New financial aid program covers tuition for families earning less than $200,000
Beginning with students entering in the 2026–2027 academic year, the University will launch a new financial aid initiative intended to make sure families easily understand BU’s commitment to affordability. Photo by Dave Green
New Financial Aid Program Covers Tuition for Families Earning Less Than $200,000
The BU Promise eliminates loans and simplifies undergraduate financial aid for domestic students
Will Chambers, 18, is the youngest of five brothers, so the cost of attending college has been a frequent topic of conversation in his household.
“I plan on going to med school, so the cost of my undergraduate degree is something I’m keenly aware of,” says Chambers (CAS’30), who lives in Chadds Ford, Pa. “The financial aid I was offered through the BU Promise made a huge difference when it came to deciding what school I wanted to go to.”
For families like the Chambers, Boston University has taken a big step toward making an exceptional education even more accessible. The University will now cover full tuition for households making up to $200,000, which delivers clarity and confidence to families when it comes to affordability and financial aid.
Beginning with students entering in the 2026–2027 academic year, Boston University has launched the BU Promise, a new financial aid initiative that eliminates loans from need-based packages, guarantees institutional scholarships will keep pace with tuition increases, and—for many students—covers the full cost of tuition.
We actively strive to address affordability, debt at graduation, and careers, and the BU Promise is an important component in a student’s success.
“At Boston University, we are committed to ensuring that all qualified students have access to our singular and transformative educational experience,” says Boston University President Melissa Gilliam. “Our community is enhanced by students from a wide range of backgrounds. We actively strive to address affordability, debt at graduation, and careers, and the BU Promise is an important component in a student’s success. It is one less barrier to making a student and family’s dream of attending this university become a reality.”
Under the BU Promise, admitted domestic first-year, first-time students from families earning less than $200,000 annually, with typical assets, can expect financial aid to cover full tuition—roughly two-thirds of BU’s total cost of attendance—plus a portion of housing and dining costs, with a parent contribution capped at $20,000 per year. Families with household incomes of $75,000 or less, with typical assets, can expect to pay nothing (Learn more about typical assets.)
Families earning more than $200,000 are also encouraged to apply for financial aid. BU provides personalized, need-based aid packages that reflect each family’s unique financial circumstances, says Chris Sedore, vice president and associate provost for Enrollment & Student Administration ad interim. For example, aid may take into account factors such as having multiple children enrolled in college at the same time or living in an area with a high cost of living.
“No family should rule out Boston University because they assume it’s beyond their reach,” Sedore says. “We encourage every family to apply for financial aid. Expanding access to a BU education is central to our mission, and BU Promise is designed to help more students and families afford it.”
BU Promise builds on the University’s longstanding commitment to meeting 100 percent of demonstrated financial need while making financial aid easier to understand and more predictable. Students apply for BU need-based aid only once—in their first year. Through BU Scholarship Assurance, institutional scholarships are guaranteed for four years and automatically increase alongside tuition, helping families better plan for the cost of a BU education.
Approximately 45 percent of BU undergraduates receive financial aid. Last year, the University awarded $473 million in undergraduate financial aid. While families may still choose to borrow as part of their own financial planning, BU Promise no longer includes loans as part of meeting demonstrated financial need.
“Financial questions and concerns are top of mind for many students and their families,” says University Provost Colin Duckett. “BU Promise will allow our students to better focus on why they’ve come to Boston University: to pursue their areas of academic interest, to forge new and productive relationships, and to achieve their full potential.”
Chambers’ experience is a case in point.
“Being able to attend BU is a great opportunity” he says, “because of the doors it opens up for me in terms of my future plans to become a doctor.”