Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 58.99
Liaison Deborah Steinberg
Submission Date Feb. 27, 2015
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Carnegie Mellon University
PA-8: Affordability and Access

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.53 / 4.00 Linda Anderson
Director of Student Financial Aid
Enrollment Services Administration, Student Financial Aid Office
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution have policies and programs in place to make it accessible and affordable to low-income students?:
Yes

A brief description of any policies and programs to minimize the cost of attendance for low-income students:

Our institutional awarding practices recognize the importance of affordability. For low income students who possess the academic and leadership attributes we value, these students will receive grants, employment opportunities and low interest student loans to enable them to enroll and remain enrolled. We also have in place a practice that allows us to reevaluate students special financial circumstances annually, to make sure they have adequate financial resources to remain enrolled. This ensures that those students who enroll as first year students, can persist to graduation.


A brief description of any programs to equip the institution’s faculty and staff to better serve students from low-income backgrounds:

We do not have any programs for faculty and staff. We provide extensive training to staff to help them serve families from all income and need levels.


A brief description of any programs to prepare students from low-income backgrounds for higher education:
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A brief description of the institution's scholarships for low-income students:

While we do not have designated scholarship programs for low income students, we have financial aid policies and practices in place which provide the financial aid funding necessary to enable their enrollment and persistence.


A brief description of any programs to guide parents of low-income students through the higher education experience:

We provide financial aid counsel as needed, through high school presentations, during the admissions process and during the student’s enrollment period.


A brief description of any targeted outreach to recruit students from low-income backgrounds:

We have a need blind admissions process and therefore we do not do outreach to any segments of our population on the basis of need only. However, we do target high school visits to urban areas with broad diversity


A brief description of other admissions policies or programs to make the institution accessible and affordable to low-income students:

Like many other colleges and universities, we use an increasingly larger share of our limited resources to help families cover the cost of enrollment. Federal and state aid resources, awarded on the basis of financial need, are distributed under federal and state guidelines.
Carnegie Mellon values diversity and we seek to build a community of people of varied gender, race, academic interest, talent and background, and socio economic background, to accurately reflect the global community and to provide an enlightening experience for our student body.
Also, we seek to enroll students of the highest academic and artistic caliber in each of our six undergraduate colleges. We use our financial aid resources to enroll a class that reflects this goal.


A brief description of other financial aid policies or programs to make the institution accessible and affordable to low-income students:

Carnegie Mellon’s financial assistance program is designed to meet our dual goal of helping prospective students who have demonstrated financial need afford the cost of education and rewarding those students who have outstanding talents and abilities. Need-based financial assistance is used to enroll high-quality students. Highest quality students will receive the most favorable financial assistance packages.


A brief description of other policies and programs to make the institution accessible and affordable to low-income students not covered above:
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Does the institution have policies and programs in place to support non-traditional students?:
Yes

A brief description of any scholarships provided specifically for part-time students:
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A brief description of any onsite child care facilities, partnerships with local facilities, and/or subsidies or financial support to help meet the child care needs of students:
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A brief description of other policies and programs to support non-traditional students:

Our university financial aid policies and practices for non traditional students are equal to those that we offer for traditional students.


Does the institution wish to pursue Part 2 of this credit (accessibility and affordability indicators)?:
Yes

Indicators that the institution is accessible and affordable to low-income students::
Percentage (0-100)
The percentage of entering students that are low-income 14
The graduation/success rate for low-income students 92
The percentage of student financial need met, on average 47
The percentage of students graduating with no interest-bearing student loan debt 0

The percentage of students that participate in or directly benefit from the institution’s policies and programs to support low-income and non-traditional students:
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The website URL where information about the institution's affordability and access programs is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.