Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 48.18
Liaison Cora Kenfield
Submission Date July 27, 2011
Executive Letter Download

STARS v1.0

Vassar College
PAE-10: Affordability and Access Programs

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.00 / 3.00 David Borus
Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid
Admissions and Financial Aid
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Does the institution have policies and programs in place to make it accessible and affordable to low-income students?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s participation in federal TRIO programs:

Vassar College has a number of wide-ranging policies in place to make itself affordable to applicants from all backgrounds. This year, approximately 63% of the entering class received financial aid totaling nearly $15 million. The average Vassar Grant to incoming students is about $35,000 and the average total aid package is over $40,000.

In 2010-11, Vassar spent over $50 million on student aid. The College meets 100% of the full demonstrated need of all admitted students for all four years. As of the 2008-09 academic year, student loans which meet demonstrated need were replaced by additional scholarship grants in the financial aid awards of students whose families have a calculated annual income of $60,000 or less.


A brief description of the institution’s policies and programs to minimize the cost of attendance for low-income students?:

need blind admission, no loans to students whose families make less than $60,000.


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

grants to students whose families make under $60,000 a year. College meets 100% of demonstrated financial need


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

families experiencing financial difficulties can appeal to the Office of Financial Aid for additional funding.


A brief description of the institution’s targeted outreach to recruit students from low-income backgrounds:

The college also does a remarkable amount to extend accessibility to low-income and minority students. The Office of Admissions and Financial Aid practices targeted outreach to these students through a series of collaborations with non-profit organizations engaged in preparing minority students for college. Among these are Questbridge at the national level, Prep for Prep in New York City and Bright Horizons, New Beginnings and College Match in California.


A brief description of the institution’s other admissions policies and programs:
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A brief description of the institution’s other financial aid polices or programs:
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A brief description of the institution’s other policies and programs not covered above:
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The website URL where information about programs in each of the areas listed above is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.