The 2024-2025 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), branded as the "Better FAFSA," is all new and includes the biggest changes to the form and process in over 40 years! The Better FAFSA means a shorter and simpler form, increased eligibility for Pell Grants, and a reduction in verification, allowing more students access the financial aid they need to attend college.
Learn More About the 2024-2025 FAFSA
Frequently Asked Questions
The FAFSA Simplification Act represents a significant overhaul of the process and systems used to award federal student aid starting with the 2024-25 award year.
These changes are meant to create a better user experience by streamlining and simplifying the process for students and families to complete the FAFSA form.
The 2024-2025 FAFSA soft launched online December 31, 2023. During the soft launch period, the Department of Education will be monitoring site performance, conducting planned pauses for maintenance, and making updates to improve the user experience for students and families. Learn more about the 2024–25 FAFSA.
The 2024-2025 CASFA also released at this time.
A Student Aid Account, formerly FSA ID, is your account username and password. Starting with the 2425 FAFSA all FAFSA Contributors (students, parents, student-spouses) will be required to have a Student Aid Account in order to electronically sign and submit the form.
This includes eligible non-citizens without SSN.
Student Aid Accounts can be created online at studetnaid.gov.
Once created it will take over 48 hours for a Student Aid Account to be validated by the government so it is a good idea to set them up early prior to completing the FAFSA.
Contributors are individuals, such as a parent or spouse, that may be required to provide information on an applicant’s FAFSA depending on the applicant’s dependency or marital status.
Dependent students will have a built in "parent wizard tool" to help identify which parents to include.
Information required to invite a contributor:
- Contributor's legal name (first and last)
- Date of Birth (month, date and year)
- Social Security Number
- Email address
Once invited, Contributors will be sent an email from FAFSA asking them to log in and continue the FAFSA Application Process.
All FAFSA Contributors will be required to create a StudentAid username and password.
The Department of Education has determined an error occurring for Contributors without SSN, when trying to create their StudentAid account. They are working to correct the error and hope to have the process functioning soon. In the meantime students can begin the 2425 FAFSA and will need to pause and wait to invite their FAFSA Contributor.
The system has a 16-character limit. If your parent has a dual, hyphenated, or extremely long last name there may be only specific characters that are being recognized.
Have your parent log into studentaid.gov and view their account. This will show them the characters associated with their account. You must invite the parent using the exact name, letter missing or not, as is on their verified StudentAid profile.All Contributors to the FAFSA must consent to have their Federal Tax information shared between the IRS and the FAFSA and back to the colleges a student hopes to attend.
If any contributors refuse to give consent on the FAFSA form, the FAFSA will not be processed and the student won't be eligible for federal and state financial aid.
Being a contributor does NOT mean that the contributor will be financially responsible for the student's education. It is a consent to have their information includes in the FAFSA.
For students who are in contact with their parents and not facing any unusual circumstances and their parent refuses to Consent to their information being used on the FAFSA will be given an option to complete the FAFSA with the understanding their financial aid eligibility will only include Direct Unsubsidized Loans.
The Estimated Family Contribution (EFC) has been replaced by the Student Aid Index (SAI). The SAI is a new way to determine aid eligibility.
The new formula to determine Student Aid Index removes the number of family members in college, and what's included for income and assets.
Unlike EFC SAI can be a negative number as low as -1500.
Though students can complete the FAFSA, colleges/universities will not be given FAFSA information until later in March, meaning that Financial Aid offers will also be delayed.
Click here to find out more about getting a 2024-2025 Early Finacial Aid Offer.
Delays in the FAFSA this year have created uncertainty for students and families on if they can afford and attend college.
CMU is eliminating that uncertainty by allowing new and current undergraduate students to receive an early financial aid offer.
Click here to find out more about getting a 2024-2025 Early Finacial Aid Offer.
Upcoming FAFSA Events
Check out our upcoming FAFSA events-
TUES MAR 12 MULTIPLE LOCATIONSFinancial Aid Night 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM, Montrose Campus, CMU Tech, Main Campus, Virtual - - For anyone wanting to learn more about the 2425 FAFSA and for help completing the online application.
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MON MAR 18 MONTROSEFinancial Aid Night 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM, Montrose Library Community Room - For seniors and their families to learn more about FAFSA Simplification and complete the FAFSA form.
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THURS MARCH 21 MULTIPLE LOCATIONSFinancial Aid Night 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM, Montrose Campus, CMU Tech, Main Campus, Virtual - For anyone wanting to learn more about the 2425 FAFSA and for help completing the online application.
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TUES APR 9 MULTIPLE LOCATIONSFinancial Aid Night 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM, Montrose Campus, CMU Tech, Main Campus, Virtual - For anyone wanting to learn more about the 2425 FAFSA and for help completing the online application.
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TUES MAY 14 MULTIPLE LOCATIONSFinancial Aid Night 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM, Montrose Campus, CMU Tech, Main Campus, Virtual - For anyone wanting to learn more about the 2425 FAFSA and for help completing the online application.
Join Us For FAFSA February!
The CMU Financial Aid Office and IRIS have declared that February will be FAFSA February! Drop by the IRIS lobby in the Lower Level of Lowell Heiny Hall to get help with the 2024-2025 FAFSA anytime 8:00-5:00 Monday through Friday. Be sure to bring a laptop and our staff will be happy to assist students with the process.
Completing the 2425 FAFSA
The new FAFSA is meant to be easier and more efficient for users to complete. Here are some general changes and steps to be aware of.-
Log in to studentaid.gov
This is where students and contributors will access the FAFSA form.
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Create a Student Aid Account username and password
Student Aid username and password (formerly FSA ID) will be used by all contributors to electronically sign the FAFSA. These accounts take up to 48 hours to verify so it is an important step to complete early.
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If you have previously created an FSA ID then you will not need to create a new account, but you should log in and make sure your information is up to date.
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Complete Your Portion of the FAFSA
Students completing the FAFSA will have their own portion of the form to complete.
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Parents of dependent students will have a separate portion to complete as will spouses of students who may be married.
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Invite additional Contributors to complete their portion of the FAFSA
You will need to include the contributor's legal name, date of birth, social security number (if applicable) and a valid email address.
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Consent to having your FAFSA information shared
Information from your FAFSA will be shared with the colleges you identified on your FAFSA. Failure to consent means, no information will be sent to the colleges and no financial aid offers will be generated.