"If you're planning to go to college next fall, one dreaded task is going to be a little easier: applying for financial aid," according to Consumer Reports. "Starting Oct. 1, you can submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the 2019-2020 school year. This form determines how much you can get in federal grants, loans, and work-study programs, as well as financial aid from states, colleges, and some scholarship programs."

"To make the application more accessible, the Department of Education has launched a mobile app called myStudentAid and a redesigned, mobile-friendly website that will allow you to fill out the application on smartphones and tablets as well as on laptops and desktop computers. The application is also more user-friendly, with help boxes for each question and plainer language to guide you.

'Easier' doesn't mean filling out the FAFSA won't still be daunting. It has a 108 questions—157 if you count all the sub-questions. (Making changes to significantly shorten the FAFSA requires Congress to act.) And you need to pull together a raft financial information to complete the form.

'People get intimidated by the application or get stuck and give up,'  says Karen McCarthy, director of policy analysis at the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA).

Only 61 percent of high school students file a FAFSA, and even fewer low-income students do, leaving more than $24 billion in state, federal, and institutional aid on the table, according to the National College Access Network (NCAN).

While NCAN and other advocates for improved college access and affordability say more substantial changes are needed to simplify the form, they say that making the FAFSA mobile and more user-friendly will make a difference. 

'For some people, the primary way they access the internet is through their phone,' says Kim Cook, executive director of NCAN, which advocates for policies to improve college admission and completion, particularly for low-income, minority, and first-generation students. 'This helps us meet students and their families where they are.'"

NASFAA's "Headlines" section highlights media coverage of financial aid to help members stay up to date with the latest news. Inclusion in Today's News does not imply endorsement of the material or guarantee the accuracy of information presented.

Publication Date: 9/7/2018