Undocumented student applying to college?
Check out: Immigrants Rising resource binder
Low-income or first-generation student applying to college?
Meet full need with no loans:
Colleges that offer financial aid packages without loans. For some schools, full need is met for a student, but for others, you may need to meet certain requirements to qualify for this feature.
Check out the college list for undocumented students
(if you have another immigration status, the finacial aid support that colleges can offer you might be different. Email colleges or check out the eligibility requirements for aid on school's website) Meet full need with loans
Colleges meet full financial needs of students, but they include their financial aid packages include loans that need to be paid back. Remember, not all colleges that meet 100% of need, provide this feature for all students so always for eligibility.
State/Regional tuition discounts
If you are applying to a public university in your region or state, they often offer special scholarships or lowered tuition. The amount and type of support varies between regions and state. Research the public universities in your area to learn more.
Best for social mobility
Colleges that rank on this list are recognized for significant contributions to the upward economic mobility of their students. This is an excellent indicator of affordability for and resources available to disadvantaged students and graduates’ financial outcomes.
Best return on investment
Colleges that rank on this list are recognized for high financial returns on the cost of attendance by evaluating career outcomes.
Questbridge Match program
“The National College Match is a college admission and scholarship process through which high-achieving, low-income students can be admitted early with full four-year scholarships to QuestBridge college partners. Finalists typically come from households earning less than $65,000 annually for a typical family of four and have minimal assets (not a strict cutoff). Academically, students are typically in the top 5-10% of their high school class.” - the College Essay Guy