Author: Davida Persaud
Come Jan. 1, 2010, students applying for government aid for the upcoming year will encounter a new, shortened Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. In efforts to simplify the lengthy process of applying for government financial aid, the Obama administration has begun the long-awaited process of shortening the FAFSA. In past years, students and parents spent hours answering more than 150 questions.
The new form is projected to have 22 less questions and 17 fewer Web pages to enter than in previous years. The form is shorter and better organized into sections like “student demographics” and “basic eligibility,” according to a Sept. 24 New York Times article. The new FAFSA will also be a “smart” form, where the questions will be filtered out and less repetitive based on earlier answers.
With a shorter form, a point of concern is whether or not the application will convey students’ financial circumstances as completely as the original form. “[Oxy students will not be affected in a] negative way and the positive way is that the process of filling out this form is simplified,” said Director of Financial Aid Maureen McRae.
In addition, McRae added that the FAFSA doesn’t clearly distinguish between rich and poor because it doesn’t include home equity and other financial indicators so the college ultimately has to “look to the CSS [College Scholarship Service] profile to determine who gets money from colleges.”
McRae said, “[I am] very happy to see some movement and changes that most of the administrators thought was necessary.”
Oxy students were also excited to hear about the shortening and simplification of the FAFSA. “The form has been a bit complicated and in some areas quite confusing, especially for students that are unfamiliar with all of their parent’s finances,” said Amelia Frey (junior).
“[The FAFSA] was overwhelming without outside help,” said Leanne Zabala (sophomore).
Though the simplification of the FAFSA form has potential to help both those seeking financial aid and those awarding it, there is concern about the time frame of the Obama administration’s changes. Slight changes were made to the Jan. 2009 form but Oxy administrators did not see the changes until Dec. 18, 2008, giving them only two weeks to develop software and a new stratagem of reviewing and awarding financial aid. With the drastic changes promised for the Jan. 2010 form, McRae is concerned, and she said the “biggest fear [for the department] is the unknown.”
Occidental’s Office of Financial Aid reaches out to students with personal phone calls and assists them in filling out the FAFSA. But, until more information on the imminent changes is released, the college will be in the dark as everyone else.
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