Overall Rating Platinum - expired
Overall Score 85.51
Liaison Jennifer Andrews
Submission Date July 27, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of New Hampshire
PA-7: Affordability and Access

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.47 / 4.00 Victoria Dutcher
Vice President
Enrollment Management
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1 

Support for Low-Income Students

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

None
A brief description of any policies and programs to minimize the cost of attendance for low-income students:
Granite Guarantee: The Granite Guarantee is the University of New Hampshire’s commitment to removing more of the financial barriers New Hampshire residents face with higher education. Making UNH affordable for the best and brightest students will always be our priority. The Granite Guarantee ensures than any Federal Pell Grant eligible undergraduates (first time, first year Durham and Manchester campuses) will pay no tuition to attend UNH. The Granite Guarantee is available to all admitted students who qualify, beginning with students admitted to Fall 2017 semester. Granite Guarantee recipients must meet the following criteria: • Be admitted to UNH as a first-year undergraduate beginning in Fall 2017 • Be admitted to UNH as a New Hampshire resident • Receive a Federal Pell Grant during the academic year • Enroll as a full time student during both the fall semester and spring semester • Meet financial aid application deadlines The Granite Guarantee leverages federal, state and University resources to ensure that first time full time Pell-eligible New Hampshire resident pays no tuition. No loans are included as part of the Granite Guarantee – only grant and scholarship assistance, funds that students do not need to repay, are included. http://www.unh.edu/financialaid McNair Program: Congress established the Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program in 1986 to honor the memory of the Challenger astronaut and noted laser physicist. This graduate school preparation program is part of the federal TRIO programs (Educational Talent Search, Upward Bound, Student Support Services, and Educational Opportunity Centers) and is administered nationally by the U.S. Department of Education (USED). The USED provides monies to selected institutions through competitive grants as part of its efforts to increase the number of individuals from underrepresented groups (low-income, first-generation, and/or racial minority) who are interested in pursuing and obtaining doctoral degrees and careers in academia. The McNair Program at the University of New Hampshire aims to promote and nurture the next generation of faculty, researchers, and scholars by providing academic and social support services in the form of academic year internships and summer research fellowships. The university has been home to the McNair Scholars Program since 1991. The program’s academic internships and summer fellowships are awarded annually, on a competitive basis, to eligible undergraduates. http://www.unh.edu/mcnair

None
A brief description of any programs to equip the institution’s faculty and staff to better serve students from low-income backgrounds:
The Associate Vice President for Community, Equity and Diversity Office offers a workshop for faculty and staff titled, "Working with Low-income, First-Generation College Students." This one-and-a-half hour workshop identifies issues distinctive to the 40% of UNH undergraduates who are low-income students and/or among the first in their families on the college track. From this interactive workshop participants will take away insights, tools, and resources for teaching, advising, counseling, and working with this population.

A brief description of the institution’s programs to guide and prepare students and families from low-income backgrounds for higher education:
The University of New Hampshire Upward Bound program is one of over 700 Upward Bound programs nationwide that help eligible high school students achieve their dreams of going on to and being successful in higher education. The students that Upward Bound serves must come from low-income families (with incomes at or below 150% of poverty) and/or are first generation potential college students (neither parent/guardian has earned a bachelor's degree). The University of New Hampshire has successfully sponsored an Upward Bound project since 1966. A federal TRIO program, UNH Upward Bound is 100% funded by the US Department of Education through a competitive grant competition every four years. As one of only two Upward Bound projects in New Hampshire, UNH Upward Bound serves 91 students in six high schools located in southern and eastern New Hampshire. The purpose of Upward Bound (UB) is to provide its high school students with the skills and motivation to succeed in and graduate from a college or university of their choice. To that end, UB has both summer and academic year components. http://www.upwardbound.unh.edu/

None
A brief description of the institution's scholarships for low-income students:
New Hampshire leads the nation in percentage of students attending college from low-income families. In the Granite state, it’s 39 percent, compared to 26 percent nationally. Even though New Hampshire has some of the highest tuition prices in the country, UNH works hard to make education affordable and accessible for all students, whether in-state or out-of-state. The University System of New Hampshire has increased financial aid funding by an average of 15 percent in the last nine years. Less than 14 percent of UNH’s budget comes from the state. At the same time, 82 percent of our students receive some form of financial aid. The Thomas Trout Scholarship is available to students who have shown the need for financial assistance through FAFSA. The scholarship is named in memory a UNH linguistics professor. Throughout his career, Trout actively and tirelessly promoted international studies as a vital part of the college curriculum. He was equally dedicated to the development of study abroad programs for undergraduates, convinced that expanding the range of international study opportunities for American college students was integral to their understanding of a complicated world. The fund supports academically outstanding College of Liberal Arts students, allowing them to participate in a UNH-managed study abroad program in the college. Examples of student stories of low-income families who have received the scholarship can be viewed here: http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100629/GJCOMMUNITY_01/706299989/0/FOSCOMMUNITY16

A brief description of the institution’s targeted outreach to recruit students from low-income backgrounds:
An example of UNH's commitment to making higher education affordable and accessible to students of low-income families is a program called Educational Talent Search. The mission of Educational Talent Search is to encourage academically qualified limited income, first generation New Hampshire youth to complete secondary school and undertake a program of postsecondary education. By providing academic advising, career, college and financial aid information, ETS increases educational opportunities for these youth. More information on ETS is available here: http://www.ets.unh.edu/

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

Support for Non-Traditional Students 

Does the institution have policies and programs to support non-traditional students?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s scholarships provided specifically for part-time students:
At the graduate level, the UNH Graduate School awards various scholarships and fellowships to students every year. Currently we offer merit, full-time and part-time scholarships along with dissertation fellowships and summer fellowships for teaching assistants.

A brief description of the institution’s on-site child care facility, partnership with a local facility, and/or subsidies or financial support to help meet the child care needs of students:
https://www.unh.edu/hr/childcare-info-resources

A brief description of the institution’s other policies and programs to support non-traditional students:
UNH Counseling Center: http://www.unh.edu/pacs/non-traditional-students UNH Office of Commuter & Non-Traditional Student Services: http://www.unhmub.com/involvement-leadership/office-student-involvement-leadership/commuter-services http://www.unhmub.com/sites/default/files/attachments/Non-Traditional%20Student%20Brochure.pdf

Part 2 

Does the institution wish to pursue Part 2 of this credit (tracking accessibility and affordability)? (If data is not available, select 'No'):
Yes

The percentage of entering students that are low-income (0-100):
68.50

The graduation/success rate for low-income students (0-100):
77.30

On average, the percentage of need that was met for students who were awarded any need-based aid (e.g. as reported to the U.S. Common Data Set initiative, item H2) (0-100):
78

The percentage of students graduating with no interest-bearing student loan debt or for whom no out-of-pocket tuition is required (i.e. the percentage of graduates who have not taken out interest-bearing loans) (0-100):
23.10

Optional Fields 

Estimated percentage of students that participate in or directly benefit from the institution’s policies and programs to support low-income and non-traditional students (0-100):
---

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
In addition to the programs listed above, see also UNH Parents Association: http://www.unh.edu/parents/ UNH Financial Aid Office: http://financialaid.unh.edu

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.