OpenCCC SSN Form Redesign

Redesigning a part of a form to be more student-friendly and inclusive

Role

UX Designer

Timeline

3 weeks

Disciplines

Inclusive Design

Background

Complex legal language confused and intimidated students

In order for students to go to a California Community College, they must create an account and apply through a website called OpenCCC. When students are filling out the application, they are asked to provide a social security number (SSN) in order for the colleges to identify the students and facilitate financial aid.
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To stay compliant with state laws, the original copy used for the SSN portion intimidated students. The copy had too much legal jargon, fearful language like “federal law”, “failure to provide”, and terms like “non-resident aliens'' that confused undocument students.
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Along with complex language, the user experience for simple tasks like entering an SSN is confusing and intimidating thanks to large amounts of legal language surrounding the text fields.

Screenshot of the old SSN portion in OpenCCC

Right away, there is a lot of legal language regarding the importance of providing a social security number. When someone skims through the image, keywords like "federal law", "failure to provide", and "non-resident aliens" can potentially create a lot of fear. Also, the copy states that the student is required to provide an SSN is simply not true.

Solution

Heavily simplifying the layout and language created a drastic improvement

My goal for the redesign of the SSN question is to shorten and streamline the layout and language, while maintaining compliance with IRS, federal, and state requirements.

Simplifying the overall layout

The redesigned SSN question has been heavily simplified and features a natural flow. All legal language has been placed in a hyperlink and we ask the student's SSN in a natural way.

Old

The Social Security Number is required to claim tax credits for higher education costs known as the American Opportunity Tax Credit in accordance with the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997.

Federal law requires the California Community Colleges to provide specific information to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for the purpose of filing an information return (IRS Form 1098-T "Tuition Statement") for each student in attendance, with a few exceptions including students in noncredit classes, international students, undocumented students and non-resident aliens.

The information required by the IRS includes the student's name, address, Social Security Number (SSN) or Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN/iTIN), and enrollment status, as well as the amount of tuition paid or billed, and scholarships received. (26 C.F.R. 1-60505-1(b)(2)(ii).)

Failure to provide a correct Social Security Number or TIN while claiming tax credits for specified education expenses may result in a penalty levied against the student by the IRS in the amount of $100, per year, until the missing or incorrect information is provided (26 C.F.R. 1-60505-1(e)(4)).

New

A Social Security Number (SSN) or Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN/iTIN) is needed to allow California community colleges to report tax-related information to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  

However, this reporting is not required with respect to non-U.S. resident students (whether documented or undocumented), students taking non-credit courses, students whose qualified tuition and related expenses are waived or paid with scholarships or paid by an institutional third party including an employer or government agency.  (26 C.F.R. § 1.6050S-1.)  An SSN or TIN/iTIN is not required when IRS reporting is not required.

Clearer disclosure text

In OpenCCC, it is required to disclose information on why SSN information is being collected. With the redesign, we collaborated with the client on simplifying the explanations, removed a lot of legal fluff (while keeping section codes for legal purposes), and made it clear that this applies to both documented or undocumented students.

Scaffolding and a reimagined dropdown menu

Scaffolding is used to hide/show the necessary information to the student. Options in the redesigned dropdown menu are in bold and a brief explanation is provided for each answer choice.

Subtle, but important reminders

If we need to remind the student with any required legal disclaimers, it’s shown in a gentle but noticeable fashion.

Provide helpful tutorials where it's necessary

In case students do not know the format of their SSN, a modal is provided with quick and clear information about SSNs or TINs.

Conclusion + Retrospective

The all-new simplified copy and experience gave confidence to our students

All of these simplifications and tweaks deliver an experience that is easier for any student to understand. Based on early feedback from our clients, students had an easier time to understand the new layout. Most importantly however, undocumented students no longer felt intimidated by the language used.
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Although we made these simplifications, I felt like we could’ve gone further with streamlining the text. Early drafts of the copy did not include section codes, but we had to strike a balance of friendliness and legality.

Jeff Low

Senior User Experience Designer

© Copyright 2024 • Jeff Low • Version 1.3 • Website designed and developed in Sacramento, CA.