In 2020, Congress passed the FAFSA Simplification Act, which reduced the number of questions in the FAFSA from 108 to 36, according to the Washington Post. The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) is an online form that students entering post-secondary institutions may fill out in order to receive federal financial aid.
The FAFSA Simplification Act first went into effect for the 2024-25 aid year, most directly impacting students in the high school class of 2024. The FAFSA Simplification Act aims to improve the process of filling out the FAFSA through the removal of the Selective Service registration and questions about drug-related convictions. Additionally, through the new FAFSA, more students are eligible to receive Pell Grants, according to CNBC.
The new FAFSA is touted as “streamlined,” promising students and families easier information input via direct in formation uploads from the IRS (International Revenue Service). In previous years the FAFSA was released at the beginning of October, and the data students submitted using the form was sent to schools between 1 and 3 days after they completed it. This year, however, the FAFSA was released on December 30, three months after its expected release date, and schools did not receive student information until late March.
Despite the goal to simplify FAFSA, the changes have caused more issues than they resolved, as delayed financial aid packages hinder students’ ability to decide where they will attend college. The issues with the FAFSA underscore a need for more communication and planning between factions of federal institutions such as the Federal Student Aid sector of the U.S. Department of Education, lawmakers responsible for policy changes, and colleges.
According to the Washington Post, lawmakers, colleges, and other stakeholders said they were not well-informed about the status of the FAFSA, even as the form’s original release date of October 1 came and went. If the rollout of the new FAFSA was better-organized, colleges and lawmakers would be better informed about the technical issues the Department of Education was facing during the process of programming the form, reducing confusion among students and families trying to navigate the process of receiving financial aid.
The primary issue with this year’s FAFSA arose from months-long delays in the rollout of the form to students and colleges. Students are now pressed for time when making their college decisions, especially those who need financial aid to attend college. Thus, these delays disproportionately affect low-income students who rely on financial aid to inform their college decisions. While some schools are pushing back their deadlines for commitment, many are not, potentially forcing some students to commit without an assurance of financial aid. This issue could have been avoided if there were more effective communication between the Department of Education and college financial aid offices, as a later commitment date could offset the issues associated with the FAFSA’s late rollout.
Many federal officers responsible for the changes to the FAFSA argue that the new FAFSA form will be worth it after the technical issues are resolved. However, in taking this approach to the situation, these advocates discount the effects of the FAFSA’s late rollout on the 85% of students who receive financial aid to attend college.
This year’s FAFSA delays show that when implementing education policies in the future, federal officials, lawmakers, and educational institutions must achieve open communication to positively affect student well-being.
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