Below are NASFAA's recent appearances in the media.
Student Aid Forms Start Trickling In March 18, 2024-"The Department of Education began sending batches of student aid information to colleges last week, following through on the delayed and highly disruptive FAFSA timeline it laid out in late January," Inside Higher Ed reports.
The Financial Aid Debacle Hurts Poor Students the Most March 18, 2024-"The Department of Education created an administrative hellscape last year when it rolled out the biggest overhaul to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid in decades while restarting student loan repayment," The New York Times writes.
FAFSA Applications Crater After Rocky Rollout March 17, 2024-"The number of students who have applied for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is far behind previous years, leaving experts concerned many may opt out all together after a tumultuous rollout of the new system by the Department of ...
Minoritized, First-Gen Students Most at Risk from FAFSA Delays March 13, 2024-"Iné Collins has been a school counselor at Ewing High School in New Jersey since August 2022. This year, helping her high school seniors through the newly simplified FAFSA application process has been more stressful than simple," Diverse: Iss...
Inside the Blunders That Plunged the College Admission Season Into Disarray March 13, 2024-"There were just days left to process a batch of federal financial aid applications when Education Department officials made a fateful discovery: 70,000 emails from students all over the country, containing reams of essential data," The New York Time...
Daily Briefing: Active Learning at Research-University Scale March 12, 2024-"The president’s budget proposal released on Monday drew praise from the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators because it calls for eliminating federal direct student loans’ origination fees, but the Association of ...
How Creating the New FAFSA Unraveled March 11, 2024-"Congress tasked the incoming Biden administration with carrying out one of the most consequential updates to the federal financial aid system," The Washington Post reports.
Students With Undocumented Parents Have Hit a FAFSA Road Block. Here Are 3 Options March 5, 2024-"The new Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, for 2024-25—touted by the U.S. Department of Education as the 'Better FAFSA'—was supposed to streamline the user experience and channel more aid to a broader pool of applicants,...
Transparency Bills Seek to Reveal the True Costs of College February 28, 2024-"University students in Alaska kept asking Republican state Sen. Robert Myers why they were being blindsided with requirements to buy expensive textbooks after they signed up for classes, he said," Stateline reported.
Social Security Number Glitch On FAFSA College Aid Form Triggers Latest Fix February 23, 2024-"Students whose parents don’t have a Social Security number are now able to apply for college financial aid, according to the Department of Education. The department has announced that it is fixing a glitch in the newly revamped Free Applicatio...
U.S. Offers Temporary Patch for FAFSA Technical Glitch February 22, 2024-"The Education Department said Tuesday it will fix a technical glitch in its new Free Application for Federal Student Aid that has locked out students whose parents do not have Social Security numbers," Inside Higher Ed reports.
Partial FAFSA Fix Lets Students from Immigrant Families Apply for Financial Aid February 20, 2024-"Students whose parents lack a Social Security number can finally fill out federal financial aid forms after the Biden administration announced a workaround Tuesday for one of the most glaring problems with what was supposed to be a simpler, easier f...
Education Department Says FAFSA Fix Is Coming for Social Security Issue February 20, 2024-"A fix is on its way for students who haven't been able to complete the new federal financial aid application because their parents don't have Social Security numbers, the Department of Education said Tuesday," USA Today reports.
Flawed FAFSA Rollout Impacting Students, Schools, Campuses Across Iowa February 18, 2024-"By the end of the first week of this month, the number students at Jefferson High School in Cedar Rapids who had submitted a Free Application for Federal Student Aid — a gateway to higher education for many — was just 61, fewer than half...
Details Trickle Out About $50 Million FAFSA Support Fund February 15, 2024-"The U.S. Education Department wants to spend up to $50 million to help underresourced colleges adjust to the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid, but more than a week after publicly announcing that plan, there are more questions than answer...
FAFSA Complications Cause Setbacks for Students, Universities February 14, 2024-"The Free Application for Federal Student Aid can be the deciding factor for students entering college. This complicated form has had problems in the past and it just keeps piling up," Northwest Missourian reports.
Citing FAFSA Delays, U.S. to Ease Requirements for Colleges February 13, 2024-"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," Ins...
Education Dept. Ramps Up FAFSA Support for Colleges as Lawmakers Seek Fixes February 13, 2024-"Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on Tuesday announced more steps the department is taking to help colleges as it continues to try to smooth out kinks in the rollout of its revamped financial aid form," The Washington Post reports.
Education Department to Ease FAFSA Verification Requirements This Year February 13, 2024-"The U.S. Department of Education announced Tuesday it will reduce verification requirements this year for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid amid the rocky release of the updated form," Higher Ed Dive reports.
Amid Federal Delays, Brown Postpones FAFSA Deadline February 13, 2024-"This year, students applying for financial aid using the Free Application for Federal Student Aid form were met with delays following significant changes to the form, leading Brown to extend its own FAFSA deadline to March," The Brown Dail...
