Arizona ranks 50th in nation in students' applications for free federal aid

Arizona is ranked 50th in the nation for completion of the FAFSA, or Free Application for Federal Student Aid, which is likely to decrease the number of the state’s students pursuing higher education.

Just 33.4% of eligible Arizona high school seniors have completed the form so far, according to the National College Attainment Network.

“We want students and families to recognize the value behind completing this FAFSA — unlocking and opening doors to their futures, to their dreams,” said Jennifer Murphy, senior director of attainment for Education Forward Arizona.

The FAFSA allows students to qualify for Pell Grants and other federal financial aid programs which often open doors for low-income students to attend postsecondary institutions. According to the National College Attainment Network, there has been a 13% decrease in low-income and minority students filling out the FAFSA this year.

Despite the lags, there is still time to complete the form, Murphy emphasized.

“For the class of 2023, there was over $100 million left on the table by students who just didn’t know or didn’t have the time or didn’t have the support to complete that FAFSA form,” she said. “The bottom line is there is still time — even though schools start in a month or two.”

The FAFSA was overhauled this year after Congress ordered the U.S. Department of Education to make widespread changes to the system. The goal was to make it easier to fill out and to give better access to low-income families. But repeated delays occurred after the department incorrectly calculated the aid for students and possibly mishandled Pell Grants.

Nationally, 46.6% of the high school class of 2024 has completed the FAFSA, a decrease of 11.2% from the previous year.

In February, the Arizona Board of Regents voted to extend its FAFSA priority deadline for the state’s public universities from April 1 to May 1 in an effort to encourage applications. The regents also conducted several advertising campaigns, using local influencers, social media ads and billboards to help spread the word.

“Federal delays and technical glitches significantly impacted the 2024-25 FAFSA completions across the country, with an even more pronounced effect in states like Arizona, especially for first-generation, low-income, and mixed-status families,” said Megan Gilbertson, a spokesperson for ABOR.

The state government also rolled out various initiatives to help boost FAFSA completion rates despite the issues with the form.

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Gov. Katie Hobbs declared April the “Finish Line to the FAFSA” month and created a chatbot called “Hi Benji” that students can text at 602-786-8171 for free digital assistance.

“Over the last three years, Arizona high school graduates missed out on nearly $300 million in Pell Grant funding by not completing their FAFSA,” Hobbs said at the time. “The Finish Line to the FAFSA campaign is calling on our community to work together to raise awareness about the FAFSA, organize events and provide support to Arizona high schools and graduating seniors.”

The programs put in place by ABOR and the state government helped push a 14% increase in FAFSA completions since April. However, according to ABOR’s Gilbertson, “more than 5,000 fewer Arizona high school seniors completed the FAFSA compared to last year.”

The Federal Pell Grant Program, which is tied to the FAFSA, provides need-based grants to low-income undergraduate students to promote access to postsecondary education. Pell Grants are not student loans, meaning those who receive them do not have to pay the money back to the federal government.

“I think the word that’s synonymous with FAFSA is Pell Grant,” Murphy, of Education Forward Arizona, said. “You have to complete the FAFSA in order to qualify for a Pell Grant. This is free money that you don’t have to pay back.”

Education Forward Arizona, an organization that works on postsecondary educational attainment, has repeatedly tied FAFSA completion and postsecondary attainment to the economy in an effort to promote their cause.

The organization claims that Arizona could increase its annual economic gains by $5 billion if it’s able to increase postsecondary enrollment by 20%, due to increased “lifetime earnings, improved health, reduced crime and welfare spending and increased workforce productivity.”

That may be difficult to do, however, given the lag in FAFSA completions in the state.

“Those students who demonstrate the most need for the supports/funding accessed only by completing the FAFSA will end up being the ones who are hurt the most by the challenges and barriers that have been put in front of them this year,” said Education Forward Arizona President and CEO Rich Nickel. “Not only will we see far fewer students complete and submit a FAFSA this year, those who will be hurt the most are the ones that we must encourage to enroll at greater rates in postsecondary education, if we are able to meet our attainment goals.”