Thanks everyone for the helpful responses! I submitted the correction this morning and included myself, my parents, and my younger sister who they support. Hoping this brings my SAI down to qualify for more aid. I'll update once it recalculates in case anyone else runs into this same issue.

Just wanted to add that you can also check if your correction went through by looking at your Student Aid Report (SAR) - it should show the updated family size information once processed. Also, make sure when you're counting family size that you don't accidentally include grandparents or other relatives who might live with you but don't receive more than half their support from your parents. I made that mistake initially and had to submit another correction. The whole process is confusing but once you get it right, your SAI calculation will be much more accurate!

I'm going through the exact same thing right now! My FAFSA has been "in review" for 6 days after being "processed" for about a week. Reading through everyone's experiences here is really helping calm my nerves. It sounds like this is just part of the normal process this year. I've been checking StudentAid.gov obsessively every morning hoping to see it switch back to processed. At least now I know I'm not alone in this! Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - it's so reassuring to know that most people's SAI numbers don't change and schools can still see our information during the review.

I'm dealing with the exact same situation right now! My FAFSA went from "processed" to "in review" yesterday and I immediately started panicking. Reading through all these responses has been such a huge relief - it sounds like this is actually pretty common this year. I had no idea that 30% of applications get selected for review! I've been refreshing StudentAid.gov constantly but I'm going to try to be more patient now. It's so helpful to see that most people's SAI numbers stayed the same and that schools can still access the information during review. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this community is a lifesaver during stressful times like this!

Just wanted to add one more helpful resource - if you're still struggling to find the 1098-T form, many schools also mail physical copies to the student's permanent address (usually your home address). They're required to send them by January 31st, so keep an eye on your mailbox too! Also, if your son received any Pell Grants, those typically cover qualified expenses first, so they're usually not taxable. It's mainly the "extra" grant money that goes toward room/board that becomes taxable income. One last thing - when you're doing your taxes, make sure you and your son coordinate so you don't both accidentally claim the same education expenses. Since he's your dependent, you get the education credits, but he reports any taxable scholarship income. Good communication between you two will save headaches later!

I'm a college student who just went through this process myself! One thing that really helped me was understanding the difference between "qualified" and "non-qualified" education expenses. Qualified expenses are things like tuition, mandatory fees, and required books/supplies. Non-qualified would be things like room and board, parking passes, or optional equipment. If you're having trouble accessing the 1098-T through the student portal, most schools have a specific section called something like "Tax Documents" or "1098-T Forms" - it's usually separate from the regular financial aid info. You might need to look under "Student Accounts" or "Billing" rather than "Financial Aid." Also, just a heads up - some schools are slow to post these forms, so don't panic if it's not there yet in late January. They have until January 31st to get them out. And if your son received any work-study income, that gets reported separately on a W-2 from the school, not on the 1098-T. Hope this helps ease some of the stress! The whole process seems way more complicated than it actually is once you get the hang of it.

I'm going through this exact same situation right now with my twin daughters! Both got accepted to the same state school, and we're facing nearly $30,000 in unexpected housing costs between the two of them. What's really frustrating is that the school's website made it sound like their "comprehensive financial aid packages" would cover most expenses for families in our income bracket. Turns out "comprehensive" just meant they listed everything you'd need to pay for, not that they'd actually help pay for it all! Reading through everyone's advice here has given me so much hope though. I'm going to try the appeal process, look into department-specific scholarships, and definitely ask about those emergency housing grants Norman mentioned. Has anyone had experience with schools being more flexible when you have multiple kids attending the same institution? I'm wondering if that gives us any additional leverage in negotiations.

I'm just starting to learn about all this financial aid stuff as my youngest is beginning her college search, and this thread has been incredibly educational! The distinction between FAFSA being just an application versus actual funding, and all the different restrictions on various types of aid - I had no idea it was this complicated. Oliver, it sounds like you're getting some great actionable advice here. I'm definitely going to bookmark this conversation for when we go through this process next year. One question for the group - are there any resources or websites you'd recommend for learning more about these aid restrictions and appeal processes before we get to the application stage? I want to be as prepared as possible so we don't get blindsided like so many families seem to be.

This whole thread has been so eye-opening! I'm a parent of a high school junior, so we're just starting to navigate this process, and honestly, reading about everyone's experiences has me both grateful for the heads-up and terrified about what we're in for next year. The fact that the estimator can be so far off is really concerning, especially since we're using those numbers to help our daughter create her college list. It sounds like the key takeaway is to not rely solely on the estimator results and to be prepared for significant differences when the actual FAFSA is processed. I'm definitely bookmarking this thread and taking notes on all the tips people have shared - the Claimyr service for getting through to FSA, the importance of correctly categorizing retirement accounts and other assets, checking state grant programs, and working with school financial aid offices. One question for those who've been through this - should we even bother using the estimator at this point, or is it more misleading than helpful? It seems like it might give families false hope or cause them to make poor college choices based on inaccurate information. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences, especially Chloe for the detailed updates! This is exactly the kind of real-world information that parents need but can't find in the official government resources.

As a newcomer to this community and the FAFSA process, I just want to say THANK YOU to everyone who shared their experiences here! Reading through this entire thread has been incredibly educational and honestly a bit overwhelming - I had no idea the financial aid process was this complex. I'm the parent of a high school senior, and we used the estimator tool a few months ago. Now I'm terrified that our results might be completely wrong too! We were shown eligibility for about $3,000 in Pell Grant funds, and that's factored heavily into our college affordability calculations. A few questions for this helpful group: 1. Should I be proactively reaching out to our target schools' financial aid offices now to give them a heads up about potential discrepancies? 2. Is there a comprehensive resource somewhere that explains all the new FAFSA formula changes in plain English? 3. For those who found errors in their applications, how long did the correction process take? I'm definitely going to bookmark that Claimyr service and start documenting everything like several people suggested. This thread has probably saved us months of frustration and confusion. It's amazing how much practical knowledge this community has that you just can't get from the official government websites!