Skip to main content

40 US colleges where some students can get free tuition

Princeton, New Jersey - April 19, 2018: Blair Hall on campus of Princeton University at sunset.  Princeton University is a Private Ivy League University in New Jersey, USA
Some of the most exclusive schools in the US offer free-tuition programs for lower- and middle-class students.
  • The cost of a college education keeps rising, hitting six figures annually at some schools.
  • Dozens of schools across the US offer free tuition, often tied to income or work requirements.
  • Some of the most selective colleges and universities offer generous financial aid for students.

The cost of a college education has only been rising, and at some US schools, the annual sticker price now surpasses $100,000.

As millions of Americans drown in student debt, some schools have implemented policies to help students better afford higher education, including free-tuition initiatives.

The financial aid landscape in the US is often complicated, riddled with ultra-specific jargon, and can look entirely different from family to family. In many cases, “tuition-free” does not mean the entire cost of college is covered, and students may still be responsible for housing, food, books, fees, health insurance, travel, or personal expenses.

Some of these schools are elite institutions ranking among the hardest schools to get into in the US, while others are designated work colleges offering free tuition in exchange for students working on-campus jobs.

While many of these schools advertise free tuition or need-based financial-aid packages, the reality is that the cost of attendance can vary between families and depend on factors such as income, household size, state residency, and whether (and how) assets like home equity or investment funds are considered.

Often, universities have financial aid calculators on their website where prospective students and families can estimate the net cost of attendance that would apply to their financial situation.

Business Insider examined the financial aid offerings of colleges across the US and identified schools that advertise a free-tuition model for at least some students. For each school, we included the eligibility criteria, including the family income threshold, and what costs are covered.

While this list may not be exhaustive, as many smaller schools offer financial aid packages that could cover full tuition costs, this selection indicates where some students may have a path for debt-free higher education. We also excluded the five US military academies, where cadets attend tuition-free, with room and board, as they typically entail a service obligation after graduation.

These 40 US colleges and university systems offer tuition-free education paths for at least some students, though eligibility may depend on income, residency, work requirements, tribal affiliation, or field of study.

Alice Lloyd College in Pippa Passes, Kentucky
Aerial view of Pikeville Kentucky photograph taken Oct 2006

Family income cutoff: None

What’s covered: Full tuition for students from the school’s Central Appalachian service area.

Alice Lloyd College’s Appalachian Leaders Scholarship is available to all students from the 108-county Appalachian service region designated by the school, which covers parts of Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.

The college is also one of 10 “federally recognized work-study colleges” in the US, per the school’s website, and all full-time students are required to work a minimum of 10 hours a week at an on- or off-campus job.

Aside from free tuition and work-study, students may also receive financial aid in the form of grants and privately funded scholarships.

Students are expected to pay for their living expenses, including food and housing, depending on their financial aid package.

Barclay College in Haviland, Kansas
Dodge City - Kansas August 6, 2018: Water tower in downtown afternoon dodge city Kansas.

Family income cutoff: None

What’s covered: Full cost of tuition for full-time students living on-campus.

Aside from the scholarship covering the full cost of tuition for students living in on-campus dormitories, the school also covers half of tuition for students living off-campus and offers a $1,000 annual scholarship to be used toward the cost of housing and food.

Students may also receive federal financial aid, such as grants or loans, to offset room and board costs.

Berea College in Berea, Kentucky
Cloudy day at Berea College.

Family income cutoff: None

What’s covered: Full tuition for all students.

Berea College says that no student has paid for tuition since 1892.

The college, another of the 10 federally recognized work colleges, also requires all students to work a minimum of 10 hours at a campus job.

Aside from the free tuition scholarship and work-study program, the school also provides some students with support through stipends for professional clothing and free laptops.

Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts
View of Brandeis University entrance and campus buildings.

Family income cutoff: $75,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for domestic students with family incomes and typical assets of less than $75,000. Students from families earning under $200,000 also receive grants and scholarships covering half of the tuition costs.

The school has also pledged to “meet 100% of demonstrated financial need” for first-year students from qualifying families, including those ineligible for federal aid, according to the school’s website.

California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California
Pasadena, California, United States - 01-31-2020: A view of the fountain in front of the Beckman Institute building at California Institute of Technology.

Family income cutoff: $200,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for eligible students with family income under $200,000. Students with families earning under $100,000 a year receive financial aid packages that cover the full cost of tuition, fees, housing, and food.

The school also says it meets 100% of “a student’s demonstrated financial need through grants, scholarships, work-study, and loans,” per the school website.

Colgate University in Hamilton, New York
Colgate University Campus
Colgate University is located in Upstate New York.

Family income cutoff: $175,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for US students with annual family income of $175,000 or less.

Starting in fall 2026, the school is also offering students with family incomes of up to $200,000 loan-free tuition packages.

The school also offers aid packages for middle- and upper-middle-class families through its Colgate Commitment, per the school’s website.

Families earning between $200,000 and $250,000 will only pay about 7% of their income toward tuition. For those earning between $250,000 and $300,000, the percentage rises to 10%.

