Skip to content
ADVERTISEMENT
Sign In
  • Sections
    • News
    • Advice
    • The Review
  • Topics
    • Data
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
    • Finance & Operations
    • International
    • Leadership & Governance
    • Teaching & Learning
    • Scholarship & Research
    • Student Success
    • Technology
    • Transitions
    • The Workplace
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Special Issues
    • Podcast: College Matters from The Chronicle
  • Newsletters
  • Virtual Events
  • Ask Chron
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Professional Development
    • Career Resources
    • Virtual Career Fair
  • More
  • Sections
    • News
    • Advice
    • The Review
  • Topics
    • Data
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
    • Finance & Operations
    • International
    • Leadership & Governance
    • Teaching & Learning
    • Scholarship & Research
    • Student Success
    • Technology
    • Transitions
    • The Workplace
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Special Issues
    • Podcast: College Matters from The Chronicle
  • Newsletters
  • Virtual Events
  • Ask Chron
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Professional Development
    • Career Resources
    • Virtual Career Fair
    Upcoming Events:
    Hands-On Career Preparation
    An AI-Driven Work Force
    Alternative Pathways
Sign In
News

Hamilton College Becomes Need-Blind in Admissions

By Beckie Supiano March 7, 2010

Hamilton College, in Clinton, N.Y., planned to announce on Monday that it was no longer considering applicants’ financial need in admissions decisions. The announcement comes in a year that has so far brought mixed news on colleges’ affordability efforts. Two prominent colleges have scaled back their “no loan” financial-aid policies in recent weeks, while another has announced a plan to limit price increases to the growth in the Consumer Price Index plus one percentage point.

To continue reading for FREE, please sign in.

Sign In

Or subscribe now to read with unlimited access for as low as $10/month.

Don’t have an account? Sign up now.

A free account provides you access to a limited number of free articles each month, plus newsletters, job postings, salary data, and exclusive store discounts.

Sign Up

Hamilton College, in Clinton, N.Y., planned to announce on Monday that it was no longer considering applicants’ financial need in admissions decisions. The announcement comes in a year that has so far brought mixed news on colleges’ affordability efforts. Two prominent colleges have scaled back their “no loan” financial-aid policies in recent weeks, while another has announced a plan to limit price increases to the growth in the Consumer Price Index plus one percentage point.

For its part, Hamilton joins a small number of colleges that are “need blind” and commit to meet admitted students’ demonstrated financial need. Such policies are expensive and require a college to relinquish much of its control over the aid budget. Only wealthier colleges can afford such uncertainty about how much tuition revenue they will have each year. Even after taking a substantial hit in the last couple of years, Hamilton’s endowment stands at just under $557-million.

“We wanted to level the playing field for students on financial aid,” said Monica C. Inzer, dean of admission and financial aid. The college had been moving in that direction for years. Hamilton got rid of merit scholarships in 2007, and put those resources toward need-based aid. It has also been increasing its aid budget in preparation for going need-blind. For the last several years, Hamilton has admitted more than 90 percent of its class without considering need, and Ms. Inzer has kept track of how much more the college would have had to spend on aid if admissions decisions had not considered need at all.

The change will affect current applicants, who are being admitted for the fall of 2010 without consideration of their need, although they did not know this when they applied.

The need-blind policy will not include international or transfer students, though Hamilton does meet the full demonstrated need of those students.

“We really want to protect the freshman class,” Ms. Inzer said. As for international students, the college already spends about 12 percent of its aid budget on them, even though they make up only about 5 percent of enrollment. (Most international students cannot receive federal financial aid, so supporting them is more expensive.)

Ms. Inzer had hoped to move to need-blind admissions by 2012, Hamilton’s bicentennial year. But five $500,000 pledges from trustees allowed the college to make the switch even sooner.

We welcome your thoughts and questions about this article. Please email the editors or submit a letter for publication.
Tags
Admissions & Enrollment
Share
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Email
Supiano_Beckie.jpg
About the Author
Beckie Supiano
Beckie Supiano is a senior writer for The Chronicle of Higher Education, where she covers teaching, learning, and the human interactions that shape them. She is also a co-author of The Chronicle’s free, weekly Teaching newsletter that focuses on what works in and around the classroom. Email her at beckie.supiano@chronicle.com.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

More News

Collage of charts
Data
How Faculty Pay and Tenure Can Change Depending on Academic Discipline
Vector illustration of two researcher's hands putting dollar signs into a beaker leaking green liquid.
'Life Support'
As the Nation’s Research-Funding Model Ruptures, Private Money Becomes a Band-Aid
Photo-based illustration of scissors cutting through a flat black and white university building and a landscape bearing the image of a $100 bill.
Budget Troubles
‘Every Revenue Source Is at Risk’: Under Trump, Research Universities Are Cutting Back
Photo-based illustration of the Capitol building dome topping a jar of money.
Budget Bill
Republicans’ Plan to Tax Higher Ed and Slash Funding Advances in Congress

From The Review

Photo-based illustration of the sculpture, The Thinker, interlaced with anotehr image of a robot posed as The Thinker with bits of binary code and red strips weaved in.
The Review | Essay
What I Learned Serving on My University’s AI Committee
By Megan Fritts
Illustration of a Gold Seal sticker embossed with President Trump's face
The Review | Essay
What Trump’s Accreditation Moves Get Right
By Samuel Negus
Illustration of a torn cold seal sticker embossed with President Trump's face
The Review | Essay
The Weaponization of Accreditation
By Greg D. Pillar, Laurie Shanderson

Upcoming Events

Ascendium_06-10-25_Plain.png
Views on College and Alternative Pathways
Coursera_06-17-25_Plain.png
AI and Microcredentials
  • Explore Content
    • Latest News
    • Newsletters
    • Letters
    • Free Reports and Guides
    • Professional Development
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle Store
    • Chronicle Intelligence
    • Jobs in Higher Education
    • Post a Job
  • Know The Chronicle
    • About Us
    • Vision, Mission, Values
    • DEI at The Chronicle
    • Write for Us
    • Work at The Chronicle
    • Our Reporting Process
    • Advertise With Us
    • Brand Studio
    • Accessibility Statement
  • Account and Access
    • Manage Your Account
    • Manage Newsletters
    • Individual Subscriptions
    • Group and Institutional Access
    • Subscription & Account FAQ
  • Get Support
    • Contact Us
    • Reprints & Permissions
    • User Agreement
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • California Privacy Policy
    • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
1255 23rd Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037
© 2025 The Chronicle of Higher Education
The Chronicle of Higher Education is academe’s most trusted resource for independent journalism, career development, and forward-looking intelligence. Our readers lead, teach, learn, and innovate with insights from The Chronicle.
Follow Us
  • twitter
  • instagram
  • youtube
  • facebook
  • linkedin