4 ways to communicate FAFSA 2025 changes to families
Last fall we were all awaiting the new, better FAFSA. While nervous about the rollout timeline, we were optimistic about the promised improvements — less questions, increased accessibility, expanded Pell Grant eligibility. What’s a little delay when the end result would make it easier for students to afford and attend college?
More than we anticipated. The last-minute release combined with a series of technical and support issues created one of the most tumultuous financial aid seasons to date. And the results were disappointing: according to the National College Attainment Network, about 210,000 fewer high school seniors completed the FAFSA in 2024, a 8.8% decrease year over year.
And while it can’t be directly correlated to FAFSA issues, resulting enrollment numbers were also impacted. According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, enrollment among first-year students dropped 5% year over year, most severely at four-year colleges that serve high shares of Pell eligible students.
With another delayed release for 2025 and more changes coming to the form, how do you respond? Start communicating NOW with your families!
Prepare your families for the 2025 FAFSA
The confidence and understanding of your parents and other family members is critical for FAFSA execution any year, but particularly in the midst of change. Educate first-year families on the overall process. Update families on the changes coming this year (like the new “Who counts as a parent on the FAFSA? Wizard”). Overcommunicate the timeline, the deadlines, the implications.
The sooner data is submitted by your families, the sooner your teams are able to roll out financial aid awards — and the more confident students and families can be about accepting, depositing, and enrolling.
Using CampusESP? Check out four of the ways other institutions tackled FAFSA communications last year and get your plan in place for 2025!
1. Email announcements
Announcements are probably the best way to get information regarding FAFSA changes and deadlines in front of parents. Last year, when the FAFSA finally opened, the team at Lamar University quickly alerted their families using an announcement email, highlighting the timeline and information families may have needed during the initial weeks of the launch.
You can add filters to announcements to send only to parents who have not yet submitted their form, notifying them about important dates/deadlines for reissuing aid to current students or creating financial aid awards for new students. It's the easiest way to reach your parents since most parents are regularly checking email (the average email open rate for CampusESP announcements is more than 50%). Include links in announcements to bring parents back to the related post in the portal where they can find more related information.
2. Portal posts
Posts in your CampusESP portal are the place to go more in-depth with FAFSA updates. Tarleton State University published a post to all families to ensure they were not just aware of the soft launch, but understood the next steps that might impact their student’s financial aid awards.
While a clear article is always helpful, posts are also places you can embed videos or infographics to give parents different ways to grasp complex information. You can also rely on CampusESPs content specialist team to help share critical information — our Global Content is available to all customers for use in their portals.
3. Ad campaigns
Ads are a great way to remind parents about FAFSA deadlines every time they open their portal. University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point ran an ad campaign in their portal that helpfully elevated their FAFSA code and linked out to the form to encourage families to submit.
Campaigns are visible on the parent portal for an extended period of time and can be targeted to specific communities (a feature in CampusESP that allows admins to create groups of parents that can receive targeted information). Set up your campaigns to address where a family is in their submission process, and to remove the ad campaign when the submission has been received.
4. Text messaging
Text messages have open rates of up to 98%, which makes SMS one of the best ways to spread the word about important FAFSA information and how it may impact families. St. Mary’s University texted parents to invite them to helpful virtual webinars where they could get information on FAFSA changes, ensuring parents would participate and get their questions answered.
In CampusESP parents can respond to SMS campaigns with questions and concerns — and have real-time conversations with your staff to resolve their issues quickly. If you’re looking for a way to send out automated information about the FAFSA with a high likelihood of it being seen, our SMS module is the way to go.
Need help communicating with families faster?