This article was originally reported in November 2025. The program took effect in the 2026–27 academic year; details for applicants are in the sections below.
On November 13, 2025, Johns Hopkins University announced that undergraduate study on its Homewood campus will be tuition-free for students from families earning up to $200,000 a year. Students from families earning up to $100,000 will also have fees and living expenses covered, so their parents are expected to contribute nothing. According to the university, the income threshold covers more than 85% of American households based on U.S. Census data. The change applied to current students starting in spring 2026 and to new students entering in fall 2026 (JHU Hub, November 13, 2025; WTOP).
The Johns Hopkins Tuition Promise at a glance
| Family income | What Hopkins covers |
|---|---|
| Up to $100,000 | Tuition, fees, housing, dining and most personal expenses; $0 parent contribution |
| $100,000–$200,000 | Full tuition; the family pays mainly housing, dining and personal costs, with need-based aid possible |
| Above $200,000 | Need-based scholarships meeting 100% of demonstrated need |
| Up to $250,000 and above | Most families up to $250,000 still receive significant aid; higher-income families may qualify, especially with several children in college at once |
The thresholds are guidelines rather than hard cutoffs. Hopkins treats assets of less than about three times annual income as typical; home equity and retirement accounts are not counted. The promise applies to undergraduates in the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences and the Whiting School of Engineering, including domestic transfer students. Peabody Conservatory undergraduates are not covered, although Peabody has its own aid program and in 2024 committed to meeting students’ need without loans. Hopkins does not include loans in its aid offers (JHU Student Financial Support: Tuition Promise; The Johns Hopkins News-Letter).
How Hopkins pays for it
The expansion builds on Michael R. Bloomberg’s $1.8 billion gift in 2018, which let Hopkins admit students without considering their ability to pay, remove loans from aid packages and meet full demonstrated need. Since 2018, nearly 1,200 other donors have given more than $240 million for financial aid, and the new program is funded from endowment sources already dedicated to financial aid. From 2018 to 2025, the share of Pell Grant-eligible students in the entering class rose from 15.4% to 24.1%, the highest in the university’s history (JHU Hub).
President Ron Daniels said the change would help in “recruiting the best and brightest students to Johns Hopkins irrespective of their financial wherewithal.” David Phillips, vice provost for admissions and financial aid, said: “Trying to understand financial aid offers can be overwhelming. A big goal here is to simplify the process” (JHU Hub). According to the student newspaper, about 41% of current students would pay no tuition under the new rules, and Hopkins joined MIT, the University of Pennsylvania, Stanford, Cornell and Yale among universities offering free tuition below an income limit (The Johns Hopkins News-Letter).
What it means for international applicants
- Apply for aid when you apply for admission. International students are eligible for the Tuition Promise only if they applied for and received financial aid at the time of admission. They file the CSS Profile once, in the first year, and the aid level is then kept for all four years (JHU Student Financial Support). International students offered aid at admission do not need to reapply (JHU: Applying for Financial Aid).
- The cost without aid is high. Full tuition is about $66,000 in the current academic year, before housing, dining and other costs, and students who do not qualify for aid pay the full cost of attendance (JHU Student Financial Support).
- Admission is very selective. For fall 2025, Hopkins received 45,895 first-year applications and admitted 2,954 (6.4%). Of 30,210 students enrolled that fall, 8,152 were international, including 934 of 6,356 undergraduates (IPEDS).
- Rankings: Hopkins ranks No. 9 among national universities in the U.S. News 2027 edition, No. 20 in QS World University Rankings 2027 and No. 17 in the THE World University Rankings 2027 (Forward Pathway’s US Colleges Ranking).
Latest update
The promise is now in effect for the 2026–27 academic year. Current students received a one-time aid adjustment in spring 2026, and domestic students are reassessed each year (JHU Student Financial Support). For deadlines, testing policy and costs, see the Johns Hopkins University profile.
References
- JHU Hub: Johns Hopkins becomes tuition-free for undergraduate students from families earning up to $200,000 (November 13, 2025)
- JHU Student Financial Support: Johns Hopkins Tuition Promise
- JHU Student Financial Support: Applying for Financial Aid
- The Johns Hopkins News-Letter: Hopkins will offer free tuition to undergraduates from families earning up to $200,000
- WTOP: Johns Hopkins University eliminating tuition for most students
- Forward Pathway: Johns Hopkins University profile