We offer significant institutional financial aid to help make a Lehigh degree an affordable option for all students, regardless of their family’s financial circumstances.

Our office determines your financial aid award based on your family’s demonstrated financial need, which is calculated taking many factors into consideration, such as your family’s income, assets, and household size. A student’s need-based eligibility is calculated each academic year by taking the total costs of attendance and subtracting out the amount that we determine the family can contribute based on the aid application.  Depending on the family situation, students can receive a financial aid package that covers a significant portion of their costs. 

All colleges are required to have a Net Price Calculator available on their website.  This tool allows students to determine what their anticipated financial aid and actual net cost might be.  We strongly recommend using Lehigh’s Net price calculator and following up with a conversation with a Financial Aid counselor.  

All students – at any point in the process – have an assigned financial aid counselor and we have a friendly and knowledgeable staff available to assist you. We understand that the process of applying for financial aid may be confusing or stressful, and we are here to help you in any way we can.

We encourage you to review the information on our website to get a better understanding of how aid works at Lehigh and you can contact our office by phone, email or even schedule an appointment with your counselor using our online scheduling system under the Contact Us section of our website.   

In order to be considered for institutional aid, students must submit a number of applications to our office.  Students will need to submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, otherwise known as the FAFSA, along with the College Board’s CSS Profile.  Both forms are completed online and request a great deal of information, so please set aside approximately 1 hour of your time to complete each form. 

These applications are going to request information from you and your parents’ tax returns and also ask about asset information, so be prepared to be able to provide this when you are completing the application. You will need to submit copies of your tax returns to the Financial Aid Office and we will double check that the information that you provided on the FAFSA and the CSS is correct, so you do not need to worry – if you make a mistake, we will be able to catch it and correct it for you.

Be mindful of the deadlines. If you apply past the deadline, we may not be able to provide you with a financial aid package! 

In order to be considered for institutional aid, students must submit a number of applications to our office.  Students will need to submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, otherwise known as the FAFSA, along with the College Board’s CSS Profile.  Both forms are completed online and request a great deal of information, so please set aside approximately 1 hour of your time to complete each form. 

These applications are going to request information from you and your parents’ tax returns and also ask about asset information, so be prepared to be able to provide this when you are completing the application. You will need to submit copies of your tax returns to the Financial Aid Office and we will double check that the information that you provided on the FAFSA and the CSS is correct, so you do not need to worry – if you make a mistake, we will be able to catch it and correct it for you.

Be mindful of the deadlines. If you apply past the deadline, we may not be able to provide you with a financial aid package! 

It may be the case that a student chooses to borrow loans to cover a portion of their amount due after financial aid is taken into consideration. Students who submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid will be offered Direct Loans, which are student loans from the Government, as part of their financial aid package. A student can choose to borrow a private education loan – either in addition to or instead of – the Direct Loans.

A private education loan is a loan that can be applied for by a student separately from the need-based application and award. Lehigh does not recommend any specific private loan option but strongly recommends that you carefully review the terms and conditions of multiple private loan options as they can vary greatly. To assist with this process, a list of private loans recently used by Lehigh students can be found on our ELMSelect site.

If you are considering borrowing and have any questions or concerns about the process, we are here to help!  As a reminder, all students have an assigned financial aid counselor and we have a friendly and knowledgeable staff available to assist you. You can contact our office by phone, email or even schedule an appointment with your counselor using our online scheduling system under the Contact Us section of our website.   

Your need-based financial aid award is specific to an academic year. If a student’s family’s income, assets and household information (such as number of family members enrolled in college) remain the same, then the need-based financial aid eligibility will remain similar each year. If factors such as family income or the number of siblings enrolled in undergraduate college change, these will result in changes to our calculated Expected Family Contribution and, in turn, a student’s financial aid award. 

In addition, students need to reapply annually by March 15. If a student fails to reapply by the deadline, they may qualify for, but not receive, financial aid. Another reason that aid packages might change is if a student fails to make satisfactory academic progress. 

In addition to a regular financial aid package to cover the cost of attendance, Lehigh offers many programs designed to provide funds for unique learning experiences and help students throughout their time here. We are fortunate to have an emergency aid fund which can be used to cover unexpected expenses including travel expenses due to a death or illness in the family, emergency medical and/or dental costs (not otherwise covered by insurance), and replacement of items lost due to fire or theft. 

Lehigh also provides funding to cover fees to participate in experiences that support personal, professional and educational development such as training seminars, conferences, workshops, travel grants to support study abroad programs, a loaner laptop program for students who cannot afford a new laptop, and we have a fantastic program called the Iacocca International Internship Program, which provides students with paid internships across all disciplines and in all regions of the world. 

The Iacocca International Internship Program covers airfare, housing, local transportation and most meals. The funding does not cover passport or visa fees, immunizations, optional excursions, or personal expenses. Interns also receive a modest stipend to offset the loss of wages during the internship period.

It certainly can be the case that the net cost of attending Lehigh University ends up being less than you would expect to pay at a college or university whose tuition and fees are lower than Lehigh’s.  All family situations are unique, which is why we encourage you to utilize the Net Price Calculator available on our website to determine what your anticipated net cost will actually be to attend Lehigh.  It is possible that it is more affordable than you thought! 

TWO most important things.

One is that you should not let the tuition costs deter you from applying to Lehigh.  Financial aid is designed to ensure that all students have access to a Lehigh education.  Do your homework – determine your anticipated net cost by using the Net Price Calculator and speak with a financial aid counselor to discuss aid options. 

The second is that you should contact the financial aid office if you have any questions at any point in the process. If you are unsure if you answered a question correctly – contact us. If you are unable to submit a document that we are requesting – contact us. If you have your award and don’t understand it – contact us!

We are here to help you get the answers that you need to make an informed decision on where to continue your education.