<p>I prefer Midd over other LAC's, but the existence of loan in their aid kit hinders my applying ED. Do you think that Midd will turn loan-free in a few years and if it does, will I(currently in 12th grade) benefit?</p>
<p>They will need to remain competitive, so I foresee the switch very soon.</p>
<p>If they switch after I've got in, would I still benefit? Would they change my initial loans to grants?</p>
<p>I'm sure Middlebury is looking hard at eliminating loans, but the numbers may not pencil out for them at this time. This is simply because Midd is not as well endowed as the other northeastern LACs that have announced loan-free policies. Compare the [url= <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._colleges_and_universities_by_endowment%5Dnumbers%5B/url">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._colleges_and_universities_by_endowment]numbers[/url</a>] (for 2006 endowment $$ per student, in thousands) for Midd vs. competitive "loan-free" LACs:</p>
<p>841 Swarthmore
821 Amherst
783 Williams
405 Bowdoin</p>
<h2>388 Haverford</h2>
<p>295 Middlebury</p>
<p>The same disparity exists among private universities. For example, the wealthiest Ivies (Harvard, Yale, and Princeton) are now loan-free, but some of the other Ivies (like Dartmouth and Brown) are not.</p>
<p>Middlebury's endowment just passed the $1 billion mark (although this hasn't been announced publicly by the college). Midd also is beginning a 5-year, $500 million capital campaign, and nearly half of the commitments already have been secured. I think that Middlebury will make the change sooner than you might think, especially if the college's win rate declines significantly this year.</p>
<p>By the way, how should I interprete college endowment? I mean, does less endowment mean less money to give out to professors, thus meaning unable to attract better teachers?</p>
<p>More endowment means that a school can afford more "luxuries", if it chooses to. This could include nicer dorms, better food, better labs, higher faculty salaries and benefits, more financial aid grants, no loans, etc.</p>
<p>It's hard to quantify teaching quality, but I'm sure that Middlebury faculty are quite competitive with those at other top LACs. However, there may be slightly fewer of them at Midd than at wealthier schools. According to USN&WR, for example, the student/faculty ratio is 9/1 at Midd, compared to 7/1 at Williams or 8/1 at Amherst and Swarthmore. This difference may have something to do with endowment levels. </p>
<p>Note that Middlebury is a very wealthy school, and has ample resources to offer a terrific undergraduate experience. Midd just happens to compete with a few schools that are not merely very wealthy, but ridiculously wealthy.</p>