By Marlene Seeklander Schools may need to review and update verification records soon or possibly risk having their students considered to be in an overaward situation. A recent Electronic Announcement outlined several verification reminders for schools that should be reviewed to ensure compliance. Beginning April 23, the Department will start sending messages to schools with one
By Marlene Seeklander With fraud prevention becoming an increasingly critical issue, the Department of Education announced it will implement new measures to protect the FAFSA application In an April 15 Electronic Announcement, the Department (ED) announced that it will implement real-time identity fraud detection for the FAFSA application by screening and assessing risk as students and
Real-time fraud detection announced for FAFSA Read More »
Higher Ed News Vol. 18 – Issue 8 Communicating with borrowers about the defunct SAVE Plan Even for those of us who live and breathe financial aid, it’s hard to keep up with what’s going on with student loans. Webinar recording on applying new loan limitations for students attending less than full time Many financial
Mapping Your Future Higher Ed News – April 16, 2026 Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander The Department of Education just released a key volume of the 2025-26 Federal Student Aid Handbook. In an April 10 Electronic Announcement, the Department of Education (ED) announced the availability of Volume 2 – School Eligibility and Operations. This volume provides information on the general obligations in administering the Title IV student aid programs, including institutional
2025-26 FSA Handbook Volume 2 – School Eligibility and Operations – now available Read More »
Two factors for a successful financial future A good education and no debt – two factors that ensure young adults start their future off on the right foot financially. Because it’s financial literacy month and because the FAFSA is a critical first step to pursuing postsecondary education, students and parents should know it is not
Tip of the Week – April15, 2026 Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander Many financial aid professionals have questions about implementing new loan limitation regulations going into effect this summer following the passage last year of the federal budget reconciliation law. In particular, the questions center on how to correctly reduce annual loan limits for undergraduate students not enrolled full-time. Federal Student Aid offered a live
By Marlene Seeklander Institutions participating in campus-based financial aid programs can now plan for the 2026-27 award year, knowing how much funding will be available. In a March 30 Electronic Announcement, the Department of Education announced that the final 2026-27 Campus-Based programs funding worksheets and the 2026-27 Statement of Account for each of the Campus-Based programs
Campus-Based Programs 2026-27 Final Funding authorizations now available Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander Financial aid administrators overseeing campus-based financial aid programs can now add some important deadline dates to their 2026-27 processing calendar. In an April 8 Federal Register Notice, the Secretary of Education announced the publication of the 2026-27 award year deadline dates for the submission of requests and documents for the Federal Perkins
2026-27 award year deadlines for Campus-Based programs announced Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander The Department of Education recently resumed reviewing borrower defense to repayment claims, which explains why many institutions have seen a jump in the number claims in recent weeks. In a recent Electronic Announcement, the Department of Education (Department) said they have resumed adjudicating borrower defense to repayment applications that are not impacted by
Department of Education resumes adjudication of Borrower Defense claims Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander Individuals involved in the administration of federal financial aid can sign up to offer input on the services and products that they use daily. In a March 30 Electronic Announcement, Federal Student Aid (FSA) announced that they are seeking volunteers involved in the administration of federal financial aid to provide feedback, ideas, and
FSA seeking volunteers for input on partner services Read More »
