Stanford University
PA-7: Affordability and Access

Stanford’s admissions program is need-blind and all undergraduate aid is need-based, with the exception of athletic scholarships. Through the Financial Aid Program, Stanford meets 100% of the demonstrated financial need of all eligible students. Parents whose total annual income is less than $65,000 and who have assets typical for their income level are not expected to contribute toward educational costs. Parents with income between $65,000 and $125,000 are expected to contribute somewhere between $0 and the cost of room and board, ensuring enough scholarship funds to cover the cost of tuition at a minimum. Students are not expected to borrow to cover their educational costs.

Early in 2011, Stanford created a new position for a director of diversity and programs for first-generation students. The DGEN office provides campus leadership for students, faculty and staff to consciously and actively affirm intersectional identities and foster intergroup relationships. Through research, forums, classes and workshops, DGEN builds student capacity and confidence to experience a sense of belonging and develop authentic connections with people from different backgrounds. Within this mission is a special focus on enriching the experience of first-generation and low-income college students by supporting their academic and social transitions, empowerment and community building.

A plethora of summer programs are offered on campus to prepare students to attend either Stanford University or the college/university of their choice. Through programs like the Stanford Summer Engineering Academy, first offered in 1998 to provide a rigorous introduction to engineering, math, and physical sciences programs for incoming Stanford freshmen and the Stanford College Prep program that partners with the charter East Palo Alto Academy High School to provide resources and support to first-generation and low-income minority students to succeed academically in high school and college, the university is reaching out to both potential Stanford students as well as members of the public in the local area. In summer of 2012, the inaugural Leland Scholars Program was offered to incoming freshmen from under-resourced high schools, at no cost to the students, to ease the transition to Stanford. Lastly, through the Haas Center for Public Service, Stanford students participate in programs that support students in local low-income neighborhoods. Some examples are the East Palo Alto Stanford Academy, Jumpstart, Stanford College Prep, Science in Service, and Ravenswood Reads.

A collection of resources for parents can be found with just one click from Stanford’s home page. A Parents’ Guide is published annually and distributed to all new parents. A parents’ helpline phone number and email address are available for all questions, big and small, year round.

For the 2015-2016 academic year, Stanford undergraduates received more than $190 million in financial assistance, including over $177 million in scholarships and grants. These funds support the 67% of students at Stanford who receive some form of financial aid. 47% of all students receive need-based scholarships from Stanford. There are two basic criteria to establish eligibility for these funds: students must be admitted to Stanford and demonstrate financial need. Scholarships are used to meet students’ full need, giving all admitted students the opportunity to attend Stanford.

Stanford’s Office of Undergraduate Admission uses a multifaceted outreach strategy aimed at encouraging qualified students from low-income backgrounds to apply, which include the following:
1) Early College Outreach: Admissions staff developed a brochure outlining the path to college for middle school students to motivate middle school students to attend college.
2) Counselor Fly-In Program: In 2014, an annual summer program was initiated for secondary school counselors and community-based organization staff to learn about opportunities at Stanford and other highly selective universities and engage in conversations about outreach to qualified students. Stanford seeks out counselors from under-resourced areas across the nation and pays for all travel and program expenses for the participants, currently 25 to 35 per year.
3) Counselor Programs: Admissions staff regularly present and connect with school counselors and leaders who work with low-income youth; most recently at the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Annual Conference and in Rio Grande Valley, TX, and Riverside County, CA.
4) Community-Based Organization (CBO) outreach: Stanford maintains a database of CBOs across the country. Admissions staff send biannual mailings and travel to CBOs to meet with community leaders and students. During their visits, they conduct information sessions and college application and essay writing workshops. CBO examples include the Crimson Summer Academy at Harvard, the Steppingstone Foundation, and Bottom Line.
5) Summer outreach: Admissions staff conduct outreach to students participating in summer enrichment programs. Examples of program visits include:
o Caroline D. Bradley Scholarship Program
o Chicano Latino Youth Leadership Project summer program in Sacramento
o College Horizons at Bowdoin and Stanford
o Illinois Institute of Technology Boeing Scholars and University of Chicago College Scholars
o Jack Kent Cooke Scholars’ Fair
o Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America (LEDA) summer institute at Princeton University
o Minority Introduction to Engineering and Science (MITES), Research Science Institute (RSI), Women in Technology (WIT), and Mathematics and Science for Minority Students (MS)2
o National Urban League
o QuestBridge Conferences – Stanford, Yale, Emory
o Sutton Trust
6) Travel Grant Program: Stanford provides travel grants for admitted low-income students to attend Admit Weekend, a three-day program that provides an introduction to academic options, residential life, and campus resources. Admit Weekend also features a panel for first-generation and low-income students with campus partners and the Financial Aid Office.

Stanford also runs a significant number of recruitment programs for graduate students from underrepresented groups, as described below.

1) Summer Research Programs: Hosted by Schools of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences, Engineering, Humanities & Sciences, and Medicine (Biosciences) for promising diverse undergraduates from other institutions; students spend 8 to 9 weeks performing research with Stanford faculty and graduate students; and participate in GRE and graduate school preparation courses. Special partnerships include The Leadership Alliance (multiple fields) and City College of New York program in the Humanities.

2) The Leadership Alliance: The Leadership Alliance is a consortium of 36 leading teaching and research colleges, universities, and private industry. The mission of the Leadership Alliance is to develop underrepresented students into outstanding leaders and role models in academia, business and the public sector. Stanford is an institutional member and brings diverse undergraduate students from other institutions to participate in summer research programs through the Leadership Alliance Summer Research – Early Identification Program (SR-EIP).

