In fiscal year (FY) 2025, state financial aid to students attending public institutions in Michigan increased 118.9% to reach $1,298 per FTE. Financial aid increases in Michigan in recent years have primarily benefited students attending community colleges due to the Futures for Frontliners and Michigan Reconnect programs. After a few years of growth in these programs, nearly 92% of total state public financial aid was allocated to the two-year sector in FY 2023. This most recent increase in state public financial aid from 2024 to 2025 can be attributed to the creation of the Michigan Achievement Scholarship (MAS), Michigan’s new flagship scholarship program, which benefited students attending both two- and four-year public institutions. After the implementation of this scholarship in 2024, per-student state financial aid to public four-year institutions increased 4,071% from 2023 to 2025 and 157.0% from 2024 to 2025. Students in the two-year sector also saw increases of 130.1% since 2023 and 74.4% since 2024.
The Michigan Achievement Scholarship, created in 2023 and funded through Michigan’s Postsecondary Scholarship Fund, is the state’s flagship financial aid program supporting students at community colleges, public universities, private nonprofit institutions, and programs leading to industry-recognized skill certificates. The program promotes full-time enrollment within one year of high school graduation and served approximately 64,000 students in FY2025, with participation expected to reach about 128,000 students annually once fully implemented in FY2028. Through the Community College Guarantee, all recent high school graduates who enroll full time at their local community college qualify for in-district tuition coverage, with Pell Grant recipients receiving an additional $1,000 to help cover living expenses. At four-year institutions, the scholarship provides up to $5,500 annually, with approximately two-thirds of incoming full-time recent high school graduates qualifying. To implement the program, the state deposited $250 million into the Postsecondary Scholarship Fund in 2023 and has continued building the reserve with additional appropriations of $300 million in FY2024, $330 million in FY2025, and $380 million in FY2026. Once fully implemented in 2028, MAS is expected to provide more than $600 million annually in state financial aid.