Key Takeaways:
- Following last year’s chaotic FAFSA experience, the outlook for the 2025-2026 season is significantly better. However, colleges and universities still have important work to do in order to ensure the success of their institutions and students.
- A Department of Education pilot program to test this year’s form has been generating positive feedback from participants.
- Early communication about the new process will be essential to overcoming potential roadblocks to FAFSA completion.
- If your award notification is an afterthought and fails to include messaging about return on investment and value, your effort to enroll and retain students may come up short.
After a tumultuous year in the financial aid world riddled with delays, setbacks, a miscalculation, and a fair amount of grief, colleges are hoping things go a little smoother this year with the rollout of the 2025-26 FAFSA.
To underscore the hope that things do go smoothly, the Department of Education is rolling out this year’s FAFSA form in two parts. A beta test of a small group of students and community-based organizations had access to the form beginning this past month. Feedback on the user experience is being collected from this group so that fixes may be made prior to the general release on December 1st.
The feedback thus far, from those in the beta group, is positive. Completion time for the form is relatively quick, clocking in at about 20 minutes on average, and errors made by users have been minimal.
This is good news and in stark contrast to last season’s rollout. As colleges and universities look forward, there are lessons learned over the last year that can ensure this coming season not only returns to some semblance of normalcy but will be better than ever.
Looking back to look ahead
- Delay is discouraging. Communication is key. The general release slated for December is still two months later than normal. While that’s better than the severe delay last year, students, families, and counselors will still have a compressed time frame to complete the form. Early communication from the institution can prime students and families for what is ahead and when to be ready to act. That should involve incorporating messaging in your communication flow now that encourages students to create their FSA ID before December to streamline their experience once the form is live.
- There is no such thing as over preparation. The beta group, while small, is generating ISIRs now. Institutions can use this information for testing modeling strategies, ironing out kinks, and readying staff for what is to come. When go-time comes in December, schools can hit the ground running.
- Support and patience to go the distance. One of the most unsettling lessons learned from last year was that many students decided not to fill out the FAFSA form at all, which had a huge impact on where—and if—they went to college. According to National College Attainment Network’s FAFSA Tracker, only 49% of high school 2024 grads filled out the FAFSA, down 9.9% over the previous year. Institutions that can offer resources to prospective and current students on filling out the FAFSA by way of workshops, virtual webinars, drop-in hours, etc. can poise students to successfully complete the form this year.
- Presentation is everything. A timely financial aid notification that lays out all funding opportunities and costs clearly while making a compelling case for the investment is a gold standard. Last year’s delay caused many schools to alter their award notifications, piecing together what information was available in an abbreviated notification and leaving out important return on investment and value messaging. From the perspective of a student and family making their selections, this was confusing and less than ideal. If your award notification is an afterthought, your institution may add to the confusion in the minds of your prospect pool.
As December approaches with the next financial aid season on the horizon, we can better serve students by using the experiences of this past year to guide our methods.
About the Author
Mollie Ballaro is an Enrollment Strategist with Liaison, bringing over 20 years of higher education experience with her. She served three private institutions in the Western New York area in senior leadership roles as a Chief Enrollment Officer, Dean of Admissions, and Director of Admissions before joining the Liaison team. Her extensive background includes oversight of financial aid, domestic and international admissions, enrollment management, and admissions marketing.
Mollie graduated from Canisius University with a Master of Science in Higher Education Student Affairs Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family, and when there is the occasional free minute, Mollie continues to focus on her photography hobby.