"The U.S. Education Department is relaxing a number of requirements so that colleges and universities dealing with delayed student financial aid information can better focus on processing aid applications and delivering aid packages to students," Inside Higher Ed reports.

... "The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators called on the department in a December letter to reduce the percentage of applications selected for verification—a process that’s 'tedious and burdensome for students and financial aid administrators alike, even in the best of times,' the organization wrote."

... "Higher education leaders praised the department's latest moves."

"'We applaud these initial measures from the department to significantly lower student verification requirements and temporarily pause program reviews, which are critical first steps in ensuring financial aid offices—already stretched perilously thin—will have the bandwidth necessary to focus on students,' said Justin Draeger, president and CEO of NASFAA. 'To make this work, higher education stakeholders require a sustained effort, which includes additional administrative relief and the department meeting its FAFSA processing timelines going forward. Schools have been told to expect test records by the end of this week, and processed FAFSA information in the first half of March, which will be vital to provide students and families with need-based financial aid information this spring. Students and families cannot afford any additional delays.'"

NASFAA's "Notable Headlines" section highlights media coverage of financial aid to help members stay up to date with the latest news. Articles included under the notable headlines section are not written by NASFAA, but rather by external sources. Inclusion in Today's News does not imply endorsement of the material or guarantee the accuracy of information presented.

Publication Date: 2/13/2024