No-loan financial aid

In 2001, Princeton University became the first university in the United States to eliminate loans from its financial aid packages. Since then, many other schools have followed in eliminating some or all loans from their financial aid programs. Many of these programs are aimed at students whose parents earn less than a certain income — the figures vary by college or university. These new initiatives were designed to attract more students and applicants from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, reduce student debt loads, and provide the offering institutions with an advantage over their rivals in attracting commitments from accepted students. This is an attractive way for students to relieve the amount of debt they are in after college.

The following colleges and universities offer such no-loan financial aid packages as of March 2008:

Post-secondary institution	No-loan financial aid for families meeting these eligibility requirements:
Amherst College	No max income
Arizona State University	Arizona residents with family income of up to $60,000
Bowdoin College	No max income
Brown University	Family income below $100,000
Caltech	Annual income below $60,000
Claremont McKenna College	No max income
Colby College	No max income; all students
Columbia University	No max income
Cornell University	Annual income below $75,000
Dartmouth College	Annual income below $100,000
Davidson College	No max income
Duke University	Annual income below $40,000
Emory University	Annual income below $100,000
Haverford College	No max income
Harvard University	No max income
Lafayette College	Annual income below $50,000
Lehigh University	Annual income below $50,000
MIT	Annual income below $75,000
University of Maryland, College Park	Maryland resident with 0 EFC
Michigan State University	Michigan resident with family incomes at or below the federal poverty line
Northwestern University	Family income lower than approx. $55,000
North Carolina State University	Income less than 150% of the poverty line. Requires the family to have "limited assets," regardless of state residency.
University of Chicago	Students who demonstrate financial need and whose annual family income totals $75,000 or less
UNC Chapel Hill	200% of federal poverty line ($24,000 to $37,000)
University of Pennsylvania	No max income
Pomona College	No max income
Princeton University	No max income
Rice University	Annual income below $80,000
Stanford University	No max income
Swarthmore College	Anyone with financial need
Tufts University	Annual income below $40,000
Vanderbilt University	No max income
Vassar College	Annual income below $60,000
University of Virginia	200% of federal poverty line ($24,000 to $37,000)
Washington and Lee University	No max income
Washington University in St. Louis	Annual Income below $60,000
Wellesley College	$60,000
Wesleyan University	$40,000
College of William and Mary	$40,000 (VA residents only)
Yale University	No max income