UPDATE: Thanks everyone for the help! We both created our FSA IDs (with different emails as suggested) and completed our daughter's FAFSA last night. The form did ask for our joint tax information, and then required both of us to sign at the end. The estimated SAI showed up immediately after submission, which I wasn't expecting - that was helpful. Thanks again for clearing up my confusion!

Congrats on getting it submitted! Just a heads up - make sure to check your student aid portal regularly over the next few weeks. Sometimes schools request additional documentation even after the FAFSA is processed, and those requests can be easy to miss in email. Also, if your daughter applied to multiple schools, each one will send their own financial aid package with different timelines, so don't panic if you don't hear back from all of them at once. Good luck with the aid packages!

Hey everyone! I just went through this exact same process last year and wanted to share what finally worked for me after months of confusion. The biggest breakthrough was when I realized that for Excelsior, you need to look at THREE things in this order: 1. Who claimed you as a dependent on 2023 taxes (this is usually the default) 2. Who actually provided more than 50% of your financial support during 2023 3. If these don't match, you can submit documentation to prove the actual support situation In my case, my parents alternated tax years but my mom consistently paid for housing, food, and health insurance (the big expenses), so she was clearly my supporting parent even when my dad claimed me on taxes. For the income calculation, make sure you're looking at Line 11 on Form 1040 (Adjusted Gross Income), NOT the total income. This made a huge difference for my family since my stepdad has significant retirement contributions that lowered our AGI below the $135k threshold. Also, don't stress too much about the NY residency requirement - I talked to my school's career services and they said there are tons of good opportunities throughout the state, plus there are provisions for deferrals if you can't find work immediately. The documentation process is tedious but totally manageable if you stay organized. Start gathering everything now and apply even if you're not 100% sure about eligibility. The worst they can say is no, but you might be surprised! Good luck @Sasha and everyone else applying! This community has been so helpful for navigating these confusing rules. 🍀

This entire thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm also dealing with divorced/remarried parents and was completely lost about the income reporting differences between FAFSA and Excelsior until reading everyone's experiences here. From what I've gathered, the key steps are: 1. Check who claimed me as a dependent on 2023 tax returns (that's usually the starting point for Excelsior) 2. Calculate who actually provided more than 50% of my financial support in 2023 3. Use that parent's AGI (Line 11 on Form 1040) plus stepparent income if they're remarried 4. Remember the income limit is $135k for 2025-2026, which is higher than previous years I'm feeling much more confident about applying now, even though the documentation process sounds intense. The spreadsheet idea for tracking expenses is brilliant - I'm definitely going to create one this weekend to figure out my support situation. One question for those who've been through this - if my parents have joint custody (50/50) but alternate who claims me on taxes each year, and 2023 was my dad's year to claim me, would I automatically use his income even if my mom pays for more of my day-to-day expenses? Or is it worth documenting the actual support breakdown like some of you mentioned? Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences! This community is amazing for navigating these confusing financial aid rules. 🙏

I had this exact same problem when helping my nephew with his FAFSA last month! The school search feature is honestly terrible. What finally worked for me was using the federal school code method that others mentioned, but I also want to add that sometimes you need to be really specific with the campus name. For Penn State, make sure you're looking for "Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus" for University Park specifically. I also found that if you're still having trouble, try doing the search late at night or early morning when fewer people are using the system - I swear it works better then! The whole FAFSA process is so unnecessarily complicated, but don't give up. Your son's financial aid depends on getting this right!

I'm new to this whole FAFSA process and reading through this thread has been incredibly eye-opening! I had no idea about using federal school codes instead of searching by name - that's going to save me so much time. My daughter is a junior in high school and we're just starting to research colleges, but I'm already feeling overwhelmed by all the financial aid requirements. One question I have after reading all these helpful responses: is there a good resource or guide that walks you through the entire FAFSA process step by step? I want to be prepared when it's time to actually fill it out next year so we don't run into these same search issues. Also, should I be creating accounts or gathering documents now, or is it too early to start that process?

As someone who just went through this process with my son in February, I can confirm what others have said about the timing and steps. One additional tip I haven't seen mentioned: when your daughter logs in to send the parent invitation, make sure she double-checks that your email address is entered correctly. We had a typo in my email and didn't realize it for three days when I never received the invitation. The system doesn't give any error messages if the email is invalid - it just sends the invite into the void. Also, keep in mind that if you're traveling, you can complete the parent portion from anywhere as long as you have internet access and your tax documents. The mobile version of the site works fine for the parent section, though it's a bit easier on a computer if you have the option.

Just wanted to add a heads up for anyone dealing with divorced parents - the process gets a bit more complicated. The student needs to determine which parent to invite based on who they lived with most in the past 12 months, not necessarily who claims them on taxes. If that parent is remarried, the stepparent will also need to be invited as a contributor. I learned this the hard way when my ex-husband completed his portion but we still couldn't submit because the system was waiting for his new wife's information too. Make sure you understand which parent(s) need to be involved before starting the invitation process to avoid delays!

I'm new to this whole college financial aid process too, and reading through this thread has been so helpful! My son is also starting college in Fall 2025 and I was about to start the Parent PLUS loan application - thank goodness I saw this post first or I probably would have made the exact same mistake. It sounds like the key timeline is: complete the 2025-2026 FAFSA (available October 2024), then apply for Parent PLUS loan around May 2025. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - it really helps those of us who are navigating this for the first time!

I'm jumping in as another parent going through this process for the first time! Sean, you definitely shouldn't feel bad about this mix-up - from reading all these responses, it seems like a really common mistake. What I'm taking away from this thread is that the financial aid system is confusing by design, but at least there are helpful people here willing to share their experiences. One question I have for those who've been through this - is there a good resource or checklist somewhere that lays out the entire timeline for college financial aid? Between FAFSA deadlines, Parent PLUS applications, and all the different academic year dates, it feels like there are so many moving pieces to keep track of. I'd love to find something that breaks it all down step by step so I don't accidentally apply for the wrong year like Sean did!