Financial aid professionals and others representing post-secondary institutions are the first who can register for the Federal Student Aid Training Conference, planned for mid-December outside of Washington.
In an October 22, 2026, Electronic Announcement, the Department of Education said post-secondary institutions are prioritized in the first phase of registration for the conference. The conference is planned for Dec. 14–16, 2026, at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland.
Institutions can now register up to three attendees using the online registration form. This initial phase ends on November 2 or until the conference reaches capacity.
A second phase of registration, which the Department said allows for attendance by the broader FSA partner community, will begin on November 2, and ends on December 9 or when capacity is reached. Additional institutional representatives, institutions that missed Phase 1, state agencies, third‑party servicers, software vendors, community‑based organizations, associations and advocacy organizations, and other FSA partner groups may register during this second phase.
There will not be a live stream or hybrid attendance option for the training conference, but the Department said it will record conference sessions and post the recordings on the FSA Training Conference website shortly after the conference ends.
The Department said the conference will offer both general and breakout sessions, with changes to the Title IV programs resulting from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, also known as the Working Families Tax Cuts Act. Other sessions will address improvements to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, best practices around fraud prevention, and operational updates on Financial Value Transparency reporting, audit and compliance findings, the Clery Act, and other topics.
