<p>It is hard to tell exactly how much those in the under-$20K income group are paying out of pocket. Oberlin admissions is NOT need-blind and has not been for several years. Anyone who needs a full ride to attend will also need academic credentials that are beyond excellent to be admitted. That would likely get them merit money from Oberlin, and possibly from other sources. </p>
<p>The numbers quoted are for amounts received by admitted students, not offered to accepted students, so they represent people who have actually taken a $30K grant to attend a $45K school. Nobody could possibly expect someone making $20K per year to pay three-quarters of that for college. I would think that there must be some other circumstances involved like someone with huge amounts of assets but very low current income. (A recent layoff or a bad year for someone who is self-employed, perhaps.) Maybe the grandparents are also helping out.</p>