Jerrod KingeryStarting next fall, undergraduate students at some four-year universities will not have to pay tuition if their family income falls below certain thresholds.
On Wednesday, the University of Texas System Board of Regents’ Academic Affairs Committee gave preliminary approval to a plan that would provide free tuition and waive fees for undergraduates whose families make less than $100,000 a year.
The plan, once approved by the full board, will include an immediate infusion of $35 million directly to all nine UT system campuses to implement this financial aid.
To be eligible, students must be Texas residents and enrolled full-time in an undergraduate program. They must also apply for any applicable state and federal financial aid.
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Also on Wednesday, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) announced that undergraduate students with family income below $200,000 can attend MIT tuition-free thanks to expanded financial aid. 80% of American households meet that income threshold.
For students whose family income is below $100,000, MIT will pay for their tuition, housing, dining and fees, as well as an allowance for books and personal expenses.
Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) this week announced that students at the Pittsburgh campus whose families earn less than $75,000 a year will be able to attend the university tuition-free as part of the CMU Pathway Program.
Students with family income below $100,000 will be able to attend CMU without federal student loans. Both new and returning students are eligible for these programs.
Last month, the University of Massachusetts Boston announced the Beacon Pledge Program, which also allows in-state students from families earning less than $75,000 a year to have their tuition waived.
The Beacon Pledge Program uses federal, state and institutional aid to cover the cost of tuition and mandatory fees. UMass Boston leaders hope the program can support as many as 3,000 students during its first year.
Brandies University, through their new financial aid initiative dubbed The Brandeis Commitment, is also offering to pay full tuition for students with family income of $75,000 and below. For students with a family income of $75,001 to $200,000, Brandies will cover half of their tuition.
In Denver, Regis University is offering free tuition through its “Road to Regis” program for students who are residents of Colorado and surrounding states– including Arizona, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Utah and Wyoming–with a high school GPA of 3.0 or higher and whose family income is less than $75,000.
According to U.S. News and World Report, for the 2024-2025 school year the average cost for tuition and fees for a public college for in-state students is $11,011. That jumps to $24,513 for out-of-state students. That’s a 2.2% increase over last year for in-state students and a 2.4% increase for out-of-state students.
The average tuition and fees for a private college comes to $43,505, which climbed 5.5% over the last year.
Photo courtesy Marco Almbauer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
