Financial Aid Office

We are a vibrant, radically inclusive community and we want to attract more students to the College. Lowering the published tuition price closer to what students actually pay is a step in that direction and part of our Progressive Promise to ensure access and inclusion for all. Having a published price significantly higher than what most students pay after scholarships, aid and other awards serves no one. In fact, many students are overlooking us because of our high tuition price without knowing that scholarships, financial aid and our work program make it much more affordable.

No. Due to generous scholarships, financial aid and other awards, most families pay a much lower amount than our published tuition price. However, we know students often make decisions to explore colleges based on published tuition price alone, and we want to make sure they do not overlook Warren Wilson. We hope that by lowering our published tuition price closer to what students pay after scholarships and financial aid, we will attract more students to the College.

Our Financial Aid Office is committed to working with you and your family to ensure a Warren Wilson education is accessible and affordable. That will not change. We will continue to keep net tuition as affordable as possible through generous scholarships, financial aid and other awards that will be adjusted in line with the new lower tuition. And our Free Tuition Programs – the NC Free Tuition Plan and Milepost One Tuition Scholarship – will remain.

The “published price” is a college’s tuition. The actual cost to attend is the “net tuition,” which is the cost to a student after scholarships and aid are applied. Warren Wilson works hard to make an outstanding education accessible to all. We offer generous scholarships, financial aid and other awards to our students that often make the net tuition cost per student much lower than the published tuition price. Now that we are lowering the published tuition price to $25,500, it will be much closer to what students typically pay.

Warren Wilson is lowering the published tuition price to $25,500 for all full-time students, both new and returning, beginning with the 2025-2026 academic year. However, the total amount each student pays is determined by a number of individual factors and will differ from student to student as it does currently.

Personalized estimates for costs, scholarships, financial aid and other awards for the 2025-2026 academic year are being sent to all first-years, sophomores, and juniors via email. If you have questions, please contact our Financial Aid Office at
finaid@warren-wilson.edu or call/text (828) 771-2082.

The lower tuition will begin in the fall of 2025 for the 2025-2026 academic year. There are no changes to tuition for the 2024-2025 academic year.

As always, students will continue to pay different amounts based on varying levels of scholarships, financial aid and other awards. Tuition for full-time students attending in the 2025-2026 academic year will be $25,500. The net tuition price you pay next year will be the same as it would have been had there been no change to tuition. Fees and costs for food and housing are updated each year and often fluctuate due to inflation and changing costs to operate our dining facilities and residence halls. The exact fees and costs for 2025-2026 have not yet been determined for 2025-2026, however, any increases are expected to be modest.

The Warren Wilson College Board of Trustees sets tuition and other costs annually based on a number of factors, including inflation and operational costs, but is committed to ensuring a Warren Wilson education is accessible and affordable while considering the long-term financial stability of the College. Families can expect slight increases to the tuition price in the future. Because of the lower base tuition beginning in the fall of 2025, however, annual tuition increases thereafter will be lower than they would have been without the decrease in tuition, resulting in an overall savings for most returning students.

As it always has, Warren Wilson will also continue to keep the net tuition cost as affordable as possible through generous scholarships, financial aid and other awards that will be adjusted in line with the new lower tuition.

The lower published tuition price will narrow the gap between the advertised price and what students typically pay after scholarships, financial aid and other awards. Returning students should expect to pay the same net tuition price next year as they would have paid had there been no change to tuition because scholarships, financial aid and other awards are being adjusted in line with the lower tuition. For most students this is $1,250 more due to modest annual increases.

Overall, however, some returning students (current first-years and sophomores) will also benefit from year-over-year savings. Because of a lower base tuition, future annual tuition increases will be lower than they would have been without the decrease in tuition, resulting in an overall savings.

Like always, the amount each student pays is determined by a number of individual factors. Personalized estimates for costs, scholarships, financial aid and other awards for the 2025-2026 academic year are being sent to all first-years, sophomores, and juniors via email. If you have questions or do not receive your personalized estimates, please contact our Financial Aid Office at finaid@warren-wilson.edu or call/text
(828) 771-2082.

Returning students should expect to pay the same net tuition price next year as they would have paid had there been no change to tuition because scholarships, financial aid and other awards are being adjusted in line with the lower tuition. For most students this is $1,250 more due to modest annual increases.

Returning students will also benefit from year-over-year savings. Because of a lower base tuition, future annual tuition increases will be lower than they would have been without the decrease in tuition, resulting in an overall savings. Warren Wilson College cannot project annual increases or guaranteed year-over-year savings this far in advance.

Like always, the amount each student pays is determined by a number of individual factors. Personalized estimates for costs, scholarships, financial aid and other awards for the 2025-2026 academic year are being sent to all first-years, sophomores, and juniors via email. If you have questions or do not receive your personalized estimates, please contact our Financial Aid Office at finaid@warren-wilson.edu or call/text
(828) 771-2082.

