HARRISBURG, Pa. (KDKA) – Students applying for the PA State Grant Program will have more time to get their FAFSA application in.
The PA State Grant Program uses the FAFSA form as the primary application point to determine a student’s eligibility, and because FAFSA delaysthe deadline will be pushed back one month to June 1.
The FAFSA Simplification Act was intended to streamline the financial aid application process, but the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency said issues hampered the rollout and delayed the application’s launch for nearly three months.
“In a year unprecedented change regarding the FAFSAWe believe that adjusting our deadline for state financial assistance is the right thing to do,” said Senator Wayne Fontana, Chairman of the PHEAA Board of Directors. “Giving students and families just a few more weeks to complete their FAFSA will ensure our PA gets state grant dollars into the hands of the students who need them most.”
Even with the extension, PHEAA urges students who have not yet submitted their FAFSA for the upcoming academic year to do so as soon as possible.
“PHEAA’s ability to project the resources needed to maintain PA State Grants levels in 2023-2024 or even increase awards in 2024-2025 is affected by the delays and errors with the FAFSA submitted data,” said Jim Steeley, president and CEO of PHEAA. a press release. “So far we have received significantly fewer FAFSAs compared to the same time in 2023 – including both new and renewal applicants.”
During the past academic year and the preceding summer, PHEAA said the PA State Grant Program made more than 100,000 awards worth approximately $357 million.
More information about applying for FAFSA can be found on the PHEAA website.
