As someone who just went through this exact situation last year, I wanted to share what we learned! We had one kid finishing undergrad and starting a PhD program, plus another still in undergrad. The biggest thing we discovered is that you really need to look at the TOTAL picture of support. Our grad student got a full tuition waiver plus a $25k stipend, but when we added up ALL their expenses (rent, food, car, insurance, medical, personal expenses, etc.), it came to about $45k for the year. Since we were covering the $20k difference, we could legitimately include them in our household size. The tricky part is that graduate funding packages often aren't finalized until late spring, but you need to file FAFSA much earlier. We ended up making our best estimate based on typical funding for their program, then double-checked our math once we knew the actual numbers. Fortunately we didn't need to make corrections, but it was definitely stressful not knowing for sure! One more tip: if your grad student is considering multiple programs, try to get funding info from all of them early in the process so you can plan accordingly. Some programs are much more generous than others, which could totally change whether you meet that 50% threshold.

I'm in a similar boat with one kid potentially starting grad school and another still in undergrad! Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful. One thing I'm still trying to wrap my head around is the timing - it seems like we're supposed to predict support for July 2025-June 2026, but most grad school decisions and funding packages don't come out until March/April 2025. Has anyone dealt with needing to file corrections after initially submitting? I'm wondering if it's better to be conservative initially (not count the grad student) and then correct later if needed, or if corrections create more headaches than they're worth. Also, for those who've been through verification for household size - what kind of documentation did they actually ask for?

Hi Chloe! I'm also a first-time FAFSA applicant and was literally wondering about this exact same thing with the Medicaid checkbox! Reading through all these responses has been SO helpful - it sounds like you're in an amazing position for financial aid with your mom's income at $29k and having Medicaid. From what everyone's shared, you should definitely qualify for both the Simplified Needs Test (skipping asset questions) and likely the Auto-Zero EFC calculation, which means maximum Pell Grant eligibility. That's incredible! I love how this community has broken down the real process versus what we initially thought would happen. I was honestly pretty intimidated by the whole FAFSA thing, but seeing all these success stories from people in similar situations has made me feel so much more confident about my own application. Thanks for asking this question - it's helped me understand what to expect too! Make sure to have that 2022 tax return ready, and good luck with your application. Sounds like you're going to get excellent aid!

Hi Chloe! I just went through this exact process with my daughter last month and we had the same Medicaid situation. You're absolutely right to ask these questions upfront! With your mom's income at $29k and having Medicaid, you're in an excellent position for financial aid. You'll definitely qualify for the Simplified Needs Test (which skips asset questions about bank accounts/investments) AND very likely the Auto-Zero EFC calculation - which is the best possible scenario for maximum aid eligibility! You'll still need your mom's 2022 tax return ready (that's what the 2024-2025 FAFSA uses), but the process will be much more streamlined. My daughter ended up getting the full Pell Grant with a very similar financial situation. One tip that saved us time: create your FSA ID first and gather all documents before starting. The FAFSA website can be glitchy, so being prepared helps you power through without interruption. The Medicaid checkbox is helpful, but think of it as a "skip the complicated stuff" button rather than skipping everything. You're being really smart by preparing ahead of time - with your family's circumstances, you should qualify for substantial aid. Good luck!

I think you're missing the important part of the equation - with parent plus loans, the debt is ENTIRELY in your name. With private parent loans, some lenders allow cosigning with the student, which lets them take over payments after graduation. That's what we did, and my son is now making the payments while building his credit.

One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet is tax implications - the interest on both Parent PLUS and private parent loans may be tax deductible up to $2,500 per year (subject to income limits), so that could help offset some of the cost difference. Also, some private lenders offer interest rate reductions for autopay (usually 0.25%) which can add up over time. I'm leaning toward doing a mix like Sean suggested - maybe taking a smaller Parent PLUS loan to keep some federal protections while using private loans for the bulk to save on interest. Has anyone here actually done that split approach? I'm curious how complicated it makes the paperwork and repayment process.

