Wednesday, September 30, 2026

Pasadena Unified Urges High School Seniors to Apply to College Early as Federal Aid Form Opens

Pasadena Unified School District seniors have been able to apply for federal college aid for 2027-28 since Sept. 23, and California’s Dream Act Application opens Thursday, Oct. 1, as the district urges early filing.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, went live ahead of the Oct. 1 public launch listed in the U.S. Department of Education’s testing plan, and the department called it the earliest launch in the program’s history.

Students need to complete only one of the two applications, according to the California Student Aid Commission. March 2, 2027, is the priority deadline for most colleges and universities and the final deadline for Cal Grant applications, the commission said.

In its Sept. 28 update to families, the district encouraged seniors to apply early and explore the financial aid that may be available to help pay for college or career education. The district pointed families to the commission for information on aid options. The district and the commission both gave Oct. 1 as the opening date for the two forms; the Department of Education opened the federal form Sept. 23.

The 2027-28 FAFSA covers aid for July 1, 2027, through June 30, 2028, and most forms are processed immediately, though some take one to three days, the department said. Students who completed the form during the department’s beta testing, which began Aug. 5, do not need to resubmit, the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators reported.

The FAFSA is for U.S. citizens, permanent residents, T-visa holders and other eligible noncitizens, according to the commission. The Dream Act Application is for undocumented students, students with U visas or Temporary Protected Status, students who meet California’s nonresident tuition exemption and students from mixed-status families, the commission said. It opens the way to Cal Grants, the Middle Class Scholarship, Chafee grants, University of California and California State University grants and community college fee waivers, among other aid. Submission of grade point averages for Cal Grants also begins Oct. 1, and students must reapply for each year of college.

Under state law, high schools must confirm that each senior completes a FAFSA or Dream Act Application or turns in an opt-out form, a requirement in place since the 2022-23 school year. Completing an application or an opt-out form is not a graduation requirement, the commission said. More than 70% of California’s Class of 2026 completed one of the two applications, according to the commission. State lawmakers designated October as Student Financial Aid Awareness Month in a resolution by state Sen. Eloise Gómez Reyes, D-San Bernardino, the commission announced Aug. 13.

The commission reported in May that first-time FAFSA completions among students from mixed-status families fell by more than 3,000 over the past year. Dream Act Application completions from those families fell by 910, the commission said. The commission pointed to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act and two state laws, Senate Bill 54 and Assembly Bill 21, as protections for applicants’ information.

The College Access Plan, which is based in Pasadena, offers free drop-in college advising for students at all Pasadena Unified high schools, including help submitting the FAFSA and the Dream Act Application. Drop-in hours run from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. in school libraries on Mondays and Wednesdays at Pasadena and Blair high schools and on Tuesdays and Thursdays at John Muir and Marshall high schools. The commission also offers free Cash for College workshops, online and in person, where financial aid experts help families complete the forms.

After the March 2 Cal Grant deadline, the commission’s priority deadline for community college students is Sept. 2, 2027. The federal deadline to file the 2027-28 FAFSA is June 30, 2028, EdNC reported.

NEED TO KNOW

Event: 2027-28 Free Application for Federal Student Aid and California Dream Act Application. When: FAFSA open since Wednesday, Sept. 23; Dream Act Application opens Thursday, Oct. 1; Cal Grant deadline Tuesday, March 2, 2027. Where: Online. For more, call 888-224-7268 or visit https://www.csac.ca.gov/apply