More high school seniors nationwide are filling out the federal financial aid form that can help them get money to pay for college, but Ohio’s current completion rates lag far behind much of the country.
About 31% of students in the state’s class of 2026 have completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid – commonly known as the FAFSA – as of late December, according to estimates compiled by the nonprofit National College Attainment Network (NCAN). That equates to 44,114 applications.
That’s a far lower percentage than the top states of Illinois (46.6%), Tennessee (42.4%) and New Jersey (42.2%). Ohio currently sits in the middle of the pack in NCAN’s data, ranking 25th out of all 50 states.
Nationwide, about 33% of high school seniors – or 1.36 million students – have completed a FAFSA. That’s a 9.8% increase compared to the same point in the school year for the class of 2023, according to NCAN.
The group set that year as its comparison point due to federal delays launching the FAFSA the past two years. Data provided by NCAN shows Ohio’s completion rates at the time clocked in at 33.4%, slightly higher than its current rate.
This year’s form opened in late September. NCAN officials pointed to the expedited launch as one of the reasons behind the national boost in completions.
They also credit a recent revamp of the application. After issues that plagued its initial rollout were eventually fixed, NCAN reports some students and families say it’s now taking them as little as 15 minutes to complete their applications.
Ohio deals with less FAFSA funding
Completing a FAFSA is the first step for students to potentially receive state and federal money for their post-high school education. That includes support such as the Pell Grant – federal money that’s earmarked for students with the biggest financial needs and doesn’t need to be repaid.
Outside scholarships and colleges and universities frequently use this data to give their own awards. Higher education institutions have historically kept tabs on completion rates as an early indicator of fall enrollment.
Still, millions of students attending some type of post-high school education don’t fill out the form. Ohio education leaders estimate the state’s students leave more than $100 million in unclaimed aid on the table each year.
A dozen states – including Illinois and New Jersey, two of the states topping the list of current completion rates – require high school seniors to fill out a FAFSA to graduate. Ohio isn’t one of them.
This year, the Ohio Department of Higher Education is working with less money to “help boost awareness of FAFSA completion and its importance,” a spokesperson told Signal Ohio.
That work used to be bolstered by pandemic-era relief funding, a now- shuttered federal program and a summer grant from a nonprofit. Those funding streams have dried up over the past five years.
Ohio’s education departments do offer a website with FAFSA-related resources. It includes a checklist noting what documents are needed to complete an application and graphics that K-12 school districts can share on social media accounts.
Much of the available FAFSA support for parents and families comes from employees at school districts and college campuses. Nonprofit organizations helping people get to college, including College Now Greater Cleveland and I Know I Can in Columbus, also offer frequent workshops and other events.
FAFSA completions higher in Ohio’s rural, suburban districts
NCAN’s data shows completion rates are slightly higher for students who attend schools in suburban and rural areas, as well as those in towns, compared to those in cities.
Ohio mirrors that trend. NCAN’s findings show Columbus City Schools leads the state’s urban areas. Nearly 38% of the district’s students completed a form as of late December, compared to 34.3% in Cincinnati, 29.3% in Cleveland and 24.5% in Akron.
Those rates are lower than in places such as Southern Ohio’s Brookville Local. Fifty seniors in the suburban Dayton district have already completed a FAFSA, resulting in a 68.5% completion rate.
All 18 seniors at Continental Local, a rural district on the northwest side of the state, completed their forms, according to NCAN.