Harvard financial aid program tops $160M for first time

Harvard College will increase its tuition by 3.8 percent for the upcoming 2011-12 academic year, resulting in a total undergraduate package price of $52,650. Concurrently, Harvard will maintain its exceptionally strong financial aid program for undergraduates, increasing scholarship aid to the highest level in its history, totaling more than $160 million. This investment will keep Harvard affordable, with more than 60 percent of students receiving need-based scholarship assistance.

Since 2004, Harvard has dramatically reduced the amount that families are expected to pay to send a child to Harvard College. Harvard has a policy of “zero contribution” from families with normal assets making $60,000 or less annually. Families with incomes up to $180,000 with assets typical for these income levels are asked to contribute no more than 10 percent of their incomes.

Since 2007, Harvard’s investment in financial aid has climbed by more than 60 percent, from $96.6 million to more than $160 million, significantly outpacing increases in tuition.

“Excellence and access are core to Harvard’s identity, and we remain committed to need-blind admissions, in good financial times and bad,” said Michael D. Smith, dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and John H. Finley Jr. Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences. “Our investment in financial aid will enable us to continue attracting the world’s most talented students, regardless of their economic circumstances.”