College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, Missouri
HOLLISTER MO - JUL 3: College of the Ozarks in Hollister, Missouri, as seen on July 3, 2023.

Family income cutoff: None

What’s covered: Full tuition for all full-time students.

Students at the College of the Ozarks are not charged tuition. Instead, all full-time students participate in the school’s on-campus work program for 15 hours a week.

In addition to the work program, the school also covers tuition through its Tuition Assurance Scholarship, which each student receives.

The school says the model allows students to graduate debt-free, though students may still need to cover other personal costs.

Columbia University in New York City
Students on the Columbia University campus in the Morningside Heights neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York

Family income cutoff: $150,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for students from families earning less than $150,000 with typical assets.

Columbia says students from families with annual incomes under $150,000 and typical assets can attend tuition-free, and that the expected parent contribution for families earning under $66,000 is $0.

The school’s financial aid packages are covered through grants and scholarships, and loans are not used to meet students’ financial needs.

Cornell University in Ithaca, New York
Ithaca, NY, USA - 05-08-2024:  Distant aerial images of Slope Day at Cornell University Libe Slope, Ithaca, NY, USA.

Family income cutoff: $75,000

What’s covered: Financial aid packages with no expected family contribution and no loans for students with family income under $75,000.

Cornell says it meets 100% of demonstrated financial need for all eligible undergraduate students.

For students from families earning under $75,000 with typical assets, Cornell says the expected parent contribution is $0. The school offers these families financial aid packages that cover the costs of attendance through grants, scholarships, and work-study, and include no student loans.

Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA downtown city skyline

Family income cutoff: None

What’s covered: Full tuition for all students.

The Curtis Institute of Music, a highly selective conservatory, has been tuition-free for all students since 1928.

The school provides full-tuition scholarships for all students regardless of their financial situation.

Students may also receive need-based financial aid to help cover additional living expenses.

Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire
Dartmouth Hall at Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire

Family income cutoff: $175,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for families making under $175,000. Students from families earning under $125,000 with typical assets also receive a zero-parent contribution, loan-free financial aid package.

The college also says financial aid packages for all undergraduates do not include student loans.

Deep Springs College in Deep Springs, California
hot springs at hot creek geological site near mammouth

Family income cutoff: None

What’s covered: Full tuition, room, and board for all admitted students.

Deep Springs College awards an automatic full scholarship covering tuition, room, and board to all admitted students regardless of financial need or country of origin.

The selective two-year college, which only admits about 14 students each year, relies on an unusual model where students work 20 hours a week on a cattle ranch, doing tasks like milking cows, irrigating the farm, cooking meals, and washing dishes.

Students are still expected to cover the expenses of their books, travel, and medical insurance, as well as a damage deposit, and scholarships are available for students who cannot afford to cover these costs.

Duke University in Durham, North Carolina
Duke University Chapel is a chapel located at the center of the campus of Duke University

Family income cutoff: $150,000

What’s covered: Full tuition grants for undergraduate students from North Carolina and South Carolina whose families earn $150,000 or less.

For students from the Carolinas with family income of $65,000 or less, Duke also provides financial assistance for covering the costs of housing, meals, and course materials, without student loans.

Emory University in Atlanta
Atlanta, Georgia, USA - Jul 4, 2024: the building of the School of Medicine on Emory University's Atlanta campus

Family income cutoff: $200,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for undergraduate students from families earning up to $200,000 with typical assets, beginning in fall 2026.

Under the school’s Emory Advantage Plus program, domestic undergraduate students from families earning up to $200,000 with typical assets will pay zero tuition.

Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Harvard University Historic Building in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
Harvard University is one of the oldest colleges in the US

Family income cutoff: $200,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for students from families earning $200,000 or less. Students from families earning $100,000 or less also get the full cost of attendance covered by the school.

Harvard says its undergraduate college is tuition-free for students from families with annual incomes of $200,000 or less. These students may also qualify for financial aid to help cover housing, food, and fees.

Families making under $100,000 receive financial aid packages fully covering all costs of tuition, fees, food, and housing, as well as additional grants to help students during their first and third years.

Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence, Kans., USA - June 28, 2022: Signs identify Haskell Indian Nations University campus. 2I9A2022

Family income cutoff: None

What’s covered: Full tuition for Native American Indians and Alaska Native students who belong to federally recognized Tribes.

The university lists tuition at $0 for both on-campus and off-campus students.

Students may still pay fees and other costs tied to attendance.

Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, USA

Family income cutoff: $75,000

What’s covered: Full tuition grants for undergraduate students from families with total income and typical assets under $75,000.

The Lehigh Commitment provides full-tuition grants, scholarships, and tuition waivers to undergraduate students from families with total income of less than $75,000.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts
CAMBRIDGE, USA - The architecture of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA with some students passing by on November 1, 2017.

Family income cutoff: $200,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for students with family income under $200,000 and typical assets. Many students with family income under $100,000 receive financial aid covering the full cost of attendance.

The school, which prides itself on its need-blind admissions, meets 100% of demonstrated financial need for all undergraduate students, both domestic and international.

