FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Hugh Ferguson
Managing Editor, NASFAA
[email protected]

WASHINGTON, D.C., AUGUST 19, 2024 — As students prepare — and pay — for a new academic year, an updated resource from the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) offers practical insight into the background and impact of federal student aid programs.

The annual National Student Aid Profile provides a comprehensive summary of these programs that help millions of students pursue their postsecondary ambitions each year. Data in the Profile range from the student aid funding patterns over time to the yearly reach of individual programs. Journalists, lawmakers, and congressional staffers often depend on the Profile as a ready resource.

Among its insights, the 2024 Profile details a sustained decline in inflation-adjusted expenditures for the Pell Grant program. What’s more, over the last decade, although the maximum Pell Grant award has increased by more than $1,660, when adjusted for inflation, the maximum award for a full-time student has remained relatively flat, despite increases in college costs.

Also in the latest Profile: Funding for the Federal Work-Study (FWS) and Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) programs has been largely unchanged over the last several years, despite substantial need. About 42% of dependent undergraduate FWS recipients registered a family income of less than $42,000, while slightly more than 64% of dependent FSEOG recipients had a family income of less than $30,000. 

Other aid offerings highlighted in the Profile include the Federal Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loan Programs and the Federal Direct PLUS Loan Program. For each program, the profile features up-to-date data and information on the following:

• Number of recipients

• Total volume of awards

• Federal funding levels

• Distribution by family income

To set up an interview with a NASFAA spokesperson to discuss the Title IV programs, budget, appropriations, or anything contained in the National Student Aid Profile: Overview of 2024 Federal Programs, please email NASFAA Managing Editor Hugh Ferguson.

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About NASFAA 

The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) is a nonprofit membership organization that represents more than 29,000 financial aid professionals at approximately 3,000 colleges, universities, and career schools across the country. NASFAA member institutions serve nine out of every 10 undergraduates in the U.S. Based in Washington, D.C., NASFAA is the only national association with a primary focus on student aid legislation, regulatory analysis, and training for financial aid administrators.