UNDERGRADUATE ADMISSION

MONEY MATTERS

Investing in a Case education is no small potatoes: Case's average total cost is a lot of money. On first glance, it might even generate a kind of sticker shock. But with our extensive scholarship and financial aid, you might find that the prospect of financing a Case education is much more affordable than you thought.

We create a financial aid package by first determining your "expected family contribution" (EFC) from information provided on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The EFC is the amount of money your family can afford to spend to send you to school. The difference between college costs and your EFC is called your financial need. Case's financial aid programs can help you cover that need.

There are two main types of financial aid: need-based and merit-based.  Need-based aid includes grants or gift assistance, which you do not pay back; loans, which may come from the federal government, private banks, or the University itself; and employment, also known as work study.  Eligibility for need-based aid is determined by the amount of financial need you have.

Merit-based aid, or scholarships, are determined according to academic achievement, leadership, artistic talent, or other personal qualities that distinguish you in the applicant pool. Merit-based aid doesn't consider you or your family's financial situation, so in other words you could be Bill Gates' kid and still receive a merit-based scholarship. As a prospective student, there is no additional scholarship application for you to fill out; we evaluate all applicants for merit-based aid.

We award scholarships  to students who are above average in our applicant pool.  One of the measures is your SAT or ACT score. However, since test scores are not the only measure we consider, many students scoring below the median also received a scholarship.