Top 250 Public Schools for Freshman Financial Aid

One of the most stressful and consequential decisions a looming college freshman can make is in regards to which specific higher education institution they will attend.

Do you want a big school or a small school? A school with great athletics or a school with quaint scenery? One that has a loosely regulated curriculum with plenty of unique courses or a highly specific school that urges students to concentrate on one subject area?

If you answered the former to each of those questions, than you most likely wish to attend a public institution. Public universities are known for their expansive campuses and student bodies, powerhouse football and basketball programs, and the freedom that they allow to students to find their academic calling.

Plus, there is one huge benefit to public colleges and universities: In-state or not, public colleges are often way cheaper for the student than are private institutions.

However, all things considered, public colleges are still expensive. Because of this, many undergraduate freshman will still depend on financial aid to begin their journey at the public institution of their choosing.

The Student Loan Report is here to tell you at which public colleges and universities can freshman undergraduate students expect to receive the most financial aid. We have done so by using Peterson's Financial Aid Dataset, which provides financial aid data self-reported by the respective higher education institutions.

Please keeping reading to discover the 250 public colleges and universities that have been recognized by The Student Loan Report as the public institutions that distribute the most financial aid to freshman students.

Rank	School Name	Freshmen Financial Aid
1	University of California, Riverside	22,241
2	University of Virginia	21,517
3	University of California, Los Angeles	21,100
4	University of California, Santa Barbara	20,526
5	University of California, Davis	20,328
6	University of California, Santa Cruz	20,079
7	University of California, Irvine	20,049
8	Rutgers University–New Brunswick	19,765
9	University of California, San Diego	19,028
10	University of Vermont	17,711
11	University of Michigan	17,410
12	The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	17,240
13	The College of William and Mary	15,468
14	University of California, Berkeley	15,053
15	University of Washington, Tacoma	15,000
16	University of Washington, Bothell	15,000
17	University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign	14,652
18	Purdue University	14,008
19	University of Washington	14,000
20	University of Illinois at Chicago	13,899
21	The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina	13,821
22	University of Illinois at Springfield	13,815
23	The University of Alabama	13,777
24	New Jersey Institute of Technology	13,482
25	The College of New Jersey	13,272
26	Ramapo College of New Jersey	13,210
27	Virginia Military Institute	12,953
28	Georgia Institute of Technology	12,920
29	Arizona State University at the Downtown Phoenix campus	12,702
30	Indiana University Bloomington	12,495
31	Massachusetts Maritime Academy	12,373
32	Arizona State University at the Tempe campus	12,360
33	University of Houston–Downtown	12,002
34	Rutgers University–Newark	11,909
35	Rutgers University–Camden	11,710
36	San Jose State University	11,596
37	Texas A&M University	11,549
38	Washington State University	11,490
39	The University of Tennessee	11,488
40	University of Colorado Boulder	11,465
41	Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College	11,465
42	Western Carolina University	11,349
43	Arizona State University at the West campus	11,298
44	Texas A&M University–Commerce	11,201
45	Arizona State University at the Polytechnic campus	11,152
46	University of Missouri–St. Louis	11,101
47	University of Pittsburgh at Bradford	11,048
48	Louisiana Tech University	10,983
49	University of Wisconsin–Madison	10,922
50	The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley	10,896
51	California State University, Northridge	10,802
52	California State University, Monterey Bay	10,744
53	Florida State University	10,742
54	California State University, Chico	10,733
55	University of Massachusetts Amherst	10,723
56	The Ohio State University	10,699
57	University of Rhode Island	10,594
58	California State University, Fresno	10,573
59	The University of Texas at Dallas	10,535
60	North Carolina State University	10,526
61	Sonoma State University	10,498
62	University of Missouri	10,495
63	Prairie View A&M University	10,485
64	University of Massachusetts Boston	10,463
65	Western Illinois University	10,459
66	University of Minnesota, Twin Cities Campus	10,456
67	Clemson University	10,441
68	St. Mary's College of Maryland	10,408
69	University of Georgia	10,337
70	University of Houston	10,308
71	California State University, San Bernardino	10,298
72	The University of Arizona	10,288
73	Miami University	10,287
74	Missouri University of Science and Technology	10,282
75	University of Minnesota, Morris	10,266
76	California State University, Stanislaus	10,231
77	University of Minnesota, Crookston	10,221
78	Stony Brook University, State University of New York	10,195
79	Montclair State University	10,145
80	University of Delaware	10,142
81	Michigan State University	10,138
82	Buffalo State College, State University of New York	10,105
83	University of Maryland, College Park	10,072
84	University of Massachusetts Dartmouth	10,070
85	New Mexico State University	10,052
86	University of Montevallo	10,048
87	University of Houston–Clear Lake	10,025
88	University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma	10,007
89	University of Pittsburgh	9,960
90	Central Washington University	9,959
91	Illinois State University	9,916
92	New Jersey City University	9,884
93	University of Massachusetts Lowell	9,853
94	Towson University	9,832
95	University of Hawaii at Manoa	9,831
96	State University of New York College at Potsdam	9,812
97	Winthrop University	9,785
98	University of Louisville	9,768
99	Stephen F. Austin State University	9,758
100	California State University, East Bay	9,758
101	Francis Marion University	9,736
102	New College of Florida	9,728
103	Adams State University	9,719
104	Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis	9,706
105	California State Polytechnic University, Pomona	9,695
106	The University of Texas at Austin	9,642
