The bungled rollout of this yr’s new Free Software for Federal Scholar Assist began with a two-month delay, pushing the standard Oct. 1 launch date to the tip of December—a shift that raised eyebrows throughout greater ed and portended the disastrous monetary assist cycle that adopted.
So when U.S. training secretary Miguel Cardona appeared at Home listening to on the difficulty final month, it’s no shock lawmakers repeatedly requested him to decide to a well timed launch for this yr’s type.
“I stated earlier than, and I’ll repeat it once more,” an exasperated Cardona instructed New York Republican Brandon Williams after a number of questions alongside these strains. “I’m ensuring that the workers is aware of that is the very best precedence, and that it’s my expectation that on Oct. 1, it’s prepared.”
Williams nonetheless wasn’t glad.
“You’re sure?” he requested.
Lawmakers aren’t the one ones doubtful concerning the division’s timeline. Earlier this month, a coalition of 25 advocacy organizations, together with the Nationwide Affiliation of Scholar Monetary Assist Directors and the Nationwide Faculty Attainment Community, despatched the division a letter urging officers to decide to an Oct. 1 launch date for subsequent yr’s type.
“We’re involved that the FAFSA shall be delayed once more, and that the discharge date will stay unsure till simply earlier than the shape turns into obtainable,” the letter learn. “This method will result in a repeat of final yr, with colleges and counselors unable to plan the counseling and outreach efforts which are wanted, faculties unable to make sure a clean and well timed course of for producing monetary assist provides, and college students left within the lurch.”
There’s loads of cause to be anxious, stated Jill Desjean, NASFAA’s director of coverage evaluation. Final yr the ED launched a draft of the brand new FAFSA on March 27, she stated; by this level within the early summer time, they often have a second draft prepared for testing.
This yr, “We haven’t even seen the primary draft but,” she stated.
Training Division officers have stated they’ve already labored by way of the brand new type’s greatest technical and logistical points and are ready for a a lot simpler rollout within the fall.
“Now we have heard from college students, households, establishments, states, and people who assist them that it will be significant for the 2025–26 FAFSA type to launch on October 1,” learn a division announcement final week. “The Division has made important progress to deal with and resolve all main identified points with the 2024–25 type and can proceed to make enhancements to the shape to allow a greater consumer expertise.”
Desjean stated the division appears to be making an actual effort to study from its errors. However with this yr’s delays and missteps burdening the Federal Scholar Assist workplace nicely into the summer time, she’d be shocked to see officers meet the deadline with a completed product.
“I understand how slammed they’re and the way overwhelmed they’re, nonetheless coping with the fallout of this yr,” she stated. “And each time one thing’s rushed, it often doesn’t finish nicely—as we’ve seen this yr.”
Enrollment managers and monetary assist professionals, scarred by this yr’s rollout, say they wish to imagine ED officers, however their confidence is low.
“Because the outdated saying goes, ‘Idiot me as soon as, disgrace on you; idiot me twice, disgrace on me,’” stated Tom Delahunt, president for strategic recruitment and enrollment at Southwestern College. “A variety of of us felt fooled this yr. I don’t assume we’ll get fooled once more.”
Getting on Observe
A clean Oct. 1 launch could also be particularly difficult given current turbulence inside the division. FSA chief Richard Cordray is stepping down on the finish of the month, making a vacuum on the prime of the workplace answerable for the federal assist type. It’s additionally an election yr, which brings the potential for massive personnel shake-ups if the White Home modifications social gathering fingers once more.
“Between [Cordray’s] departure and the instability and uncertainty that comes with an election yr … all of this leads me to imagine there shall be a delay,” stated Rob Reddy, vice chairman for enrollment administration at St. Louis College. “If I don’t put together for that eventuality, I’d be derelict in my job.”
However there are causes for optimism as nicely. Final Friday the division introduced the appointment of its first-ever FAFSA czar, Faculty Board president Jeremy Singer, to steward subsequent yr’s rollout. Singer oversaw the event and launch of the new digital SAT and has been concerned in operations for the Faculty Board’s FAFSA various, the Faculty Scholarship Service Profile, since 2013.
Final week, division officers introduced they’d not open up the FAFSA for public remark or substantively change this yr’s type, making the Oct. 1 deadline extra sensible by eliminating the standard 90-day remark interval. However many monetary assist professionals are upset that one of many few clear venues obtainable to critique the shape has been closed off.
“I’d say this will increase the probability they’ll meet the Oct. 1 launch date, but it surely comes at the price of not making modifications for subsequent yr,” Desjean stated. “Given the magnitude of the modifications from this yr, I believe individuals would have appreciated the time to remark.”
Rachelle Feldman, vice provost for enrollment on the College of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, stated there are a number of obtusely phrased questions on this yr’s type that prompted a flood of corrections, which she’d prefer to see reworded for subsequent yr. These embrace a query asking college students in the event that they wish to apply for unsubsidized loans, which incorporates a number of double negatives and was highlighted by NCAN in its checklist of really useful FAFSA enhancements revealed final Thursday.
“There’s some stability between asking them to implement these [changes] and being prepared on time,” Feldman stated.
A number of enrollment and monetary assist officers instructed Inside Greater Ed that it’s much less necessary that the division hit the Oct. 1 deadline than it’s for the shape to work easily on day one. Feldman stated the brand new type’s persistent technical issues and restricted performance had been way more problematic than the delays this previous yr.
“I might a lot slightly that the FAFSA be prepared with out errors and with full functionality … on Nov. 1 or Dec. 1—and even Dec. 10—than have it roll out in October filled with issues,” she stated. “If the division wants extra time to make it work accurately, I might a lot slightly see them try this, so long as it’s not a continuous reshuffling [of the launch date]. And I’d slightly they communicated about that proper now.”
Backup Plans
As soon as college students submit their types, it’s essential for faculties to behave on them shortly, Feldman stated, noting that the hole between the shape’s availability and establishments’ entry to knowledge was a significant component on this yr’s fiasco.
“The day they launch it for households to enter knowledge must be the identical day the performance is there to ship that knowledge to the college in order that colleges might be good companions in serving to college students full the FAFSA and perceive the outcomes,” Feldman stated. “There’s actually no level in having college students start a FAFSA after which in the event that they get caught, nobody may also help them.”
Many faculties are readying a backup choice in case the division doesn’t have a working type by October.
When the delays turned untenable this spring, each Southwestern and St. Louis Universities launched their very own variations of the shape to jump-start the monetary assist packaging course of. Delahunt and Reddy stated the transfer staved off among the worst enrollment impacts of the botched rollout, they usually’re each planning to make use of it once more this fall.
“I believe [our] type, which we created out of necessity, will turn out to be an everyday device any more,” Delahunt stated.
That schools really feel a necessity for this sort of fail-safe displays how deeply the bungled rollout has eroded the monetary assist neighborhood’s belief within the division. One of the simplest ways to regain that belief, a number of monetary assist officers stated, is for the ED to be clear about any potential delays and forthcoming about what precipitated the previous yr’s debacle.
“We want clear, sincere communications. And they should personal the issue,” Reddy stated. “Up to now, that hasn’t occurred.”
