"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 received from friends and seen on social media, the “soft launch” (as described by the U.S. Department of Education) hasn’t been a smooth one," Morningstar report. 

... "'When it works, it’s amazing,' says Jill Desjean, senior policy analyst at the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. If you’ve plodded through the 100-plus questions on the old application form in past years, you may find that the new one is a significant improvement."

... "'Do it as early as you can,' agrees Desjean, noting that some schools take a first-come, first-served approach to distributing aid. If you do end up needing to make changes, try to do so within the first few days of your application being processed. Then the schools on your FAFSA list will receive the corrected application in time to factor it into their aid decisions."

"Desjean notes that it may take schools 'weeks, and even months' to adjust their financial aid management systems to accommodate the new SAIs once they receive them."

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: 1/25/2024