Mount Holyoke in South Hadley, Massachusetts
South Hadley, MA / USA - 06 26 2017 Mount Holyoke College campus building

Family income cutoff: $150,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for US families with total income up to $150,000 and typical assets.

Students with greater financial need also receive aid to cover housing, food, and fees. The college says it meets 100% of the demonstrated financial needs of students.

The school says it works with families individually to create financial aid packages using need-based aid and merit scholarships.

Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois
EVANSTON, IL — SEPTEMBER 9, 2021: Aerial view of Northwestern University and Lake Michigan with foreground beach and walking path.

Family income cutoff: $150,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for most students from families earning less than $150,000. Students from families earning less than $70,000 receive aid packages covering the full cost of attendance.

The university says it meets 100% of demonstrated financial need without student loans.

Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey
Henry Hall, one of the students housing buildings in Princeton University. Photograph shot on April 2014

Family income cutoff: $250,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for most undergraduate families with income up to $250,000. Students from families making under $150,000 receive financial aid covering the full cost of attendance.

Princeton says it does not include student loans in its financial aid packages — which are also available to international students — and that 90% of students graduate debt-free.

Rice University in Houston
Houston, Texas — December 20, 2016: Rice University Private research university building architecture.

Family income cutoff: $140,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for eligible students from families earning up to $140,000. Families earning less than $75,000 receive aid covering the full cost of tuition, fees, room, and board.

Families earning between $140,000 and $200,000 may also receive aid covering at least half of tuition.

The school says it meets 100% of demonstrated financial need.

Stanford University in Stanford, California
STANFORD, CA,USA - Aug 20 2022: Aerial view of Stanford University, Palo Alto, Silicon Valley, California, USA

Family income cutoff: $150,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for students whose parents earn less than $150,000 with typical assets. Families earning under $100,000 also receive aid covering the cost of room and board.

The university says that families with total annual income below $100,000 and typical assets generally have no expected parent contribution toward educational costs.

In most financial aid packages, expected student contributions total $5,000, including $1,500 from summer earnings and $3,500 from part-time work, which can be covered with 8 to 10 hours of on-campus work a week.

Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas
Texas A M University is a public land-grant research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876, USA

Family income cutoff: $100,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for eligible Texas residents whose family income and assets are less than $100,000.

The school also froze its undergraduate tuition and fees for the 2026-27 school year, extending a record it has kept since 2021, when it last raised tuition prices.

Tufts University in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts
Boston, Massachusetts, USA: 10 25 2025: The fall foliage landscape of Tuft University School of the Museum of Fine Arts

Family income cutoff: $150,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for US undergraduates from families earning less than $150,000, beginning with students entering in fall 2026.

Tufts says students with annual family income under $60,000 typically receive financial aid packages with no student loans and that the school covers 100% of all students’ demonstrated need.

The University of California system in California
UCLA, Los Angeles, USA. May 6, 2024. UCLA Bruin Bear on the University of California, Los Angeles, campus. Beautiful view of the life in university.

Family income cutoff: $100,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for most California families earning up to $100,000.

Under the University of California system’s Blue and Gold Opportunity Plan, most California families earning up to $100,000 receive enough grant and scholarship funds to fully cover UC tuition.

Students may still have to pay for housing, food, books, and other costs.

University of Chicago in Chicago
Aerial View of a large University in the Chicago Neighborhood of Hyde Park

Family income cutoff: $250,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for students from families earning less than $250,000 with typical assets, beginning in fall 2027.

Beginning in the Autumn Quarter of 2027, undergraduate students from families earning $125,000 or less will also have their tuition, fees, housing, and meals covered.

University of Massachusetts Amherst in Amherst, Massachusetts
Aerial view of University of Massachusetts Amherst on a beautiful fall day

Family income cutoff: $75,000

What’s covered: Tuition and mandatory fees for eligible students with a household adjusted gross income of $75,000 or less.

The school also offers scholarships and grants for students above the family income threshold, depending on financial need.

University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan - Aug 2020: View of Michigan University buildings

Family income cutoff: $125,000

What’s covered: Full undergraduate tuition and mandatory university fees for Michigan residents with family income and assets of $125,000 or less.

Additionally, students receiving free tuition and enrolled in nursing, education, and performing arts programs will also receive further aid covering the full cost of attendance.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Family income cutoff: $80,000

What’s covered: Out-of-pocket tuition costs and mandatory fees for North Carolina undergraduate students.

UNC-Chapel Hill’s Tar Heel Guarantee covers any out-of-pocket costs for tuition and mandatory fees not covered by other forms of financial aid for North Carolina undergraduates whose families make less than $80,000 a year and have typical assets.

Students may still need to cover housing, food, books, and other costs depending on their financial aid package.

University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, United States - July 23, 2016: A weekend scene at the University of Pennsylvania campus

Family income cutoff: $200,000

What’s covered: Full tuition through grants and work-study for students from families earning up to $200,000 with typical assets. Families making under $75,000 with typical assets will receive financial aid packages that cover the full cost of attendance.

Penn’s Quaker Commitment guarantees financial aid packages for these students. The school also says it no longer includes a household’s primary home equity in its financial aid calculations.