‘Time for Plan B’: The FAFSA Waiting Game Is Forcing Colleges to Adjust on the Fly February 13, 2024-"Rob Reddy knew things were about to unravel. Late last year, as everyone and their dog was waiting for the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, to finally become available, he saw exactly what college officials everywhere saw: 'It...
University of California and Cal State Push Back May 1 Commitment Deadline February 8, 2024-"The University of California and California State University systems announced Wednesday they will both extend their enrollment commitment deadline in light of delays related to the Federal Application for Free Student Aid," Higher Ed Dive reports.
FAFSA Problems Pile Up, Leaving Students and Parents Scrambling February 8, 2024-"The new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) forms, which were marketed as a simpler and easier process for parents and students, have turned into a nightmare, giving families anxiety and stress over whether their students will have what...
Opinion: Every FAFSA Delay Puts College Further Out of Reach February 8, 2024-"Each year, more than 17 million students complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, hoping to secure the financial support they need to afford college. But this year, operational glitches and repeated delays in the U....
FAFSA Glitches May Keep Students From Getting Crucial Financial Aid Info February 8, 2024-"The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is a vital tool for prospective college students and their parents seeking financial aid. Most colleges use the form when deciding how much aid to offer applicants, and over 17 million students en...
Department of Education Lends Colleges a Hand After FAFSA Backlash February 6, 2024-"More than a month after the Education Department’s rocky launch of its new Free Application for Federal Student Aid, the agency on Monday detailed new plans to support colleges struggling to accommodate a series of delays and hitches. But the ...
FAFSA Delays Are Leaving Students in Limbo. California Campuses Don’t Expect Help February 6, 2024-"The U.S. Department of Education is attempting to solve issues associated with this year’s rocky rollout of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and ensure colleges and universities release financial aid packages in a timely ma...
Using Financial Aid Data to Help Students Meet Basic Needs February 5, 2024-"A growing body of research has shown that student persistence and college completion are strongly connected to and determined by whether students’ basic needs are being me," Inside Higher Ed reports.
Education Department Announces ‘FAFSA College Support Strategy.’ Here’s What It Involves. February 5, 2024-"Education Secretary Miguel A. Cardona announced on Monday a federal initiative to help colleges process the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid, known as the FAFSA. But the plan does not mention fixes for the technical problems that are sti...
How the Biden Administration Is Working to Address FAFSA Frustrations February 5, 2024-"The Biden administration announced Monday it's adding funding and resources to help speed up FAFSA applications for college students, hoping to counter months of delays that have frustrated prospective students and colleges alike," Scripps Media.
Amid Rocky FAFSA Rollout, Education Department to Deploy Staff to Help Colleges February 5, 2024-"The U.S. Department of Education announced Monday that it plans to send federal financial aid personnel to lower-resourced colleges to help smooth the rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid," Higher Ed Dive reports.
In Wake of Hiccups and Tight Deadlines, Feds Beef Up Supports for Fledgling FAFSA February 5, 2024-"The newly designed Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, intended to streamline the user experience and offer more aid to a broader pool of applicants, has been branded the 'Better FAFSA,'" Education Week reports.
3 Steps That Could Boost The Biden Administration's FAFSA Support Strategy February 5, 2024-"It is no secret that the rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid is going poorly. Delays, mistakes, and confusion reign as the Department of Education implements the FAFSA Simplification Act. Some of this is due to errors, a...
Colleges Begin Pushing Back Deadlines Amid FAFSA Delay February 2, 2024-"The news that colleges won’t receive FAFSA applicant info until March compresses an already tight timeline. Usually, the FAFSA opens in October and colleges receive data shortly thereafter," Higher Ed Dive reports.
A Call for Deadline Extensions After FAFSA Delay February 1, 2024-"A coalition of higher ed professional associations and advocacy organizations issued a letter Wednesday urging colleges to extend their typical May 1 commitment deadline for accepted students in light of a nearly two-month delay&...
Colleges Should Extend May 1 Decision Deadline Amid FAFSA Delays, Higher Ed Groups Say February 1, 2024-"The FAFSA is usually made public at the beginning of October, with colleges receiving applicants’ information shortly thereafter. In turn, many institutions require their first-year applicants to decide if they will enroll by May 1," Higher Ed...
Minnesota Colleges Scramble to Re-evaluate Decision Deadlines After FAFSA Delays February 1, 2024-"Some Minnesota colleges are scrambling to figure out if they should extend their decision deadlines after the U.S. Department of Education announced it would be sharing students' financial aid information with schools weeks later than anticipated," ...
FAFSA Data’s Latest Delay: March January 31, 2024-"Colleges were primed to receive data from the revamped Free Application for Federal Student Aid this week, only to find they’re in for a longer wait," The Chronicle of Higher Education reports.
Adjusted FAFSA Data Pushed to March January 31, 2024-"After recognizing a mistake in how family income is applied to financial aid packages for incoming 2024-25 FAFSA applications, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) said they will fix the error, which adjusts for inflation and affects the Student Ai...
