1. Harvard’s 2025 Aid Expansion in Two Sentences
Starting Fall 2025, Harvard College will charge zero for tuition, housing, food, health insurance and mandatory fees if your family earns $100 000 or less—up from the previous $85 000 cap. Eligible students also receive two cash grants: $2 000 in freshman year (“start-up”) and $2 000 in junior year (“launch”). Harvard Gazette
2. Who Benefits—and Who Doesn’t
| Family Income | Tuition | Room/Board | Out-of-Pocket* |
|---|---|---|---|
| ≤ $100 000 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| $100 001–200 000 | Sliding-scale grant | Sliding-scale | $5 000–$15 000 |
| > $200 000 | Full price | Full price | $82 000+ |
| *Books & personal expenses estimated $3 500/yr for all. |
Key points
- No special application—just file the CSS Profile & FAFSA (or foreign equivalent).
- Applies to U.S. and international undergraduates alike.
- Grad programs (Harvard Kennedy, GSD, etc.) keep their own aid rules.
3. Twelve More Flagship Scholarships You Should Know
| # | Scholarship | Level | Coverage | Notes & Deadlines (2025-26) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Knight-Hennessy Scholars (Stanford) | Master’s & PhD | Full tuition, stipend, leadership fund | Apply by Oct 9, any discipline. |
| 2 | Fulbright Foreign Student Program | Master’s & non-degree research | Tuition, airfare, stipend, health | Country deadlines Jan–May 2025. |
| 3 | Yale Fox International Fellowship | Master’s research | Stipend, housing, health | Nominations close Feb 1. |
| 4 | AAUW International Fellowships | Master’s & PhD (women) | $20 000–$50 000 | Opens Aug 1, women only. |
| 5 | Rotary Peace Fellowship | Professional MA | Tuition & living | 50 fellows/year; apply by May 15. |
| 6 | Mastercard Foundation Scholars (partner unis) | Bachelor’s & Master’s | Full ride + flights | African citizens; university deadlines vary. |
| 7 | Schwarzman Scholars (Tsinghua, but U.S.-linked net-work) | 1-yr MA Global Affairs | All costs | Deadline Sep 12. |
| 8 | Obama Foundation Scholars (Columbia) | 9-mo leadership cert. | Tuition, stipend, housing | Opens Aug. |
| 9 | Weiser Fellowship (Michigan) | LLM & MA | Full tuition | Eastern Europe focus; deadline Jan 15. |
| 10 | Gates Scholarship (U.S. undergrad) | Bachelor’s | Remaining cost after aid | Low-income, high-achievers; apply July 15. |
| 11 | WEF MIT Solve Global Fellows | Master’s certificates | Tuition + venture seed money | Social-impact bent; Oct deadline. |
| 12 | Open Society + CEU Global Scholars | Master’s | Tuition, stipend, relocation | Democracy/human-rights fields; deadline Feb 28. |
4. Picking the Right Award—3 Filters
- Degree Fit: Knight-Hennessy covers everything at Stanford, but Fulbright excludes clinical medicine; check lists.
- Citizenship: Mastercard is Africa-only; AAUW is women-only; Rotary accepts all.
- Bond vs. Freedom: Some scholarships (like Gates) leave you debt-free but require U.S. campus study; Fulbright may insist you return home for two years.
5. Mini-Playbook: Boost Your Chances in 30 Days
- Week 1–2: Brainstorm “impact stories” that show measurable change—scholarship panels love metrics (e.g., “trained 200 rural teachers”).
- Week 3: Draft 500-word Statement of Purpose. Have two mentors mark fuzzy verbs.
- Week 4: Line up recommenders; send them bullet points + résumé snapshot.
6. Fast FAQ on Harvard’s Plan
- Does the $100 000 threshold adjust for family size? Yes—larger families with four or more dependents may qualify slightly above $100 000.
- Is the grant taxable? Tuition waivers are tax-free; the $2 000 cash grants are taxable stipends in most states.