University of Southern California in Los Angeles
Doheny Memorial Library at University of Southern California at Sunset

Family income cutoff: $80,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for first-year students from families earning $80,000 or less with typical assets.

The policy covers tuition, while students may still need aid for housing, food, and other costs.

The University of Texas system in Texas
The Main Building (known colloquially as The Tower) is a structure at the center of the University of Texas at Austin campus in Downtown Austin, Texas.

Family income cutoff: $100,000

What’s covered: Full tuition and required fees for eligible Texas undergraduates with family adjusted gross income of $100,000 or less.

Separately, UT Austin covers “tuition support” for students with families making up to $125,000 and offers scholarships to offset the cost of on-campus housing for students receiving full tuition aid.

University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville, USA - September 16, 2017: The Rotunda at the University of Virginia at dusk with Thomas Jefferson Statue in the foreground

Family income cutoff: $100,000

What’s covered: Full tuition and fees for Virginia families earning $100,000 or less with assets below $100,000.

UVA says Virginia families earning $100,000 or less per year with assets below $100,000 receive need-based grants and scholarships equal to at least the cost of tuition and required fees.

Virginia families earning $50,000 or less with assets below $100,000 will receive additional support covering at least the full cost of tuition, required fees, housing, and food.

The school says it also meets 100% of demonstrated financial need for all eligible undergraduate students.

Vanderbilt University in Nashville
Aug 08, 2023-Nashville, TN:  Aerial view of Vanderbilt University located in Nashville Tennessee

Family income cutoff: $150,000

What’s covered: Full tuition or more for students from households earning less than $150,000.

Students from households with income under $150,000 typically receive awards greater than full tuition, with additional loan-free financial support for housing, food, and other expenses.

The school also says it meets 100% of the demonstrated financial need of all domestic students.

Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, North Carolina
Asheville, North Carolina, USA downtown skyline at dusk

Family income cutoff: None

What’s covered: Full tuition for North Carolina undergraduate students who qualify for need-based aid.

The college says loans are not applied toward tuition under the program, though they may be used for food and housing.

Washington University in St. Louis
Sunny view of the Brookings Hall of Washington University in St. Louis at Missouri

Family income cutoff: $75,000

What’s covered: Full tuition, fees, housing, and food for Missouri and southern Illinois students from families making less than $75,000 a year.

The WashU Pledge program provides a fully free undergraduate education to admitted and Pell-grant-eligible US students from 53 counties in Missouri and southern Illinois.

Webb Institute in Glen Cove, New York
Glen Cove NY Waterfront Real Estate Sought After Beach Community Drone Photos Luxury Homes Coastal Living

Family income cutoff: None

What’s covered: Full tuition for all enrolled US citizens and permanent residents.

The school says the scholarship is valued at more than $250,000 over four years.

Webb also offers need-based aid to help with additional attendance costs, which students are still responsible for covering.

Williamson College of the Trades in Media, Pennsylvania
Media, Pennsylvania, USA - Jun 23, 2025: aerial view of Media, a suburb town near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in summer

Family income cutoff: None

What’s covered: Full tuition, room, and board for every student.

Williamson College of the Trades, a three-year men’s college focused on trade education, says every student receives a scholarship that covers the full cost of tuition, room and board, and student fees.

Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut
NEW HAVEN, CT, USA - JUNE 25, 2018: View of Yale University central campus from Harkness Tower on June 25, 2018. Yale University is a private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut.

Family income cutoff: $200,000

What’s covered: Full tuition for families earning below $200,000. Families earning under $100,000 receive scholarships covering the full cost of attendance.

Eligible students from families making under $100,000 also qualify for hospitalization insurance coverage and an additional $2,000 grant in their first year.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Taylor Swift’s ‘Toy Story 5’ song is one of her savviest business moves yet

Taylor Swift Toy Story split image thumb
Taylor Swift wrote an original song for “Toy Story 5.”
  • Taylor Swift announced this week that she wrote an original song for the “Toy Story 5” soundtrack.
  • The collaboration makes perfect sense when you consider what Swift and “Toy Story” have in common.
  • Both brands have spent decades leveraging creative, original works to sell merchandise.

Imagine a family-friendly brand with the initials “TS” that floods the market with bespoke merchandise. Are you thinking of “Toy Story” or Taylor Swift?

For now, at least, they’re one and the same. Swift confirmed long-simmering speculation this week when she announced her new single for the “Toy Story 5” soundtrack, “I Knew It, I Knew You,” will be released on Friday.

“You knew it! My new original song ‘I Knew It, I Knew You’ for Disney and @Pixar’s @toystory 5 will be yours on June 5th,” Swift wrote on social media, making a nod to her most devoted detectives, who had collected Easter Eggs from across the internet that hinted at the collaboration for months.

“I’ve always dreamed of getting to write for these characters who I’ve adored since I was a 5-year-old kid watching the first Toy Story movie,” Swift continued. “I fell instantly in love with Toy Story 5 when I was lucky enough to see it in its early stages, and I wrote this song as soon as I got home from the screening. Sometimes you just know, right?”

