You have /5 articles left.
Sign up for a free account or log in.
The botched rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid led to major changes in the size and makeup of private colleges’ incoming classes this fall, according to a new survey from the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.
Nearly three-quarters of private nonprofit colleges and universities said that delays and technical issues with the new FAFSA had a significant effect on the composition of their incoming classes this fall. Twenty-two percent of respondents reported classes with fewer financial aid recipients, and 11 percent reported less racial diversity than in 2023.
The NAICU report also finds that the FAFSA crisis led to enrollment declines at 44 percent of private colleges, something fall enrollment data has suggested is true across most institutions.
At the same time, 37 percent of private colleges said the FAFSA overhaul increased the amount of financial aid they gave to students, while only 16 percent said they sent less aid—suggesting that it was the delays and errors in the rollout itself that were to blame for the decline in aid-eligible and underserved students this fall.
Respondents to the NAICU survey were largely united in their negative assessment of the Education Department’s handling of the rollout: 90 percent said the department didn’t provide timely information about the FAFSA, and 88 percent said the information provided was unclear. Only 7 percent felt the department was timely and helpful in answering requests from institutions for FAFSA-related assistance, despite a major effort to help colleges navigate the changes.
