"The U.S. Department of Education announced on Wednesday that it will make a fully functional Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, available by December 1, following a two-month “phased rollout,” during which the agency will make the form available to a limited number of colleges and students," The Chronicle of Higher Education reports.

..."The department did not say when batch corrections would be available in the 2025-26 cycle — a reminder that FAFSA repairs could continue into next winter, at least.

'The fact that we are still, to this day, dealing with the aftershocks of this year’s FAFSA rollout shows just how imperative it is that the process is thoroughly tested from end to end and launched as a system, not in a piecemeal manner,' Beth Maglione, interim president and chief executive of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, said in a written statement.

Maglione said that she was encouraged by the department communicating about its FAFSA timeline in advance. But not so much by the news about batch corrections.

'As we move forward,' she said, 'we hope that ED will maintain a high level of transparency — particularly around issues that would directly impact the ability of financial-aid professionals to serve students, such as a functional batch-corrections process. We also hope this two-month planned-testing period will allow for a much smoother rollout.'"

NASFAA's "Notable Headlines" section highlights media coverage of financial aid to help members stay up to date with the latest news. Articles included under the notable headlines section are not written by NASFAA, but rather by external sources. Inclusion in Today's News does not imply endorsement of the material or guarantee the accuracy of information presented.

Publication Date: 8/7/2024