IU extends leadership in addressing college affordability

Indiana University is a nationally recognized leader in ensuring an affordable and accessible world-class education. But we’re not resting on our laurels.

As a reflection of our commitment to clarity, accuracy, and transparency around the costs associated with earning a life-changing degree, all IU campuses recently joined the College Cost Transparency Initiative, a national initiative aligned with IU’s comprehensive approach to easing the financial burden on students. By providing clear language about financial aid offers and the cost of attendance, the initiative helps students make informed decisions about their education. As we enter the heart of college application season, we understand how important our informational efforts are to both current and prospective students and their families.

We can be proud of the work we’ve done to lower the barriers to an IU degree, including awarding a quarter of a billion dollars in merit- and need-based scholarships, grants, donor-funded scholarships, and other gift aid annually to our students, with most IU students now graduating with zero debt.

Our work also includes a new structure that we created to reduce the number of student fees and ensure clarity in fee descriptions, helping most IU students pay less over the course of their degree programs. Annually, the student body is projected to see $14.5 million in overall savings.

These efforts to increase student support and transparency around the cost of an IU degree also come at a time when IU is expanding efforts to serve students in the state’s 21st Century Scholars Program. Designed to support low-income families, participation in the program is expanding after state legislation passed last year led to a new auto-enrollment process for eligible Hoosier families. Roughly one-third of all 21st Century Scholars enrolled in college across our state are served by IU, and we anticipate continued growth in the program over the coming years.

We continue our steadfast focus to help more Hoosiers attend, afford, and graduate from college. Our efforts begin with ensuring greater accessibility to an extraordinary IU education and empowering deserving students who will drive the future of our state and beyond.

Pamela Whitten

President
Indiana University