The Lawrence Advantage: an investment in our students

As part of our pledge to make a selective liberal arts education possible for students from all backgrounds, we are excited to introduce the Lawrence Advantage.

Born from the desire for families to know they have us as partners in investing in their student’s education and fueled by our generous alumni, the Lawrence Advantage will fully meet the demonstrated institutional need of students from Wisconsin and Illinois – our top two states represented among Lawrence’s incoming students.

As the No. 1 liberal arts college in Wisconsin in the U.S. News & World Report’s annual Best Colleges rankings, one of the best colleges in the nation by the Princeton Review, and one of the Colleges that Change Lives, Lawrence University through the Lawrence Advantage, beginning with students admitted for Fall 2023, wants to ensure a path to our College of Arts and Sciences and Conservatory of Music for all students in the Wisconsin-Illinois corridor.

The Lawrence Advantage, funded by donors who are driven to support the full financial need of Lawrence students and have contributed more than $95.1 million for new and endowed scholarships since January 2014, is the latest step in Lawrence University’s path toward becoming a full-need institution. For a student from Wisconsin or Illinois, the Lawrence Advantage will meet any remaining need not covered by scholarships, grants, federal loans, and student employment through a supplemental Lawrence grant for all four years of their college experience (or five years for students in the BA/BMus double degree program). Covering this funding gap can be the difference for a student wanting to enroll at their preferred school and not wanting to take on additional debt. The average student debt for Lawrence graduates has already declined by more than $5,000 over the past half dozen years thanks to incredible donor support.

As President Laurie Carter stated, “This is a celebratory moment. Our generous donors have been so loyal, and this is the payoff.”

Carter called the Lawrence Advantage a major step forward as more students with limited resources will be able to attend Wisconsin’s No. 1-rated liberal arts college.

“This is being funded by alumni and friends of the university who want to pay it forward,” Carter said. “They are our incredible alumni who have gone on to be innovators and leaders all over the world. They want to give the next generation those same opportunities, the same advantage that comes with a Lawrence education.”

Find details on Lawrence Advantage here 

The Lawrence Advantage announcement comes as Lawrence is celebrating the 175th anniversary of its founding in 1847.