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The future is always uncertain, so planning for college amidst political ups and downs is the best path to choose.
The first step to that is being knowledgeable about your situation.
Financial aid is not the same as it was 10 years ago and it will not be the same 10 years from now. While political chaos is raging, what students aspiring higher education can do is be well-informed on their positions regarding financial aid and tuition.
When choosing which colleges you would like to study at, a big factor of this is the tuition.
There are a multitude of scholarships that can help lessen the tuition, but the bulk of the cost will be relieved by applying for financial aid.
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is a form used by the government that determines how eligible a student is for financial aid, and therefore determines how much of your tuition will be cut at the school of your choosing.
According to US News writer Meghan Cassidy, the US Department of Education awarded around $114.1 billion in financial aid, which assisted over 9.7 million students.
This being said, in our current state of political confusion, how is FAFSA impacted? Here is everything you need to know in 2025. In recent months, the U.S. Department of Education has received massive cuts under Trump, who plans to eliminate it wholly.
Because of the repercussions that the Department of Education is facing, it is true that the future of FAFSA can seem uncertain and can cause panic.
But, as of right now, the facts show that the Trump administration has steered clear from laying off employees of FAFSA.
According to Karen McCarthy, vice-president for public policy and federal relations for the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, only some employees that are part of student services in the process of financial aid were laid off.
This doesn’t solidify the future of FAFSA, but it does give a hopeful outlook.
Even with its rocky past couple of years, it seems that the importance of FAFSA is recognized by the Trump administration and therefore we can remain cautiously optimistic about the future. “I’m really nervous about not knowing what’s going to happen,” Junior Julia Wilson said.
And that is a shared sentiment among rising seniors and those who will be facing the burden of paying for the extreme expense of college education and living.
“Paying for college is already scary enough,” said Junior Penelope Nowlin, “as well as having to worry about student loans, how to get financial aid.”
And this rings very true for our generation: concern over the state of financial aid just adds to the ever-growing load of work— and stress—that is placed on juniors and seniors as they prepare for their future.
As many student assistance services around financial aid have also been a part of the layoffs, even if financial aid is safe (for now), help in getting it could be quite a task for future students.
Applying for financial aid has been a cumbersome process in the past and layoffs within departments meant to help in this process are just going to make it an even more difficult process for families and kids to navigate, adding to all of the extra stress that college brings.
Wilson shares her family’s experience this year, saying that it was already difficult enough for her sister to navigate financial aid. Now imagine all that could change a year from now.
Scholarships are another way that students save a great deal on tuition, in addition to FAFSA.
Around 5 million students annually receive Pell Grants, and other scholarships to help cut the cost.
But with the Dept. of Education being eliminated, those who were promised scholarships might have to pay full tuition or resort to not going to college at all.
Though the odds are low, the possibility of these scholarships going away are in jeopardy, as they are being transferred to a separate department from the Dept. of Education.
In the midst of all of this uncertainty, the best thing for future students to do is to remain knowledgeable about their personal situation and to follow the news. We are going down an uncertain path together and the most we can do is stay up-to-date on our situation, ready for adapting to the changes ahead.