2020 In School Survey

Federal Student Aid
2020 In-School Financial Aid Satisfaction
Survey
[PROGRAMMING INSTRUCTIONS IN ALL CAPS, BOLDED IN BRACKETS]
You have received this survey as part of an initiative the United States Department of Education Office of
Federal Student Aid has undertaken to improve customer satisfaction for financial aid recipients who are
enrolled in college.
The survey will take approximately five minutes to complete. CFI Group, an independent research and
consulting firm, is conducting this survey, which is authorized by the U.S. Office of Management and
Budget, Control No. 1845-0045. It is hosted via a secure server. Your responses will remain anonymous
and will only be reported in aggregate form. If you have any questions, please contact
[email protected].
Thank you in advance for your valuable feedback.
PRA Burden Statement
According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of
information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number
for this information collection is 1845-0045. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is
estimated to average five minutes per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching
existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the
collection of information. The obligation to respond to this collection is voluntary. If you have comments
or concerns regarding the status of your individual submission of this survey, please contact Federal
Student Aid/Customer Experience Office/Customer Analytics Group at 830 First Street, NE Washington,
DC 20202 or [email protected] directly. [Note: Please do not return the completed survey to this
address.]
Introduction
Are you currently enrolled in college?
1 Yes [CONTINUE WITH THINKB]
2 No [END SURVEY]
Information/Communication
THINKB

Thinking back to the time before you took out any loans to fund your education, how would you
characterize your degree of knowledge and understanding about financial aid?
1
2
3
4
5

None
Very little
Average
Above-average
Expert

1

FINLITNOW
How would you characterize your degree of knowledge and understanding about financial
aid now?
1. None
2. Very little
3. Average
4. Above-average
5. Expert
SOURCESEL Where have you gone to find information about financial aid? Please select all that apply.
[MULTI-SELECT] [RANDOMIZE RESPONSE OPTIONS]
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13

My school’s online account
My school’s financial aid counselors
U.S. Department of Education (e.g. FAFSA.gov, StudentAid.gov, myStudentAid App)
Student loan servicer
Social media
Family member or friend
Bank or credit union
Employer
Media (i.e., TV, radio, print ads)
Paid advisor/expert
Internet search (e.g. Google, other internet search websites)
Other (please specify) [OPEN END]
I have not used any of these sources of information [SKIP TO FORMATSEL]

INFOTRUST Please rank your top three most trusted sources of information about financial aid. Please
rank up to three selections by entering numbers 1 through 3 below. [RANK ORDER TOP
THREE]
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13

My school’s online account
My school’s financial aid counselors
U.S. Department of Education (e.g. FAFSA.gov, StudentAid.gov, myStudentAid App)
Student loan servicer
Social media
Family member or friend
Bank or credit union
Employer
Media (i.e., TV, radio, print ads)
Paid advisor/expert
Internet search (e.g. Google, other internet search websites)
[OTHER] [OPEN END FROM SOURCESEL “OTHER”]
Other (please specify) [OPEN END]

FORMATSEL Please select the ways you have received information about financial aid? [MULTISELECT] [RANDOMIZE RESPONSE OPTIONS]
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Websites
Emails
Text messages
Mobile apps
In-person
Printed materials
Virtual assistant
Podcasts
Other (please specify) [OPEN END]
I do not receive information about financial aid in any of these formats [SKIP TO INFO1]
2

COMMTYPE What are the top three ways you prefer to receive information about financial aid? Please
rank up to three selections by entering numbers 1 through 3 below. [RANK ORDER TOP
THREE]
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Websites
Emails
Text messages
Mobile apps
In-person
Printed materials
Virtual assistant
Podcasts
[OTHER] [OPEN END FROM FORMATSEL “OTHER”]
Other (please specify) [OPEN END]

Please think about all the different types of information you may get about financial aid, regardless of the
source. On a scale from 1 to 10, where “1” means “Poor” and “10” means “Excellent”, in general how
would you rate the information you get about financial aid on:
INFO1.

Clarity of information

INFO2.

Usefulness

INFO3.

Being available in a format you prefer (e.g., websites, text messages, etc.)

INFO4.

Making clear any actions you need to take, if necessary

Don’t know/Not applicable

School Financial Aid Process
Think about the process to receive the financial aid you have been offered. For example, the paperwork
you may need to submit, visits to your school’s financial aid office, getting your master promissory note
(MPN) signed, etc. Please also think generally about your experiences with the financial aid
administration process at your school. On the 1 to 10 scale where 1 means “Poor” and 10 means
“Excellent”, please rate the financial aid administration process at your school.
PROC1.

The timeliness of your financial aid offer notification

PROC2.

The information they provided about your personal financial aid package

PROC3.
Making clear the steps you need to take to get your funds (e.g., course registration
requirements, etc.)
PROC4.

Making clear when your funds will be available

PROC5.

Helpfulness of the financial aid staff you interact with

PROC6.

