A new one-page financial aid form intended to cut the red tape in aid applications could cause confusion for students at NIU.

The new form called the Application for Federal and State Student Aid (AFSSA) is available from the Illinois State Scholarship Commission at no charge, said Robert Clemons, director of agency relations for the ISSC.

The new form came about after the ISSC received a contract from the federal government. Jerry Augsburger, director of financial aid at NIU, said the ISSC is pushing the new form as a “one-stop shopping approach.”

The AFSSA essentially requests the same information as the Financial Aid Form (FAF) and the Family Financial Statement, but the AFSSA is one page in length and has no fee, Clemons said. The new form will not enable students to obtain any more aid than the other forms, he said.

While the new form is cheaper and shorter, it will not save NIU students time or money, Augsburger said. The NIU office of financial aid will still require students to submit the FAF and NIU’s financial aid application. “Our preference would be that they (students) not fill out the state form,” he said.

The ISSC is sending the forms to all students on their mailing list, which Augsburger said totaled over 1,000. The forms include a letter telling students it is the only form they need to fill out. He said he was concerned that the letters could mislead students into thinking they do not need to fill out the forms NIU requires. “We want them (students) to follow our instructions.”

NIU is not the only college to reject the new forms. Augsburger said most financial aid offices are uncomfortable with the AFSSA form.

Clemons said Illinois State University is the only public four-year institution accepting the new forms. Most two-year colleges are using the new form, but almost no private schools use them. Clemons said he is hopeful more colleges will adopt the new forms in the future.

oss Hodel, director for fiscal affairs at the Illinois Board of Higher Education, said about 160 colleges are using the new forms.

As with the FAF, the new form is required before a student can receive a Guaranteed Student Loan, but Clemons said the new form serves as an application for both grants and a GSL.