HOW TO KNOW ABOUT CHANGES TO THIS YEAR’S FAFSA APPLICATION FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS, ... (967 hits)
For Immediate Release From K-LOP!
NEW YORK (AP) — 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.
That means the Free Application for Federal Student Aid students can usually fill out starting in October isn’t yet available to everyone.
A soft launch period opened last week and the Department of Education said it will continue to make the new form available for short periods of time. Students who want to submit their applications now will need to monitor the studentaid.gov website since it’s available at different times during the day.
Since the soft launch was announced, there has been limited availability and some students and their families have experienced glitches.
“Even by soft launch standards, this weekend’s rollout was challenging and students, families, and financial aid administrators who have been waiting for this release for months are understandably frustrated,” said Justin Draeger, president of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.
A spokesperson for the Department of Education said the department hopes to keep the application open for longer stretches as it resolves issues with the new form.
The relaunch brings major changes such as fewer questions, the ability to list more colleges and availability in more languages. However, the update means students will get their financial aid offers later than usual.
Here’s what you need to know:
HOW DOES THE FAFSA WORK?
The FAFSA is a free government application that uses financial information from you and your family to determine whether you can get financial aid from the federal government to pay for college.
The FAFSA will send your financial information to the schools you say you are interested in attending. It previously only allowed you to send your information to 10 schools, but the new application will allow you to send your application to up to 20. Each school that admits you will send you a financial aid package. The amount of financial aid you get depends on each institution.
The application is also used to determine eligibility for other federal student aid programs, like work-study and loans, as well as state and school aid. Sometimes, private, merit-based scholarships also require FAFSA information to determine if you qualify.
WHEN WILL THE 2024-2025 FAFSA BE AVAILABLE?
The Education Department announced a soft launch period in late December.
“During the soft launch, the FAFSA form will be available to students and families periodically while we monitor site performance and form functionality,” according to the department website.
The department hasn’t said when the soft launch period will end and the application will be fully released.
Why families applying for financial aid may initially have trouble with the new FAFSA
Along-awaited update to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, better known as the FAFSA, was released on December 30. But some families are having trouble accessing the online form, which has so far only been available for short periods of time.
During what the Department of Education is calling a “soft launch,” the agency is monitoring site performance, conducting planned pauses for maintenance and making updates.
The FAFSA application was available for a 30-minute window on December 30, a 30-minute window on December 31 and a two-hour window on January 1, according to the Department of Education. More than 30,000 forms were successfully submitted during those times, and the form was reopened the afternoon of January 2. When the FAFSA is paused, families may not be able to start or resume work on the form, which will be used to determine financial aid eligibility for the 2024-25 academic year.
The form is expected to be available for short periods of time during the coming days.
The Department of Education has been working on a major overhaul of the FAFSA for about three years, after Congress approved changes to the form to make it shorter and easier to fill out. More students are expected to qualify for financial aid.
Usually, the form is available October 1 each year, but the changes delayed this year’s release date. The updated form was required by law to be available by January 1, 2024.
Still, the Department of Education has said that families do not need to rush to immediately submit the FAFSA this year.
Even if a student submits the FAFSA now, the applicant will not receive the FAFSA Submission Summary (formerly known as the Student Aid Report) until late January. The report tells students how much federal student aid they are eligible for. An applicant will likely have to wait longer to hear from colleges about how much aid the school may provide.
How to submit the FAFSA The FAFSA is available online at StudentAid.gov.
During the soft launch period, applicants may experience a waiting room feature, which will help control website volumes.
Users who log on during a temporary pause should check back at a later time to complete the form, the Department of Education said.
The student is responsible for filing the FAFSA, though if the student is a dependent, his or her parent must also sign the form. Both the parent and student will need to create their own account with Federal Student Aid, known as the FSA ID, before beginning to fill out the form.
The new FAFSA is easier to fill out With the new form, some applicants will have to answer as few as 18 questions, which would take fewer than 10 minutes to complete, according to the Department of Education.
The number of questions on the FAFSA vary by applicant, based on his or her financial circumstance. The Department of Education said that for most users, it will take about an hour to finish the form.
