The updated 2024-25 FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) was intended to simplify the financial aid application process. Instead, it has become a major headache for both students and universities.
From deployment delays and glitches to miscalculations of financial aid, the 2024-25 FAFSA has been riddled with problems from the start.
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is the primary way college-bound students receive financial aid, including grants, scholarships, and loans. Applications for the 2024-25 academic year have caused many students to wait longer than usual to receive their scholarships, but this is an important step in determining which universities students can fund. It is a number. For some, this meant putting their faith in college and hoping that financial aid would come their way. For others, it meant taking a gap year or deciding not to go to college because they didn’t receive their scholarship on time.
The Department of Education announced in August that the upcoming 2025-26 FAFSA application will begin on December 1st, instead of the usual October start date. This made people wonder if last year’s FAFSA delays would carry over to this year’s filing.
But this week, a Department of Education spokesperson told CNET that everything is proceeding as planned. “Our system is operational and has been in testing since late August,” the spokesperson said. “The beta testing period will begin on October 1st and is expected to be fully available to all students and contributors by December 1st.”
Here are expert tips on what happened on the FAFSA over the past year and what to expect on the 2025-26 FAFSA.
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What happened on the 2024-25 FAFSA?
If you’ve ever filled out the FAFSA, you know that it can be a tedious task. Previously, the FAFSA required parents and students to answer up to 103 questions to submit their financial aid application. The 2024-25 updated FAFSA aimed to simplify this.
The new FAFSA will reduce the number of questions to 18 instead of more than 100 for many applicants. Several new calculations have also been added to expand access to some major federal awards, such as Pell Grants.
To simplify the FAFSA, I had to restart the application. This took longer than expected and caused some calculation errors.
Let’s take a closer look at the top FAFSA issues over the past year.
Delay in opening
The FAFSA typically opens on October 1st of each year, but the 2024-25 FAFSA did not become available until December 30th. Initially only available online on a regular basis, it became available full-time in January. However, once it was fully open, many students said they had trouble accessing the form.
“Due to technical issues, some students were unable to complete the FAFSA,” said Kathy Mueller, executive director of Mapping Your Future, a financial aid literacy organization.
slow transfer to university
The Department of Education originally announced it would begin sending FAFSA information to colleges in late January 2024, but it did not begin sending applications until March. Based on the FAFSA application, the university will create a scholarship award letter to send to the student. This transfer delay meant students had to wait months longer than usual to receive financial aid offers and compare college costs.
Financial aid miscalculation
On March 22, 2024, the Department of Education announced that the application contained a calculation error that could cost students $1.8 billion in overall federal student aid. The records of dependent students who had already filed the FAFSA had to be reprocessed, further delaying the financial aid process.
Error message for foreigners
Some students, especially noncitizens and noncitizen children, encountered error messages when attempting to fill out the form. Those affected include permanent residents, students with green cards, and students whose parents do not have Social Security numbers. Those without access to applications had few options.
students were at a loss
Due to FAFSA delays, many students were left in limbo throughout the spring and summer waiting to receive scholarship award notifications from universities. Universities can typically notify financial aid decisions by March or April, and students are often required to choose a school by May 1st.
But this year, many students waited months longer to learn about their financial aid offers.
“In some cases, it meant students had to choose a college without being able to compare financial aid offers,” Mueller said. “And students without offers of financial aid didn’t even know if they could afford to attend college.”
Higher education experts suspect these issues will have a negative impact on college admissions in 2024-2025, but it is still too early to know the exact impact.
“The impact is not uniform across the country because the most selective colleges have not experienced a decline in the number of applicants,” said financial aid expert Mark Kantrowitz. “Colleges that are small and tuition-dependent are likely to experience financial hardship due to the FAFSA debacle.”
According to the National College Attainment Network, the number of FAFSA applications filed decreased by 9% compared to the previous year. Kantrowitz said FAFSA filings from returning college students are also down.
Can we expect delays on the FAFSA this year?
The FAFSA, which will be filled out by high school seniors and current college students this year, is already delayed. Rather than making the application available on October 1, the Department of Education plans to roll it out gradually to select students and institutions so they can find and resolve errors. . It is expected that everyone will have access to the application by December 1st of this year.
A Ministry of Education spokesperson confirmed that everything is going as planned, but experts remain skeptical.
“Not everyone believes that the FAFSA will actually open on this delayed schedule,” Kantrowitz said. “Frankly, many of the issues surrounding the 2024-25 FAFSA are likely to remain unresolved.”
How to prepare for the FAFSA now
Delays and mistakes can be frustrating, but if you’re attending college next year, it’s important to fill out the FAFSA as soon as it’s available. Doing this will give you the best chance of receiving federal financial aid.
The Department of Education distributes more than $120 billion in federal financial aid to more than 13 million students each year. A department spokesperson said 500,000 more students were eligible for Pell Grants this year than last year. By filing the FAFSA, you can receive important financial aid that brings the cost of attending your favorite college within your reach.
While we can’t control government delays, there are things you can do to prepare.
1. Create a StudentAid.gov account
To complete the FAFSA, you must set up an account on StudentAid.gov. You can create it once the application window opens, but setting it up now will avoid any account issues when you submit your application.
If you are a dependent, your parent must also create a StudentAid.gov account.
2. Have your financial documents handy
Once the application opens, make sure it is ready. Here’s what you need:
Your tax returns (both the applicant and their parent/guardian) Your social security number (both the applicant and their parent/guardian) Bank account balances Records of child support received by you or your parent Investment amount
3. Narrow down your list of universities
You must select at least one college when filling out the FAFSA. Once your financial aid application is processed, the Department of Education will send your information to the school so they can put together your financial aid award.
It’s fine if you decide to add schools after submitting your FAFSA, but having the top schools on hand can speed up the process.
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