FAFSA UPDATE FOR 2024–2025
We understand that navigating the financial aid process can feel overwhelming, especially when faced with the complexities of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application and ongoing delays from the Department of Education. Know that wise stewardship of your money is important to us and we’re going to walk with you through this process every step of the way.
On Tuesday, January 30, the U.S. Department of Education notified colleges and universities nationwide about a delay in the internal processing timeline for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This means that institutions, including Malone University, will experience a delay in receiving FAFSA data for incoming and current students.
Not only do we assure you we’ll package your financial aid offer as soon as the data becomes available, but we recognize that this could impact our incoming students’ decision-making process.
As one way to offer our support, Malone has extended the deposit refund date to June 1.
Also, in response to the FAFSA Week of Action, we will be hosting FAFSA Completion Open Hours to assist families in completing this year's FAFSA. Please register below so our financial aid counselors can prepare to meet with you.
What is the FAFSA Simplification Act?
The FAFSA Simplification Act represents a significant overhaul of the processes and systems used to award federal student aid starting with the 2024–2025 award year. This includes the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form, need calculation, and many policies and procedures for schools that participate in federal student aid programs. The law will also affect every state that uses FAFSA data to award state grant aid and every school that participates in the federal student aid programs.
Key Changes
- The 2024–2025 FAFSA opened in DECEMBER 2023. This is expected to be a temporary change, and in future years the FAFSA will open on October 1 again.
- The federal government will hold submitted FAFSAs while awaiting a correction in the aid formula. Colleges and universities cannot provide accurate financial aid information until that data is released. Our expected delivery is early April and we will begin processing financial aid offers as soon as we can upon delivery.
- The new FAFSA will feature fewer questions, fewer requirements, and retrieve tax information using a direct data exchange from the IRS instead of the previous IRS Data Retrieval Tool.
- The Expected Family Contribution (EFC) will now be referred to as the Student Aid Index (SAI). The new formula removes the number of family members in college from the calculation, allows a minimum SAI of -1500, and implements a separate eligibility determination criterion for Federal Pell Grants.
- For divorced or separated parents: The parent who provided the most financial support to the student will need to provide their information on the FAFSA. Previously, the parent who the student lived with the most provided their information.
- The new FAFSA introduces the term “contributor,” which refers to anyone who is required to provide information on a student’s FAFSA form, including the student, the student’s spouse, a biological or adopted parent, or the parent’s spouse. Being a contributor does not imply responsibility for the student's college costs.
What's not changing?
These federal aid requirements, rights, and responsibilities have either not changed or have had only minor updates:
- The FAFSA remains required annually for federal aid consideration and is available to U.S. Citizens or Eligible Non-Citizens. How to apply for aid.
- The questions introduced in 2023-24 about the applicant's sex, race, and ethnicity have no effect on federal student aid eligibility and remain only for statistical purposes.
- The dependency status questions, which determine if your parents must provide their information, remain the same.
- The FAFSA will still request prior-prior year tax information.
- Federal Aid Rights & Responsibilities also didn't change.
How to prepare for the FAFSA
We encourage current and prospective students to submit the FAFSA as soon as possible so that when data is delivered to our financial aid officers, we can create your aid offer in a timely manner.
To begin, create an FSA ID on the Federal Student Aid website and assist contributors, such as your parent(s) or spouse, in creating an FSA ID. An FSA ID is an account and password that gives you access to the Federal Student Aid’s online system and serves as your electronic signature. With the FSA ID, you can fill out the FAFSA, sign your Master Promissory Note (MPN), apply for repayment plans, complete loan counseling, and use the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Help Tool. If you already have an FSA ID, there is no need to create a new one. Your existing FSA ID will continue to work.
Terminology
- STUDENT AID INDEX (SAI): calculated by the FAFSA data; will determine student aid eligibility. This replaces the EFC that was used in previous years.
- COST OF ATTENDANCE (COA): includes tuition and fees, food and housing, books and supplies, miscellaneous expenses, and transportation.
- CONTRIBUTOR: a parent, stepparent, student, or spouse of the student who is providing information for the FAFSA.
- CONSENT: required from all contributors in order for the IRS to share tax data directly to the FAFSA. If any contributor does not provide consent to share the tax data, the student will automatically be ineligible for aid.
- DIRECT DATA EXCHANGE (DDX): previously known as IRS Data Retrieval; this tool imports tax data directly from the IRS to the FAFSA.
- FAFSA SUBMISSION SUMMARY (FSS): A summary of the completed FAFSA information. This replaces the Student Aid Report (SAR) from previous versions.
Last updated: April 3, 2024