Why choosing a college right now is such a mess

College Decision Day typically falls on the first day in May. But while that milestone has come and gone this year, hundreds of high school seniors still have yet to decide which university they will attend in the fall.

Why? Colleges across the country − including University of Cincinnati, Xavier University, Northern Kentucky University and Miami University − pushed back their college acceptance deadlines to accommodate issues and delays from the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

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The student aid program, which is commonly referred to as the FAFSA and provides funds for millions of students to attend college annually, opened nearly three months later than usual this year. The delay made it impossible for some colleges to compile student financial aid packages in time for student admission decisions. Some students are still waiting on their financial aid awards.

In-state students, students with Pell Grants are taking longer to decide

For example, half of University of Cincinnati's admitted students got their financial aid packages by late April, while the other half are still waiting. But the university's vice provost for enrollment management, Jack Miner, says enrollment numbers look pretty good already in spite of the FAFSA delays.

Compared to last May, University of Cincinnati commitments are behind by more than 1,000 students, Miner said. But since the university delayed its decision deadline by a month, it would be fairer to compare May 1 commitments this year to April 1 commitments last year. With that in mind, this year's commitments are up by 921 students.

More: Fewer students applied for financial aid during the pandemic; where will they be in fall?

"The truth is, realistically, some place in the middle," Miner said. He anticipates the incoming freshmen class will be the same size or a tad larger than last year's. The university welcomed 8,900 incoming freshmen last fall, marking its largest class yet.

Enrollment managers at Northern Kentucky University and Miami University also said their enrollment numbers are outperforming last year's commitments.

Miner said international and out-of-state students are committing ahead of schedule this year.

"The students that have not yet made a decision about where they're going to go in the fall are the ones that are from Ohio that are very likely waiting for their financial aid offers from other schools" in Ohio, Miner said.

He added that students who are eligible for Federal Pell Grants, which are reserved for students with exceptional financial need, and students admitted to highly selective programs are also taking longer to commit. These students, Miner explained, are likely to receive the most substantial financial aid offers from several universities.

More: How FAFSA 'fixes' have turned College Decision Day into chaos

Lauren Parcell, dean of admission at Xavier University, said the university recently polled its admitted students and the bulk of respondents said they are still in the decision-making process. Xavier released financial aid packages in mid-April.

"While students may still be waiting for responses from other schools, they have all necessary information from Xavier," Parcell said. Xavier's decision deadline is May 15.

Delayed commitments make it harder for colleges to budget

Thomas More University in Northern Kentucky never stuck to a hard decision deadline on May 1, said Mark Messingschlager. He's the university's director of financial aid.

Students who committed to Thomas More by May 1 got priority access to pick their housing assignments and class schedules. But the university never rescinded admissions or scholarships for other students after that day.

As of May 1, Messingschlager said the university is experiencing a 22% reduction in new student commitments year over year because of the FAFSA delays. He said he hopes commitments spike in the next month as other colleges' decision deadlines pass, but he's nervous.

"It's bad enough for the families," Messingschlager said. Kids are trying to make the most important decisions of their lives without all of the information they need. "But internally, for us at the schools, we don't know how to set a budget for next year."

Everything from how many classes to offer to housing is up in the air, he said.

And on an even grimmer note, Messingschlager said he's most upset for the students who need financial aid most. The FAFSA overhaul was supposed to expand access to higher education, he said, and yet the delays and errors in the online system left the most vulnerable students in limbo and "suffering the most."

"What happens if a large portion of these students decide not to go anywhere?" he said. That's his biggest fear.

Thomas More is not rescinding any admissions or scholarships for students all the way to the first day of school this fall.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: FAFSA delays and why it's harder to pick a college right now