Harvard adapta anuidades

A Harvard University está atraindo alunos de classe média com descontos de acordo com a renda familiar. Altruísmo? Não exatamente, somente a necessidade de não perder os melhores alunos. Bem, aqui a discussão andou um pouco com a visita da Ministra da Educação da China e a "excelente" performance dos formandos em medicina no exame do CRM.
Harvard announces sweeping middle-income initiative
Cambridge, Mass. – Harvard President Drew Faust and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Michael D. Smith today (Dec. 10) announced a sweeping overhaul of financial aid policies designed to make Harvard College more affordable for families across the income spectrum. The new initiative focuses on ensuring greater affordability for middle- and upper-middle-income families through major enhancements to grant aid, the elimination of student loans, and the removal of home equity from financial aid calculations.
This initiative builds on Harvard’s recent pathbreaking policies to ensure that families with incomes below $60,000 are not asked to contribute to the cost of sending their children to Harvard. The new policy has three major components: • The “Zero to 10 Percent Standard”: Harvard’s new financial aid policy dramatically reduces the amount families with incomes below $180,000 will be expected to pay. Families with incomes above $120,000 and below $180,000 and with assets typical for these income levels will be asked to pay 10 percent of their incomes. For those with incomes below $120,000, the family contribution percentage will decline steadily from 10 percent, reaching zero for those with incomes at $60,000 and below. For example, a typical family making $120,000 will be asked to pay approximately $12,000 for a child to attend Harvard College, compared with more than $19,000 under existing student aid policies. For a typical family with $180,000 of income, the payment would be approximately $18,000, compared with more than $30,000 today. The new standard reduces the cost to families by one-third to one-half, making the price of a Harvard education for students on financial aid comparable to the cost of in-state tuition and fees at the nation’s leading public universities. The new initiative also establishes a standard that students and their families can easily understand. • No Loans: In calculating the financial aid packages offered to undergraduates, Harvard will not expect students to take out loans. Loan funds will be replaced by increased grants from the University. Of course, students will be permitted to cover their reduced cost of attendance through loans if they wish. • Eliminate Home Equity from Consideration: Under the new policy, Harvard will no longer consider home equity in determining a family’s ability to pay for college. This will reduce the price by an average of $4,000 per year for affected families as compared with current practice. “We want all students who might dream of a Harvard education to know that it is a realistic and affordable option,” said Faust. “Education is fundamental to the future of individuals and the nation, and we are determined to do our part to restore its place as an engine of opportunity, rather than a source of financial stress. With no loans, no consideration of home equity, and a dramatic increase in grant aid, we are not tinkering at the margins, we are rebuilding the engine. “This is a huge investment for Harvard,” Faust continued, “but there is no more important commitment we could make. Excellence and opportunity must go hand in hand.” (restante da matéria, clique aqui)