3) City College of New York Partnership: CCNY undergraduates from underrepresented and first-generation college backgrounds are given the opportunity to conduct graduate level humanities research. Undergraduates live in residence at Stanford for eight weeks, are advised by faculty and graduate student mentors, and then present their work at a concluding symposium. The teaching exchange sends up to six Stanford humanities graduate students to teach at the City College of New York in the fall.

4) Stanford Diversity Outreach for Doctoral Education (STANDOUT) Center of Influence Recruitment Retreat: two-day program that brings together program directors, faculty, and administrators who work with diverse undergraduates in preparation for doctoral studies from institutions across the nation; the goal is to better equip them to help their students prepare more competitive graduate school applications.

5) Graduate Recruitment and Diversity Day: Event for diverse admits and top prospects for graduate programs in the Schools of Business, Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences, Humanities and Sciences, Education, and Engineering. Prospective students have the opportunity to see that Stanford offers a combination of commitment, resources, and community to allow diverse students to thrive.

6) Fee waivers: Stanford offers a myriad institution- and school-based fee waivers to assist students from diverse backgrounds with the expense of applying to graduate school.

7) Recruiting events: Stanford University diversity officers actively attend and engage with national organizations and conferences that support diverse undergraduates interested in pursuing research and graduate study.

8) Prestigious Doctoral Fellowships: many of Stanford’s seven schools have a variety of diversity-focused funding to support graduate education. Recruitment fellowships supported by the Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education include the following:
--The Enhancing Diversity in Graduate Education (EDGE) Doctoral Fellowship Program supports the recruitment and academic success of outstanding doctoral students who have the potential to enhance the diversity of their academic disciplines and fields.
--The Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity (CCSRE) offers a three-year Graduate Fellowship for outstanding doctoral students newly admitted to a department at Stanford who are interested in the study of the meanings, processes, and consequences of race, ethnicity, and inequality.

9) Support Applicants’ Travel to Stanford: Faculty members and departments may request up to $500 from the Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education to defray the cost of bringing prospective graduate students for campus visits. Requests may include students of an ethnicity that is underrepresented in an academic field; women who are underrepresented in a field; or people who would be the first members of their family to attend graduate school.

As part of the university’s commitment to a comprehensive holistic review process, each admission officer takes into account the context of the student’s background. This includes, but is not limited to, socioeconomic status, parent/guardian degree attainment, high school graduation and college placement rates, fee waivers, free and reduced lunch programs and CBO participation. The Office of Undergraduate Admission also participates in the QuestBridge Scholarship matching program. This year Stanford has selected 51 students as Quest Bridge finalists.

All financial aid for undergraduates offered by the University is awarded by the Financial Aid Office based on financial need. The only exception is Athletic Aid. In addition, through Undergraduate Advising and Research, the Office of the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education partners with faculty, departments, research centers, and interdisciplinary programs to facilitate and promote research opportunities for undergraduates through a generous grant program.

In recent years, Stanford students have been increasingly interested in issues surrounding access and affordability. One student group that has focused specifically on first-generation and low-income students is FLIP, the First-Gen and Low-Income Partnership. Students from FLIP have organized welcome events for students and parents during orientation, regular study breaks for students, speakers and resources for students both at Stanford and in their home communities. Stanford students have formed organizations like the Phoenix Scholars to support aspiring students from first-generation and low-income backgrounds. These are just 2 examples of the types of programs Stanford students have created.

By university policy, all Stanford undergraduates are enrolled full-time. Students attend part-time only with permission and support of the Office of Accessible Education (OAE).

Stanford’s WorkLife Office provides a robust program to assist Stanford faculty, staff and students with their family needs, including on-campus child care facilities, child care subsidies, child care and adoption resources and referrals, lactation spaces for new mothers, maternity resources, school-age child resources, and even elder care services. Undergraduates can receive assistance for child care expenses through the financial aid program. Additionally, a state of California child care subsidy program is available for students through Palo Alto Community Childcare, 4 C’s, or Choices for Children.

Stanford practices Affirmative Action and therefore has a strong commitment to admitting and enrolling a student body that is both highly qualified and diverse. The University recognizes special circumstances and pays close attention to the unique educational contexts and life experiences of students from low-income families and nontraditional backgrounds. Veterans are an increasing population at both the undergraduate and graduate level at Stanford. The Student Services Center opened the Office for Military-Officiated Communities in May of 2013 to support the needs of veterans. The Office of Accessible Education (OAE) at Stanford offers a comprehensive program for students with disabilities at both the undergraduate and graduate levels so that all students have an equal opportunity for personally and academically rewarding experiences. The OAE provides a wide array of accommodations, support services, auxiliary aids and programs to remove barriers to full participation in the life of the University.

Typically, 15% of the entering freshman class are first in their families to go to college.

Note: Between 15% and 20% of the entering students each year come from low-income backgrounds, so the lower boundary of that range is recorded as the percentage of entering students that are low-income.

The most recent 6-year graduation rate for Pell recipients is 90%, so that number is recorded as the graduation/success rate for low-income students.

The websites below support the information provided for this credit:

http://financialaid.stanford.edu
http://parents.stanford.edu
http://facts.stanford.edu/academics/undergraduate
http://studentaffairs.stanford.edu/oae
https://military.stanford.edu/
https://undergrad.stanford.edu/programs/lelandscholars
http://studentaffairs.stanford.edu/haas