We’re happy to share some important news from the U.S. Department of Education. Beginning Sunday, May 10, they will be implementing a new Federal Student Aid User ID system, which will replace the 4-digit PIN. The PIN was used by students and parents throughout the financial aid process to:
- complete and update the Free Application for Federal Student Aid
- complete and sign federal student and parent loan Master Promissory Notes or apply for federal loan consolidation at www.studentloans.gov
- log into the National Student Loan Data System to keep track of federal loan indebtedness
- complete the Agreement to Serve for the Federal Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant
The new FSA ID will be a user-selected user name and password that you will be prompted to create when you log into any of these sites. There is nothing you need to do to prior to May 10 to prepare for the change. And the Department of Education has created a nifty step-by-step guide to help you through the process. It should be painless and easy, and in the end, you’ll have a customized and secure user name and password of your very own!
Kathy Ruby is a member of College Coach’s team of college finance experts. Before joining College Coach, Kathy was as a Senior Financial Aid Officer at St. Olaf College and Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania.
