Carleton College Adopts No-Loan Financial Aid Policy

Starting next fall, thousands of students at Carleton College, a selective private institution in Minnesota, will no longer be expected to take out federal or institutional loans to finance their education.

Instead, the college plans to cover 100 percent of the remaining cost after a family pays its expected family contribution using other forms of aid like grants, scholarships, and student employment, according to a Monday announcement. The policy change will apply to new students as well as current freshman, sophomores and juniors who return. About 2,128 undergraduates attended Carleton in fall 2024, according to federal data.

“As a liberal arts college that prepares students for a wide variety of futures, we want students to know that whatever path they choose to follow, they will begin without any burden of debt to limit their options,” Carleton president Alison Byerly said in a news release. “We believe that a family’s finances should never determine a student’s ability to attend Carleton, and we’re proud to be one of a small number of colleges nationwide with the resources to make this possible.”

Carleton is the first Minnesota college to make this commitment and one of about 20 institutions nationwide, many of which are members of the Ivy League, according to the release.

The transition to a no-loan model was made possible by donations from alumni and other supporters who committed over $80 million over the past 10 months. Now the college is seeking an additional $48 million to sustain the policy and continue supporting low- and middle-income families long-term.

More than half of Carleton students receive need-based aid to cover the full cost of attendance. According to the news release, the average aid awarded for this academic year was $71,870, though it’s unclear how much of that was loan-based. The total cost of attendance was around $97,870, according to the college’s website.

“We recognize the increasing cost of a college education for students and their families, and we see this as a moment for Carleton to fulfill its ongoing desire to be more accessible and affordable for all students who are receiving aid—not just those with the greatest need,” said Art Rodriguez, a Carleton alum and now dean of admissions and financial aid.