FAFSA FAQ

As of Monday.

2025-26 FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) FAQ

What is happening with FAFSA?

The Department of Education has notified us that beta testing for the 2025-26 FAFSA has officially expanded to all students, meaning that any student and their contributors can now complete the form ahead of the application’s planned December 1 launch date.

If you will be completing the FAFSA for the first time for 2025-26, we highly encourage you and your parent/guardian to create your FSA Account(s) as soon as possible. Visit StudentAid.gov for instructions and resources (available in English and Spanish).

In order for all colleges and universities—including Longwood—to determine your eligibility for financial aid, state financial aid, federal loans, and federal work study, the Department of Education must first send us information from your filed FAFSA application. When completing the application, be sure to include Longwood’s school code, 003719, so that we will receive your information.

What is the timeline for filing?

It is important that you file your FAFSA by March 1 (Longwood’s priority filing date) to ensure full consideration for grant funding. You may file the FAFSA after March 1; however, grant funds are limited after March 1.

Please note that after the initial login, students and their contributors must complete the FAFSA within 45 days. Any form left incomplete after 45 days will be deleted and will need to be restarted.

Will I know if Longwood has been sent my FAFSA information?

There are two ways you can find out if your FAFSA information has been sent to us.

First, you should get an email from the Department of Education when your FAFSA information begins to be sent to universities. (Note that not all universities you choose to send your information to may receive it on the same day.)

Second, you can look in the Department of Education’s FAFSA portal. When you can view your FAFSA Submission Summary, it has been processed by DOE and will become available to institutions.

How will I know when Longwood has processed my FAFSA information?

New Students: You can log into your Longwood Admissions portal. If the “Submit the FAFSA" box on the Next Steps Checklist is checked, we have processed your FAFSA information and are preparing to share it with you. Because we are working on a compressed timeline, it may take some time to process your FAFSA information. We know you’re eager to have all the information to make a decision about higher education, and we are eager to welcome you to Longwood! We appreciate your patience as we process this information as quickly and as accurately as possible.

Current Students: You’ll need to log into myLongwood and select the Financial Aid tab and Financial Aid Status/Eligibility. Next, choose Student Requirements and select aid year 2025-2026 Academic Year. In the Eligibility Requirements section, under Satisfied Requirements, you will see FAFSA Submission Summary. The status will indicate if Longwood has received and processed your FAFSA and the date that occurred.

How will I receive my financial aid offer?

New Students: You will receive an email with a personalized link. Just click the link to open a PDF of your financial aid offer which you may download or print.

Current Students: You will receive an email when your offer is available in myLongwood. We expect to process most students’ financial aid offers in May.

How long will it take Longwood to process my FAFSA information and share my Financial Aid offer with me?

We will share financial aid offers with students and families as soon as we possibly can. That timeline depends solely on how quickly the Department of Education can get us a substantial portion of the FAFSA information we need.

In the meantime, we will continue to communicate with you as this process unfolds. We know that uncertainty about such a major decision can cause students and family members to become anxious, so we are here to help. You can call our financial aid office at (434) 395-2077 or email finaid@longwood.edu, and we will talk you through the process and answer any questions you might have.

I got the email from the Department of Education that my FAFSA information has been sent to Longwood, but the box in my Admissions Portal isn’t checked.

As soon as we begin to receive FAFSA information from the Department of Education, we’ll begin processing. We expect a heavy influx of data in March, however, so it may take some time to process everyone’s information. We know you’re eager to have all the information to make a decision about higher education, and we are eager to welcome you to Longwood! We appreciate your patience as we process this information as quickly and as accurately as possible.

I accepted my student Direct Loans in myLongwood, do I need to do anything else?

For new students that’s the first step. The next step is to login to your StudentAid.gov account (be sure to have your PIN handy) to complete your Entrance Counseling and sign the Master Promissory Note.

For returning/current students who have received a student Direct Loan in the past 12 months, you only need to accept the Direct Loans you want to take in myLongwood.

For returning/current students who have never taken a student Direct Loan, or have not received funds from a student Direct Student Loan in the last 12 months, you have two more steps to take. Login to your StudentAid.gov account (be sure to have your PIN handy) to complete your Entrance Counseling and sign the Master Promissory Note.

Longwood will be notified by StudentAid.gov once a student completes all the loan requirements. We expect to start receiving this information in our system by the first week of June.

My student accepted the Federal Direct PLUS Loans (for parents) in myLongwood. Do I need to do anything else?

Yes, you will need to apply for a parent PLUS Loan with StudentAid.gov. The application process includes a credit check and once approved the completion of a Master Promissory Note. Be sure to review the “Things You Should Know Before You Continue” section on the parent PLUS Loan site.

Do I have to accept the full amount of the loans I am offered, either the student Direct Loan or Parent Federal Loan (PLUS)?

No, we recommend you only take out the minimum amount of the loan you need to cover your educational expenses for the 2025-26 academic year. When you accept a loan in myLongwood you can enter any amount up to the maximum amount offered.

You can do the same thing in StudentAid.gov, or leave it blank and we will use the amount indicated in myLongwood.

Longwood will be notified by StudentAid.gov once a Parent completes all the loan requirements. We expect to start receiving this information in our system by the first week of June.