The number of universities that plan to replace student loans with grants is growing. Last week, Haverford College announced that it would join the ranks of universities such as Harvard, Swarthmore and the University of Pennsylvania that intend to phase out student loans as part of a student’s financial aid package.

The move toward no-student loan educations is not without the proverbial catch. Universities who are moving toward non-student loan financial aid are generally doing so for only the lowest-income students. Students with higher family incomes can still expect to see college loans as part of their aid packages. 

The University of Pennsylvania plans to offer the no-student loan deals to entering students whose family incomes are less than $100,000. The new approach will be introduced for the entering class in 2009.  For families whose income exceeds $100,000, the university plans to reduce need-based college loans by 10 percent.

Haverford will also offer the student loan-free financial aid package to the entering class of 2008-09. As of now, Bryn Mawr has no plans to dump student loans.