Document Tag: FAFSA

Postsecondary credentials are a good investment for individuals, families, and communities. Yet college is more expensive than ever and financial aid has not kept pace. And, as college costs continue to grow, students still need to meet their basic needs, such as food, housing, and child care. Ensuring students’ needs are met is critical to postsecondary success. Basic needs insecurity adversely affects students’ well-being, as well as their college persistence and completion. Research shows that food and housing insecurity are contributing factors to lower graduation rates.1 Higher education funding alone is not enough to meet those needs.
Today’s Pell Grant maximum award remains at a level similar to Fiscal Year (FY) 1978, after adjusting for inflation. In 2022-23, the maximum Pell Grant covered 63% of average published in-state tuition and fees and 30%
of average tuition, fees, room, and board at public four-year colleges and universities,2 while it covered more than three-quarters of those costs in 1975. States have also disinvested in higher education, all while federal student loan limits haven’t increased since 2008.
One solution is to ensure students access all available financial support, including means tested public benefits such as SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), subsidized health insurance, broadband assistance, and tax credits. Millions of college students are eligible for such benefits, however, they are unaware of their eligibility or do not know how to apply. For instance, roughly 2 million students who are eligible for SNAP do not participate, leaving around $3 billion in benefits on the table.4 The combination of need-based financial aid and enrollment in means-tested programs could help increase student graduation rates for students with low incomes who may be juggling a mix of work, school, and family responsibilities.