Swift’s admiration for “Toy Story” makes sense not just because she’s a millennial who grew up with the classic movie franchise. The devotion she inspires from her own fan base has a lot in common with that of Woody, Buzz, and the gang. After all, few have proved better at turning sentimental affection into a money-making empire than Pixar.

Swifties inadvertently became Pixar’s promo team — and everybody won

The cast of "Toy Story 5" attends the London premiere.
The cast of “Toy Story 5” attends the London premiere.

It all started in April with paparazzi shots of Swift wearing the “Toy Story” color palette: a blue-and-white dress, yellow bag, and red shoes. It could have easily been a coincidence. But when billboards emblazoned with “TS,” set against the franchise’s iconic cloud background appeared, the Swiftie cipher machine kicked into high gear.

Soon after, a subtle change was made to the “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” cover art on streaming services, swapping the seagulls above Swift’s head for clouds, and Pixar shared a video of “Toy Story” cowgirl Jessie dancing, captioned with paraphrased lyrics from Swift’s hit “Shake It Off” (“She’s making those moves up as she goes!”).

Finally, a countdown appeared on Swift’s website. When it expired, the site refreshed to reveal three “collector’s edition” CDs of the “Toy Story 5” soundtrack, each featuring a different version of Swift’s new song: standard, acoustic, and piano.

It’s a strategy ripped straight from Swift’s favorite promotional playbook. She’s a master at manufacturing a hoopla, whipping her loyal fans into a frenzy while barely lifting a finger, then channeling that anticipation — the realization that, “She was teasing new music! I was right!” — to sell more merchandise.

Naturally, the CDs were only available for two days on Swift’s website, or while supplies lasted. All three sold out within hours.

Swift’s ‘Toy Story’ collaboration furthers her own career narrative

Taylor Swift in a promotional image for "I Knew It, I Knew You."
Taylor Swift in a promotional image for “I Knew It, I Knew You.”

Only Swift could turn a massive franchise like “Toy Story” into her own personal promo vehicle.

“I Knew It, I Knew You” is already being touted as a triumphant “return to country” for Swift, who launched her songwriting career as a teen in the Nashville country scene before pivoting to pop in her 20s. Not-so-coincidentally, “Toy Story 5” will hit theaters on June 19, which is the 20th anniversary of Swift’s debut single, “Tim McGraw.”

Fans are hoping that Swift will rerelease her self-titled debut album to mark its 20th anniversary later this year. Even though she took ownership of all her music last year, rendering the “Taylor’s Version” rerecording project moot, Swift also confirmed that “Taylor Swift (Taylor’s Version)” exists, and said she would consider releasing it “when the time is right.”

The original tracks on “Taylor Swift,” some written solely by Swift, were conceived back when she was a curly-haired tween grappling with all the classic growing pains: crushes, cliques, feeling like an outcast, dreaming of a bigger world. What better way to build hype for Swift’s walk down memory lane than by teaming up with “Toy Story,” a franchise that epitomizes childhood wonder, millennial nostalgia — and masterfully leverages both to make a profit?

Both Swift and ‘Toy Story’ expertly turn fans into consumers

Taylor Swift performs "Fearless" during the Eras Tour in Amsterdam.
Taylor Swift performs “Fearless” during the Eras Tour in Amsterdam.

Both Swift and the minds behind “Toy Story” endeared themselves to audiences through true creative genius — crafting sincere, moving, original works that appeal to a wide age range. Swift’s earliest releases, including 2006’s “Taylor Swift” and 2008’s “Fearless,” received widespread acclaim and ushered in a new era of confessional songwriting. Similarly, 1995’s “Toy Story” and 1999’s “Toy Story 2” were so successful that they changed how animated movies were made and how they were appraised by critics.

Monoculture is inextricably tied to consumerism, because it matters where people spend their money. Neither Swift nor the minds behind “Toy Story” relied on creative output alone; they built wildly popular brands over decades through commercial savvy. In short, both are very good at getting fans to buy stuff.

Swift’s volume of physical sales is unparalleled in the music industry. She uses every Billboard-approved tactic in the book to push vinyls and CDs, turning fans — of all ages, as long as they have money to burn or parents to persuade — into ravenous archivists and collectors. As one Swiftie in her 50s told me, “There’s something about Taylor, being her fan, that just makes me uncharacteristically acquisitive.”

Meanwhile, “Toy Story” is a series that literally revolves around physical products. The beloved characters, from Woody and Buzz to Jessie and Bullseye, are all the more appealing to kids because they exist in the real world, trapped in plastic boxes, begging to be freed and handled and played with and loved.

Together, Swift and “Toy Story” are the perfect storm of mass consumer appeal. It’s a wonder we haven’t already gotten “You’ve Got a Friend in Me (Taylor’s Version)” — but if there’s anything both brands have taught us, it’s that there’s always a chance it will end up on the soundtrack’s deluxe edition.

Read the original article on Business Insider

CBS News leadership has been firing ’60 Minutes’ correspondents. Here’s who’s gone and who’s left.

