% $13,687 45% </li>
<li>Barnard College (NY) 38% $18,343 56% </li>
<li>Furman University (SC) 42% $16,804 50% </li>
<li>Lawrence University (WI) 61% $17,530 48%</li>
</ol>

13

<p>
[quote]
Schools that meet 100% of need + (average first year loan amount - average yearly loan for all undergrads)

[/quote]
Nice work, Calmom! Just to clarify for some new-to-CC parents. The figures provided for "average first year loan" amounts are figured by taking the total freshman loan amount and dividing by the number of freshman taking loans. It is not divided by the total freshman population. :)</p>

<p>It is interesting to me to see how high the average loan amount is at Grinnell. I had always assumed that due to their strong merit aid, they provided generous needbased aid also. But their loan amount is significantly higher than many other of the 100% need Lacs. Hmmm.</p>

14

<p>dt123,</p>

<p>98% is OK unless you're in that 2%. Either you meet all need or you don't. Otherwise, where do you draw the line? 98%? 95%? 50%?...</p>

<p>The data showing the falloff at Rochester is very interesting.</p>

15

<p>ok... so am i the only one who doesnt trust us news rankings at all?? Try crossing those us news "best value" rankings with the best value books by princeton review and i think petersons might have one too</p>

16

<p>I would like to know where American U. and G.W.U. fall nowadays.</p>

17

<p>What about schools that guarantee to meet 100% of need for international students? It's a much shorter list.</p>

18

<p>If you are a good international student and you do your research and locate schools that may be interested in you, you may luck out with 1/2 tuition except at the very top schools where it can be more.</p>

19

<p>backhandgrip --whether or not anyone values the US News rankings, the 100% need schools tend to be clustered within the top 30. Among National Universities, it is hard to find a 100% need school ranked lower than 27 (Tufts) -- with Boston College being the notable exception (rank 40). </p>

<p>Among LAC's, the lowest ranked 100% need school I could find was Connecticut College at #36. </p>

<p>As to the schools you named -</p>

<p>American U. (US News #85) - meets full need of 49% of students determined to have need; average percentage of need met is 74 / 78%; average loan amounts $5,722 / $7,592</p>

<p>George Washington U. (US News #53) - meets full need of 76% / 73% of students determined to have need; average percentage of need met is 93%; average loan amounts $5,340 / $6,890 </p>

<p>In looking at these averages, it is important to keep in mind that a student can get excellent aid at schools that don't meet full need of all students, as long as the student is within the group that does get their need met. In general, that means that students can expect good aid at those schools where they have stats that make them strong within the applicant pool, or other qualities that make them attractive to the college (such as diversity factors). The lower the percentage of students having full need met, the higher the applicant needs to be within the pool to qualify for aid. </p>

<p>Of course many of those colleges also offer merit aid - if the student is factoring in their strength among applicants, they should also look at merit aid. American U. gives merit awards to 21% of its entering students, with the average scholarship being $15,813 -- if you add that figure to the average need-based grant of $13,791, you are looking at real money for low-income, high-need students. GWU gives almost as much in merit money: $13,805 on average, to 19% of entering students.</p>

20

<p>Newmassdad, let's say your need was $45,000 per year, and because YourFav U. only met 99% of that need, you had to come up with $450 somehow, and that's all, to go for a whole year. Big deal. There would be a way. Even 2% would not be that big a deal, if it were important. That's where I draw the line - 2%.</p>