Cornell to boost financial aid for all qualifying undergrads in 2023

ITHACA, N.Y. — All Cornell University undergraduate students who qualify for financial aid in 2023 will receive increases in university grant aid.

That’s according to a recent announcement from Cornell, citing the “success of the ongoing ‘To Do the Greatest Good’ campaign.

About 4,700 students will get increases in grant aid of between $500 and $1,500 for the spring semester, with a corresponding reduction in self-help aid, comprising student contributions, loans, and work-study expectations. 

Additional policy changes will result in more aid for the 2023-24 academic year, with 7,100 students getting increases up to $1,800, including reductions in self-help aid. The increase in grant aid is possible because of Cornell’s initial investment of nearly $14 million for the coming year, the school noted in a mid-December release.

The changes in policy, which will extend beyond the 2023-24 school year, begin to “fulfill the affordability goals that are central” to the “To Do the Greatest Good” campaign to raise $5 billion. That will include $500 million in endowment and current-use funds for undergraduate financial aid, Cornell said. 

Jonathan Burdick, vice provost for enrollment at Cornell, said the “swift and generous” response from Cornell donors — raising $323 million towards the $500 million goal since the campaign began — has allowed Cornell to increase support now, ahead of meeting final goals in 2026.

The total estimated cost to attend Cornell in the current 2022-23 academic year at its endowed colleges is $83,296 — including tuition, housing, meals, and books — but before financial aid is applied, according to the Cornell website. The total cost for New York state residents to attend one of Cornell’s state contract colleges, such as the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, is $62,798, before financial aid. Non-New York state residents attending the Cornell state contract colleges pay the endowed-colleges rate.