14 September 2026
Posted In:
- College News
- Philanthropy
Students react to the no-loan policy announcement at Opening Convocation 2026Photo:
Carleton College is making a big move to eliminate student debt. Beginning next fall, the selective liberal arts college in Minnesota will cut loans out of its financial aid packages, meeting every student’s full financial need exclusively through grants, scholarships, and student employment. It’s the first college in the state to do so, and one of only about 20 colleges nationally.
The majority of Carleton students (57%) receive need-based financial aid, which covers not just tuition, but also housing, meals, activities, off-campus studies, and other costs. Unlike tuition promise programs that use income limits to define tuition costs for families with “typical assets,” there is no specific income restriction for Carleton’s no-loan program; a student must only qualify for need-based aid. For the 2026-27 academic year, the average financial aid award for a Carleton student is $71,866. That means the average family receiving need-based aid is paying $21,763 this year.
Beginning next year, loans won’t be included in the equation. Carleton will automatically replace all federal and institutional loans in its financial aid packages with grants and scholarships. And the College isn’t just instituting this for new students — the no-loan policy will benefit current first-year, sophomore, and junior students, as well.
“As a liberal arts college that prepares students for a wide variety of futures, we want students to know that whatever path they choose to follow, they will begin without any burden of debt to limit their options,” President Alison Byerly said. “We believe that a family’s finances should never determine a student’s ability to attend Carleton, and we’re proud to be one of a small number of colleges nationwide with the resources to make this possible.”
Carleton’s move to no-loan financial aid was made possible by the generosity of a number of alumni and friends of the college — including every member of its Board of Trustees — who committed over $80 million in early gifts for this purpose over the course of the past 10 months. The college is seeking to raise an additional $48 million in financial aid endowment to provide the long-term resources to sustain the policy.
Carleton has long been a leader in making college affordable for low- and middle-income families. Its longstanding practice has been to meet 100% of every student’s demonstrated need, and Carleton has continued other generous financial aid practices that many schools have abandoned, including reducing the expected contribution for a family with multiple children in college, and making home equity a protected asset for middle-income families. Carleton has increased its percentage of low-income students in recent years, and for more than a decade, one-third of every incoming class at Carleton has come from middle-income households. Those families are expected to benefit the most from the college’s move to no-loan financial aid.
“Eliminating loans from our financial aid packages will expand opportunities for students,” Byerly said. “For some, it will make the dream of attending Carleton possible; they can choose to enroll here knowing they’re receiving some of the most competitive financial aid across higher education. For others, it will enable them to take full advantage of a robust and meaningful college experience; they can choose the internship or the term abroad over the pressure to earn more income. And others will be freed from the burden of student loan debt that might otherwise have impacted their professional decisions and ambitions.”
Carleton has always been responsible about how its students are incurring and managing debt. The average debt at graduation of $21,075 for the Class of 2025 is well below the national average of $39,075, and the current loan default rate among graduates is less than 1%.
“We recognize the increasing cost of a college education for students and their families, and we see this as a moment for Carleton to fulfill its ongoing desire to be more accessible and affordable for all students who are receiving aid — not just those with the greatest need,” Vice President and Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Art Rodriguez ’96 said.
Among higher education institutions, Carleton offers some of the best student outcomes in the United States: 98% of the college’s 2025 graduates were employed, in grad school, or volunteering within 9 months of graduation. Nearly two-thirds of Carleton students go on to attend graduate or professional school within eight years, and alumni have an 86% acceptance rate to medical school and an 81% acceptance rate to law school.
“It’s significant that this change is happening at a time when there are limitations being placed on the amount of money graduate students are permitted to borrow,” Rodriguez said. “Eliminating loans at Carleton allows our alumni the opportunity to pursue an advanced degree without the burden of undergraduate debt.”
