Each year, a growing number of potential financial aid recipients do not get money for one reason – they don’t apply.

A new study conducted by the American Council on Education states that half of the 8 million undergraduates enrolled from 1999 to 2000 at institutions participating in federal student aid programs did not complete the main Free Application for Fedral Student Aid (FAFSA).

Several reasons explain students’ lack of enthusiasm for financial aid. Some students do not think they have a chance to receive any money. Others are unaware of the process. For some, financial independence takes the pressure to apply off of parents.

Gabrielle Pendleton, freshman in engineering, said parental income can factor into the number of financial aid applications submitted.

“Many students think they are ineligible due to their parents’ income or certain government standards that have been set,” she said.

She also said students simply are not motivated to fill out the sometimes time-consuming forms.

“Sometimes it is just laziness,” Pendleton said.

Swati Acharya, freshman in engineering, admitted she wasn’t aware of the financial aid process in general, but she said for most people the forms “take way too long to fill out.”

“People have college applications to fill out at the same time they are supposed to be filling out financial aid forms,” she said.

In addition to the length of the application, content also poses a problem for some parents, especially when revealing their income and taxes.

Orlo Austin, director of the Office of Student Financial Aid, said some parents do not want their children to know their annual income. However, he said parents should know that forms can be completed without revealing their income to their children. Students can complete their portion of the forms first and leave parents to complete the remainder of the application. Once parents have completed it, they can mail it in or, if an online application was used, submit it online.

Austin said some students aren’t optimistic about receiving aid throughout their college careers.

“A high percentage of students do not apply because they know they will not be eligible after their first year,” he said.

For Christine Lin, junior in business, this is true. Lin filed the FAFSA her freshman year. However, she did not apply the next two years because she did not think she would qualify to receive any aid.

Bill Miston, freshman in LAS, is a bit more cynical.

“Although there is a lot of money available, I don’t know where it goes,” he said.

Austin said an increasing number of students no longer rely on their parents for financial assistance.

“Many individuals are working students or they live in nontraditional families,” he said. “In some cases, they don’t even live under the same roof as their parents.”

In addition, Austin said more youth get jobs while still in high school, and some employers provide money for certain aspects of a student’s college expenses, such as books.

The U.S. Department of Education said it is in students’ best interests to apply for financial aid as soon as the option becomes available on Jan. 1.