Harvard University Announces Free Tuition for Families Earning Under $200K, Expanding Access to Middle-Income Families

Harvard University has announced that it is making tuition free for families who earn less than $200,000 (£154,000) a year.

For families earning less than $100,000, Harvard will also cover expenses like housing and health insurance.

The move is aimed at making Harvard more affordable for middle-income families, and it comes as the Trump administration targets university funding as a part of a crackdown on diversity equity and inclusion (DEI) practices.

“Putting Harvard within financial reach for more individuals widens the array of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives that all of our students encounter, fostering their intellectual and personal growth,” said Harvard President Alan Garber.

The policy – which will begin in the 2025 to 2026 academic year – will help “make a Harvard College education possible for every admitted student”, Garber added.

The Ivy League school said the move will allow roughly 86% of US families to qualify for Harvard’s financial aid.

The median household income in the US was $80,000 in 2023, according to the US Census.

A number of elite universities in the US have taken similar steps in recent years, including the University of Pennsylvania and The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which also have free tuition for families making less than $200,000.

Harvard had previously made all university costs, including housing and medical care, free for families with incomes under $85,000.

The average price of a private university in the US for those living on campus is $58,000 per academic year, according to the Education Data Initiative. The average cost of college has more than doubled since 2001, the research group found.

The financial aid expansions come as the Trump administration has threatened to pull funding from universities over diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, research and coursework that they allege is a form of racial discrimination.

Under Trump, the Department of Education has said it is investigating 52 universities across the country for alleged “racial preferences and stereotypes in education programs and activities” as Trump attempts to get rid of DEI programmes.

The Trump administration has already pulled $400m in grants and contracts from Columbia University, alleging the Ivy League school failed to prevent antisemitism on campus as protests grew over Israel’s war in Gaza.

Last year, the US Supreme Court voted to overturn affirmative action. The practice favoured individuals in disadvantaged groups to help eliminate discrimination against marginalised applicants during the enrollment process and increase diversity among students.