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Changes coming to financial aid forms
The Department of Education plans on dropping an entirely new financial aid form that students must fill out if they plan on receiving assistance for college later this year. The updated version will make more lower income families qualifying, as well as expanding access to middle income families as well.
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (FOX 2) - The financial aid form that future college students must fill out before they can receive assistance paying for higher education is getting a major update at the end of this year.
Also called the FAFSA, the updated changes will make the massive form easier to fill out while also expanding access to families interested in financial support for college - an increasingly large expense for anyone heading to college.
Students like Trinity Vann, who attends Oakland University knows all too well the feeling of needing a little help.
"I broke down in tears, I was like ‘mom look at what I got’ and even she started crying," she said. "She was like ‘this is such a blessing’."
She said college was always the dream, but it wouldn't have been without aid.
The new Free Application for Federal Student Aid has been simplified and streamlined.
"The whole formula that’s used to produce eligibility has been changed which will result in lower income families qualifying for aid, but also expanding access for middle income families as well," said Nicole Boelk, director of financial aid and scholarships at Oakland University.
The FAFSA form usually opens in early October but this time around the form will be available by Dec. 31, meaning students will find out what sort of financial aid they have later in the year.
"I think the number one barrier is a fear about what completing the FAFSA is all about, and so we want families to know that this new FAFSA is easier than ever to complete," said Boelk.