Financial assistance covers tuition costs only. Lunch fees, extended care, and other ancillary programs are not covered.

No, the awards are grants—not loans—and do not have to be repaid.

No. While the processes for financial assistance and for admission run concurrently, they are completely separate. Financial assistance applications are kept strictly confidential, and do not influence admission decisions.

Although The College School’s financial assistance is considerable, funds are limited and may be insufficient to meet the needs of all qualified applicants. Therefore, some families may be placed in a financial wait pool to see if any funds become available at a later date. It is extremely important that applicants meet the filing deadlines to receive timely consideration.

Although Clarity provides The College School with a calculation of what a family should pay for an independent school education, the school financial assistance committee makes the final determination regarding financial assistance awards. Parents requesting financial assistance are required to complete a financial assistance application and financial awards are based on the standardized calculations derived by the school and Clarity methodology using data from the financial assistance application. The methodology used to determine the parental contribution considers many items, including assets, liabilities, income, and family size and the number of students in tuition-charging schools. As the financial assistance committee looks at financial assistance applications, it differentiates between necessary expenses and money spent for lifestyle choices. With respect to the latter, we will not provide assistance to offset “lifestyle” expenditures that could have been directed to education. Thus, the parental contribution calculated by the school might differ from the amount suggested by the family in the application.

Families receiving financial assistance must reapply annually.  Once assistance has been awarded, families can expect that it will be renewed, provided the family’s financial situation has not changed substantially, and the student has remained in good academic and behavioral standing.

Financial assistance may still be awarded after the first round of admission decisions depending on the availability of funds. Once all financial assistance funds have been allocated, a wait pool will be established to see if funds become available at a later date.

The financial assistance committee uses the Clarity methodology to determine what a family might reasonably expect to contribute toward educational expenses. The total amount of assistance available to a family is divided among all children attending tuition charging schools through the undergraduate degree level.

In keeping with the NAIS Principles of Good Practice for Financial Aid, the school considers tuition the responsibility of both parents. For students whose parents are divorced, separated or were never married, The College School requires that both natural (or adoptive) parents, in addition to spouses or live-in partners, must complete a financial assistance application and provide required documents. The College School will consider the obligations of the custodial parent or step parent. Consideration of the non-custodial natural parent will be based upon the belief that a family’s contribution for education is a reflection of their ability to contribute, not their willingness to contribute. Please note that failure to provide all parental income information may be a determining factor in the granting of financial aid. In cases where applications are completed by non-married parents, information is kept separate and confidential and will never be shared by the school with the other parent.

We believe that an independent school education fosters a young person’s intellect, as well as their character. Our hope is that students will emerge from The College School feeling well-prepared for their next chapter, with increased choices and opportunities in their pursuit of higher education. Bear in mind that colleges possess extraordinarily strong financial assistance programs to support families in financing their child’s education at the higher level.

Please contact the Director of The College School.