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Financial Aid

Aid from Other Sources

Students are encouraged to seek additional financial assistance from outside sources.

Because Haverford meets full financial need, it is likely that most outside assistance will affect the amount of Haverford Grant students can receive, although not always on a dollar-for-dollar basis. See “Outside Scholarships” below.

Federal and State Aid

Students applying for financial aid at Haverford are required to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This allows students to be considered for federal financial aid programs, including:

  • Federal Pell Grants
  • Federal SEOG
  • Federal Work-Study
  • The William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program
  • Most state grant programs

Pennsylvania Residents

PA residents attending Haverford College may be eligible to receive financial aid through grant programs administered by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA). The primary application for such consideration is the FAFSA.

Fostering Independence Tuition Waiver Program

The Fostering Independence Tuition Waiver Program, signed into law by PA Governor Tom Wolf, provides a waiver for tuition and mandatory fees charged by most postsecondary institutions located in the Commonwealth for youth who are or were in foster care.

The waiver applies only to charges that remain after all other gift aid (federal, state, and other scholarships or grants) have been applied to the student’s account.

The waiver is associated with Pennsylvania’s John H. Chafee Foster Care Program for Successful Transition to Adulthood. The full eligibility criteria can be found at PHEAA.org.

If you have questions about this program, you may contact cwingfield [at] haverford.edu (Constance Wingfield), assistant director of financial aid.

Students who appear eligible for grant aid from government sources are required to meet all obligations to receive such aid. Grants from government sources will replace Haverford Grant dollar-for-dollar. Haverford will not compensate a student who fails to meet the obligations to receive government grants.

State Aid is also available to students who may or may not qualify for federal aid. Visit the Education Resource Organizations Directory.

Education and Tuition Benefits

Education benefits, such as social security payments, Veterans Affairs benefits, and tuition assistance from parents’ employers, will be considered as resources for financial aid purposes, and will reduce Haverford Grant funds dollar-for-dollar.

Veterans Benefits – Chapter 31 and Chapter 33

Veterans Certifying Official: Mike Colahan, Office of Financial Aid

Haverford College does accept payment through most veteran benefit programs. Like all government fund sources, receipt of funds through the VA will subtract from potential Haverford Grant on a dollar-per-dollar basis. Haverford does not participate in the Yellow Ribbon Program.

To receive U.S. Veterans Affairs (VA) education benefits, eligible Haverford students must submit a copy of the VA Certificate of Eligibility (COE), either the official letter or, if available, the Vets.gov “Post-9/11 GI Bill® Statement of Benefits,” to the Haverford School Certifying Official. Faxed or scanned copies are acceptable if legible.

Beneficiaries must submit the Certificate of Eligibility no later than the first day of a semester. In addition, they must submit:

  1. A request in writing for the School Certifying Official to certify their enrollment to the VA.
  2. Submit to the School Certifying Official any information necessary to the proper certification of enrollment, if required.

All covered individuals may attend or participate in the course of education during the period beginning on the date on which the individual provided the Certificate of Eligibility and the ending on the earlier of the following dates:

  1. The date on which payment from VA was made to the institution.
  2. Ninety days after the date the institution certified tuition and fees following the receipt of the Certificate of Eligibility.

Haverford will not impose any penalty, including the assessment of late fees, the denial of access to classes, libraries, or other institutional facilities, or the requirement that a covered individual borrow additional funds, on any covered individual because of the individual’s inability to meet his or her financial obligations to the institution due to the delayed disbursement funding from VA under chapters 31 or 33. However, Haverford can impose a fee for any amount of the student’s bill that is the difference between the amount of the student’s financial obligation and the anticipated amount of the VA education benefit disbursement.

Outside Scholarships

Because Haverford uses the College Board’s need analysis formula to determine a student’s financial need, and then meets that need in full, the inclusion of outside scholarships will most likely reduce Haverford Grant. Examples of outside scholarships include scholarships from national or local programs, religious, fraternal, social and scholastic organizations.

However, because there are several components in the need analysis formula that represent a student’s inherent responsibility to help pay for college, we can use some of those components to offset some of the outside funding. These student “self-help” components include an assumed student savings expectation and a job earnings expectation. (The latter is represented by an amount of Federal Work-Study funds on the student’s Financial Aid Decision.) Doing this gives the College an opportunity to not reduce its grant funds on a complete dollar-for-dollar basis when an outside scholarship is added. Be aware that this policy does not apply to government grant funds or resources from your own or your parents' workplace, such as tuition benefits. Such resources will reduce Haverford Grant dollar-for-dollar.

The formula for outside scholarships works this way:

  • For outside scholarships that are $500 or less, the College will reduce one or both of the student self-help components to the full amount, and the student’s Haverford Grant will remain unchanged.
  • For outside scholarships that are greater than $500 but less than $1,000, the College will reduce one or both of the student self-help components up to $500, and the difference will reduce Haverford Grant. For example, an outside scholarship of $800 will reduce student self-help by $500 and Haverford Grant by $300.
  • For outside scholarships that are equal to or greater than $1,000, the College will use 50% of the scholarship to reduce student self-help, and the remaining 50% will reduce Haverford Grant.

This formula is applied to each outside scholarship individually, not cumulatively. For example, if the student received two $500 outside scholarships, the Haverford Grant would not be changed, even though the total of the two scholarships equals $1,000.

Self-help is not reduced by its full amount, but only up to a predetermined amount. After that, any subsequent outside scholarships will reduce Haverford Grant dollar-for-dollar. This predetermined amount varies from class to class in the following way:

  • Class of 2023 and Class of 2024. For the 2022-2023 academic year, we will offset student self-help components up to $4,200. Once that amount has been offset, future outside scholarships will reduce Haverford Grant dollar-for-dollar.
  • Class of 2025. For the 2022-2023 academic year, we will offset student self-help components up to $3,350. Once that amount has been offset, future outside scholarships will reduce Haverford Grant dollar-for-dollar.
  • Class of 2026. For the 2022-2023 academic year, we will offset student self-help components up to $2,500. Once that amount has been offset, future outside scholarships will reduce Haverford Grant dollar-for-dollar.

Resources for Finding Outside Aid