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By Jason Gonzales, Chalkbeat

Thousands of students, including in Newark, Chicago and the Denver area, are helping to test federal financial aid forms before they go live to the wider public on or before December 1st.

The test, in its second of four rounds, is meant to identify errors that made it difficult for many students to fill out the free application for federal student aid last school year. The hope is that by testing the form this time, the US Department of Education will be able to deliver on the promise of Better FAFSA — a simpler form that offers a faster overall experience than the previous version.

Advocates say the testing is a welcome change from last school year when problems with a incorrect review of the form led to over 200,000 fewer students fill in the form. National, The number of first-year students has also decreased by around 5% this fall, according to figures from the National Student Clearinghouse. But the researchers are unclear on the exact cause that led to declines.

The wide range of communities selected for testing includes many of the student groups that struggled the most to fill out the form last year — those with immigrant parents who don’t have a social security number and those who are the first in their family to go to college.

So far, advocates and officials who have helped with the testing have reported fewer problems overall, as well as what they have said is “cautious optimism” that the FAFSA will work as needed to help students qualify for financial aid, grants and scholarships that help them to offset the cost of college.

By participating in the test, students get early access to fill out the form, extra technical assistance, and their information sent earlier to colleges of their choice.

National College Attainment Network CEO Kim Cook said lingering issues are still being addressed on the 2025-26 form, including students struggling with identity verification and for mixed-status immigrant students. NCAN supports members to help students get to college and graduate.

“Basically, testing a system before launch is a best practice,” Cook said. “I think this year it’s especially important because of what we learned in last year’s 2024-25 FAFSA rollout.”

The federal government revamped the FAFSA form last year, releasing it on Dec. 31, three months later than normal. While the Better FAFSA, as it is now called, proved to be shorter and simpler when it worked, the technical problems marred the process.

Students across the country help test the FASFA

A second round of beta testing launched on October 15 with 16 colleges, nonprofits and school districts participating. The third round of testing begins in early November and the final round starts in mid-November.

Here are the schools and organizations selected for the second round of testing:

• Adams City High School (Colorado)
• Advise on Texas College Advising Corps (Texas)
• Arizona State University (Arizona)
• Camino Nuevo Charter Academy (California)
• Chicago Public Schools (Illinois)
• Claflin University (South Carolina)
• College Match (California)
• College Possible Minnesota (Minnesota)
• Kentucky Higher Education Assistance Authority (Kentucky)
• Millsaps College (Mississippi)
• Newark Board of Education (New Jersey)
• uAspire (New York)
• University of Delaware (Delaware
• University of Illinois Chicago (Illinois)
• University of Miami (Florida)
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (North Carolina)

The US Department of Education has chosen beta test sites to help troubleshoot problems and has recruited volunteers from community organizations, state agencies, districts and high schools.

The plan is to increase the number of students participating in each round.

In the first round of testing, approximately 650 high school students helped test the FAFSA during the first half of October. An additional 3,500 students, including students already enrolled in college, are taking the FAFSA in the second round, according to the department.

A department spokesperson said participants are selected based on criteria that include student population, geographic location and type of school.

The test includes colleges and high schools from rural, urban and suburban areas, and the department sought out students who are the first in their families to attend college, from immigrant backgrounds and who have never filled out the form.

Schools report positive testing experiences

Colorado’s Adams City High School, which educates primarily low-income, mostly Hispanic students, was selected to participate in the second round of beta testing.

INSPiRE founder Jesse Ramirez, whose nonprofit helps mentor students to college, submitted the application for Commerce City high school officials. Ramirez’s nonprofit has worked with the district for years, including participates in a state grant which helps increase FAFSA completion. Last year, despite gains the year before, far fewer students filled out the form, he said — about 20% fewer.

The school held its FAFSA event on Oct. 16, which took place during fall break. Still, many students volunteered, he said. About 75 students showed up on test day, Ramirez said.

During the testing, Ramirez brought in over 50 financial aid experts, most of whom were bilingual. Families and volunteers could call Education Department officials who were staffed to support the testing.

Some students completed the form in 15 minutes, while others needed more support.

Ramirez said most students ran into problems where they entered information that didn’t perfectly match the tax records. This meant that they were then not found in the system. For example, if a parent with a hyphenated last name used a hyphen when filing their taxes but the student did not use the hyphen when completing the FAFSA, their application would be bounced.

That error then needed to be cleared up by a phone call to the education department.

Ramirez said he is pleased with how the testing went. Because the FAFSA is delayed two months later than usual, every day counts, he said. Historically, about half of all students who complete the FAFSA do so between October and the end of the year.

“Why wouldn’t we do this?” Ramirez said. “Why wouldn’t we want to create these opportunities? There’s no idea that it’s too crazy, as long as it’s about empowering our kids and helping our families.”

Other districts, such as Chicago Public Schools, tested 150 of the 500 students they were allowed to test in the second round. The district will be allowed to test up to 2,000 more in the third testing window. The district expects more than 50 high schools to participate in the third round.

District leaders also want students to get ahead on the FAFSA, with a goal of having 10% of Chicago Public Schools students complete the form early so they can get ahead and address barriers to getting to college, a spokeswoman said.

National advocacy groups report growing confidence in Better FAFSA

Leaders of national advocacy groups have said that while they wanted the FAFSA to be ready by October, the testing is important.

Jill Desjean, National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators director of policy analysis, said the organization is 100% behind the test. She is particularly pleased that the Education Department has attempted to test students from a variety of socioeconomic, geographic and familial backgrounds.

“It’s really important to look at every possible type of student who might fill out a FAFSA and every type of family scenario they might encounter,” she said.

The Education Department has provided updates on testingand an update on October 21 showed that so far 2,830 students have been able to fill out the form during the two rounds of beta testing. These students reported 93% satisfaction with the form. Almost 90% of students say they were able to complete it in a reasonable amount of time.

The number one reason a student’s FAFSA was rejected was a missing student or parent signature, according to the department. According to a The State’s Accountability Office’s investigationsaw many students last year signatures disappear after saving and re-opening the form. Officials say they are working through those issues.

Cook, with NCAN, said the testing has helped instill some confidence after last school year.

The Education Department has also been transparent in documenting the problems students come across, she said. Some issues the department has detailed include usability issues and the ongoing signature issues.

“We see it largely working,” Cook said. “That doesn’t mean there aren’t still issues for us to deal with, but we’re clear on what the issues are, and I think they’ve been heard and they’re working on them.”

Jason Gonzales is a reporter covering higher education and the Colorado legislature. Chalkbeat Colorado partners with Open Campus for higher education coverage. Contact Jason at (email protected).