Remove Barriers to College - The White House - OMB Blog Post

Sep 19, 2026

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A White House Office of Management and Budget blog post describes research on how simplifying financial aid application steps can substantially increase college access. It reports that students assisted in completing forms were much more likely to attend college and receive a Pell Grant. A case study with H&R Block shows automated data transfer from tax returns, guided question walkthroughs, and electronic submission, improving FAFSA submission and attendance rates. The post highlights behavioral economics, rigorous random-assignment analysis, and ongoing efforts to shorten and simplify the FAFSA.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLetters

FormatPDF

Pages2

Reading Time1 min

AccessFree to download

Remove Barriers to College

Findings from simplified application support

Complexity of the FAFSA application

Administration proposals to reduce barriers

Remove Barriers to College | The White House [http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/blog/09/10/05/RemoveBarrierstoCollege](http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/blog/09/10/05/RemoveBarrierstoCollege) Get Email Updates Contact Us Home • The Administration • Office of Management and Budget [Search WhiteHouse.gov](Search WhiteHouse.gov) About OMBlog The Budget Management Regulation & Information Policy Legislative Information Join OMB Contact OMB Remove Barriers to College Subscribe Posted by Peter Orszag, Director on October 05, 2009 at 05:12 PM EST This weekend I read a fascinating new paper about the impact of providing a simplified approach to financial aid for prospective college students. The results are startling: high school seniors who were provided a modest amount of help in filling out the forms were almost 30 percent more likely to attend college and receive a Pell Grant the next year than a statistically comparable control group. The paper underscores two key themes we are promoting at OMB: the crucial role of behavioral economics (which often highlights the benefits from making things easy and simple) and the use of rigorous analysis (in this case, the study relies on random assignment) . In particular, during tax season, H&R Block professionals offered help in completing student financial aid applications to a group of low and moderate income clients. One set of clients was assisted by their tax professional through the process of completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) . Data already provided in their tax forms was automatically pulled into the form, and the tax specialist walked clients through a series of questions to complete the rest of the form. Families were immediately given an estimate of possible federal aid and cost information on four local post-secondary options. If the clients approved, H&R block then electronically submitted the completed FAFSA on their behalf. The result was a 40 percent increase in FAFSA submission rates, and a 29 percent increase in college attendance rates the next year (see chart below) . These outcomes are very impressive, and point to the deleterious effects associated with the complexity of the current application process. The FAFSA is more than four times longer than the 1040 EZ tax form, includes 153 questions, and requires applicants to report detailed information about income and assets, much of which is difficult to understand and pull together, and often has little ultimate bearing on eligibility for aid. As this study demonstrates, small differences in application procedures can make a difference in program participation. The Administration is already taking several steps to remove barriers from the FAFSA application process. These include the use of a shorter, simplified form as well as enabling online users to automatically transfer data previously supplied electronically in their tax forms directly into their FAFSA application. Congress is considering the Administration’s proposal to simplify aid eligibility requirements. This research underscores the benefits of these The White House Blog Middle Class Task Force Council of Economic Advisers Council on Environmental Quality Council on Women and Girls Office of Management and Budget Office of Public Engagement Office of Science & Tech Policy Office of Urban Affairs Open Government Faith and Neighborhood Partnerships Social Innovation and Civic Participation US Trade Representative Office National Drug Control Policy CATEGORIES Civil Rights Defense Disabilities Economy Education Energy & Environment Ethics Family Fiscal Responsibility Foreign Policy 1 of 2 11/30/2011 12:54 AM Remove Barriers to College | The White House [http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/blog/09/10/05/RemoveBarrierstoCollege](http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/blog/09/10/05/RemoveBarrierstoCollege) types of reforms--and how important it is to remove barriers to college entry. Health Care Home

FAQs

What does the research say about simplifying financial aid applications?

High school seniors who received modest help filling out forms were almost 30% more likely to attend college and receive a Pell Grant the next year than a comparable control group.

How did H&R Block help clients complete the FAFSA?

Tax professionals pulled data from existing tax forms into the FAFSA, guided clients through remaining questions, provided cost and aid estimates, and—if approved—electronically submitted the completed FAFSA.

Why does the post argue that application complexity matters?

The FAFSA is described as much longer than related tax forms and includes many questions that are difficult to understand, with limited relevance; small procedural changes can significantly affect participation.

Sep 19, 2026

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