The release of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form used by seniors and college students across the nation is delayed from October 1 until December 1 for the second year in a row. The delay is due to an examination of technical difficulties that arose from the form’s initial redesign, which was required by the Simplification Act passed by Congress in December 2020.
Senior Francesca Krevat, who only recently found out about the change in FAFSA schedule, said, “I think that it’s causing more stress in some ways. I’m the type of person who likes to get things done right away, so having [this] delay and not knowing when or how I can use the FAFSA is challenging.”
High school seniors seeking federal financial aid must fill out FAFSA while applying to colleges and each subsequent year they are enrolled. The form determines a student’s eligibility for aid through a series of questions, factoring in the cost of college tuition to calculate the student’s Student Aid Index. Based on their results, which take anywhere from three days to three weeks to process to be calculated, students can be offered any combination of four types of financial aid: grants, scholarships, work-study funds, or student loans.
The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administration Interim President & CEO Beth Maglione released a statement earlier this year concerning the aftermath of last year’s delay: “The fact that we are still, to this day, dealing with the aftershocks of this years FAFSA rollout shows just how imperative it is that the process is thoroughly tested from end to end.” Maglione referred to the many unexpected technical difficulties that hampered form completion last year, in turn significantly postponing college financial aid package offers to students.
Receiving financial awards late is especially problematic for prospective first-time students who have to commit to a college by May 1. These delays in access to crucial information don’t leave students with adequate time to consider all possible education in financial reach or if applying is worth considering. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, the 2023-24 FAFSA saw a decline of roughly 200,000 submissions from high school seniors—a decrease of 11.6% from the previous year’s applications.
Since October 1 of this year, the Department of Education has been piloting beta test forms, selecting a limited number of student applications before expanding availability nationally. These testing periods are being conducted in the hopes of developing a fully functional system by the planned release date. Meanwhile, some students have benefitted from using the College Scholarship Service (CSS) Profile according to JR College and Career Center Coordinator Elizabeth Levenson.
The CSS Profile, a system provided by private universities, was created by the College Board and allows access to non-federal grants, loans, and scholarships based on their own calculation of an individual’s financial need. The main difference between the FAFSA and CSS programs is that the latter is not free and has more personalized support offers.
To help our senior’s families with any related questions, the class of 2025 staff and the College and Career coordinators have come together to host “Tuesday Tea Times” in the mornings from 8:30 to 9:30. This program has taken place in the College and Career Center since Tuesday, November 12 and will last until January 20.
In addition, Principal Sah Brown advised students to get their accounts set up as soon as possible, so that when the FAFSA does open, they can maximize their time and get things done efficiently.
This delay affects nearly every student’s future and family, with roughly 85% of all college students receiving some sort of financial aid via FAFSA according to the National Center for Education Statistics. “The FAFSA is the first step in any student’s path for financial aid,” said Levenson.
