College, Career and Technical Education

Increasing FAFSA Completion

For last year's seniors, enrollment in higher education dropped by 10 percent this past fall compared to the previous year, and by 20 percent among economically disadvantaged students. COVID is clearly exacerbating already persistent college going gaps, particularly for low income, African American and Latino students.

For this year's seniors, Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) completion has dropped compared to this time last year by over 9 percent statewide, with larger drops in populations with historically low college going rates. FAFSA completion is a strong indicator of college-going, and this drop may be an early indication of further drops in college enrollment in September 2021.

Overcoming the financial barrier to higher education is critical. To help mitigate this potential crisis in college going, DESE, in partnership with Mass. Dept. of Higher Education, Mass. School Counselors Assn. (MASCA), Reach Higher, and GEARUP are sponsoring two FAFSA completion webinars to help illustrate the FAFSA completion situation, demonstrate FAFSA reports on Edwin Analytics, and hear from a few practitioners to explain how they are "getting it done" despite the pandemic.

While these sessions are particularly aimed at high school counselors and district and high school administrators, all are welcome. Please register ahead of time for one of the sessions available. These sessions will be offered via Zoom. After registering at one of the links below, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

When: Feb 9, 2021 03:00 PM in Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Register in advance for this meeting

When: Feb 10, 2021 10:00 AM in Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Register in advance for this meeting