College Financial Aid Further Delayed for Students as Feds Try to Adjust for Inflation January 31, 2024-"Colleges and universities won't receive students' financial aid applications until early March, the U.S. Department of Education announced Tuesday, another wrinkle in a months-long delayed rollout that has families, financial aid officers and C...
Changes to FAFSA Cause Headaches for Students, Schools January 31, 2024-"An updated version of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA was supposed to go up on October 1st of 2023, it then got delayed," KUAF reports.
FAFSA Issues Cause Delay in Financial Aid Awards January 31, 2024-"College students shouldn't expect their financial aid award offers until March, at the earliest, adding another delay to a messy start to the 2024-25 academic year," Best Colleges reports.
Colleges Won’t Receive FAFSA Applicant Info Until March, Education Department Says January 30, 2024-"The U.S. Department of Education announced Tuesday that it won’t transmit information from students who filled out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid to colleges until the first half of March, further shortening the timeline for...
FAFSA Fix Opens $1.8 Billion More in Financial Aid, but Expect Delays January 30, 2024-"The 'soft launch' of the 2024-25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application had a $1.8 billion error in its inflation adjustment that may delay colleges releasing financial aid awards," Yahoo Finance reports.
FAFSA Inflation Fix May Delay Financial Aid Letters, Education Department Says January 30, 2024-"The U.S. Department of Education says it recently updated a key part of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid formula, but, as a result, colleges won’t receive FAFSA applicant information until early March, ...
Education Dept. Won’t Send Completed FAFSAs to Colleges Until ‘First Half of March’ January 30, 2024-"After many delays, there will be yet another delay. The U.S. Department of Education on Tuesday announced that colleges would not receive the first batch of data from applicants’ federal-aid applications until the 'first half of March,' six we...
More FAFSA Delays Likely to Slow Aid and College Decisions January 30, 2024-"If you’ll be in college next year, don’t expect financial aid offers anytime soon. Colleges won’t begin receiving processed FAFSAs — the Free Application for Federal Student Aid — until mid-March, the U.S. Education Dep...
FAFSA Delays Will Push Back College Financial Aid Timeline by Months January 30, 2024-"Students applying to college this year will have to wait longer to get financial aid offers, after continued delays mar the rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)," Money reports.
Fuel to the fire: FAFSA Complications Cause Further Delays January 30, 2024-"Students and parents anxiously submitting a delayed FAFSA Simplification Form were met with a glitchy, crash-prone website in the soft launch period. Federal Student Aid tried to soothe users’ nerves by explaining that form processing wou...
FAFSA Student Aid Timeline Delayed, Complicating College Acceptance Process January 30, 2024-"An overhaul of the federal student aid application was supposed to make it simpler this year—instead the college acceptance process has been thrown into chaos as the changes have created delays," Investopedia reports.
Here’s What Texans Need to Know About the New FAFSA to Get Aid for College January 30, 2024-"With the recent launch of the revamped federal application to receive aid for college, financial aid counselors are urging college hopefuls in Texas to fill out the form as soon as possible to up the odds of getting more money — though they wi...
Education Department Plans Inflation Fix for New FAFSA January 29, 2024-"The Department of Education said it will fix a problem with the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which would have cost students about $1.8 billion in lost federal aid, according to news first reported by NPR," Fox News repo...
Promised FAFSA Fix Will Release Another $1.8 Billion In College Financial Aid For Families January 26, 2024-"The Department of Education will adjust its aid calculations based on the Free Application for Federal Aid, or FAFSA, to account for the sharp rise in inflation. That move will free up an estimated $1.8 billion in financial aid for college students ...
Daily Briefing: Don't Hold Your Breath on Student Aid January 25, 2024-"Even good news about the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid comes with asterisks these days. The U.S. Department of Education will update tables used to calculate financial aid for the 2024-25 award year, The Washington Post repo...
Tips for Navigating the New FAFSA January 25, 2024-"My college freshman and I sat down last weekend to fill out the new FAFSA with some trepidation. The revised Free Application for Federal Student Aid was finally up and running at the end of December—sort of. According to reports we've receive...
Students With Undocumented, Noncitizen Parents Unable to Complete FAFSA January 24, 2024-"The rollout of the 2024-25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) has been rocky, but perhaps more so for U.S. students whose parents are either undocumented or not U.S. citizens," Best Colleges reports.
Education Department to Fix FAFSA Formula Error January 24, 2024-"The U.S. Education Department will fix an error in the formula that determines how much financial aid a student can get, which would have cost students about $1.8 billion, the agency told NPR Tuesday," Inside Higher Ed reports.
What to Know About Changes to This Year’s FAFSA Application for College Students January 24, 2024-"A new version of the federal student aid application known as the FAFSA is available for the 2024-2025 school year, but only on a limited basis as the U.S. Department of Education works on a redesign meant to make it easier to apply," The Associated...