Absolutely. As we always have, Warren Wilson works hard to make an outstanding education accessible. We will continue to keep the tuition cost as affordable as possible through generous scholarships, financial aid and other awards that will be adjusted in line with the new lower tuition.

Like always, the amount each student pays is determined by a number of individual factors. Personalized estimates for costs, scholarships, financial aid and other awards for the 2025-2026 academic year are being sent to all freshmen, sophomores, and juniors via email. If  you have questions, please contact our Financial Aid Office at
finaid@warren-wilson.edu or call/text (828) 771-2082.

Absolutely. We will continue to keep the tuition cost as affordable as possible through generous scholarships, financial aid and other awards that will be adjusted in line with the new lower tuition.

Personalized estimates for costs, scholarships, financial aid and other awards for the 2025-2026 academic year are being sent to all freshmen, sophomores, and juniors via email. If you have questions or do not receive your personalized estimates, please contact our Financial Aid Office at finaid@warren-wilson.edu or call/text (828) 771-2082.

No. Warren Wilson works hard to make an outstanding education accessible. We are not making any adjustments to our criteria for awarding scholarships, financial aid and other awards as a result of the new lower tuition, however, we are adjusting the amounts of our scholarships, financial aid and other awards in line with the new tuition. Our Free Tuition Programs – the NC Free Tuition Plan and Milepost One Tuition Scholarship – will remain.

Personalized estimates for costs, scholarships, financial aid and other awards for the 2025-2026 academic year are being sent to all freshmen, sophomores, and juniors via email. If you have questions, please contact our Financial Aid Office at finaid@warren-wilson.edu or call/text (828) 771-2082.

Fees and costs for food and housing are updated each year and often fluctuate due to inflation and changing costs to operate our dining facilities and residence halls. The exact fees and costs for 2025-2026 have not yet been determined, however, any increases are expected to be modest.

Warren Wilson College is innovative and committed to excellence. That commitment and our students’ ability to live in a radically inclusive community and to learn by doing will not change. In fact, through Our Progressive Promise for All, we’re the only college that promises hands-on community-engaged courses, work experiences, research, and an internship for every student in every major.

We are not reducing any programming or faculty/staff positions as a result of the lower tuition. The implementation of a revised curriculum for the 2024–25 academic year further strengthens the College’s emphasis on experiential learning. Every student engages in a for-credit community engagement project; an internship on campus, in Asheville, or anywhere in the world; a capstone research or creative project; and our work program in which every student supports the operations of the College. The new Center for Experiential Learning and Careers helps students take their experiences and launches them into their career or graduate school.

No. The lower tuition will not impact the quality of your academic education at Warren Wilson. In fact, we have just launched a Master of Science in Applied Climate Studies program and are now the only college that promises hands-on community-engaged courses, work experiences, research, and an internship for every student in every major. The implementation of a revised curriculum for the 2024–25 academic year further strengthens the College’s emphasis on experiential learning. Every student engages in a for-credit community engagement project; an internship on campus, in Asheville, or anywhere in the world; a capstone research or creative project; and our work program in which every student supports the operations of the College. The new Center for Experiential Learning and Careers helps students take their experiences and launches them into their career or graduate school.

Absolutely not. We are not reducing any staff or faculty compensation or benefits.

No. We are not making any adjustments to our admission criteria as a result of the lower tuition.

No. Federal Pell Grant eligibility is based on family income and assets as reported on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Federal student loan options are available to all students who complete a FAFSA application. State grant eligibility is determined by completing NC Residency Determination.

In most cases, outside scholarships are applied towards tuition costs not to exceed the cost of attendance. Questions about outside scholarships should be directed to the Financial Aid Office.

No. We encourage you to enroll when you had originally planned. After the new lower tuition goes into effect in the fall, the net tuition price students will pay will be the same as it would have been had there been no change to tuition because scholarships, financial aid and other awards will be adjusted in line with the lower tuition, plus a smaller-than-normal annual tuition increase. There is no significant financial benefit for delaying enrollment.

Click Here for questions regarding Financial Aid for Spring 2025.

The tuition reduction applies only to our undergraduate program. For graduate school costs, please contact the program:
● Masters of Science in Applied Climate Studies
● MFA for Writers program

No. Tuition is being lowered for all undergraduate students.

Each returning student – first-years, sophomores and juniors – should receive personalized estimates for costs, scholarships, financial aid and other awards for the 2025-2026 academic year in your Warren Wilson email. If you do not receive your estimate by September 20th, please contact our Financial Aid Office at finaid@warren-wilson.edu or call/text (828) 771-2082.

Please contact our Financial Aid Office at finaid@warren-wilson.edu or call/text
(828) 771-2082.