by our College Data Analytics TeamA large number of students are not billed 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 total cost of going to Smith College can seem overpowering, but remember that the majority of students are given some form of financial assistance.
What financing options does Smith offer you, and what will you qualify for? Keep scrolling for more information. Keep going to learn what amount of financial assistance will be accessible to you.
How much aid you qualify for depends largely on your family’s financial circumstances. Continue reading to find information to help you understand just how much assistance you can expect to receive from Smith College.
Financial assistance, available as scholarships, loans, and work-study, is a way schools lower the price of attendance so many students can enroll. Some kinds of aid are clearly preferable to others, and outcomes differ across students.
Looking at the entering class at Smith College, 72% of the incoming full-time class was awarded financial aid approximately 467 freshmen).
| Type of Aid | % of Freshmen Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 67% | $58,725 |
| Institutional grants & scholarships | 67% | $56,923 |
| Federal Pell grants | 16% | $5,428 |
| State/local grants | 5% | $3,306 |
| Federal student loans | 15% | $5,436 |
Unlike loans, grants and scholarships are gift aid that does not need to be paid back, making them the most desirable form of assistance. At Smith, around 71% of undergraduates were awarded grant or scholarship aid averaging $57,028 (across roughly 1768 students).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 71% | $57,028 |
| Federal Pell grants | 18% | $5,440 |
| Federal student loans | 14% | $6,293 |
For students living on campus and receiving title-IV aid, grants averaged $58,451.
How much a family pays depends heavily on income, because most aid is awarded on the basis of financial need.
| Family Income | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| $0 – $48,000 | $8,126 |
| $30,001 – $75,000 | $11,105 |
| Over $75,000 | $34,612 |
Each figure is the net price after grants and scholarships, not the published sticker price.
The net price strips out grant and scholarship aid from the sticker price to show roughly what families really pay.
| Cohort | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| On-campus title-IV students | $27,579 |
| Off-campus title-IV students | $26,181 |
To get a personalized net price estimate, try Smith’s net price calculator: npc.collegeboard.org/student/app/smith.
The median federal debt load at Smith comes to $13,500 in federal student debt.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $13,500 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $17,550 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $186.06/mo |
That monthly figure reflects the median graduate debt repaid on a standard 10-year federal schedule.
Percentiles reveal the spread — half of all borrowers fall between the 25th and 75th percentiles. The four reference points below map the debt distribution at Smith.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $6,467 |
| 25th percentile | $13,500 |
| 75th percentile | $23,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $27,000 |
Median debt varies by family income, by first-generation status, and by dependency status.
Median Debt by Income Bracket
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Low income | $14,750 |
| Middle income | $13,500 |
| High income | $13,471 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $14,750 |
| Continuing-generation students | $12,750 |
Dependent vs Independent Students
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| Dependent students | $13,500 |
| Independent students | $16,747 |
The figure below distills the debt data into a single burden category for Smith.
The Stafford program is the federal direct-loan vehicle most undergraduates use. The totals below capture Stafford lending at Smith:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 8981 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $177,030,013 |
Veterans and active-duty service members may qualify for the Post-9/11 GI Bill or DoD Tuition Assistance.
Post-9/11 GI Bill activity
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| GI Bill recipients | 8 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $262,579 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $32,822 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.