Clarity is changing the standards for how financial aid analysis in independent schools works! By allowing schools to align methodology with mission at the start of the financial aid process instead of making adjustments after the fact, financial aid officers are empowered with the tools to set their methodology in a way that works with their school’s goals and priorities. This is a novel approach to aid, particularly if you’ve spent many years using the same system! Let’s look at some of the benefits to positioning your methodology to match your mission.

‍

Your awarding is guided by your school’s mission and your admission and financial aid priorities.

Grounding your financial aid methodology in the same values that guide your school is an incredibly effective way to show current and prospective families that you are sincere in your desire to make good on your school’s mission. Look at your school’s mission statement, strategic plan, and/or core values as you decide what to prioritize in your methodology. Make sure your financial aid policies reflect those same values. If you don’t yet have a written statement of policies or priorities, draft one and share it with anyone who works on financial aid (or your head of school if you are a committee of one!). Your client success manager can help with best practices around this, and provide you with helpful samples to give you a starting point.

‍

See who your financial aid recipients are, think about who you want them to be, and adjust your methodology accordingly.

Clarity gives schools the tools to adjust or target financial aid budgets to better align with your goals, while also keeping close track of your bottom line tuition revenue through InTuition. Has your board asked you to increase middle class families? Does your strategic plan prioritize equity and access for underrepresented groups? Do you need to maximize tuition revenue and staunch declining enrollment? Clarity is designed so you can target these goals through your methodology. When your awarding and enrollment is done, Insights gives you perspective on the impact of your methodology choices by breaking down your awards and enrolled students by grade, income bracket, zip code, and more.

‍

You’ll be confident that the awards you make fit your mission, and you’ll be able to understand the calculations behind the suggested tuition amounts!

We’ve all been there: the suggested tuition for a family in your financial aid platform just doesn’t make sense, and you can’t figure out why. With Clarity, your methodology choices are clearly reflected in the suggested tuition breakdown for each applicant, so you know just how the suggested tuition number is calculated, and can explain it to the family. And if you ever have questions, your dedicated client success manager is just a phone call or email away to help.

‍