Questions and Answers About FAFSA Completion Data 
Below are questions we ve heard about the Completion by High School and Public School District">data we provide on FAFSA completion by high school. 

Basics 


Missing or Duplicate High Schools 


Low Completion Totals 


Technical and Analytical 


Basics 


What is the source of data? 
The source of the data is the U.S. Department of Education's Central Processing System. 

What years of Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) submission and completion data are available? 
Federal Student Aid releases data for the current 2018 19 cycle and provides a side - by - side comparison of the previous 2017 18 cycle. We also have an archive that contains data files from the 2017 18 cycle comparing it to the past 2016 17 cycle. Each file has the previous cycle data through the same date in the prior year as well as the 6-month and 12-month numbers for the previous cycle. Only numbers of submitted and completed FAFSA forms are available. No personally identifiable information for any FAFSA filer will be shared through this process. Email us at HSFAFSA@ed.gov if you see data that is inaccurate and/or you have suggestions for improvement. We welcome your input. 

What is the difference between a submitted and a completed FAFSA form? 
Submitted applications reflect all FAFSA forms submitted by students at that high school. These applications , however , can be subsequently rejected by the Central Processing System if they are missing key pieces of information. The applications that are not rejected are referred to as completed applications. Completed applications , therefore , are a subset of all submitted applications. If a FAFSA form is submitted but not complete , the student will receive an email from the Department of Education asking him or her to correct the FAFSA form. A completed FAFSA form is necessary to determine eligibility for federal student aid and often other forms of financial aid. 

How often will 

user: I am looking at completion totals for FAFSA submissions, why would my number be low?

assistant: Is the number that is displayed lower than you thought it should be?

user: Yes, it is quite lower than I expected it to be

assistant: Have you checked to see if your high school has overestimated their FAFSA completion rates?

user: Yes, I have checked and it seems as if they have indeed made an overestimation

assistant: One of the reasons that your submission rate seems low is that your school could be listed more than once, this can happen when a student enters your school name in a different way on the FAFSA form. If your high school name is listed under different names, then it could be listed in more than one place

user: What if I submit a FAFSA form but it is not completed correctly?

assistant: You will then receive an email from the Department of Education asking you to correct the FAFSA form. You have to have completed the FAFSA form correctly in order to be eligible for financial aid or federal student aid

user: What happens if some students list a high school under a slightly different name?

assistant: What happens is that your high school is listed in more than one place