hey just remembered another thing - my daughter's apprenticeship had a separate stipend for tools and equipment that didn't get reported to financial aid at all. might ask if your sons program offers anything similar for automotive tools

Thank you all for the incredibly detailed responses! This community has been so helpful in understanding the complexities of how apprenticeships interact with financial aid. I'm feeling much more confident about moving forward now. Based on everyone's advice, here's my action plan: 1. Schedule an in-person meeting with both the Toyota apprenticeship coordinator and the financial aid office at the same time to ensure clear communication about payment structure 2. Request that Toyota structure their payment as a direct third-party payment to the school rather than reimbursement to my son 3. Complete the FAFSA regardless and explore both federal and state grant opportunities 4. Document everything in writing and follow up meetings with summary emails 5. Ask about work-study options and emergency transportation/housing funds 6. Inquire about any tool/equipment stipends that might be available I'll report back once we get through the process in case it helps other families in similar situations. Thanks again everyone - this support means the world to us!

I'm going through the exact same thing! My daughter's SAI jumped from around -$800 for 24-25 to $1,200 for 25-26 and I was panicking. Like others have mentioned, it seems like the formula changes are hitting a lot of families unexpectedly. One thing that helped me was realizing that even though the SAI increased, some schools are also adjusting their aid policies to account for these changes. I called my daughter's top choice school and they said they're aware many families are seeing higher SAIs this year and they're taking that into consideration when packaging aid. Also, don't forget that you can always submit a special circumstances appeal if you have any expenses or situations that aren't reflected in the FAFSA - things like high medical bills, job loss, or even just the fact that the formula change is creating unexpected hardship. It's worth a shot! Hang in there - this whole process is so stressful but there are usually options available once you dig deeper.

I'm dealing with this exact same situation! Just submitted my daughter's FAFSA for 25-26 and our SAI estimate went from around -$400 last year to $980 this year. Same income, same assets, everything identical. It's so stressful because we were counting on similar aid to what we got for 24-25. Reading through all these comments is both reassuring (that we're not alone) and terrifying (that this seems to be happening to a lot of families). I think I'm going to try that Claimyr service someone mentioned to actually get through to FSA and get some answers. Has anyone had luck with the special circumstances appeals at their schools? I'm wondering if the formula change itself could be grounds for an appeal, especially for families who were budgeting based on previous years' aid packages.

one time i had to wait almost 2 WEEKS to get my confirmation email cuz of some system backlog. but my application was still processed fine and i got my aid. sometimes the system is just slow especially in busy months. as long as u see "processing" ur probably ok!!

Another way to double-check is to look at your email settings in your FSA account. Go to studentaid.gov > My Account > Settings > Communication Preferences and make sure your email is correct and notifications are turned on. I've seen people miss confirmation emails because they had old email addresses or notifications were disabled. Also, if you used a parent's info on your FAFSA, sometimes the confirmation emails go to the parent contributor's email instead of yours, so check with them too!

One last thing to consider - when you do get the refund, I recommend opening a separate savings account just for these education funds rather than mixing them with regular accounts. This helps in case there are ever questions about how the money was used, and helps your daughter budget those funds specifically for educational expenses.

Just want to add one more consideration - timing can be crucial if you're planning to use that refund for sophomore year housing. Most schools require housing deposits and room selection to happen in the spring semester of freshman year (like February-April). So even though you'll get the refund, make sure you have a plan for covering the housing deposit upfront since the refund money might not be available yet when you need to secure her dorm spot for sophomore year. You might need to pay the deposit out of pocket and then reimburse yourself when the refund comes through.

Just wanted to add my perspective as another newcomer dealing with this exact issue! My family's FAFSA also skipped the asset questions despite our AGI being around $85k. We have a decent amount in 529 plans and savings that should have been reported. What's been most helpful from this thread is understanding that this is a known system bug, not something we did wrong. I was panicking that I somehow missed critical sections or filled something out incorrectly. The detailed explanations about how parent assets are assessed (5.64% after protection allowances) and the examples of how much SAI might increase have really helped manage my expectations. I'm planning to try the Claimyr service mentioned earlier to get through to FSA, and I'll definitely reach out to my daughter's financial aid office proactively to let them know about the situation. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences and solutions - this community has been invaluable for a stressed parent trying to navigate this broken system!

Hi everyone! I'm new to this community but have been following this thread closely as we're experiencing the exact same issue. Our FAFSA also completely skipped the asset questions despite having an AGI around $72k, and we have significant 529 savings plus other investments that should have been reported. Reading through all your experiences has been so helpful - especially learning that this is a widespread system bug rather than something we did wrong. I was honestly losing sleep thinking I had somehow messed up my daughter's financial aid by missing important sections. The detailed explanations about the 5.64% parent asset assessment rate and the examples of SAI increases have really helped me understand what we might be looking at once this gets fixed. It sounds like while our SAI will likely go up, it may not be as catastrophic as I initially feared. I'm definitely going to try the Claimyr service mentioned here to get through to FSA, and I'll also reach out proactively to our college's financial aid office. Thank you all for sharing your knowledge and experiences - this community has been a lifesaver for stressed parents like me trying to navigate this broken system!