Eligible Texas students could get free tuition as well as housing and food cost assistance at Texas Christian University beginning next fall.
The university announced its new TCU for Texans program Aug. 4. It aims to allow students to attend TCU who would not have been able to otherwise due to the cost.
“Demand for a TCU degree and our best-in-class student experience continues to grow, and this initiative reflects our deep commitment to ensuring we welcome high-achieving students from every corner of Texas,” Chancellor Daniel Pullin said in a press release. “We want students to know: if you have the drive and talent, we have the support.”
To be eligible, a student must be a Texas resident, a Pell Grant recipient and come from a family with an adjusted gross income of $70,000 or less. Students will be reevaluated for eligibility annually.
During the 2022-23 school year, 384 full-time, first-year undergraduate students at TCU received Pell Grants, making up 15% of enrollment.
The program comes as TCU implements its 10-year strategic plan which includes increasing enrollment by 5,000 students and making the university more accessible for students who need financial assistance.
TCU has grown rapidly in the last decade. Between fall 2014 and fall 2024, enrollment rose by 29%. TCU enrolled 12,938 students last fall.
To meet the growing demand, school officials are expanding the campus, including building more student housing.
Tuition is $63,500 for the upcoming school year, according to the university’s website. Almost 80% of TCU students receive financial aid.
The new program aims to attract in-state students. Out-of-state students have outnumbered Texans at TCU since 2018.
“As TCU continues to attract a student body from every state in the nation, we want Texan families to know they remain a bedrock at TCU,” said Heath Einstein, vice provost for enrollment management, in the press release. “Academically talented Texas students can have confidence that a TCU education is attainable, and we will be there every step of the way to ensure their success.”
TCU joins other Texas universities in offering free tuition to needy students. In November, the University of Texas System announced that students at its campuses whose families make less than $100,000 in adjusted gross income would be eligible for free tuition beginning this fall.
Texas A&M’s Aggie Assurance program covers tuition and fees for families with income and assets below $60,000.
McKinnon Rice is a reporting fellow for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at mckinnon.rice@fortworthreport.org.
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