60 correspondents
“60 Minutes” has lost correspondents Cecilia Vega, Scott Pelley, and Sharyn Alfonsi in recent weeks.
  • “60 Minutes” lost another correspondent on Tuesday night.
  • CBS News fired longtime reporter Scott Pelley after comments he made about the network’s leadership.
  • Here’s which correspondents are still with “60 Minutes,” and who’s left recently.

Top CBS News editor Bari Weiss is making her mark on “60 Minutes.”

CBS News has dropped three correspondents in the last week. Those departing correspondents have each described clashes or deep disagreements with CBS News leadership about the network’s direction.

“The collapse of values at the top has become untenable,” fired correspondent Scott Pelley said in a statement Tuesday. “The leadership of 60 Minutes is no longer recognizable. The principles I hold dear are gone, and so I must leave as well.”

Longtime contributor Anderson Cooper recently stepped down as well. CBS also let go of “60 Minutes” executive producer Tanya Simon and executive editor Draggan Mihailovich last week.

Weiss was brought in by Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison with a mandate to transform the legacy media institution for the digital age.

“Our strategy until now has been to cling to the audience that remains on broadcast television. I’m here to tell you that if we stick to that strategy, we’re toast,” Weiss told employees earlier this year.

Weiss has shaken up many corners of CBS News and laid off dozens of employees.

“It’s no secret that the news business is changing radically, and that we need to change along with it,” Weiss and network president Tom Cibrowski said in a memo about the layoffs in March.

Weiss’ critics say some of her changes are designed to make CBS News, and “60 Minutes” in particular, more palatable to President Donald Trump. Weiss has denied that her actions have been politically motivated.

Weiss didn’t have a TV news background before taking the helm at CBS News. She worked as an opinion editor at The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal and founded The Free Press, a news and opinion site with an anti-establishment spirit.

Here are the full-time correspondents for “60 Minutes” who are still at CBS News, sorted by length of tenure, and those who’ve recently departed.

This list doesn’t include part-time contributors, like Norah O’Donnell, or include Major Garrett, who recently interviewed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Lesley Stahl (since 1991)
Lesley Stahl

Stahl, 84, has racked up accolades in her five decades at CBS News, including 13 Emmys and the Edward R. Murrow Award.

She’s interviewed world leaders like Donald Trump, former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, and former Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, plus business leaders like Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg.

Stahl has historically focused on politics, investigations, and foreign reporting.

Bill Whitaker (since 2014)
Bill Whitaker

Whitaker joined CBS News in 1984 and has been with “60 Minutes” for over a decade. In that span, he’s won Emmys and a Peabody Award.

He’s covered major domestic and foreign stories, from the war in Ukraine to the US opioid crisis.

Jon Wertheim (since 2017)
Jon Wertheim

Wertheim has covered a range of topics in his nearly 10 years at “60 Minutes,” with a focus on sports, culture, and the Middle East.

He’s done reporting on how countries like Saudi Arabia are investing in entertainment, a practice that critics call “sportswashing.”

Anderson Cooper (left in mid-May)
Anderson Cooper

Cooper decided to leave his role at “60 Minutes” in February after 20 years, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family. The veteran newscaster will continue to host “Anderson Cooper 360°” on CNN, which he’s done for the last 25 years.

“Being a correspondent at 60 Minutes has been one of the great honors of my career,” Cooper said in a statement at the time.

A CBS spokesperson told Business Insider in February that the network was “grateful to him for dedicating so much of his life to this broadcast, and understand the importance of spending more time with family,” adding that “60 Minutes will be here if he ever wants to return.”

Cooper focused his reporting on major news events, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sharyn Alfonsi (contract not renewed in late May)
Sharyn Alfonsi

Alfonsi left “60 Minutes” last week after more than a decade, in what she said was “not a routine corporate transition.”

“It was a deliberate choice to penalize a journalist for refusing to sanitize factually accurate reporting, and it sends a chilling message to the entire newsroom,” Alfonsi said in an exit memo, which was obtained by Business Insider.

In her memo, Alfonsi cited “an intense editorial dispute” with Weiss about a segment spotlighting the Trump administration’s migrant deportation tactics, specifically with the CECOT prison in El Salvador. Weiss held Alfonsi’s story, seeking additional commentary from the Trump administration, though it later aired with minimal changes.

“Repeated attempts by my representation to establish a path forward were met with absolute silence from network executives,” Alfonsi wrote in the memo.

Alfonsi covered war in the Middle East, including Gaza, and the US withdrawal from Afghanistan under President Joe Biden.

Cecilia Vega (fired in late May)
Cecilia Vega attends the 2026 White House Correspondents' Dinner at Washington Hilton on April 25, 2026 in Washington, DC.

Vega said in an exit memo that her departure from “60 Minutes” last week was due to “censorship, both imposed and self-driven.”

“I have the utmost respect and admiration for my colleagues at 60 Minutes and the stories that air every Sunday. But I very much fear what comes next for and the future of the legendary broadcast,” Vega wrote.

Vega said that she and her colleagues had “experienced efforts to insert political bias into our stories” from leaders at CBS News, a characterization that the network denies.

CBS News brought on Vega in 2023, where she often covered US politics and immigration.

Scott Pelley (fired in early June)
Scott Pelley

Pelley made headlines for vocally challenging Nick Bilton, the new executive producer at “60 Minutes,” and calling out Weiss.

