Urbana, Ill. — New and transfer students from low- and moderate-income families will qualify for free tuition at the University of Illinois beginning the fall semester of 2019.
Robert J. Jones, Chancellor, said the purpose of the free tuition is “to make an Illinois education more accessible to even more residents of our state.” According to the University’s website there are no special hoops to jump through or any barriers to those who qualify. They only need to follow the normal procedure for enrolling at Illinois, making sure to file their Free Application for Federal Student Aid with the University. The Office of Student Financial Aid will automatically notify all recipients of free tuition on their online portal. Jones said, “Four years. Free tuition. It really is that simple.”
The initiative was also designed to help keep high performing students in Illinois. Jones said, “When Illinois residents go out of state for college, there is a good chance they don’t come back – contributing to a “brain drain” that undermines the future of the entire state.” By giving students an incentive to study in Illinois, the hope is that they will remain. Jones said, “With the Illinois Commitment, we gain a new competitive edge to recruit the best new students, and our state keeps our talented young minds in Illinois.”
If successful, this new initiative will strengthen the University as well as the State of Illinois.
(Image: By HalloweenHJB [CC BY 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)%5D, from Wikimedia Commons)
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