PHOENIX — ABC15 is following up on all the issues with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, better known as the "FAFSA."
Since the updated version rolled out, it's been plagued with issues. But despite the problems, experts say it's still your best bet to access funding for college.
When ASU freshman Anthony Heredia and his family filled out the FAFSA last school year, they had no idea what kind of hidden savings they were about to unlock.
"It was a full ride," Anthony explained recently, on his way to a final.
Anthony says that full ride came courtesy of Pell Grants, scholarships, and other financial aid his family qualified for, simply by filling out the FAFSA.
It was the surprise savings Anthony says helped him avoid taking out any student loans this school year, but not everyone is getting the message.
"Across the country, FAFSA completion is down considerably year over year," explains Kate Wood, a lending expert at Nerd Wallet. "In some places, it's down by double percentage points."
ABC15 did some digging and found out Arizona ranks 49th in the nation for FAFSA completion.
Wood says a number of people experienced issues this year.
"A new version was rolled out by the Education Department," explains Wood. "And it's really been hampered by glitches and calculation errors. This has been particularly a burden for students who have a parent or guardian who doesn't have a Social Security number."
Our team at ABC15 has covered the FAFSA fiasco extensively over the past few months - things like a delayed roll-out, technical problems, and income reporting errors.
In April, Governor Katie Hobbs announced $500,000 in new funding to get more families to fill it out.
For some families, not completing the FAFSA means leaving free money on the table.
"You definitely do not want that," says Wood. "And despite all the difficulties we've had this year, FAFSA is the cornerstone of aid in college and university systems and it unlocks access to so much funding, and going another path entirely, you are cutting yourself off from a lot of options for paying for school."
With the federal deadline approaching in a matter of weeks and with school ending shortly, Wood suggests getting it finished ASAP, in case you need assistance from your child's school staff like guidance counselors.
If you're attending college in the 2024-2025 school year, your FAFSA form is due June 30, 2025, although experts recommend you complete as soon as you can.
ABC15 spoke with the Arizona Board of Regents, which is hosting a number of events to help families get their forms completed and to help answer any questions. For more information on those, please visit this website.
To learn more about other local resources, visit CollegeReadyAZ.com/FAFSA.
The Dept. of Education has a helpline and website in case you are having issues filling out the FAFSA and it also includes answers to FAQs. To access that, click here.
For more help from the pros at Nerd Wallet, click here.
