DEKALB COUNTY, GA — Emory University is making a major move to make college more affordable for thousands of families.

Beginning in the fall 2026 semester, all Emory University undergraduate students whose families earn less than $200,000 income per year will no longer pay tuition under the school’s expanded Emory Advantage Plus program.

The initiative will apply to both new and returning students, officials said.

“This is about ensuring access to an Emory education,” said Interim President Leah Ward Sears. “Effective next school year, undergraduate students with family income below $200,000 will pay zero — zero — in tuition.”

University officials said the expansion is the latest step in Emory’s ongoing effort to support talented students and remove financial barriers to higher education.

“Offering free tuition to every student whose family income is $200,000 or less is about leadership,” Sears said. “We want great students to come here without regard to the cost. And we will do everything in our power to give them a great education without the burden of crushing debt.”

Emory University officials say the original Emory Advantage program began in 2007 and it was expanded in the fall 2022 semester when school officials eliminated need-based loans as part of undergraduate students’ financial aid packages.

They were replaced with institutional grants and scholarships.

Currently, nearly 1,050 Emory undergraduates are from Georgia, with most receiving HOPE or Zell Miller scholarships. Over the next four years, Emory officials project the university’s financial aid commitment will exceed $1 billion.