The 2027–2028 financial aid application year is now available in Blackbaud Financial Aid Management™. Whether your application cycle has already opened or you have yet to begin taking applications, now is the ideal time to review your settings, update key information, and ensure everything is ready for a smooth financial aid season.
From rolling over school year settings to reviewing budgets and award letter templates, a few proactive steps can help your team work more efficiently and provide a better experience for families throughout the application process.
1. Create Your 2027–2028 School Year
The first step is to add the new school year to define when families can begin the application process and the application deadline.
The good news? When you create the new year, many of your existing settings automatically roll over, including:
- General school, school aid, and custom calculation settings
- Custom application questions
- Tuition and standard discounts
- Deadlines
- Family, Student, and Internal codes
- School budgets
To add the new school year
- Navigate to Settings, Manage School Years.
- Select Add.
- Select 2027–2028 under Session.
- Enter your Open Date and Close Date.
- Select Save.
Creating the new year early gives you time to review your settings and make adjustments before families begin applying.2. Review Key Settings for the New Year
Once the new school year is created, take a few minutes to review your settings and confirm everything is ready for the upcoming cycle.
Tip: Make sure 2027–2028 is selected at the top of the page before making updates so your changes apply to the correct year.
Manage Users
In Settings, Manage Users, review access for all users:
- Confirm current staff members have the appropriate roles and permissions.
- Remove users who no longer need access.
Tuition and Standard Discounts
Navigate to Settings, Tuition & Standard Discounts to check that:
- Tuition amounts are accurate for each grade level.
- Aid eligibility settings still reflect your school's policies.
- Standard discount percentages are up to date.
Family, Student, and Internal Codes
In Settings, Codes, review existing codes and update them as needed for:
- Reporting requirements
- Applicant tracking
- Budget eligibility criteria
A quick review now can help prevent reporting issues later in the season.
3. Fine-Tune Your Custom Calculation Settings
Every school community is unique. Custom calculation settings allow you to tailor award recommendations based on your school's policies and local cost-of-living considerations.
Under Settings, Custom Calculation Settings, review:
Set maximum allowable housing expenses for homeowners and renters, especially if housing costs in your area have changed.
Define annual living expense amounts for necessities such as food and clothing.
- Household Contribution to Education Distribution
Determine how Household Contribution to Education (HCE) funds should be allocated among students attending your school and other institutions.
Review:
- The percentage of weighted assets included in calculations.
- Whether retirement assets should be included in gross asset calculations.
Taking time to review these settings can help ensure award recommendations align with your school's financial aid philosophy.
4. Review Your Budgets
Budgets play a key role in managing scholarship and aid funds throughout the year.
As part of your annual review:
- Create a budget for each scholarship fund or aid account.
- Verify available funding amounts.
- Review award and distribution tracking.
- Confirm rollover settings are accurate for the new school year.
Remember that only families with applications in Verified status have completed the application process and submitted the required documentation. These families are ready for award consideration.
If your school also uses Blackbaud Tuition Management™ or Blackbaud Enrollment Management System™, you can send award information directly to those systems for a more streamlined workflow.
5. Update Award Letter Templates
Award letters are often one of the most anticipated communications families receive. Before award decisions begin, make sure your templates are ready.
Consider reviewing:
- School messaging and branding
- References to policies that may have changed
- Important dates
- Contact information for questions and follow-up
Updating templates now helps ensure families receive accurate and timely information when awards are released.
6. Important Reminder: Application Fee Increase for 2027–2028
Over the past year, Blackbaud has implemented a $10 increase to the parent application fee for most schools. In the 2027-2028 application year, this fee increase will be applied to the remaining schools that have not already adopted the updated fee.
This is the first application fee increase in more than a decade and helps support ongoing investments in platform reliability, security, and user experience, including:
- IRS integration
- Non-need scholarship management
- Omnibar search
- Enrollment Management integration
- A modernized Parent Portal experience
Blackbaud remains committed to helping schools make informed aid decisions through robust financial aid calculations, document collection, and verification tools.
To help families plan ahead, consider communicating the fee change before your application season opens.
A Little Preparation Goes a Long Way
Preparing for a successful financial aid season starts with reviewing your setup and making sure your school's policies, budgets, and communications are ready for the year ahead. Taking the time now to review key settings can help streamline your workflow, support informed aid decisions, and create a smoother experience for families.
We would love to hear from you. What steps are part of your annual financial aid preparation?
