As the new academic year hoists its sails, college students in San Antonio face the headwinds of financial aid delays, a result of complications with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Many students and colleges in the region are navigating these choppy waters, with some students left unable to secure textbooks and others scrambling to cover living expenses as the school year kicks off. According to a report by KENS5, the Department of Education's new application system introduced last year is behind the slowdown in disbursing these crucial funds.
With many students grappling to complete the revamped FAFSA, institutions were also hit by delays in receiving student data. Another hitch comes from the requirement for colleges to make individual corrections to FAFSA applications this year, as opposed to their batch processing routine in the past. This procedural change is not only stalling financial aid but is also affecting when schools receive payments for tuition, impacting their ability to operate smoothly and compensate their faculty. "Find out approximately how long it will take for them to arrive," Jenniffer Finetti with Scholarship Owl suggested in a statement obtained by KENS5, advising students to remain in contact with their universities for interim measures.
Nationally, over a million students are struggling to complete the FAFSA, based on reports from various institutions. Harold Whitis, Director of Student Financial Aid for Alamo Colleges, disclosed in an interview with News 4 San Antonio that there's a considerable lag, with thousands of applications behind compared to the previous year. Alamo Colleges, alongside other San Antonio higher education campuses, are actively working with students to navigate these delays, offering payment plans and other assistance to ensure enrollment is not hindered.
Local universities maintain that there is still time to finalize financial aid procedures before classes commence. "This early in July, we do still have time to get that figured out before classes begin in August," stated Cristen Alicea, Director of Financial Assistance at the University of the Incarnate Word, in an interview with News 4 San Antonio. Students who find themselves without financial aid as school start can still attend classes, confirmed by multiple colleges in the region, as they work towards securing their funding.