As a newcomer to this community, I'm incredibly grateful to have found this thread! I'm experiencing the exact same situation right now - submitted my FAFSA about 5 weeks ago and have been accepted to 7 schools, but I've only received 2 financial aid packages so far. The May 1st deadline has been causing me serious anxiety, especially since I need to compare all my options before making such an important decision. Reading through everyone's experiences has been both enlightening and reassuring. I had no idea that the timeline could vary so drastically between institutions, or that some schools don't automatically notify you when packages are ready. I've been religiously checking my email multiple times a day thinking I missed something or did something wrong in my application process. The practical advice shared here is invaluable - checking spam folders regularly, verifying FAFSA transmission on studentaid.gov, systematically reviewing each school's portal for missing documents, and being proactive with phone calls rather than waiting passively. I'm definitely going to implement all of these strategies starting tomorrow morning, including that brilliant tip about calling right when offices open to avoid lengthy hold times. The information about requesting deadline extensions and the appeals process is also incredibly helpful - I had no idea these options even existed! It's both frustrating and comforting to know that this level of stress and confusion seems to be completely universal in this process. Thanks to everyone for creating such a supportive space and sharing your detailed experiences navigating this complicated system!

As a newcomer to this community, I'm so relieved to have found this thread! I'm going through the exact same stressful situation right now - submitted my FAFSA about 4 weeks ago and have been accepted to 6 schools, but I've only received financial aid information from 2 of them. The May 1st deadline has been keeping me awake at night worrying about making such an important decision without having all the financial details. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful and honestly a huge wake-up call. I had no idea that I needed to be so proactive about following up with schools, or that some don't automatically send notifications when packages are ready. I've been passively waiting for emails that apparently might never come! The advice about checking spam folders multiple times daily, verifying on studentaid.gov that my FAFSA was actually transmitted to all schools, and systematically going through each portal to check for missing documents is exactly what I needed. I'm definitely going to start making calls this week - the tip about calling right when offices open at 8-9 AM to avoid those awful hold times is brilliant. It's both frustrating and comforting to know that this level of confusion and anxiety seems completely normal in this process. The appeals information and possibility of requesting deadline extensions are things I never would have known to ask about. Thanks to everyone for sharing such detailed experiences and practical strategies - this community is invaluable for navigating what really does feel like an unnecessarily complicated system!

As a newcomer to this community, I'm incredibly grateful to have found this detailed discussion! My spouse is a disabled veteran and we're preparing to file our first FAFSA for our son who's starting his senior year of high school. I've been genuinely anxious about how the new automated system would handle VA disability payments, but this thread has been so reassuring. The consistent experiences from multiple veteran families confirming that VA disability compensation is still legally excluded from income calculations gives me so much confidence. I really appreciate the explanation about AGI vs. gross income - understanding that the system pulls from AGI (which already excludes non-taxable VA benefits) makes the whole process seem much less mysterious. The verification advice about comparing our tax return's AGI with the FAFSA Submission Summary is exactly the kind of practical guidance I needed. Having a concrete way to double-check that everything worked correctly removes so much of the anxiety about trusting an automated process. Thank you all for creating such a supportive space where military families can share real experiences and get practical advice. This discussion has transformed what felt like an overwhelming process into something much more manageable for our family!

As a newcomer to this community, I want to thank everyone for this incredibly comprehensive and reassuring discussion! My husband is a disabled veteran and we're about to navigate our first FAFSA for our daughter who's applying for college next year. I've been really worried about how his VA disability compensation would be handled with the new automated system, especially since we can't manually control the inputs like before. Reading through all these real experiences from veteran families has been so educational and comforting. The consistent message that VA disability payments remain legally protected and excluded from income calculations, even with the new direct data transfer system, gives me much more confidence. The explanation about AGI vs. gross income was particularly enlightening - it makes perfect sense that the system pulls from AGI which already excludes these non-taxable benefits. I'm definitely going to follow the verification advice everyone shared about comparing our tax return's AGI with what appears on the FAFSA Submission Summary after we submit. Having that concrete way to double-check removes so much of the anxiety about trusting an automated process we can't see inside of. This community support is exactly what military families need when facing these complex financial aid processes for the first time. Thank you all for sharing your knowledge and real-world experiences - it's made what seemed like an overwhelming task feel much more manageable!