The veteran “60 Minutes” correspondent, who’d been with CBS for over three decades, reportedly said that Weiss was “murdering” “60 Minutes.”

Bilton fired Pelley on Tuesday night, saying that the correspondent’s “antipathy to the future of the show has come through loud and clear.”

“Despite yesterday’s misconduct, I had hoped that in sitting down with you today we could find a path forward together,” Bilton wrote to Pelley. “You made clear that you are not interested in such a path.”

Pelley said in a statement after his dismissal that CBS leaders had directed him to “inject falsehoods and bias into a politically sensitive story.”

Weiss told staffers in a Wednesday morning meeting that CBS News “had to part ways” with Pelley after his comments earlier in the week.

“Despite our attempts to engage with Scott Pelley and to find a way back, unfortunately, we weren’t able to do so, and so we had to part ways. We did not want that to happen, but that’s the path that he chose,” Weiss said on the call.

Pelley disputed that characterization in a statement to The New York Times, saying, “Bari Weiss knows what she said is not true.”

“In the meeting on Tuesday, in which I was effectively fired, there was no effort of any kind to ‘find a way back,’ as Weiss said in the editorial meeting,” Pelley said in his statement. “At no point did anyone in the Tuesday meeting suggest that there could be steps taken by either side that would lead to a resolution.”

Read the original article on Business Insider

Uber lays off almost a quarter of its HR and recruitment staff, but says it has nothing to do with AI

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi speaks while seated on stage while wearing a light grey sport coat and a light blue dress shirt.
Uber’s layoffs affected less than 1% of the company’s global workforce, a company spokesperson said.
  • Uber is laying off 23% of its People and Places staff, the company said Wednesday.
  • The layoffs affected employees in HR and recruitment roles.
  • The cuts weren’t connected to Uber’s AI use, a spokesperson said.

Uber is laying off nearly a quarter of its People and Places staff — but not because of AI, the company said.

The department oversees teams from human resources to recruitment. The job cuts amount to less than 1% of Uber’s global workforce of 34,000 employees, a spokesperson said.

The layoffs come less than a month after Uber named Jill Hazelbaker to the newly created role of chief corporate affairs officer and president.

Hazelbaker, who has worked at Uber since 2015, said in a memo to staff on Wednesday that the layoffs reorganize teams that “have become too complex and fragmented, with overlapping responsibilities, unclear ownership, and teams operating too far from the businesses and partners they support.”

While other major companies have cited AI as the reason for layoffs this year, the cuts to Uber’s people division weren’t due to the technology, the spokesperson said.

“These changes are necessary to maximize the effectiveness of the People team and the enormous potential ahead of us,” CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said in her own memo to staff explaining the layoffs.

Like many tech companies, Uber is using AI — and wrestling with its implications.

Uber is hiring fewer employees as its employees use AI to become more productive, Khosrowshahi said last month. COO Andrew Macdonald, meanwhile, said that those productivity gains aren’t proportional to what the company is spending on AI tokens.

Do you have a story to share about Uber? Contact this reporter at abitter@businessinsider.com or via encrypted messaging app Signal at 808-854-4501. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device; here’s our guide to sharing information securely.

Read the original article on Business Insider

‘You can’t handle the truth!’ Microsoft staff push back on survey results.

Satya Nadella
Satya Nadella
  • Some Microsoft workers are questioning results of recent employee sentiment surveys.
  • Microsoft survey results omitted key questions, these employees said.
  • The debate reflects broader tensions inside a company undergoing rapid change.

After Microsoft released findings from its latest employee surveys, some workers took to an internal message board to question the results, according to comments viewed by Business Insider.

These employees wondered whether the surveyed had been watered-down, especially when it comes to issues around compensation at the software giant.

For years, one question in particular served as a barometer for employee sentiment. It asked whether employees felt they were getting a “good deal at Microsoft (i.e. there is a reasonable balance between what I contribute to Microsoft and what I get in return).”

In previous years, after low and declining responses to this question Microsoft announced significant pay raises to address growing dissatisfaction with compensation and stop employees from leaving to competitors including Amazon.

Since then, there’s been a sea change across the tech industry, with big job cuts and more pressure on employees to perform. Microsoft has embraced this new approach, too, and froze salaries the year after the raises.

When Microsoft released the results of its latest employee surveys recently, the question about getting a good deal at Microsoft was excluded, according to a copy of the results viewed by Business Insider.

Some employees took to the company’s internal message board to ask what was up.

“Can you please provide clarity on whether or not the question has been removed and why,” one Microsoft employee wrote in a comment with more than 200 “thumbs up” reactions.

“I don’t think they value getting an answer to a question they already know the answer to,” another employee commented, with a meme of the famous line from the movie A Few Good Men, “You can’t handle the truth!”

Jack Nicholson playing the role of a colonel of the navy acting in the film A Few Good Men.
Jack Nicholson playing the role of a colonel of the navy acting in the film A Few Good Men.

Other employees queried the apparent omission of another question about whether staff have confidence in company leadership.

