Spring Break
University offers fellows programs as incentive for prospective students
by Miranda Neubauer
Senior Writer
News | 9/16/08
Posted online at 3:53 AM EST on 9/16/08
Brandeis has launched a new fellows program as an incentive for high-achieving students to attend the University as opposed to competing universities that can offer much more generous financial aid packages, Senior Vice President for Students and Enrollment Jean Eddy said.
Last year, Brandeis' competitors such as Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth, Princeton, Brown and Tufts announced sweeping changes to their financial aid programs, dropping the formulas they had been using before, Eddy said.
The New York Times reported last December that Harvard would generally charge students from families with incomes between $120,000 and $180,000 tuition equal to 10 percent of their family income and would be offering grants instead of loans. Harvard no longer charges a family contribution for families with incomes below $60,000.
Brandeis is not able to compete with those universities on such a scale, Eddy explained, because Brandeis has a smaller endowment and is a much younger institution. The University currently offers merit awards, which are based on a student's academic profile, and need-based financial aid based on a federal formula. The Office of Student Financial Services calculates a student's expected family contribution based on the information students provide in the Free Application For Student Aid. About 60 percent of each class receives some form of financial aid, Eddy said with about 10 percent of each class receiving merit aid.
"We have used merit awards on our campus to highlight Brandeis as an institution of choice for people who are considering the Ivy League," she said, explaining that in the past, Brandeis had done a good job using merit aid to attract a high caliber and a wide range of students.
Eddy said it became clear to her after this year that merit awards are not as effective as they used to be as a result of the changes. The merit awards have less clout because all students receive generous financial aid packages from other select schools.
Last year, Brandeis' competitors such as Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth, Princeton, Brown and Tufts announced sweeping changes to their financial aid programs, dropping the formulas they had been using before, Eddy said.
The New York Times reported last December that Harvard would generally charge students from families with incomes between $120,000 and $180,000 tuition equal to 10 percent of their family income and would be offering grants instead of loans. Harvard no longer charges a family contribution for families with incomes below $60,000.
Brandeis is not able to compete with those universities on such a scale, Eddy explained, because Brandeis has a smaller endowment and is a much younger institution. The University currently offers merit awards, which are based on a student's academic profile, and need-based financial aid based on a federal formula. The Office of Student Financial Services calculates a student's expected family contribution based on the information students provide in the Free Application For Student Aid. About 60 percent of each class receives some form of financial aid, Eddy said with about 10 percent of each class receiving merit aid.
"We have used merit awards on our campus to highlight Brandeis as an institution of choice for people who are considering the Ivy League," she said, explaining that in the past, Brandeis had done a good job using merit aid to attract a high caliber and a wide range of students.
Eddy said it became clear to her after this year that merit awards are not as effective as they used to be as a result of the changes. The merit awards have less clout because all students receive generous financial aid packages from other select schools.
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