GRESHAM, Ore. — In the coming weeks college students will begin returning to classes after many dealt with a botched rollout of federal student aid this past spring. Months after heightened stress, some students are still dealing with the repercussions.
"I was just scared," Jacquelin, a student at Mt. Hood Community College, said of her experience filling out FAFSA paperwork. "It was a lot of stress. Just worrying I may not be able to go to school next year without the aid."
Jacquelin's issues have since been resolved, though she, like many students from across the country, reported new FAFSA paperwork from this past school year was more confusing than in years past.
It took Jacquelin six months to complete the paperwork, because there were issues filling out parental information. That delay threw her enrollment at Mt. Hood in question until June, she said. That experience wasn't uncommon, administrators said.
College officials also struggled with the new FAFSA rollout. In some cases, student documentation was received much later than usual. There were also questions into whether student information provided by FAFSA was accurate.
"That was the biggest challenge, was just, could we rely on the data?” said Christopher Natelborg, Mount Hood Community College’s financial aid director.
Across the country, the New York Times reported the poor rollout sparked uncertainty for many kids about the upcoming fall. Some students made college decisions before knowing the cost of tuition.
"It was really difficult," Jacquelin said.
In the past few months, Mt. Hood administrators said they have made significant strides, solving many of the issues that arose. Many students like Jacquelin have worked out problems they encountered and will soon begin the fall semester.
Though there are still some issues administrators are working through.
"There's just some weirdly worded questions on the FAFSA that have been confusing to students," Natelborg said. "And if they answer incorrectly, then making corrections to it can be a challenge."