A person whose title is “Head of Employee Listening” responded that the company received questions about where to find those specific survey questions and said, “Those questions are still being asked and acted on; they just show up in different surveys based on how our listening programs are designed.”

The good deal question, for example, was included but sent only to a subset of employees “so we can cover more topics without increasing survey length for employees,” this person added. Microsoft confirmed this person’s response and did not provide further comment.

The debate over Microsoft’s survey results reflects broader tensions inside a company undergoing rapid change. Under CEO Satya Nadella, Microsoft is pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into AI and data centers while simultaneously tightening employee performance expectations and cutting costs.

Another employee questioned the results overall, which they said didn’t seem to track with employee sentiment in other forums like “Ask Me Anything” meetings with executives.

“Really confusing results,” the employee wrote in a comment with more than 70 “thumbs up” reactions. “It seems like employees essentially have zero concerns about the company, but in every single public forum, AMA, petition, etc., thousands of employees are raising concerns about Microsoft’s contracts with the Israeli military, ICE, US military, and so on, with ethical questions being by far the most upvoted discussion topics.”

Have a tip? Contact this reporter via email at astewart@businessinsider.com or Signal at +1-425-344-8242. Use a personal email address and a nonwork device; here’s our guide to sharing information securely.

Read the original article on Business Insider

I’ve been a successful freelancer for 10 years. I still feel like I should always be chasing my next opportunity.

A man working on a laptop while drinking a cup of coffee.
The author (not pictured) has been a freelancer for nearly a decade.
  • I’ve been a freelancer for nearly 10 years, and my career is stable.
  • However, I always feel a low-grade uncertainty.
  • I make sure I’m constantly adapting along with my industry and looking for new opportunities.

When I became a freelance writer nearly a decade ago, I assumed the uncertainty would eventually fade. I imagined there would come a point where I’d built enough relationships, landed enough recurring clients, and published enough work that I’d finally feel secure.

But that moment never really came.

Today, I make a stable living as a freelance health and fitness writer. I write for major publications, have long-term editorial relationships, and often have more work than I can realistically take on. On paper, my career looks stable.

And yet, I still approach my work as if I were trying to land my next job.

Part of that is practicality. Freelancing teaches you quickly that stability is often temporary. Editors leave. Budgets shrink. Publications pivot. Consistent work can disappear overnight. I’ve had stretches where everything felt solid, only to lose multiple clients within weeks through no fault of my own.

Once you experience that a few times, it permanently changes the way you think and approach your work.

The mindset never fully turns off

Even during busy periods, part of my brain is always scanning for what’s next. I’m pitching editors, maintaining relationships, updating lists of ideas, and paying attention to industry shifts.

The rise of AI has intensified that feeling over the last few years. As someone who writes for a living, I’ve had to adapt quickly, learn new tools, and think carefully about what still makes human-driven writing valuable.

From the outside, freelancing can look flexible and relaxed. And in many ways, it is. It allows me to drop off and pick up my kids from school, coach their soccer teams, and handle daily life in a way a traditional job likely wouldn’t.

But mentally, I rarely feel fully “off.” There’s always a low-level awareness that I should be working and that if I stop pushing for too long, opportunities could dry up.

The stress doesn’t disappear when things are going well

One of the strangest things about freelancing is that external success doesn’t automatically create internal security.

I still feel anxious when I send a pitch email or submit a story draft. I still overanalyze unanswered messages. I still wonder, occasionally, whether the work will eventually dry up despite years of evidence suggesting otherwise. And I still regularly deal with imposter syndrome.

Some of that is probably tied to my personality. But I also think many freelancers quietly carry this same low-grade uncertainty, especially those of us supporting families.

I’m 39 years old now. I have a wife, two kids, a mortgage, and responsibilities that feel very real every month. There’s no corporate structure absorbing the risk for me. If work slows down, I feel it directly. That pressure has made me more disciplined, proactive, and resilient. But it’s also made it difficult to completely relax professionally, even during good periods.

It’s become part of my identity

At this point, I’m not sure I could fully shut off the “feast or famine” mindset even if I wanted to. Freelancing has conditioned me to constantly adapt, reinvent myself, and prepare for change.

In some ways, I think that’s kept me sharp. I’m always learning new skills, studying trends, and thinking about how to evolve. One day, I’m interviewing a researcher about blood sugar regulation; the next, I’m writing about fitness trends or trying to understand how AI might reshape media over the next decade. That constant motion can be exhausting. But it can also feel energizing.

The trade-off I’ve accepted

There are days when I envy people like my wife, who have clearly defined careers, predictable paychecks, and the ability to leave work at work. That kind of work stability sounds incredibly appealing.

But freelancing has also given me things I’m not willing to give up: flexibility, autonomy, and the ability to shape my life around my family instead of structuring my family around work.

The uncertainty is the price I pay for that freedom.

I still approach my career like I’m job hunting because, in some ways, I always am. Not out of desperation, but because freelancing requires you to stay engaged, visible, and adaptable at all times. At some point, I stopped seeing that mindset as a temporary phase and started recognizing it as part of the job itself, which has been both relieving and nerve-racking.

Read the original article on Business Insider