Financial Assistance Program
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HOW TO APPLY FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE | FAQS
We want Belmont Day to be an affordable opportunity for your child.
We recognize and understand the importance of making a Belmont Day education affordable to families. Belmont Day is committed to providing qualified students with the opportunity of an independent school education, regardless of their families’ financial circumstances. Our goal is that any student who has been accepted at Belmont Day can attend. Our financial assistance awards range from 3% to 99% of tuition costs covered. Twenty-one percent of our student body receives financial assistance.
Financial assistance awards are based on need, and our decision-making process is need-aware.
Financial assistance is entirely need-based, and awards are based solely on a family’s ability to pay. Financial assistance awards do not need to be repaid. Belmont Day School subscribes to the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) guidelines and Clarity, an online financial assistance calculation platform for computing a family’s award.
While the admissions and financial assistance application processes are separate, admissions decisions are ultimately need-aware. The applicant file reading process and subsequent admissions committee discussions are carried out without consideration of a family’s ability to pay. Only at the end of the decision-making process does a family’s financial need play a role to ensure that Belmont Day can commit to meeting 100% of the demonstrated financial need for each student we admit.
Here is a look at the 2024-2025 financial assistance awards by family income range*:
Family Total Income Range | Average Family Contribution |
< $100,000 | $1,403 |
$100,000 – $150,000 | $5,125 |
$151,000 – $250,000 | $13,395 |
$250,000+ | $27,962 |
*Every family who wishes to apply for financial assistance must submit an online application, which includes prior-year tax documents. The application requests information about a family’s assets, debts, expenses, and taxable and nontaxable income. All components of the application impact the final financial assistance award that a family receives.
Applying for Financial Assistance
We utilize Clarity as our financial assistance application platform. Clarity offers various resources, including webinars and videos, that can help you navigate the application process and complete the online application form. You can contact Elena Jay, Director of Financial Assistance, at [email protected] with questions.
Use these links to access resources that will guide you through the process:
Clarity Application Quick Reference Guide English version
Clarity Application Quick Reference Guide Spanish version
Clarity Family Application Guide English version
Clarity Family Application Guide Spanish version
Getting Started
Please go to the Clarity application and create an account. The application typically takes less than 30 minutes to complete. The Clarity application is also mobile-friendly, so you can complete it from anywhere. You can save your progress and return at any time. At the end of the application, there is a $60 application fee. This is a one-time fee that allows you to share your application with any school that accepts the Clarity application. If the fee is a barrier for your family, please contact Director of Financial Assistance Elena Jay at [email protected] to request a fee waiver.
In certain circumstances, after offers of admission have been issued, you may be asked to return to your Clarity dashboard to upload your most recent tax documents. If this applies to your family, the director of financial assistance will contact you.
The deadline for completing the financial aid application, including relevant supplemental documents, is January 31, 2025.
Clarity offers webinars to learn more about the application process. Use the links below to register.
September 24 – 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time
September 25 – 7 p.m. Pacific Time
October 28 – 6:30 p.m.Eastern Time
October 29 – 7 p.m. Pacific Time
December 10 – 5:30 p.m. Pacific Time
If you need support while completing your application, you may visit Clarity’s Help Center. You can also reach the family support team via email and phone support at [email protected] or 206-210-3752 in both English and Spanish. The application is fully translated into Spanish.
Current Belmont Day Families
Current Belmont Day families that are newly applying for assistance must notify the director of financial assistance of their intent to apply by November 13, 2024.
Financial assistance applications for current Belmont Day families must complete their application by December 9, 2024.
Support for Supplies, Programs, and Services
The following expenses are fully covered for all students, not only financial assistance recipients:
- School-provided lunch for grades 1 to 8
- All required technology and devices
- Books and materials required for academic classes and summer assignments
- Uniforms for athletics teams for middle school students
The following expenses are covered at the same percentage of a family’s financial assistance award. For example, if a family receives a financial assistance award that accounts for 50% of tuition, then a 50% discount would also be applied to the following:
- After School Program
- After-school enrichment classes
- Belmont Day Summer Camp
Note: Each middle school grade typically has an overnight trip with an additional cost to families. The director of financial assistance will be in touch prior to each trip to share specifics about your family’s contribution.
Financial Assistance FAQs
Who needs to complete the financial assistance application? Belmont Day expects all parents to contribute to a student’s educational expenses. In the case of divorce or separation, the custodial parent (and spouse, if applicable) and non-custodial parent (and spouse, if applicable) must submit an application. This information is collected in order to determine the ability, not the willingness, of each parent to support their child’s education financially.
How are financial assistance awards calculated? Belmont Day uses Clarity to process our financial assistance applications. Based on the financial information you provide through the application, Clarity provides an estimated amount your family can contribute to educational expenses.
Among other things, Clarity takes into account:
- Income of all parents (and their spouses, if applicable)
- Family assets
- Expenses
- Debt
- Number of dependents
- Number of children in tuition-charging schools
A committee makes all financial assistance decisions to ensure consistency and equity of awards.
Do I have to reapply for financial assistance each year?
Yes. Families must complete an application for financial assistance annually. Current Belmont Day families must complete their financial assistance application by December 9, 2024.
Current Belmont Day families that are newly applying for financial assistance must notify the director of financial assistance of their intent to apply by November 13, 2024.
Will my financial assistance award remain the same as long as my child attends Belmont Day? Families complete a new financial assistance application each year to establish need for the following academic year. Assuming that you have not had significant changes to your income, assets, family size, or family structure, the percentage of assistance you receive will likely remain consistent each year. We award assistance to our returning families before our prospective families, so it is critical that your application is submitted by the current family deadline so we can continue to prioritize your family’s award. We encourage current Belmont Day families to communicate with the director of financial assistance throughout the year to ensure questions, concerns, and major changes in circumstances are addressed.
Can I apply for financial assistance after my child has been granted admission? Financial assistance award decisions are shared alongside offers of admissions in March so that prospective families can make an informed enrollment decision. For the financial assistance committee to have sufficient time to review applications and determine awards, it is critical that families submit their applications by the deadline of January 31, 2025. Waiting to apply for assistance after the deadline significantly decreases – and, in some cases, may entirely prohibit – the likelihood that we will be able to grant an award to your family, considering that we may have already allocated the full financial assistance budget.
Will we be considered for financial assistance if one parent stays home to care for a younger child? In calculating financial assistance awards, Belmont Day recognizes the challenges of raising young children. We understand that a parent may choose to remain home with children who are not yet of preschool age. To be considered for financial assistance, it is our expectation that both parents be working full-time when all children in a family are of school age. We encourage families to contact Director of Financial Assistance Elena Jay to discuss individual circumstances.
