by Katerina Nikolas

Created on: December 04, 2010

Haverford College in Pennsylvania is a private college located close to Philadelphia. It was founded in 1833 and has strong Quaker roots. It welcomes creative students with strong principles who can adhere to Haverford’s code of honor. Haverford College is committed to promoting the personal and intellectual growth of students and seeks “to foster the pursuit of excellence and a sense of individual and collective responsibility throughout the entire environment.”

The U.S. News College rankings place Haverford College 9th in the nation for national liberal arts colleges. Students who attend Haverford may also elect to take classes at Bryn-Mawr, the University of Pennsylvania and Swarthmore.

The college admits students without regard to financial need and concentrates all its financial aid on needs based aid. To this end the college offers no merit based aid at all, and offers financial aid on a basis of demonstrated financial need which is determined by the college formula, and is more stringent than the federal requirements.

Financial need is based on the difference between the cost of attending Haverford College and the expected family contribution. However students are also expected to actively seek outside assistance in the form of both federal and state grants, and also aid from other sources. Haverford advises students to seek assistance from parent’s employers, social, fraternal and religious organizations and scholarships.

The college has replaced student loans with Haverford College grants for those students who qualify for financial aid. This is an excellent incentive and allows students to graduate without student loan debt. Aid is made up of both state and federal grants, funds from outside sources, student employment and Haverford grants. Aid is not affected by early or regular applications.

The expected family contribution is assessed on parental income, assets, the size of the family and the number of other dependant children in college. Additionally the college considers taxes and medical expenses. In the case of divorced parents then both parties must provide financial details to the college.

Students themselves are expected to contribute towards the expected family contribution by working during the summer and through working whilst in college. Work is guaranteed to all students who qualify for financial aid.

The costs of attending Haverford College are currently estimated at $55,832, of which tuition comprises $40,260. Additionally a travel allowance is considered for those students who live outside a 300 mile radius of the college.

Students who meet Haverford’s admittance criteria should not be deterred from applying due to the costs, as the financial aid package on offer is an excellent one. It offers students in need of financial assistance the opportunity to study at Haverford with the extra advantage of not accruing student loans.

Source: Haverford.edu

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