By Marlene Seeklander Financial barriers shouldn’t prevent a student from finishing a degree and pursuing their dreams. Students attending a U.S. college who are experiencing financial barriers may want to review these funding opportunities through Last Mile Education Fund.
Last Mile Education Fund supports students facing financial barriers Read More »
Tip of the Week Embrace your fears An audit finding. A missed deadline. A misplaced decimal point. Now those are some frights that will really chill you to the bone. These nightmares haunt the bravest of financial aid professionals. If you work in financial aid, you know there’s enough real-world scares to last you a
Tip of the Week – October 28, 2026 Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander Financial aid professionals can now plan for the upcoming FAFSA verification season with the latest guidance from the Department of Education. An October 23 Federal Register Notice announced that the Secretary of Education has published a notice regarding the FAFSA information that an institution and an applicant may be required to verify, as
2027-2028 FAFSA information to be verified and acceptable documentation Read More »
By Catherine Mueller 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
2026 Federal Student Aid Training Conference registration details announced Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander Financial aid professionals wanting to access training in the FSA Training Center may have to wait a while. In an October 21 Electronic Announcement, the Department of Education announced that the FSA Training Center website is currently unavailable while emergency security updates are completed to address a critical vulnerability affecting web servers worldwide.
FSA Training Center currently unavailable Read More »
By Catherine Mueller Some students are being asked to show their government-issued identification when completing the 2027-28 FAFSA. The request is a part of the Department of Education’s real-time fraud detection system, which is estimated to impact less than 4 percent of FAFSA filers. Before processing the FAFSA, the fraud detection system, implemented in April 2026,
Government-issued identification may now be needed when completing the FAFSA Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander Schools wanting to reduce student loan delinquency and default have several training opportunities to enhance their default prevention programs. As part of their ongoing efforts to provide default prevention resources to schools, the Department of Education recently hosted two webinars, covering the following topics: The recordings, transcripts, and handouts for these webinars
By Marlene Seeklander Colleges participating in a Prison Education Program (PEP) now have a tool available that provides guidance to assist in required reporting. In an October 20 Electronic Announcement, the Department of Education announced the availability of the 2025–26 Prison Education Program (PEP) Reporting Tool Workbook on the Prison Education Programs Topics page of the
2025-26 Prison Education Program (PEP) Reporting Tool Workbook now available Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander Students have been able to complete the 2027-28 FAFSA since September 23, 2026, in advance of the official October 1 release date. Prior to completing the FAFSA, students and parents can go ahead and set up their account at StudentAid.gov, also known as creating an FSA ID. An FSA ID is the username
Five tips to complete an important FAFSA first step Read More »
By Marlene Seeklander Students interested in taking the December ACT test should register soon to avoid late fees. The regular registration deadline is Friday, November 6 for the December 12 ACT test. After November 6, students can register for the December test up until November 29 but will have to pay a late fee with their
Early registration deadline approaching for December ACT test Read More »
