This week, two major universities announced innovative plans to make college affordable for low- and middle-income families.
Starting next fall, nine departments in the University of Texas System will offer free tuition to students from families with annual incomes of less than $100,000.
“It’s important to us to ensure that students can access their education without incurring mounting debt,” said Kevin P. Eltif, chairman of the UT System Board of Governors.
Meanwhile, MIT plans to waive tuition for students from families with incomes of less than $200,000. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology will also waive housing, food and fees for households with incomes under $100,000 and provide a living allowance starting in fall 2025.
MIT President Sally Kornbluth said, “University affordability is a pressing concern, and we are determined to make an innovative education available to our most talented students, regardless of their economic circumstances.” We are doing so.”
Currently, MIT waives tuition for families with incomes under $140,000 and covers tuition for families with incomes under $75,000. Tuition alone costs $62,000, so expanding aid could relieve significant financial pressure on middle-income families.
These programs were introduced as universities face increasing pressure to deal with declining enrollment and rising tuition costs. Tuition and fees at four-year colleges have increased 141% over the past 20 years, far outpacing inflation. Meanwhile, undergraduate enrollment decreased from 18.1 million in 2010 to 15.4 million in 2021.
The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated this trend, but changes in economic and immigration policy were already taking a toll. Enrollment numbers began to rise again in 2023, but experts predict a demographic cliff is just around the corner. As a result of a 23% drop in the U.S. birth rate between 2007 and 2022, the number of traditional college students is expected to plummet starting in 2025.
Universities are scrambling to adapt, introducing incentives such as tuition-free programs to attract students. For families already struggling to pay for college, initiatives like UT and MIT offer a glimmer of hope and perhaps a lifelong debt-free path to higher education.
