Continued delays are causing significant concerns among students, parents, colleges, and higher education advocates regarding the tumultuous rollout of the 2024-2025 FAFSA. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which determines college students’ eligibility for financial aid, has faced numerous challenges since its soft launch in late December. These challenges include glitches, technical errors, and various delays that have plagued students and parents attempting to complete the online form.
On March 22, the U.S. Department of Education announced a miscalculation in the student aid index, which replaced the expected family contribution. This error specifically affected dependent students who reported assets, necessitating the reprocessing of any forms submitted to schools before March 21, 2024.
“This is another unforced error that will likely cause more processing delays for students,” wrote Justin Draeger, president and CEO of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, in a statement. “At this stage in the game and after so many delays, every error adds up and will be felt acutely by every student who is counting on need-based financial aid to make their postsecondary dreams a reality.”
He emphasized that while schools will work diligently with federal colleagues to provide information to students as quickly as possible, it is crucial that the Department of Education supplies valid and correct data. Draeger noted, “It is not feasible or realistic to send out incorrect FAFSA data and ask thousands of schools to make real-time calculations and adjustments to the federal formula on the school side.”
Another significant delay occurred in February when the department had to update the tables used in the student aid index to account for inflation. This update, required by the bipartisan FAFSA Simplification Act of 2020, was initially overlooked, causing further setbacks. Consequently, colleges did not start receiving students’ financial information until March, although they were originally expected to receive it in late January.
The delays in opening the FAFSA have caused a domino effect: delays in millions of students and parents filing the form, delays in processing and sending financial information to colleges, delays in colleges creating financial aid packages, and delays in students receiving award letters and deciding where or even if they will attend college.
As a result of these ongoing delays, school leaders and higher education organizations have called for colleges to implement flexible deadlines this year and reconsider the annual May 1 national “College Decision Day.” During the pandemic, many institutions extended their enrollment, scholarship, and financial aid deadlines beyond the traditional May 1 date, and a coalition of nine higher education organizations has urged institutions to make similar accommodations this year. They emphasized the importance of allowing students and families ample time to consider their financial options before making enrollment decisions.
Widener University in Pennsylvania, for instance, announced that it would not adhere to the May 1 deadline. Joseph E. Howard, vice president for enrollment at Widener, explained to U.S. News that the processing delays would necessitate distributing financial aid offers to students throughout April and beyond. This situation creates considerable pressures and challenges for families making crucial decisions about their children’s education.
The impact of these delays is most pronounced for vulnerable students, including those who rely on need-based aid, come from low-income families, or attend underserved schools. Howard noted that these students are particularly at risk of being adversely affected by the ongoing issues with the FAFSA rollout.
In February, a group of Senate Republicans voiced their frustrations at a news conference, criticizing the Education Department for prioritizing President Biden’s controversial federal student loan forgiveness plan over ensuring a smooth rollout of the new FAFSA. They expressed concern that the department’s allocation of time and resources had been misdirected, exacerbating the challenges faced by students and families during this critical period.