Knowledge of the financial aid staff you interact with
Don’t know/Not applicable

3

FINSPEND

Do you use your financial aid funds to pay for any of the following: (Please select all that
apply) [MULTI-SELECT]
1 School tuition and fees
2 Books and supplies
3 Living expenses including off-campus living expenses (e.g., room/board, rent, mortgage,
(housing) transportation to school, medical expenses, basic food, etc.)
4 Non-educational personal expenses (e.g. vacations/trips, premium television/cable
subscriptions/packages, dining out more than twice per week, loans/gifts to family/others,
etc.)
5 Other (please specify) [OPEN END]

FINSPEND2 [IF FINSPEND= 1, 2, 3, or 4] On the 1 to 10 scale with 1 as “Poor” and 10 “Excellent”,
please rate how well your school did in explaining the financial aid process?
Don’t know/Not applicable

Federal Student Aid Tools
If you have used any of the following Federal Student Aid tools listed below within the last three months,
on a 1 to 10 scale, where 1 means “Poor” and 10 means “Excellent”, please rate the following tools:
(Please skip any of these that you have not used.)
TOOL1

StudentAid.gov

TOOL2

Loan simulator (found on StudentAid.gov)

TOOL3

Aidan (virtual assistant tool currently in Beta testing that is not widely available yet)
I have not used any of the above tools in the last three months.

Entrance Counseling
GETCOUN Have you received entrance counseling for your student loans?
1
2
3

Yes
No [SKIP TO FINLIT]
I don’t know [SKIP TO FINLIT]

COUNFORM What was the format of the counseling session(s) you attended?
1
2
3
4
5

Videotaped presentation
Online at Studentloans.gov or studentaid.gov
Private meeting with a financial aid counselor (in person, online, or over the phone)
Group meeting with financial aid counselor
Other (please specify) [OPEN END]

4

On the 1 to 10 scale, where “1” means “Poor” and “10” means “Excellent”, please rate the counseling you
received on:
COUN1

Helpfulness of the information provided

COUN2

Convenience (i.e., time and place)

COUN3

Format (i.e., way the information was presented)

COUN4

Prepared you to make the best future decisions in managing your federal loans

Don’t know/Not applicable
COUNIMP How could entrance counseling be improved? [OPEN END]

FINLIT

On the list below, would you participate in or access any of the following to assist in student loan
borrowing decisions? (Please check all that apply.) [MULTI-SELECT] [RANDOMIZE

RESPONSE OPTIONS]

1. Attend a mandatory 1 credit hour financial literacy course offered by your school before
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

the beginning of the first academic term
In-person counseling at my school
More online resources that show loan balances and financial decision points
Mobile app for managing personal finance
Personal financial management video tutorials
Have fellow student (i.e. peer) financial aid experts available
Financial literacy podcasts
Other (please specify) [OPEN END]

ACSI Benchmark Questions
Please think about your experiences this past academic year dealing with financial aid issues as you work
on your post-high school education, including what was covered in this survey so far, and with anything
else you can think of.
ACSI1. Using a 10-point scale on which “1” means “Very Dissatisfied” and 10 means “Very Satisfied”,
how satisfied are you with the financial aid process?
ACSI2. Using a 10-point scale on which "1" now means "Falls Short of Your Expectations" and "10"
means "Exceeds Your Expectations," to what extent has the financial aid process met your
expectations?
ACSI3. Imagine what an ideal process for financial aid for post-high school education would be like.
How well do you think the financial aid process you deal with now compares with the ideal
you just imagined? Please use a 10-point scale on which "1" means "Not Very Close to the
Ideal," and "10" means "Very Close to the Ideal."

Outcome Measures
Using a scale of 1 to 10 where 1 means “Not at all Confident” and 10 means “Completely Confident” how
confident are you in the following:
CONFFIN Confidence in receiving sufficient financial aid to meet your educational goals?
CONFM

Confidence in your ability to manage your student loans both now and in the future?
5

Don’t know/Not applicable
COMP1

Using a scale of 1 to 10 where “1” means “Not at all Important” and “10” means “Very
Important,” how important has the aid you have received been to your ability to complete
your program of study?
Don’t know/Not applicable

IMPROVE In your own words, how do you think the financial aid process could be improved to better
serve students such as yourself? [OPEN END]
Background
DEG Have you completed any degrees or certifications?
1
2

Yes
No [SKIP TO WORK]

DEGCOMP What degrees or certifications have you completed? Please select all that apply. [MULTISELECT]
1
2
3
4
5
6
7

Certificate/licensure
Associates degree
Bachelor’s degree
Master’s degree
Professional degree (MBA, J.D., etc.)
Ph.D.
Other

WHYBACK Why have you decided to pursue additional higher education? Please select all that apply.
[MULTI-SELECT]
1
2
3
4
5

Continuing studies in same field
Pursuing new field or academic interest/career change
Returning to school due to unemployment or economic hardship
To have better job opportunities
Other (please specify) [OPEN END]

WORK What is your employment status?
1
2
3
4
5
6
HIGHFINLIT
1.
2.
3.
4.

Not employed and not looking for work
Not employed and looking for work
Employed part time – one position
Employed part time – multiple positions
Employed full-time
Self-employed
Did your high school require you to take a personal finance course?
Yes, it was helpful
Yes, but it was not helpful
No
I don’t remember

6

SRVCR

Which of the following organizations is your federal student loan servicer? [Ask only of
survey respondents whose COD STU_GRADE_LVL ≠ (does not equal) 1st Year, Never
Attended)]
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

FedLoan Servicing (PHEAA)
Great Lakes Education Loan Services
Navient
NelNet
CornerStone
Granite State (GSMR)
HESC/EdFinancial
MOHELA
OSLA Servicing
Other (please specify) [OPEN END]
I don’t know who my loan servicer is
I have not borrowed federal student loans

7