<p>The percentage of Swarthmore students and first-year students receiving need-based aid each year is also publicly available in the Common Data Sets for any alumni interested the facts.</p>
<p>Here is the percentage of first year students qualifying for need-based financial aid at Swarthmore College:</p>
<p><b>Fall 2007:</b> 48.2%
<b>Fall 2008:</b> 48.7%
<b>Fall 2009:</b> 54.8%</p>
<p>The expectation in all of the budget planning discussion in fireside chats with Admissions and Financial Aid is that this percentage is likely to increase (and certainly not decline) as 2009 tax returns show diminished family incomes.</p>