by our College Data Analytics TeamThe majority of students are not billed the full sticker price of a school. Rather, they are offered a financial aid plan that includes a mix of loans, grants, scholarships, and possibly work-study opportunities. The sum total of attendance at Washington and Lee University can sound tremendous, but do not forget that almost all students get some type of financial help.
What financing options does Washington and Lee offer you, and what will you qualify for? Keep scrolling for more information. Keep scrolling to find out what amount of financial assistance will be accessible to you.
Eligibility for aid and scholarships is driven mostly by your household’s income and need. Continue reading to find information to help you understand just how much assistance you can expect to receive from Washington and Lee University.
Through a mix of loans, grants, work-study and scholarships, schools bring down the effective cost so more students can attend. Bear in mind that not all aid is equal, and the amount any one student receives can vary widely.
Looking at the entering class at Washington and Lee University, 70% of first-time, full-time freshmen received some form of financial aid approximately 351 first-years).
| Type of Aid | % of Freshmen Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 64% | $63,945 |
| Institutional grants & scholarships | 60% | $64,471 |
| Federal Pell grants | 12% | $5,639 |
| State/local grants | 17% | $6,041 |
| Federal student loans | 13% | $4,928 |
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 Washington and Lee, around 65% of undergraduates were awarded an average grant or scholarship of $58,158 (among about 1227 awardees).
| Award | % of Undergrads Receiving | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grant or scholarship aid (all sources) | 65% | $58,158 |
| Federal Pell grants | 11% | $5,511 |
| Federal student loans | 14% | $5,892 |
For on-campus title-IV students, average grant aid came to $63,219.
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 | $552 |
| $30,001 – $75,000 | $4,392 |
| Over $75,000 | $37,588 |
These figures reflect what title-IV aid recipients pay after grant and scholarship aid is applied.
Net price is the cost remaining after grant and scholarship aid is subtracted from the sticker price, and it is the most useful single number for estimating real cost.
| Cohort | Average Net Price |
|---|---|
| On-campus title-IV students | $23,781 |
| Off-campus title-IV students | $23,911 |
For an estimate tailored to your family circumstances, see Washington and Lee’s NPC: www.wlu.edu/admissions/financial-aid/estimate-your-aid/net-price-calculator.
The median student at Washington and Lee graduates with $16,617 in federal student debt.
| Metric | Amount |
|---|---|
| Median federal debt (all student-aid borrowers) | $16,617 |
| Median federal debt (graduates only) | $19,500 |
| Typical 10-year monthly payment (graduates) | $206.73/mo |
The 10-year payment estimate assumes a standard federal repayment plan and the median graduate debt amount.
The median alone does not show how widely outcomes vary across the student body. Use the percentiles below to see the debt range at Washington and Lee.
| Percentile | Cumulative Federal Debt |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile (lowest-debt students) | $5,302 |
| 25th percentile | $7,500 |
| 75th percentile | $27,000 |
| 90th percentile (highest-debt students) | $29,500 |
How much a student borrows depends heavily on family income, first-gen status, and dependency.
Debt by Income Tier
| Income tier | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| High income | $19,500 |
First-Generation Comparison
| Cohort | Median federal debt |
|---|---|
| First-generation students | $15,835 |
| Continuing-generation students | $17,105 |
A handful of calculated indicators summarize the debt outlook at Washington and Lee.
Most undergraduate borrowing runs through the federal Stafford loan program. The totals below capture Stafford lending at Washington and Lee:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Stafford loan recipients | 3411 |
| Total Stafford loan amount | $105,736,133 |
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 | 28 |
| Total GI Bill amount | $1,215,200 |
| Average GI Bill amount per recipient | $43,400 |
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.