FAFSA Simplification
Students are experiencing a new financial aid application process this year as part of the FAFSA Simplification Act. We are learning more information daily and will do our best to bring you updates as we have them. You can read more about the changes on the Federal Student Aid website and learn how to complete the FAFSA on the state of Tennessee’s website.
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FAFSA FAQs
What are the benefits?
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A more streamlined application process
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Expanded eligibility for federal financial aid
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Reduced barriers for certain student populations
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A better user experience for the FAFSA form
What is changing?
- The 2025-2026 FAFSA opened November 21, 2024.
- the 2026-2027 FAFSA opened September 25, 2025.
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There is no longer an Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The new formula will be:
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Cost of Attendance (COA) - Student Aid Index (SAI) = Financial Need.
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You can use the Federal Student Aid Estimator to get an estimate of your Student Aid Index (SAI).
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Contributor - any individual required to provide consent and approval for Federal Tax Information (FTI) along with their signature on the FAFSA form. All contributors will be required to give consent for their tax information to be included on the FAFSA.
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Direct Data Exchange (DDX) - formerly the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, this is the system used to transfer an individual's tax information to determine federal aid eligibility.
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Student Aid Index (SAI) - formerly Expected Family Contribution (EFC), this is a calculation based on the FAFSA that allows us to determine how much need-based financial aid you are eligible for.
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FAFSA Submission Summary (FSS) - formerly Student Aid Report (SAR), this is the output document providing a summary of data input on the FAFSA form received after completing the FAFSA application.
How does this impact me?
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Have your tax documents ready when you log in to complete the FAFSA.
- 2026-2027: Use 2024 taxes.
- 2025-2026: Use 2023 taxes.
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Every contributor will need an FSA ID in order to complete their part of the FAFSA.
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Contributors can complete only their part of the FAFSA (student or parent). The second contributor will receive an email to login and complete their part once the first contributor is finished and invites them.
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Yes, you can input your information into the Federal Student Aid Estimator to estimate your financial aid.
The Department of Education is processing both 2026-2027 and 2025-2026 FAFSAs and sending them to schools. After you submit the FAFSA you can check the status by logging in to studentaid.gov. Once we have received it, you will receive an email in your APSU email account with your next steps.
Our goal is to get aid information to students as quickly as possible. For 2025-2026 we began sending initial award information on January 14, 2025. Notifications will continue to be sent to students as their FAFSA information is received.
If you have completed a FAFSA but have not received a notice from the Office of Student Financial Aid & Scholarships in your APSU email account, contact us at 931-221-7907 or sfao@apsu.edu.
Our goal is to get aid information to students as quickly as possible. For 2025-2026 we plan to send initial award information to returning students in February 2025.
If you have completed a FAFSA but have not received a notice from the Office of Student Financial Aid & Scholarships in your APSU email account, contact us at 931-221-7907 or sfao@apsu.edu.
The 2026-2027 scholarship application will open until October 1, 2025 and close on February 1, 2026.
Who is my parent on the FAFSA?
How will you know which parent to use when filling out the FAFSA? Good news – you can use the questions below to figure out the answer! On the FAFSA, your “parent” is your legal (biological or adoptive) parent.
Are your parents married to each other?
Do your parents live together?
Did one parent provide more financial support than the other parent over the past 12 months?
(If both parents provided an exact equal amount of financial support or if they don’t support you financially, select “No,” and refer to the parent with the greater income or assets in the next question.)
Has the parent you identified in the previous question remarried?
Has the parent you identified in the previous question remarried?
(Remember, this applies to the parent with the greater income and assets.)