Aug 04, 2015 05:20 PM EDT By Staff Reporter, UniversityHerald Reporter

Princeton University in New Jersey awards the best financial aid for students, according to The Princeton Review.

The Princeton Review recently ranked colleges with the happiest students based on reviews from 136,000 students at 380 top colleges. The ranking revealed Monday that Princeton University provides great student financial aid.

The private Ivy League research university has met student's demonstrated financial need with grants, not loans, at a time when financial aid has become a crucial factor in a prospective student's college selection process.

One of the first schools in the country to do so, Princeton has eliminated all loans for students who qualify for aid -- it is possible to graduate from this Ivy League school without debt. About 60 percent of Princeton students receive financial aid.

According to the Princeton Review, it costs $40,100 to attend Princeton University, plus about $13,000 in room and board. Students will pay another $545 in fees, not to mention personal and academic expenses each year. The average undergraduate total need-based gift aid is $42,097. The average need-based loans students take out is $0.

Top 10 Colleges With Great Financial Aid

1. Princeton (Princeton, N.J.)

2. Yale University (New Haven, Conn.)

3. Vassar College (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.)

4. Pomona College (Claremont, Calif.)

5. Claremont McKenna College (Claremont, Calif.)

6. Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering (Needham, Mass.)

7. Stanford University (Stanford, Calif.)

8. Thomas Aquinas College (Santa Paula, Calif.)

9. Trinity College (Hartford, Conn.)

10. University of Virginia (Charlottesville, Va.)

View the complete Top 20 list here.

The Princeton Review has released its annual college rankings in 62 categories on its website and "The Best 380 Colleges" Guidebook. It has published these rankings since 1992 in its annual Best Colleges guide.

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