Financial Aid Fact Sheet

Source: https://college.harvard.edu/guides/financial-aid-fact-sheet Parent: https://college.harvard.edu/financial-aid/how-aid-works

Our Program at a Glance

Our long tradition of providing access to a Harvard education began with some of our earliest scholarship funds which were established in 1643. Today, alumni and other donors continue the tradition with generous contributions to the endowment and current use funds which allow us to maintain our need-based financial aid program.

Guiding principles

• A lack of financial resources or need for financial aid are not impediments to your admission.
• Our aid is entirely need-based, and eligibility is determined in the same manner for all admitted students.
• We meet your demonstrated financial need for all four years, based on information that we receive from your family each year. In awarding aid, we take into consideration your individual circumstances, the effectiveness of our aid program, the demand for aid from all students, and university resources.
• Foreign students have the same access to financial aid funding as U.S. citizens.

The basics

In a typical year:

• 55% of our undergraduates receive need-based Harvard scholarships.
• Starting in 2025-26:
• Families with incomes below $100,000 are not expected to contribute to the cost of their child's education. More than 25% of Harvard families have total incomes less than $100,000.
• For families with incomes below $200,000, financial aid will cover at least the full cost of tuition. Students may qualify for financial aid to cover additional costs such as fees, food, and housing, based on their individual financial circumstances.
• Financial aid will continue to be available to students from families with incomes above $200,000, depending on individual circumstances.
• Families at all income levels who have significant assets are asked to pay more than those without assets.
• Two-thirds of students work during the academic year.
• 20% of the roughly 6,700 current undergraduate students are Pell Grant recipients.

Harvard scholarship recipients’ income levels

** There are several hundred families earning more than $200,000 who are receiving scholarship aid based on extenuating financial circumstances.

Typical financial aid package

Average financial aid package for students receiving Harvard scholarship for the 2023-2024 school year:

Meeting the term-time work expectation

• Students may meet the entire term-time work expectation by working 10 to 12 hours per week.
• You may choose to borrow up to the entire expectation through a student loan that is credited directly to your term-bill account.

Outside awards

• Outside awards are used first to reduce or replace the term-time work portion of your award, but not your parent contribution.

Other features

• At your family’s request, we canre-evaluate our financial aid decision if your financial circumstances have changed.
• If you are receiving Harvard Scholarship support and are studying abroad for academic credit, you may apply your financial aid toward your study abroad costs.
• In a typical year, undergraduates share about $6 million in funding, coordinated by TheOffice of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships and over 40 other departments, to conduct and assist research with faculty.

Related Guides

[### How to complete the FAFSA

Tips on how to complete the FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.](https://college.harvard.edu/guides/how-complete-fafsa)

[### Guide to Preparing for College

Find information about selecting high school courses that best prepare you for liberal arts colleges with high academic demographic such as Harvard.](https://college.harvard.edu/guides/preparing-college)

[### What to Expect After You Apply

Here you'll find information on tracking your application and interviews.](https://college.harvard.edu/guides/what-expect-after-you-apply)