A generous financial aid package can make the difference in whether some students can attend a certain college — especially if that school comes with a hefty price tag.
Financial aid packages are one way that schools reduce the net price for some families and entice prospective students. For the 2016-2017 school year, only 66 out of 1,388 ranked colleges and universities reported meeting students’ full financial need , according to data submitted to U.S. News in an annual survey.
[Check out the 10 most and least expensive private colleges.]
The amount of need-based aid that a school offers is usually determined by the information a family provides on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Schools use the financial information — such as income, tax data, assets and household size — on the FAFSA to calculate an expected family contribution, commonly called EFC.
College advisers say the federal government calculates EFC differently than many colleges — that’s because most schools use their own methodology when it comes to handing out institutional aid.
Financial awards from colleges and universities use a combination of loans, scholarships, grants and work-study to cover the gap between the total cost of attendance and the amount a family is expected to pay. A school that claims to meet 100 percent of need covers the gap entirely.
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But only a few institutions among those that claim to meet full need offer financial aid packages without federal student loans. Some of these schools include Amherst College and Harvard University in Massachusetts and Princeton University in New Jersey. Other schools, such as Brown University in Rhode Island and Duke University in North Carolina , only have a no-loans policy for students from lower-income backgrounds.
Of the schools that claim to meet full financial need, only two are public universities: the University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill and the University of Virginia. National Liberal Arts Colleges represent the bulk of the schools that meet full demonstrated need, with 40 schools in total, followed by National Universities with 26.
Below are the colleges and universities that claimed to meet 100 percent of demonstrated financial need for full-time, degree-seeking undergraduates who received need-based aid in fall 2016.
| School name (state) | U.S. News rank and category |
| Amherst College (MA) | 2, National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Barnard College (NY) | 26 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Bates College (ME) | 23 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Boston College | 32 (tie), National Universities |
| Bowdoin College (ME) | 3 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Brown University (RI) | 14 (tie), National Universities |
| Bryn Mawr College (PA) | 32, National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| California Institute of Technology | 10, National Universities |
| Carleton College (MN) | 8 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Claremont McKenna College (CA) | 8 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Colby College (ME) | 12 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Colgate University (NY) | 12 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| College of the Holy Cross (MA) | 33 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Colorado College | 23 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Columbia University (NY) | 5 (tie), National Universities |
| Connecticut College | 46 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Cornell University (NY) | 14 (tie), National Universities |
| Dartmouth College (NH) | 11 (tie), National Universities |
| Davidson College (NC) | 10 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Duke University (NC) | 9, National Universities |
| Franklin and Marshall College (PA) | 39 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Georgetown University (DC) | 20, National Universities |
| Grinnell College (IA) | 18 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Hamilton College (NY) | 18 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Harvard University (MA) | 2, National Universities |
| Harvey Mudd College (CA) | 12 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Haverford College (PA) | 18 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Johns Hopkins University (MD) | 11 (tie), National Universities |
| Kenyon College (OH) | 26 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Lafayette College (PA) | 36 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Macalester College (MN) | 26 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 5 (tie), National Universities |
| Middlebury College (VT) | 6 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Mount Holyoke College (MA) | 36 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Northwestern University (IL) | 11 (tie), National Universities |
| Oberlin College (OH) | 26 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Occidental College (CA) | 44 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Pitzer College (CA) | 33 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Pomona College (CA) | 6 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Princeton University (NJ) | 1, National Universities |
| Rice University (TX) | 14 (tie), National Universities |
| Salem College (NC) | 117 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Scripps College (CA) | 26 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Smith College (MA) | 12 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Stanford University (CA) | 5 (tie), National Universities |
| Swarthmore College (PA) | 3 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Thomas Aquinas College (CA) | 58 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Trinity College (CT) | 44 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Tufts University (MA) | 29, National Universities |
| Union College (NY) | 36 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| University of Chicago | 3 (tie), National Universities |
| University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill | 30 (tie), National Universities |
| University of Notre Dame (IN) | 18 (tie), National Universities |
| University of Pennsylvania | 8, National Universities |
| University of Richmond (VA) | 23 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| University of Southern California | 21 (tie), National Universities |
| University of Virginia | 25 (tie), National Universities |
| Vanderbilt University (TN) | 14 (tie), National Universities |
| Vassar College (NY) | 12 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Wake Forest University (NC) | 27, National Universities |
| Washington and Lee University (VA) | 10 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Washington University in St. Louis | 18 (tie), National Universities |
| Wellesley College (MA) | 3 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Wesleyan University (CT) | 21 (tie), National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Williams College (MA) | 1, National Liberal Arts Colleges |
| Yale University (CT) | 3 (tie), National Universities |
The financial need data above are correct as of Sept. 21, 2017. For complete financial aid data, full rankings and much more, access the U.S. News College Compass.
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Colleges That Claim to Meet Full Financial Need originally appeared on usnews.com
