MIT announced it would eliminate $1,000 in loans and work-study requirements for all students on financial aid coupled with a pledge to increase overall scholarships by 14 percent Some needier students' burdens will be relieved by as much as $ 3,500.

Penn

Penn announced it will give 50 of its most prized applicants new "Trustee Scholarships," aid packages that replace all loans with outright grants. This program will cost about $125,000. "Preferential packages" are not formally considered merit scholarships because they still offer aid based on calculations of demonstrated need. The new program completely eliminates self-help for the 50 Trustee Scholars.

Princeton

Princeton's new policy will eliminate all loans when a student's family makes less than $40,000 a year, absorbing what had been $4,080 in debt into an increased grant package in some cases. It will benefit middle-class students by eliminating home equity in calculating expected contributions from families making $90,000 or less. Princeton also replaces needier students' loans with outright grants.

Stanford

Stanford announced sweeping changes to its policies last week, including a pledge not to reduce grants when students find outside scholarships. The plan will allow students to eliminate the work-study and loan provisions of their aid package with scholarship funds. Stanford will also limit the amount of family assets used in calculating need.

Yale

Yale's new system is expected to bring the students between $1,400 and $6000 more per year. The plan will ignore the first $150,000 of a family's assets in calculating that family's expected contribution. The amount students must contribute from summer job incomes will also decrease, allowing for lower-paying internships or a summer abroad.