Higher education opens up a world of opportunities. For millions of aspiring students, financial aid is essential to unlocking that door…and the Department of Education holds the key.
The Department provides more than $120 billion annually through its Title IV programs, making post-secondary education accessible to millions of students. To best support the aspirations of these students—many of whom are the first in their family to attend college or vocational school—the Department set an ambitious goal of its own: a dramatic reimagining of the Federal Student Aid (FSA) agency’s customer experience.
As a federally-funded program, FSA must meet the individualized needs of all eligible borrowers, while complying with a complex system of congressionally-mandated rules and regulations. The process can be equally complex for students and their families. In the past, borrowers faced inconsistent information across various platforms and channels—web and mobile, landline phone, email, U.S. mail, text and social media.