Best of CASE District II Award
 

Institution: Ithaca College

Title of entry: The Ithaca Commitment: Our Pricing and Value Strategy

About this entry: Our pricing and value strategy was developed and launched in 2022 to build trust through transparency among prospective and current students and to enhance recruitment, yield, and retention.

We want our students and their families to:
 feel applying for aid is easier.
 believe we are committed to making an IC education affordable as possible.
 know what to expect financially in their next four years, so their family can plan ahead.
 use financial language that is easy to understand.
 be clear about benefits of what we are doing.

Introduced as the Ithaca Commitment, a promise to our students and their families/supporters, this strategy Includes the following:

 A Four-Year Financial Forecast—a clear, detailed, four-year overview of a student’s expected college costs and financial aid—so that students and families can see the full cost of an IC education, not just the first year.
 A streamlined financial aid process and new online aid package that includes the elimination of the CSS Profile for aid consideration and details about the different types of aid a student is eligible for.
 One-on-one appointments with IC’s financial aid experts to discuss the best options for financing an IC education for answering any questions they may have.
 A free IC Advantage course for students, allowing them to take a one-credit summer course free of charge and up to two additional one-credit courses for a small fee. These classes are designed to equip students for a successful transition to Ithaca College.