Types of Financial Aid
Financial assistance for college is characterized in three ways: type, eligibility, and source.
Types of aid
- Scholarships: These funds do not have to be repaid and are based on an eligibility factor outside of, or in addition to, financial need.
- Grants: These funds do not have to be repaid and typically are based on some definition of financial need.
- Loans: Money that students or parents must repay after graduation. Borrowers sometimes elect to repay loans during the enrollment period.
- Work-study Jobs: Money for work performed on-campus. These funds are not paid to a student account but rather directly to the student.
Eligibility For Aid
There are at least three types of eligibility criteria:
- Financial need based
- Merit or talent based
- Criteria based (e.g., students from a particular region, in a specific major, etc.)
Sources of aid
There are at least three different sources of aid:
- Institutional: These funds come from Lafayette College. This is by far our largest source of aid at the College.
- Government: Money provided by the federal or state government.
- Private: Funds provided by foundations, associations, banks, corporations, etc.