by our College Data Analytics TeamMany students will not be asked to pay the complete price tag of a school. Rather, they are presented a financial aid deal that includes a mix of loans, grants, scholarships, and possibly work-study opportunities. The sum total of attendance at Cornell University can sound overwhelming, but bear in mind that many students get some type of financial aid.
Just what financial aid solutions can Cornell provide, and just what are you going to be eligible for? Keep reading for answers. Keep reading to see just how much financial aid could be open to you.
Your financial aid package, which may contain grants and scholarships, will be determined on your financial need. The figures below will help you estimate the aid you might receive from Cornell University.
Financial aid, in the form of loans, grants, work-study, and scholarships, is one way colleges reduce the cost of attendance so most students can actually afford to attend. Some kinds of aid are clearly preferable to others, and outcomes differ across students.
Among first-time, full-time freshmen at Cornell University, 56% of new full-time first-years were awarded at least some aid (about 1978 first-years).
| Type of Aid | % of Freshmen Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 48% | $61,779 |
| Institutional grants & scholarships | 47% | $60,062 |
| Federal Pell grants | 17% | $5,982 |
| State/local grants | 13% | $3,827 |
| Federal student loans | 18% | $3,844 |
Because grants and scholarships do not have to be repaid, they are the most sought-after type of financial aid. At this school, roughly 50% of undergrads got grants or scholarships worth on average $63,849 (covering around 8081 students).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 50% | $63,849 |
| Federal Pell grants | 18% | $5,924 |
| Federal student loans | 18% | $4,537 |
For students living on campus and receiving title-IV aid, grants averaged $59,450.
Since aid is largely need-based, the real cost of attendance falls steeply for lower-income families.
| Family Income | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| $0 – $48,000 | $4,921 |
| $30,001 – $75,000 | $6,869 |
| Over $75,000 | $45,897 |
These figures reflect what title-IV aid recipients pay after grant and scholarship aid is applied.
Net price is the average annual cost after grants and scholarships are subtracted from the published cost of attendance — the figure closest to what a typical aid-receiving student actually pays.
| Cohort | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| On-campus title-IV students | $28,690 |
| Off-campus title-IV students | $32,337 |
To project your own net price, use Cornell’s official net price calculator: npc.collegeboard.org/app/cornell.
The middle student in the debt distribution at Cornell owes $13,000 in federal loans.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $13,000 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $14,000 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $148.42/mo |
The 10-year payment estimate assumes a standard federal repayment plan and the median graduate debt amount.
A single median figure conceals how much debt outcomes differ student to student. Use the percentiles below to see the debt range at Cornell.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $2,501 |
| 25th percentile | $5,962 |
| 75th percentile | $19,677 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $26,633 |
The figures below break down median federal debt by income tier, first-generation status, and dependency.
Debt by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $8,800 |
| Middle income | $11,100 |
| High income | $14,170 |
First-Gen vs Continuing-Gen Median Debt
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $11,155 |
| Continuing-generation students | $13,500 |
By Dependency Status
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $13,000 |
| Independent students | $9,104 |
These indicators are derived from the underlying debt data and summarize the overall picture at Cornell.
Stafford loans make up the bulk of federal direct lending to undergraduates. The annual Stafford volume below reflects program activity at Cornell:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 32194 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $771,207,337 |
If you are a veteran or active-duty service member, the GI Bill and DoD Tuition Assistance are the primary federal programs you can use at this school.
GI Bill volume
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| GI Bill recipients | 245 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $7,279,100 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $29,711 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.