Harvard University is making college more open to all. In a big move, Harvard will offer free tuition to students whose families earn $200,000 or less each year. However, this change starts in the 2025-26 school year. The free tuition plan is a game-changer for college costs. It will help about 86 percent of U.S. families qualify for Harvard’s aid. Now, many more talented students can think about going to Harvard.
What This Means for Students and Families
The free tuition plan works in tiers based on family income: Families earning $100,000 or less will pay nothing for Harvard. This covers tuition, food, housing, health insurance, and even travel costs. These students also get a $2,000 start-up grant in their first year and another $2,000 launch grant in junior year to help with college life. Families earning between $100,000 and $200,000 will get free tuition. They may also get more aid for other costs based on their needs.
Even families making over $200,000 might get a lot of aid, depending on their situation. “This investment in financial aid aims to make a Harvard College education possible for every admitted student, so they can pursue their academic passions and positively impact our future,” said Hopi Hoekstra, Edgerley Family Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.
Behind Harvard’s Decision
Harvard has been working on this for over 20 years. It started with the Harvard Financial Aid Initiative in 2004, which paid all costs for families earning under $40,000. That number has gone up many times, most recently to $85,000 in 2023. Harvard has spent a lot to make this happen. Since starting its Financial Aid Initiative, Harvard has given more than $3.6 billion in aid to students. Next year, they plan to spend $275 million on financial aid.
Today, over half (55 percent) of Harvard students get some aid. Their families paid about $15,700 for the 2023-24 school year. When compared to Harvard’s standard cost of attendance (which reached $82,866 for the 2024-25 academic year), the savings are substantial.
Why Free Tuition Matters
College costs have gone way up across the country. This puts top schools out of reach for many smart kids. Harvard’s new plan helps middle-income families who often make too much for big aid but not enough to easily pay for elite schools. This plan isn’t just about helping students pay for school. It’s about making Harvard’s campus more diverse and lively.
“Putting Harvard within financial reach for more individuals widens the array of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives that all of our students encounter, fostering their intellectual and personal growth,” said Harvard University President Alan M. Garber. “By bringing people of outstanding promise together to learn with and from one another, we truly realize the tremendous potential of the University.”
A Ripple Effect Across Higher Education?
Harvard joins other top schools like Penn and MIT that have also made their aid better. But Harvard’s plan goes much further with its $200,000 cutoff for free tuition. This brings up a good question: will other schools follow Harvard’s lead? For kids applying to college for 2029 and later, paying for school might get much easier. Harvard’s bold move might push other top schools to offer better aid to compete for the best students.
What Hopeful Students Should Know
For students who dream of Harvard but worry about money, this news changes everything. Getting in is still very hard (Harvard took just 1,937 students out of 54,008 who applied for the Class of 2028), but paying for it is now much easier for many families.
Jake Kaufmann, Griffin Director of Financial Aid, stressed how they work with each family: “Our team works closely with each student to ensure full inclusion in the Harvard experience. The financial aid program is designed so that Harvard students can study, train, research, create, and fully engage in the Harvard experience with minimal constraints.” Harvard’s aid staff work one-on-one with families to look at their unique money situation. For many families, this means Harvard might cost far less than they think.
The Bigger Picture of College Costs
Harvard’s free tuition plan is more than just a change at one school. It shows a new way of thinking about who can go to top colleges. With student loans becoming a national problem and college costs a worry for almost all families, Harvard’s news shows that even the most elite schools see the need for big changes. For students across the country, Harvard’s move gives hope that top colleges might become open to more people, no matter their family income. While most schools can’t match Harvard’s huge savings account, the push for more access will likely grow. The message is clear: talent and hard work, not money, should decide who gets a world-class education. For Harvard and maybe for all of higher education, that’s a big idea whose time has come.
Read More: Why Highly Intelligent People Find Less Satisfaction in Friendships: A Surprising Explanation