Which colleges meet 100% of your financial need?

When applying to college, it’s important to be aware of which colleges will meet your family’s financial need.

Knowing which colleges are generous with need-based financial aid and scholarships can save you time and money during the college admissions process. It can help you avoid applying to colleges that don’t offer much in the way or need-based or merit aid.

Colleges that meet financial need

If you are admitted to one of the colleges below, your financial aid package will cover between 100% of the gap between the cost of attendance (COA) and your Expected Family Contribution (EFC), which is determined by the FAFSA.

Dartmouth College is one of several elite colleges that pledge to meet 100% of your financial need. (Source: Wikimedia Commons via Business Insider)

Remember, financial aid packages can contain a combination of scholarships, federal student loans, grants, and work study. So when a college meets your need with student loans, keep in mind that you’ll end up paying more in interest in the long run.

Thanks to Lynn O’Shaughnessy at The College Solution for putting together the list below.

1. Amherst College (MA)
2. Barnard College (NY)
3. Bates College (ME)
4. Boston College (MA)
5. Brown University (RI)
6. Bryn Mawr College (PA)
7. Bowdoin College (ME)
8. Bucknell University (PA)
9. California Institute of Technology
10. Carleton College (MN)
11. Claremont McKenna College (CA)
12. Colby College (ME)
13. Colgate University (NY)
14. College of the Holy Cross (MA)
15. Columbia University (NY)
16. Connecticut College (CT)
17. Cornell University (NY)
18. Davidson College (NC)
19. Duke University (NC)
20. Dartmouth College (NH)
21. Emory University (GA)
22. Franklin and Marshall College (PA)
23. Franklin W. Olin College
24. Georgetown University (DC)
25. Grinnell College (IA)
26. Hamilton College (NY)
27. Harvey Mudd College (CA)
28. Haverford College (PA)
29. Harvard University (MA)
30. Johns Hopkins University (MD)
31. Macalester College (MN)
32. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MA)
33. Middlebury College (VT)
34. Mount Holyoke College (MA)
35. Northwestern University (IL)
36. Oberlin College (OH)
37. Occidental College (CA)
38. Pitzer College (CA)
39. Pomona College (CA)
40. Princeton University (NJ)
41. Reed College (OR)
42. Rice University (TX)
43. Saint Olaf College (MN)
44. Scripps College (CA)
45. Smith College (MA)
46. Stanford University (CA)
47. Swarthmore College (NY)
48. Thomas Aquinas College (CA)
49. Trinity College (CT)
50. Tufts University (MA)
51. Union College (NY)
52. University of Chicago (IL)
53. University of Notre Dame (IN)
54. University of Pennsylvania (PA)
55. University of Richmond (VA)
56. University of Rochester (NY)
57. University of Southern California
58. Vanderbilt University (TN)
59. Vassar College (NY)
60. Wake Forest University (NC)
61. Washington and Lee University (VA)
62. Washington University, St. Louis, (MO)
63. Wellesley College (MA)
64. Wesleyan University (MA)
65. Williams College (MA)
66. Yale University (CT)

The following colleges guarantee to meet at least 94% of a student’s financial need:

1. Clark University (MA)
2. College of Wooster (OH)
3. Colorado College (CO)
4. Denison University (OH)
5. Dickinson College (PA)
6. Gettysburg College (PA)
7. Kenyon College (OH)
8. Lafayette College (PA)
9. Lehigh University (PA)
10. Saint John’s College (NM)
11. Sewanee: The University of the South (TN)
12. Tulane University (LA)
13. Wabash College (IN)
14. Wheaton College (MA)

Don’t limit your applications to colleges on this list

If you need financial aid, don’t assume you shouldn’t apply to colleges that aren’t on this list–after all, these are some of the most competitive (and well-endowed) schools in the country.

Even though other colleges may not necessarily guarantee to meet all of their students’ financial need, you’ll find that many still will meet or exceed it anyway by offering merit scholarships and school grants.

Interested in learning more about how to find affordable colleges? Give Rick & Andy a call at 1-888-234-3907 or contact us using this form.