Filing Troubles: Debt.com Survey Finds 3 Out of 4 Americans Frustrated with FAFSA

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Sep 30, 2024, 15:07 ET

Despite the Education Department's promises of a "Better FAFSA," technical issues and too many questions continue to overwhelm families seeking essential financial aid for college.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Sept. 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Debt.com's 2024 FAFSA survey of 1,000 Americans revealed the two most common problems when filing a FAFSA application: too many questions and a faulty website.

Filing a Free Application for Federal Student Aid is the first step to earning the Pelll grant, scholarships, and Federal student loans. The initial rollout of "Better FAFSA" was met by technical issues that delayed the timely processing of FAFSA applications, according to reporting by The Hill.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) will be available on October 1 for students attending the 2025-2026 academic year. It’ll be the second year of the Education Department’s “Better FAFSA” financial aid form – and a test if the form has actually been improved.

"What's both ironic and a little sad is that this is supposed to be the first year of a new-and-improved FAFSA," says Debt.com president Don Silvestri. "Congress passed the FAFSA Simplification Act in 2020, and the results were implemented at the beginning of this academic year. Our research shows it hasn't worked out quite like the federal government expected."

Seventy-six percent of those surveyed who filed FAFSA say they've had challenges and 48% say there were far too many questions, while 31% cited issues with the website being consistently under maintenance, and 23% of those who had trouble said the FAFSA took at least 3 ½ hours to complete.

Other findings include:

87% of respondents feel their child would qualify for the Pell Grant
77% said they believe the Pell Grant would add to their student loan debt, which is untrue as the grant doesn't have to be paid back
58% said filing FAFSA and receiving Pell grants, scholarships, and/or worked study helped them stay out of student loan debt
42% said FAFSA did not help them, and they had to take on student loan debt

"My hope is that, as AI gets smarter and more ubiquitous, it can be used to truly simply and shorten FAFSA," Silvestri says. "Until then, I don't doubt there are students who are missing out on badly needed funds because they can't navigate the application process."

The FAFSA will be available on October 1 for students attending the 2025-2026 academic year. The Education Department says the "Better FAFSA" will take 15 minutes. It will be the second year of the Education Department's "Better FAFSA" financial aid form and a test to see if the form has actually been improved.

Debt.com

About Debt.com: Debt.com is a consumer website where people can find help with credit card debt, student loan debt, tax debt, credit repair, bankruptcy, and more. Debt.com works with vetted and certified providers that give the best advice and solutions for consumers "when life happens."

SOURCE Debt.com