Reporting by Dennis Byron
Students whose families earn $200,000 or less will attend Emory University tuition-free starting in fall 2026.
This transformative scholarship, Emory Advantage Plus, represents a significant expansion of the university’s financial aid program and continues Emory’s longstanding commitment to support talented students by making a preeminent education more attainable.
All new and returning domestic undergraduate students who meet the income requirements and are eligible for need-based aid will be considered for Emory Advantage Plus next fall. Emory will also continue to meet 100% of demonstrated need for all domestic undergraduate students.
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“Offering free tuition to every student whose family income is $200,000 or less is about leadership,” says Interim President Leah Ward Sears. “We want great students to come here without regard to the cost. And we will do everything in our power to give them a great education without the burden of crushing debt.
“When students sit at the kitchen table with their parents to discuss college, I don’t want finances to be a consideration,” Sears explains. “If they qualify to come to Emory and they want to come to Emory, we will make sure they can afford Emory.”
The original Emory Advantage program started in 2007 to serve students from families with lower incomes. Emory expanded the program in fall 2022 by eliminating need-based loans as part of undergraduate students’ financial aid packages and replacing them with institutional grants and scholarships.
The new Emory Advantage Plus builds on the university’s promise to remove financial barriers to a college degree, allowing students whose families make $200,000 or less to pay zero tuition for their undergraduate degree.
“Emory Advantage Plus is more than just an expansion of a financial aid plan — it’s an expansion of opportunity, of dreams, and what’s possible at Emory,” Sears says. “Together we are opening doors wider than ever before so that brilliant, deserving students can call Emory and Georgia their home. The future has never looked brighter, and this is only just the beginning.”
For Georgia residents, the full-tuition award complements the state’s renowned HOPE and Zell Miller Scholarships. Almost 1,050 Emory undergraduates are from Georgia and nearly 95% of them receive HOPE or Zell Miller.
Currently about 3,100 students — about 40% of the university’s undergraduates — receive Emory Advantage. Of these, 60% have scholarships that are equal to or higher than the cost of tuition. Under the Emory Advantage Plus program, this number will grow to 80%.
Emory Advantage represents just part of the university’s efforts to support students. Emory currently provides about $438.7 million each year for institutional grant and scholarship aid for undergraduate, graduate and professional students.
