FAFSA Completions Down In MO: How St. Louis Area Schools Compare

ST. LOUIS, MO — Applications for federal college financial aid are notably lower this year, and that could mean fewer freshmen when classes begin this fall.

Prospective college students can fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid to qualify for subsidized student loans and other forms of aid. FAFSA applications declined 5.8 percent nationally this year compared with the same time last year. About 1.72 million students completed the application as of June 25, compared with 1.83 million in 2020, according to an Associated Press analysis of FAFSA data.

As of February this year, FAFSA applications were down 10 percent from last year. But the completion rate increased in the spring, when schools could hold more in-school FAFSA help events that were canceled last year because of the pandemic.

A decline in the FAFSA completion rate could be a harbinger of lower enrollment in the fall. The class of 2020 had 3.7 percent fewer FAFSA applications than the class of 2019; postsecondary enrollment dropped 6.8 percent between the class of 2020 and 2019, according to the National College Attainment Network.

In Missouri, 29,901 FAFSA applications were completed as of June 25, compared with 32,108 completions at the same point last year. That is a 6.9 percent decrease. (See how St. Louis area high schools compare below.)

The decline is steeper among Title 1 high schools, meaning those where low-income students make up at least 40 percent of enrollment. Title 1 high school completions dropped 8.83 percent, compared with a 3.86 decrease for non-Title 1 schools.

In Missouri, completed applications dropped 11.7 percent from Title 1 schools, compared with a 3.3 percent drop for non-Title 1 school applications as of June 25.

Here is how schools in the St. Louis area are doing with FAFSA completion as of June 25. See more St. Louis area high schools here. Note: Percent changes can be affected by a relatively small difference in completions, especially for smaller schools. FAFSA data only counts students who are no older than 19.

School: Mehlville High School
District: Mehlville R-Ix
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 189
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 225
• Percent change: -16
• Title 1 status: Not Title I schoolwide

School: Clayton High
District: Clayton
Municipality: Clayton

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 149
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 137
• Percent change: 8.76
• Title 1 status: Not Title I schoolwide

School: Gateway High
District:St. Louis City
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 149
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 202
• Percent change: -26.24
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Affton High
District:Affton 101
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 102
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 107
• Percent change: -4.67
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: Bayless Senior High
District:Bayless
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 88
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 98
• Percent change: -10.2
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Miller Career Academy
District:St. Louis City
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 73
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 101
• Percent change: -27.72
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Metro High
District:St. Louis City
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 71
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 69
• Percent change: 2.9
• Title 1 status:Not Title I schoolwide

School: University City Sr. High
District:University City
Municipality: University City

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 70
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 71
• Percent change: -1.41
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Collegiate School Of Med/Bio
District:St. Louis City
Municipality: St. Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 58
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 50
• Percent change: 16
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Maplewood-Richmond Hgts. High
District:Maplewood-Richmond Heights
Municipality: Maplewood

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 54
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 66
• Percent change: -18.18
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Soldan International Studies
District:St. Louis City
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 52
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 60
• Percent change: -13.33
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Hazelwood East High
District:Hazelwood
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 51
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 101
• Percent change: -49.5
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Kipp St. Louis High
District:Kipp St Louis Public Schools
Municipality: St. Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 48
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020:
• Percent change:
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Hancock Sr. High
District:Hancock Place
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 48
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 44
• Percent change: 9.09
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Mckinley Class. Leadership Ac.
District:St. Louis City
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 47
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 50
• Percent change: -6
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Normandy High
District:Normandy Schools Collaborative
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 44
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 46
• Percent change: -4.35
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Central Visual/Perf. Arts High
District:St. Louis City
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 44
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 84
• Percent change: -47.62
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Riverview Gardens Sr. High
District:Riverview Gardens
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 38
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 58
• Percent change: -34.48
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Vashon High
District:St. Louis City
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 34
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 60
• Percent change: -43.33
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Jennings High
District:Jennings
Municipality: Jennings

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 32
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 68
• Percent change: -52.94
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Carnahan Sch. Of The Future
District:St. Louis City
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 32
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 47
• Percent change: -31.91
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Transportation And Law
District:St. Louis City
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 25
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 29
• Percent change: -13.79
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Lift For Life Academy
District:Lift For Life Academy
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 24
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 33
• Percent change: -27.27
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Sumner High
District:St. Louis City
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 22
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 26
• Percent change: -15.38
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

School: Confluence Preparatory Academy
District:Confluence Academies
Municipality: St Louis

• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2021: 20
• Total FAFSA completions as of June 25, 2020: 39
• Percent change: -48.72
• Title 1 status:Title I schoolwide

The FAFSA application for the 2020-21 academic year closes June 30 at 11:59 p.m. CT, according to the U.S. Department of Education. Many states and colleges set their own deadlines for aid applications. There has been a push in recent years to have students fill out the FAFSA earlier in their senior year.

Editor’s note: This list was automatically generated using FAFSA data analyzed by the Associated Press. Federal high school counts don't include students over the age of 19. Information isn't available for all schools. Schools with fewer than five completions are omitted from the data. Please report any errors or other feedback to content@patch.com.