Tuition Assistance FAQs

41% of currently enrolled families receive tuition assistance.

Awards are need-based grants which reduce tuition for a family.

Tuition assistance is applied solely towards tuition, which includes textbooks. Co-curricular activities and most athletics are free of any costs. 

Additional expenses a family may incur include:

1. Transportation: Rates vary. A cost sheet is available from Waynflete's Admission Office.

2. Afterschool Program (for students in Lower and Middle School): Rates vary. Please contact Waynflete's Admission Office for further details.

3. Academic Tutoring: The Academic Support Center provides tutoring for students who, in the School's judgment, need additional assistance in meeting Waynflete’s rigorous academic standards. Rates will be discussed in the early stages of implementing a support plan.

It may. Families applying for tuition assistance enter a more competitive applicant pool. While Waynflete has an annual tuition assistance budget of $5 million, the School receives more requests for assistance than can be met each year. Families are asked to apply for tuition assistance only after they have considered all of their other available resources.

Waynflete and SSS believe a family has the primary obligation to finance their child’s education. When offering tuition assistance, the School’s intent is to meet each family’s demonstrated need as much as available funds allow.

School and Student Services (SSS) initially provides Waynflete with an objective, holistic analysis of a family’s need. By filing a Parents' Financial Statement (PFS), the SSS methodology is an important starting point for the School. Variables include household earnings, assets, debt, number of children in a tuition-charging school, age of parents, and national economic factors.

The Waynflete Tuition Assistance Committee individually assesses a family’s financial situation. In addition to the SSS guidelines, assessment by the Committee is completed with degrees of professional judgement and in accordance with the School’s mission and policies.

Yes. The application for tuition assistance (PFS) asks how many children a family projects will be enrolled in a tuition charging school. The Estimated Family Contribution (EFC) is divided by this figure. 

Waynflete expects families will apply for financial assistance at each of the private schools their children may attend. The School will take into account differing levels of tuition. Copies of official tuition assistance awards from other schools may be requested.

Yes. One form may be used for multiple applicants. In this regard, the application for assistance (PFS) should be carefully completed by parents. 

Tuition assistance awards are budgeted as a long-term commitment by the School. Families must reapply and requests are formally reviewed on an annual basis. If financial circumstances remain consistent, a family can expect their award to be renewed for at least the same amount as the previous year. If a significant change is experienced in a family’s calculated need, an award may be adjusted accordingly.

To better understand calculated need, families are encouraged to review their Family Report each year, available on the SSS website after an application is filed.

Waynflete’s priority is to maintain and renew the awards of families already receiving financial assistance. Currently enrolled families interested in submitting a tuition assistance application for the first time, due to a significant and unexpected change in their financial circumstances, should contact the Admission Office prior to completing any paperwork.

The Tuition Assistance Committee requires each biological/custodial parent to separately submit a Parents Financial Statement (PFS) and supporting paperwork. If a biological/custodial parent is remarried or cohabitating, spouses or partners should be included on that parent’s PFS and supporting paperwork should be submitted. When determining an award, the Tuition Assistance Committee will consider all biological/custodial parties.

As needed, families can provide context directly on their PFS or by directly speaking with a member of the admission office. Under the following circumstances, Waynflete will consider waiving the requirement of receiving paperwork from a parent:

• Documentation that states the location of a non-custodial parent is unknown

• Documentation that a non-custodial parent has given no financial support and has had no significant contact with the family in recent past

Requested documentation will be accepted from a lawyer, clergy member, doctor or objective person outside the immediate family.

The application for tuition assistance (PFS) asks if parents are a full proprietor of, or partner in, one or more businesses (or farms). Parents who are self-employed should answer "Yes" and complete all subsequent questions that appear. A copy of the most recent Federal income tax returns should be submitted, with all related Schedules. If applicable, a corporate tax return should also be submitted.

For current families, awards will be finalized at the start of the re-enrollment period. For newly accepted families, tuition assistance awards are included with letters of acceptance.

The Tuition Assistance Committee reviews tuition assistance files which are complete. Families who do not submit paperwork by stated deadlines may experience a delay in any tuition assistance award.

Families who apply and do not qualify for assistance are notified as soon as possible.

Federal tax returns are a critical part of the School’s review process. Taxes for the previous calendar year should be submitted immediately after the filing of a tuition assistance application (PFS). Copies of parents’ most recent W2 or 1099 Forms should be submitted as soon they are received in January. A complete copy of parents’ latest tax return should be submitted as soon as it is available, and by the April 15 tax filing deadline.

In this scenario, confidentiality has been broken. Tuition assistance is a private agreement between Waynflete and an individual family. Discussing details of an award with another party is a breach of that privacy and the School's policies. In addition, families are often unaware of important details of another’s financial picture as well as variables the Tuition Assistance Committee considered in the award process.

A family may contact the Admission Office if they feel pertinent and factual information about their own financial picture and resources might have been overlooked or misunderstood.

Awards are primarily based on income already earned. The Parents Financial Statement (PFS) does ask for projected earnings. When determining awards, Waynflete will work to consider future changes in income.

The Tuition Assistance Committee tries to keep in mind parents may make decisions they feel will financially benefit them more in the longer-term. The Committee is typically unable to subsidize voluntary reductions in household income or resources. Families facing extenuating circumstances may directly speak with a member of the Admission Office when completing their application for tuition assistance.

Rental income, as well as the total value of a property, strengthens a financial picture. In general, property is unprotected when calculating tuition assistance. The Tuition Assistance Committee will fully review a family's financial profile, including provisions made for retirement, and make decisions in accordance with the School's polices and sense of fairness. Families facing extenuating circumstances may directly speak with a member of the Admission Office when completing their application.

The Tuition Assistance Committee will carefully review personal and corporate tax forms, including profit income, debt and all held assets. As paperwork is reviewed the committee will ask for any needed clarification.

The Tuition Assistance Committee follows School and Service (SSS) guidelines. Family savings, investments, trust-funds, 529 Plans, or other assets will be carefully reviewed and considered when determining tuition assistance awards. Information about a student’s financial assets is requested on the Parents Financial Statement. A portion of a family’s contribution may be determined by dividing the value of assets in a student’s name by the remaining number of years they will be in school, including college.