Rutgers University – Newark announced it is significantly expanding a scholarship program that already has helped thousands of New Jersey students achieve their dream of going to college. Since 2016, Rutgers University – Newark Talent & Opportunity Pathways (RU-N to the TOP) has made scholarships available to nearly 5,000 students to cover the difference between other aid they receive and the full cost of in-state tuition and mandatory fees. Effective fall 2022, RU-N to the TOP will significantly expand eligibility to make many more dreams come true.
Currently, admitted undergraduates whose household income is $60,000 or less and who are either Newark residents or are transferring from any New Jersey community college are eligible for the scholarship. As of fall 2022, RU-N to the TOP will cover students whose household income is $65,000 or less and add the cities of East Orange, Orange, and Irvington to its geographic areas of eligibility.
“We expect hundreds of new students to become eligible for scholarships at Rutgers-Newark through RU-N to the TOP’s expansion,” said Rutgers-Newark Chancellor Nancy Cantor. “By increasing the range of family incomes and hometowns that qualify, we are significantly increasing the affordability of a college education at Rutgers-Newark for students from an even larger swath of the state.”
RU-N to the TOP’s expansion is designed to dovetail with the Garden State Guarantee program announced last spring by New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and Secretary of Higher Education Brian Bridges. Under this initiative taking effect for fall 2022, New Jersey’s four-year public institutions will assure that financial aid from state, federal, institutional, and other grants or scholarships will eliminate the cost of in-state tuition and mandatory fees for the third and fourth years of full-time undergraduate study for New Jersey residents with household incomes below $65,000. Under the Garden State Guarantee, the institutions also will commit to keeping the net cost of in-state tuition and mandatory fees for those years below $7,500 for students with household incomes between $65,000 and $80,000. Cantor said Rutgers-Newark also is formulating plans to keep net costs even lower for students with household incomes from $65,000 to $100,000.
“As families across New Jersey prepare to gather for the holidays, we want everyone to know that we take our role as an anchor institution in our community very seriously,” she said. “An essential part of that is doing everything we can to make sure college is within reach. Education is the door to success. Access and affordability are the keys to that door and we are determined to put those keys in the hands of as many students as possible.”
