Harvard University has announced a major expansion of its financial aid program, stating that, beginning in the 2025-26 academic year, it will offer free tuition to students from families earning $200,000 or less annually.
The move significantly broadens the accessibility of one of the world’s most prestigious institutions and ensures that more middle- and low-income students can enroll without financial barriers.
The decision comes amid growing political opposition to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, particularly under the Trump administration, which has sought to eliminate such programs from higher education institutions. While Harvard’s new policy is framed as an effort to make education more affordable, it also reflects the shifting landscape of college admissions as race-conscious DEI policies come under scrutiny.
Harvard President Alan M. Garber emphasized that expanding financial aid will enrich the university’s student body by welcoming more students from diverse economic backgrounds. He said that putting Harvard within financial reach for more individuals widens the array of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives that students encounter, fostering intellectual and personal growth.
“By bringing people of outstanding promise together to learn with and from one another, we truly realize the tremendous potential of the University,” he added.
The new policy will allow about 86% of U.S. families to qualify for some form of Harvard financial aid, significantly increasing the number of students eligible for tuition-free education. Additionally, undergraduate students from families with annual incomes of $100,000 or less will receive full coverage for tuition, housing, food, health services, and other student fees.
Harvard’s decision marks a significant shift in its financial aid approach. In the past two decades, the university has gradually raised the income threshold for full financial aid. In 2004, families earning $40,000 or less were eligible for free tuition. The threshold increased to $60,000 in 2006 and then to $85,000 in 2023. Now, in 2025, Harvard has set a record-high threshold of $200,000, making a substantial portion of middle-class families eligible.
Harvard has awarded more than $3.6 billion?in undergraduate financial aid since launching the Harvard Financial Aid Initiative in 2004, according to the university.
About 55% of Harvard undergraduates receive some type of financial aid, according to the university. In the 2023-2024 school year, families of students receiving financial aid paid an average of $15,700 toward education costs, school officials said.
“Our team works closely with each student to ensure full inclusion in the Harvard experience,” said Jake Kaufman, Harvard’s director of financial aid. “The financial aid program is designed so that Harvard students can study, train, research, create, and fully engage in the Harvard experience with minimal constraints.”
The move comes at a time when many families struggle with the rising cost of higher education. Harvard’s annual tuition currently stands at $56,550, but when combined with housing, food, health services, and other fees, the total cost of attendance reaches $82,866 per year. By significantly increasing financial aid, the university is addressing concerns over student debt and college affordability.
“We know the most talented students come from different socioeconomic backgrounds and experiences, from every state and around the globe,” William R. Fitzsimmons, Harvard College’s dean of admissions and financial aid, said in a statement. “Our financial aid is critical to ensuring that these students know Harvard College is a place where they can be part of a vibrant learning community strengthened by their presence and participation.”
A Reprieve As DEI Shutters
DEI programs were designed to address historical disparities in higher education by supporting underrepresented students, particularly Black, Hispanic, Indigenous, and low-income individuals. These initiatives provided financial aid, academic support, and outreach programs to ensure greater access to elite universities for students who historically faced systemic barriers.
Under DEI programs, Harvard and other Ivy League schools implemented policies to increase enrollment from disadvantaged backgrounds. Affirmative action, a key component of DEI, played a significant role in diversifying student populations until the Supreme Court struck it down in 2023. Following this ruling, universities like Harvard faced immense pressure to reform their admissions processes, particularly from conservative groups and Republican lawmakers who argued that race-conscious admissions discriminated against White and Asian students.
The Trump administration has actively pursued policies to defund DEI offices at universities, arguing that they promote “woke ideology” and create racial and ideological divisions on campuses. Several Republican-led states have already banned DEI funding in public universities, and elite private institutions like Harvard have come under scrutiny for their policies.
However, DEI initiatives played a crucial role in supporting economically disadvantaged students at elite universities. These programs expanded financial aid, allowing first-generation and low-income students to receive grants covering tuition and other expenses. They also ran recruitment efforts in underserved communities to ensure that talented students had access to elite education. In addition, many diversity scholarships were targeted toward historically underrepresented groups, allowing them to graduate without massive debt.
With DEI policies now under threat, Harvard’s new tuition-free plan for middle- and low-income families could be seen as a response to the loss of these programs, ensuring that financial barriers do not disproportionately affect students from diverse backgrounds.
Harvard’s expansion of financial aid could put pressure on other elite universities to adopt similar policies, particularly as student loan debt remains a national crisis. Many institutions, particularly Ivy League schools, have already been forced to reevaluate their admissions strategies in light of the Supreme Court’s ruling on affirmative action.