107	San Diego State University	9,600
108	University of North Texas	9,579
109	Rowan University	9,557
110	The University of Texas at El Paso	9,521
111	University of Mississippi	9,519
112	Northern Illinois University	9,519
113	Stockton University	9,491
114	Michigan Technological University	9,425
115	The University of Alabama in Huntsville	9,402
116	University of Maryland, Baltimore County	9,373
117	The University of Toledo	9,361
118	Wayne State University	9,352
119	University of Northern Colorado	9,348
120	California State University, San Marcos	9,343
121	Texas Woman's University	9,318
122	Sam Houston State University	9,271
123	William Paterson University of New Jersey	9,222
124	Texas A&M University–Kingsville	9,207
125	University of Maine	9,199
126	Humboldt State University	9,186
127	University of Oregon	9,185
128	San Francisco State University	9,109
129	The Evergreen State College	9,090
130	Auburn University	9,078
131	Binghamton University, State University of New York	9,067
132	University of Maine at Machias	9,050
133	University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg	9,033
134	University of South Florida	9,005
135	Massachusetts College of Art and Design	9,005
136	Kentucky State University	8,967
137	State University of New York College at Oneonta	8,934
138	Tarleton State University	8,929
139	Kean University	8,910
140	California State University, Sacramento	8,867
141	Purchase College, State University of New York	8,807
142	University at Albany, State University of New York	8,794
143	Radford University	8,754
144	State University of New York at Plattsburgh	8,751
145	Eastern Illinois University	8,743
146	Eastern Washington University	8,734
147	Midwestern State University	8,728
148	State University of New York College of Technology at Canton	8,722
149	University of Nebraska at Kearney	8,711
150	The University of Texas of the Permian Basin	8,650
151	University of Minnesota, Duluth	8,648
152	California State University, Los Angeles	8,622
153	Western Washington University	8,614
154	Southern Illinois University Carbondale	8,605
155	Truman State University	8,587
156	Central Michigan University	8,560
157	Nicholls State University	8,557
158	University of Louisiana at Lafayette	8,529
159	University of Southern Maine	8,477
160	Florida Atlantic University	8,472
161	Frostburg State University	8,469
162	Appalachian State University	8,447
163	Penn State Lehigh Valley	8,429
164	Texas Tech University	8,411
165	The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga	8,382
166	University of Missouri–Kansas City	8,378
167	James Madison University	8,376
168	University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown	8,367
169	The University of Texas at San Antonio	8,345
170	Oklahoma State University	8,337
171	Iowa State University of Science and Technology	8,333
172	State University of New York at Oswego	8,317
173	Keene State College	8,277
174	Old Dominion University	8,273
175	University of North Carolina School of the Arts	8,256
176	The University of Iowa	8,225
177	University of Utah	8,212
178	Elizabeth City State University	8,201
179	Penn State Abington	8,148
180	Penn State Greater Allegheny	8,142
181	Temple University	8,129
182	Colorado State University	8,107
183	Oakland University	8,102
184	Jackson State University	8,102
185	Southern Illinois University Edwardsville	8,070
186	Grand Valley State University	8,060
187	California State University Maritime Academy	8,030
188	University of Southern Indiana	7,997
189	Texas State University	7,953
190	University at Buffalo, the State University of New York	7,952
191	East Carolina University	7,882
192	College of Coastal Georgia	7,875
193	University of Nebraska–Lincoln	7,875
194	Rhode Island College	7,802
195	Penn State Shenango	7,788
196	Northeastern Illinois University	7,774
197	Indiana University Kokomo	7,762
198	Texas A&M International University	7,741
199	Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi	7,734
200	California State University, Long Beach	7,731
201	University of Florida	7,711
202	North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University	7,701
203	Northwestern State University of Louisiana	7,672
204	East Tennessee State University	7,636
205	Indiana University East	7,627
206	Lamar University	7,618
207	The University of Virginia's College at Wise	7,606
208	Eastern Oregon University	7,574
209	Oregon State University	7,563
210	Georgia Southern University	7,559
211	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University	7,550
212	The University of Kansas	7,545
213	University of Maine at Presque Isle	7,523
214	Penn State Beaver	7,497
215	Penn State Erie, The Behrend College	7,493
216	Penn State Schuylkill	7,488
217	The University of Texas at Arlington	7,427
218	University of South Carolina Aiken	7,426
219	Penn State Harrisburg	7,395
220	Penn State Hazleton	7,387
221	Penn State Brandywine	7,384
222	Northwest Missouri State University	7,375
223	Saginaw Valley State University	7,368
224	Clayton State University	7,335
225	Austin Peay State University	7,329
226	Morrisville State College	7,325
227	Penn State Berks	7,280
228	University of Central Oklahoma	7,259
229	George Mason University	7,258
230	University of Colorado Colorado Springs	7,255
231	Longwood University	7,235
232	Farmingdale State College	7,225
233	Penn State Worthington Scranton	7,212
234	Indiana University South Bend	7,206
235	Virginia Commonwealth University	7,205
236	Salisbury University	7,197
237	University of Colorado Denver	7,195
238	Valley City State University	7,187
239	Pennsylvania College of Technology	7,186
240	University of South Alabama	7,184
241	Rogers State University	7,177
242	Penn State University Park	7,155
243	Western Michigan University	7,104
244	Western State Colorado University	7,083
245	Western Oregon University	7,060
246	Marshall University	7,050
247	Penn State Wilkes-Barre	7,044
248	Southern Oregon University	7,043
249	University of North Carolina at Asheville	7,040
250	Northeastern State University	7,035

Methodology

The data used in this report was pulled using licensed data from Peterson's Financial Aid Dataset. These values pertain to the academic year of 2015 - 2016. The data used from Peterson's dataset are self-reported by the colleges themselves.

Each school in this report was ranked from highest to lowest based on the freshman financial aid awarded by the school.

Top 250 Public Schools for Freshman Financial Aid | 2017