The Massachusetts Institute of Technology last Wednesday announced that tuition will be free for all undergraduate students from families with annual incomes less than $200,000.
MIT said it would also cover the full cost of attendance for students whose families earn less than $100,000, including paying for housing and dining, and offering allowances for books and personal expenses.
“The cost of college is a real concern for families across the board and we’re determined to make this transformative educational experience available to the most talented students, whatever their financial circumstances,” said MIT president Sally Kornbluth in a statement. So, to every student out there who dreams of coming to MIT: Don’t let concerns about cost stand in your way.”
MIT is one of nine other institutions in the U.S. that don’t consider whether a prospective student is able to pay during the application process, according to the statement.
The Cambridge school joins other institutions in Massachusetts and across the country that are working to eliminate economic barriers to higher education as the price of attending college in the United States continues to climb.
Last Tuesday, Brandeis University in Waltham announced free tuition for students from households earning less than $75,000 and reduced tuition for students from families with household incomes under $200,000 with the help of grants and scholarships in a new program dubbed The Brandeis Commitment. Students’ eligibility will be determined after they submit their financial aid applications.
“The Brandeis Commitment aligns with what Brandeis has been about since its founding —enabling talented students from all backgrounds to obtain a top-tier education,” said Arthur Levine, the school’s interim president. “We are encouraging more students to aim high and apply to Brandeis by removing uncertainty about the cost of attendance for their families.”
Dean of Admissions at the school Jennifer Walker said the program would “provide more clarity for prospective students and families who want to have a better sense of the aid they will receive before they apply.”
Previously, Brandeis has assisted students in meeting the entirety of the financial needs, and the institution said it would do so.
In October, other Massachusetts institutions, namely the University of Massachusetts campuses and the College of the Holy Cross, said they would offer similar tuition-free programs.
The cost of attending college has more than doubled this century, according to data from the Education Data Initiative, with the total sticker price for private and public colleges reaching an average of $55,840 and $45,708 a year respectively.
Ranked among the top universities in the country, tuition at MIT costs about $60,000. With the cost of housing and other expenses, the total comes to upwards of $80,000 before financial aid, according to the university’s website.
The institution currently offers free tuition for undergraduate students from households with incomes less than $140,000 and covers all costs for students from households with incomes less than $75,000.
MIT said it increased the threshold in an effort to make attending the school more affordable and accessible, particularly for the 80 percent of U.S. families with household incomes less than $200,000, according to the release.
Students who received financial aid or scholarships from the Cambridge institution during the 2023-2024 school year paid a median amount of $12,938 annually.
“With the need-based financial aid we provide today, our education is much more affordable now than at any point in the past, even though the ‘sticker price’ of MIT is higher now than it was when I was an undergraduate,” said Stu Schmill, MIT’s dean of admissions and student financial services.
The institution said its endowment and the $167 million in funds it set aside this year will allow it to fund the tuition-free program, allowing more students to attend and graduate debt-free. The donations, Kornbluth said, are a “powerful expression of how much our graduates value their MIT experience and called them “a gift.”
Schmill said, “We believe MIT should be the preeminent destination for the most talented students in the country interested in an education centered on science and technology, and accessible to the best students regardless of their financial circumstances.”
