A private Pennsylvania college is the latest to promise free tuition for students from families who make $200,000 or less per year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Swarthmore College in Delaware County announced Tuesday that students whose families have annual household incomes of $200,000 or less and typical assets will receive financial aid that covers or exceeds the cost of tuition, according to a press release from the school.<\/p>\n
The program, known as the Swarthmore Tuition Guarantee, goes into effect for the 2027-28 school year.<\/p>\n
“The program builds on our already robust commitment to access and affordability, and we hope it communicates to families that their financial circumstances are not a barrier to a transformational liberal arts education at Swarthmore,” Swarthmore College President Valerie Smith said in the announcement.<\/p>\n
For the upcoming school year, Swarthmore’s financial aid budget is more than $71 million, an average of $75,000 per student per year. Financial aid and other programs at the college are funded through its endowment, which supports almost 60% of the school’s operating budget, the press release says.<\/p>\n
Swarthmore enrolls about 1,700 undergraduate students.<\/p>\n
Prestigious colleges and universities are increasingly expanding financial aid to attract more middle- and lower-income students.<\/p>\n
Princeton University<\/a> says its financial aid covers the full cost of attendance for most students from families earning up to $150,000 per year, and most students from families making up to $250,000 will pay no tuition. Yale University<\/a> said earlier this year it would eliminate all costs for families making up to $100,000 and offer enough financial aid to meet or exceed tuition costs for households that earn up to $200,000. Massachusetts Institute of Technology<\/a> and other universities have similar programs.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, Temple University rolled out the Temple Promise<\/a> program in 2024 to make tuition free for students from the city whose families make $65,000 or less per year.<\/p>\n \n More from CBS News\n <\/p>\n