OHIO — Fewer college students applied for financial aid for the 2020-2021 school year. Higher education officials say it translates to fewer students attending college this year. That's due in large part to COVID-19.

What You Need To Know

  • Faith DesChamps found it cheaper for her to attend an out of state private college than an in state public school

  • Ohio's filings for aid were down about 4-6 percent from March to May (National College Attainment Network)

  • Fewer low income families did not apply for aid, while more middle income families making $50,000 did apply

From January to March, everything was going fine. Students completing applications for financial aid were on track. Then COVID-19 hit, and things went down hill from there.

Ohio Wesleyan student Faith DesChamps knows all too well. The 18-year-old astrophysics major hopes to research extraterrestrial life on other planets some day. Writing down some notes for class, DesChamps said before she started her freshman year, she wasn’t sure how she was going to pay for college. Her parents couldn’t afford it and the part time retail job she worked to save for school was cut short. 

“Once COVID happened and like New Jersey had got locked down, I got furloughed from my job," she said.

She’d already applied for financial aid and received acceptance letters from colleges, including Ohio Wesleyan University. She was hoping to get a full ride somewhere, but that didn’t work out. So, she resorted to another plan.

“I was initially going to sign up for like private loans, besides the federal loans I was getting from OWU, to cover the cost of tuition because although I was working part time, that money still wasn't enough to pay, like, for school because I still had expenses out of school,” said DesChamps.

Still not sure what to do, she kept searching. 

However, DesChamps' story is somewhat unique as financial aid applications took a nose dive in March as COVID-19 spread. Applications were down about 2.5 to 3 percent  from the end of March through May across the country. In Ohio, filings for aid were down about 4 % to 6% during that same time period. Renewals were down 2.6% compared to the 2019 academic year in June.

What’s interesting is that there were double digit declines in renewals in March and April around the country, which set students from low income families back pretty far.

Ohio Wesleyan’s Vice President of Enrollment and Communications Stefanie Niles said, “I think it's, you know, probably an unfortunate situation where families at the lowest income levels are feeling like colleges, are out of reach for them at this particular time."

While they may have seen it as unattainable, middle income families making $50,000 or more saw it another way as there was an uptick with them seeking aid.

“Sometimes they struggle the most because they're not as eligible. They're not eligible for some of the federal, and sometimes state, grants at the lower income students are yet they still can't make those dollars stretch to cover the costs that's expected of them,” Niles said.

Understanding the challenges, Ohio Wesleyan froze their tuition and gave an additional $2,000 to help students who might have otherwise not enrolled. The additional money from Ohio Wesleyan, scholarships, and unemployment benefits is how DesChamps ended up there. Without it, she said, “I would have ended up in college, but I probably would’ve just been buried in debt.”

Grateful for the chance to be at Ohio Wesleyan, DesChamps said she’s already started applying for financial aid for next year and encourages other students to do the same.

Although the U.S. overall saw a decline in financial aid applications, Ohio Wesleyan did not see a decline. Yet, they did see a number of students defer their enrollment. Since the application process opened earlier this month for next year's aid, they, like other schools, are seeing application filings trending downward, but it’s not clear if it will stay that way. ​