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Clear to partly cloudy. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph.
Updated: May 5, 2025 @ 7:31 am
Suzzallo library is seen on a particularly sunny April 23, 2025.
Suzzallo library is seen on a particularly sunny April 23, 2025.
As UW moves to implement budget cuts across various departments, some community members expressed concern that scholarship grants and financial aid could be at risk.
According to university officials, most scholarships — including the Mary Gates Research Scholarship, Purple & Gold Scholarship, and UW Diversity Scholarship — are funded through private donors, and therefore unlikely to be affected by budget reductions. While broader financial aid programs like the Washington College Grant are seeing eligibility changes at the state level, internal scholarships are not expected to be impacted.
“Scholarships are largely funded by private donors through endowments or current-use gifts,” UW spokesperson Victor Balta wrote in an email statement. “Therefore, any state budget reductions should not impact them, and we do not anticipate impacts to other aid programs.”
Andy Steiner, a fourth-year student at UW, receives the Purple & Gold Scholarship, a merit-based award offered to high-achieving out-of-state students. Each quarter, he receives $1,000 off his tuition. Despite concerns about recent budget cuts, Steiner states that his scholarship remained unaffected this spring quarter.
Annika Singh, a third-year at UW, received the Mary Gates Research Scholarship in May 2024. Singh emphasized the importance of having in-house support from UW through the scholarship.
“Being able to talk to people who actually do the scholarships at UW, who know how to structure it, was really helpful,” Singh said. “It was one of my first times writing a more technical research paper, so getting that immediate feedback was nice.”
The broader financial aid landscape, however, is seeing some subtle changes, particularly at the state level. The Washington College Grant, a need-based financial aid program administered by the state, has slightly narrowed its eligibility criteria. Previously, students from families earning up to 65% of the state’s median income qualified for the full grant. Now, that threshold has been lowered to 60%. Students with higher family incomes may still receive partial grants, though the exact amounts may vary.
“This is a significant protection for hundreds of thousands of students across the state of Washington who are attending public higher-education institutions,” Balta wrote in the email statement, indicating that the program still offers significant aid despite the revised thresholds.
Reach reporter Ayeda Masood at news@dailyuw.com. X: @ayedamasood. Bluesky: @ayedam.bsky.social
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