Transparent Tuition

Because it’s the right thing to do for our students.

The cost of higher education has become untenable, and for decades, Colby-Sawyer has worked to ensure that students and families did not bear the burden of the full cost of tuition. In fact, 100% of our enrolled students receive financial assistance to lower the cost of tuition. We recognize a need for transparency in our pricing, aligning our published price more closely with the actual price that students currently pay. We want students to know from the start that a Colby-Sawyer education is financially realistic and achievable for them.

After several years of strategic planning to consistently strengthen Colby-Sawyer College’s financial stability, establish new programs, deepen key partnerships and achieve a record level of giving, we are now able to guarantee that all four-year undergraduate students will start with a lower tuition price of $17,500. By making this change we are delivering on our values of excellence, continual improvement, transparency, integrity and a solution-focused and innovative culture. More importantly, we are ensuring that the transformative experience we provide is accessible to any student who is a good academic fit and wants to call Colby-Sawyer home.

Tuition for the 2023-24 academic year is being lowered by 62%, from $46,364 to $17,500 for four-year undergraduate students. This will reduce the total cost of attending Colby-Sawyer (which includes room, board and the comprehensive student services fee) by over 45% — using 2022-23 costs, that would mean going from over $63,500 to approximately $36,000.

We are now stronger financially than we have been in recent history. We have operated under a balanced budget the past four years and will exercise the same financial responsibility moving forward, and our endowment has nearly doubled in recent years. Our donors have shown firm belief in our stability and in the educational experience we provide with record levels of giving, including the largest gift in the college’s history.

However, we know our current published undergraduate tuition price of $46,364 may cause prospective families to believe that attending Colby-Sawyer College would be out of their financial reach, so we never get the chance to tell them about our generous financial aid, much less help them become students who find their voices, develop their passions and become active learners and confident scholars, artists, writers, scientists, critical thinkers and community leaders.

Starting in January 2022, President Susan D. Stuebner, the Board of Trustees and the Senior Leadership Team worked together to conduct research and consult with faculty and leaders at colleges and universities that have implemented similar tuition adjustments in recent years. These strategic discussions helped Colby-Sawyer make the most informed decision possible.

Yes, the tuition will be the same for all four-year undergraduate students. When merit and need-based aid are considered, students will pay varying amounts, just as they do today.

The new tuition will benefit all four-year undergraduate students.

We considered several factors — the new tuition price of $17,500 is closer to what students already actually pay because all students who apply for financial aid are automatically considered for scholarships and awards ranging up to $30,000 per year. It was also important that a Colby-Sawyer experience be accessible for more families and that we offer a private college education at a public college price.

And now, the $17,500 annual tuition makes Colby-Sawyer comparable to the cost of enrolling at a public institution and one of the most affordable private liberal arts colleges in the region

No. Due to our generous financial aid and merit awards, 100% of our students received financial aid to pay a lower amount than our published tuition. A student’s total cost is set individually and depends upon a number of factors, including their academic profile, family income, family assets, and competition in a number of scholarship/fellowship programs. Colby-Sawyer is resetting, or lowering, the published tuition to an amount that is closer to what families already actually pay for tuition after receiving financial aid and merit awards.