Financial Resources
Financial resources through the FIRST Center are available to eligible undergraduate students only. Post-bacc, certificate, and graduate students do not qualify.
Attending college provides students with many exciting opportunities in and out of the classroom. However, we understand that some of these opportunities come at a cost beyond your tuition and fees. While Tufts provides financial aid meeting students' needs to support tuition, fees, housing, food, transportation to and from Tufts, and textbooks, it is important to know that students will incur several additional costs that they must manage with their own finances or by working. Tufts is also excited to offer some ideas and additional funding to mitigate some of these costs.
Student Perspectives
Below is information from other students that help shed light on finances, so you can best budget for your time at college.
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Education
- Class materials (textbooks, online access codes, computer software, iClickers, lab materials)
- Summer courses
- Printing prices
- Study Abroad, including application fees
- Professional attire for interviews and events
Travel
- Getting to and around Boston
Graduation
- Senior Week activities
- Commencement preparations
Miscellaneous
- Clubs and organizations
- Meals after hours
- Off-campus housing
- The Tufts tradition of painting the cannon
- Seasonal clothing
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Employment
- Working part-time or utilizing work study opportunities
- Taking on non-work study opportunities
- Internships
Budgeting
- Borrowing needed supplies and materials like textbooks
- Selling unwanted clothes and textbooks
Miscellaneous
- Completing Psychology studies for money
- Prioritizing activities based on cost
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- Career Center
- Deans, Financial Counselors, Major Advisors
- E-lists for free food opportunities on campus
- Health Services
- Inter-Library Loan
- JobX
- Free printing from any center within the Division of Student Diversity and Inclusion
- Scanning books in Tisch
- STEM Diversity events
- Student Services
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- Amazon
- Buying in bulk
- Facebook Groups
- Family members
- Free clinics
- Groupon
- Student Universe for booking flights
- Thrift shops
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- Admissions
- StAAR Center tutoring
- Asking professors
- Babysitting
- Chaplaincy
- Dining Services
- Dowling
- Event staff
- Gym
- Hodgdon
- Library
- Lifeguarding
- Mail Services
- Music Department
- OCL jobs
- Research Assistant
- Telefund
- Temp agencies
- Tufts Literacy Corps
Book It Forward Lending Library
Eligibility: Students receiving financial aid
Donate a Book
The Book It Forward Lending Library through FIRST accepts select books at any time. Please email first@tufts.edu about donating. You are also welcome to donate books to the bookstore at the end of the semester, or to boxes in select residential halls on campus at the end of the academic year.
Access a Book
Students with a Family Contribution of $10,000 and below may access books at any time during the semester. Those with a higher Family Contribution may only access books after the add period.
Please note that our library is made up of donated used books and does not contain any access codes. Our list of books can be found here.
We also encourage students to explore the following potential resources.
- Textbooks on reserve
- Interlibrary loans
- No-cost course materials & Open Educational Resources (OER)
- Open Textbook Library
- External sites such as AbeBooks.com, Chegg.com, SlugBooks.com, eCampus.com, eBooks.com, or Amazon.com
- Students should take advantage of the Tufts Bookstore price matching policy if they find better prices on other sites to avoid paying for shipping charges.
Request a Book from the Book It Forward Lending Library
- If you wish to request a book from our list, you must complete our Book Request Form. (Note: The request form is currently closed and will reopen by 5:00 PM ET on August 25, 2025.)
- Please no in-person or phone requests.
- Please submit one form for each book. Please do not request multiple books in one submission.
- Please do not submit any duplicate requests, as they prolong processing time.
- Please do not request a book or an edition that is not on the list. If it is not on the list, then we do not have a copy.
- Requests will be processed in the order in which they were received.
- You will receive a follow-up email confirming the availability of the book and if it is ready for you to pick up at 20 Professors Row during specified hours.
- Books that are not picked up in a timely manner will be made available to other students.
- Checked-out books are expected to be returned by the end of the semester, or sooner if not being used.
- Students with overdue books may not access the Lending Library or any other financial resources through our office until the overdue books have been returned.
Supply Pantry
Eligibility: Students receiving financial aid
Students looking for basic school supplies during the semester can connect with us at first@tufts.edu. Supplies include one-subject notebooks and loose-leaf paper.
Laptop Loan Program
Eligibility: FIRST Resource Center students
Students may start Tufts without a laptop or find during their time at Tufts that they are in need of a laptop. The Tisch Library is a great resource for this and many other goods including other technology and even bikes.
However, students in the FIRST Community who feel they need a laptop for a longer period of time (up to one semester) may check out a PC laptop with our office, dependent on availability.
To request a laptop or to be added to the waitlist, please review our laptop loan agreement and submit the requested information. (Note: The request form is currently closed and will reopen by 5:00 PM ET on August 25, 2025.)
FIRST Fund
Eligibility: Students with Family Contributions $10,000 and below
We always hope that each student will be able to attend Tufts without facing unexpected hardship. However, we know that in the span of their undergraduate years, some students may find the associated cost of an opportunity to be prohibitive. To that end, we have created a fund to assist students who may need this support. For more information on this fund, please visit the FIRST Fund page.
Health Fund
Eligibility: Students with Family Contributions $10,000 and below
We understand that good health is essential during your time at Tufts and that the costs to maintain good health can be prohibitive. Undergraduate students with a family contribution of $10,000 and below are eligible to receive the following amounts on a reimbursement basis. For more information on this fund, please visit the Health Fund page.
Health Insurance Grant
Eligibility: Students with Family Contributions $10,000 and below
All students are required to have health insurance coverage while enrolled at Tufts. Students who do not have access to health insurance can receive coverage by Tufts. The fee for this insurance is added to your bill and should be waived if you have coverage already.
If your medical insurance coverage will not transfer to Tufts and you cannot cover the cost of the Tufts Health Insurance, you may qualify for a Health Insurance Grant if your family contribution is $10,000 or less. Please contact your Financial Aid Counselor to request a health insurance grant.
Food Resources
Student Life maintains an online resource center of on-campus and off-campus food resources.
Winter Housing
Students needing to stay on campus during Winter Break must register to stay with the Office of Residence Life and Learning. Once registered, those with current meal plans will receive some support for food during this period.
Funded Summer Opportunities
Additional Resources
Contribute to FIRST's Mission
Donations support our initiatives, including financial literacy programs, peer mentorship, and community-building events. Donate here.