Gen IC Template

DOCUMENTATION FOR THE GENERIC CLEARANCE

OF CONTENT DELIVERY FOCUS GROUP COLLECTIONS

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Content Delivery In-Person Focus Group

[ ] SURVEY [X] FOCUS GROUP [ ] WEBSITE USABILITY TESTING

DESCRIPTION OF THIS SPECIFIC COLLECTION

Specify all relevant information, including

1. intended purpose,

2. need for the collection,

3. planned use of the data,

4. date(s) and location(s),

5. collection procedures,

6. number of focus groups, surveys, usability testing sessions,

7. description of respondents/participants

Purpose of the Research, Need for the Collection, and Planned Use of the Data

This focus group study will evaluate the informational needs of FSA’s target audiences (high school students, parents of high school students, potential adult students, and borrowers) and explore the ways in which they prefer to get information about financial aid for college. 

Specific objectives of the research include the following: 

• Determine the needs of current and target FSA informational products users, identify the primary questions they have about financial aid, and probe on information they would like to receive.

• Probe where students and parents look for information about funding for college.

• Discuss the ways in which audiences prefer to get information about financial aid — e.g., print publications, website content, videos, talks by counselors, texts, social media, etc., and understand why they prefer those methods along with additional information such as:

  • Which are they most likely to pay attention to?

  • Which are they most likely to take action on after seeing/reviewing?

  • When would they want to get this information?

• With regard to publications, gauge respondents’ preferences for publication length and content using current FSA publications as examples.

• Probe also on the devices these audiences prefer to use when getting information online, e.g., laptop computer, smartphone, or tablet.

Dates, Locations, and Collection Procedures

The sessions will be conducted on January 20-21, 2015. The research will be conducted via four in-person focus groups (each 90 minutes in length).

Description of Respondents/Participants

The research will be conducted among four core audiences: student loan borrowers in repayment, potential adult college students, high school seniors, and parents of high school seniors.

Total Sample: 4 Focus Groups with 5-8 Participants per Group

1 Borrowers in repayment

1 Potential adult college students

1 High school seniors

1 Parents of high school seniors

Borrowers in repayment must be currently repaying any federal student loans.

Potential adult college students must, in the next year, be seriously considering enrolling and attending part time or full time at a college, university, or career school.

High school seniors must be currently enrolled in high school and intending to enroll in a college, university, or career school in the next year as a first-year student.

Parents of high school seniors must be the parent or guardian of a child planning to enroll in a college, university, or career school in the next year as a first-year student.

Additional Information: Proposed Incentive

Both our ability to recruit and the participant's likelihood to show up to the session depend on an adequate incentive amount. We recommend an incentive payout to participants of $75 each.

BURDEN HOUR COMPUTATION (Number of responses (X) estimated response or participation time in minutes (/60) = annual burden hours):

Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	Participation Time	Burden
Borrowers in repayment	8	90 minutes	12 hours
Potential Adult College Students	8	90 minutes	12 hours
High School Seniors	8	90 minutes	12 hours
Parents of High School Seniors	8	90 minutes	12 hours
Totals	32	360 minutes	48 hours

BURDEN COST COMPUTATION

Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	Hourly Rate	Response Time	Totals
Borrowers in repayment	8	$50	90 minutes	$600
Potential Adult College Students	8	$50	90 minutes	$600
High School Seniors	8	$50	90 minutes	$600
Parents of High School Seniors	8	$50	90 minutes	$600
Totals	32	$50	360 minutes	$2,400

STATISTICAL INFORMATION

If statistical methods are to be used, fully describe the methodology, sample selection, expected response rates, and any other concepts needed to provide a full understanding of those methods.

Since this is a qualitative study, statistical methods will not be used.

NAME OF CONTACT PERSON: Tina Pemberton

TELEPHONE NUMBER: 202-377-3507

MAILING LOCATION:

830 First Street, NE Room 32D2Washington, DC 20202

ED DEPARTMENT, OFFICE, DIVISION, BRANCH:

Federal Student Aid

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