SALT LAKE CITY — Utah high school seniors are lagging behind the rest of the nation when it comes to completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.
Beyond money left on the table, completing the FAFSA is also a strong indicator of who will and won't go on to pursue higher education right after high school. According to research from the National College Attainment Network, approximately 90% of high school seniors who complete the FAFSA attend college directly from high school, compared to just 55% of FAFSA non-completers.
"Students and families think, 'Oh, they're not going to be eligible, so why even apply?'" Jones said, adding that this can stem from an overestimation of their income or thinking they won't qualify for aid. "I think there is just an aversion in general," he said. " just not wanting government benefits and things like that, there could be some aversion there. I think there's aversion to providing your information to the federal government. The reality is, they have it. You file taxes. But just putting that on another form, there's just some folks that just don't want to do that.
Utah System of Higher Education also partners with the Utah Higher Education Assistance Authority on FAFSA completion efforts. The authority's outreach team helps facilitate and promote FAFSA completion across Utah by training high school counselors and educators on FAFSA and other forms of financial aid by hosting over 130 FAFSA completion open houses throughout the state for students and their families.
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