Just wanted to chime in as someone who works in financial aid - you've gotten some great advice here! One thing I'd add is to make sure you save a copy of her medical withdrawal documentation. If any questions come up during aid verification or if you need to appeal aid decisions later, having that paperwork readily available can be really helpful. Also, once she's back and settled, encourage her to connect with the disability services office at her school - they often have resources and accommodations that can help prevent future academic disruptions due to mental health challenges. Wishing your daughter all the best on her return!

I went through something very similar with my son two years ago! He had to take a medical leave for mental health reasons after completing his first semester. When we filled out the FAFSA for his return, we listed him as a 1st year student since he only had about 14 credits completed - not enough for sophomore status. The key thing is to match whatever his official academic standing will be according to the registrar's office when he returns. Also, definitely reach out to the financial aid office once you submit the FAFSA to discuss his situation. They were incredibly understanding about my son's circumstances and helped us navigate some additional options we didn't even know existed. It's tough as a parent watching them go through this, but taking time to focus on mental health was the best decision we made. Your daughter is lucky to have such a supportive parent advocating for her!

Unfortunately, Parent PLUS loans have fewer forgiveness options than student Direct loans. They're not eligible for income-based repayment plans unless consolidated into a Direct Consolidation Loan, and even then, only the Income-Contingent Repayment plan is available (which is less generous than plans available to students). Public Service Loan Forgiveness is technically available for parents if YOU (not your child) work in qualifying public service for 10 years while making payments, but this isn't helpful for most families. This is why I suggest exhausting all scholarship, grant, and Direct Student Loan options first. The current annual limit for freshman Direct loans is $5,500, sophomore $6,500, and junior/senior $7,500.

I'm in a very similar situation - SAI of 31,200 with a $38k/year school and feeling completely overwhelmed! Reading through all these responses has been so helpful. I had no idea about professional judgment reviews or that some schools use CSS Profile for better aid consideration. One thing I'd add from my own research - definitely look into your state's 529 college savings plan if you haven't already. Even though it won't help for this year, if you have younger kids or are planning ahead, the tax benefits can really add up. Also, some employers offer tuition assistance or scholarships for employees' children that many people don't know about. The community college transfer route mentioned earlier is worth seriously considering too. My neighbor's daughter did 2 years at community college then transferred to her dream school as a junior - saved over $40k and still got the same degree. Sometimes being practical about finances is the most loving thing we can do for our kids' futures. Good luck with the professional judgment review process - I'll be following your lead on that!

Just wanted to share my experience as someone who went through this exact same confusion last year! I was so stressed about the timing too, but it really does work out fine. I ended up completing my MPN and Student Loan Acknowledgment in early April after getting my SAI, and everything processed smoothly. One tip that really helped me: create a simple checklist with deadlines so you can track what you've completed. Also, if your school has a financial aid checklist in their student portal, that's usually more specific than the generic federal timeline. Some schools have their own internal deadlines that are earlier than the federal ones. The whole process definitely feels overwhelming at first, but you're asking the right questions and it sounds like you're on top of everything! Don't stress too much about doing things "too early" - as others mentioned, the MPN doesn't expire for 10 years, so better to get it done and have one less thing to worry about.

Adding to what others have said - I just completed my MPN and Student Loan Acknowledgment last week and wanted to share a few practical tips that helped me: 1. Have your FSA ID ready before you start - you'll need it to access the federal student aid website 2. For the MPN references, I used a family friend and my aunt (just make sure they don't live at your address) 3. The Student Loan Acknowledgment has a lot of informational screens about repayment - don't skip through them too fast, there's actually some useful info about interest rates and repayment options The whole thing took me about 20 minutes total. One thing that surprised me was that after completing both, I got confirmation emails right away, so you'll know immediately that everything went through properly. Since you already have your SAI, you're in great shape to get this paperwork done now. It's one less thing to worry about when your aid package comes through!

One important thing to understand about your negative SAI of -1500: this doesn't guarantee zero cost. Many schools have a "gap" between your full financial need and what they actually offer in aid. Even with maximum Pell Grant and state aid, you might still have several thousand dollars to cover through loans, work-study, or other means. Each school handles this differently. Some prestigious schools offer "no-gap" financial aid (covering 100% of demonstrated need), but most have at least some gap you'll need to fill.

Hey Kolton! I went through this exact same situation last year and totally understand the confusion. Your negative SAI is definitely a good sign - it means you qualify for maximum federal aid. But here's what I wish someone had told me: start applying for scholarships NOW while you're waiting for your aid packages. Even with a negative SAI, I still had about $8K per year to cover at my state school after all the federal and state aid came through. I found tons of local scholarships through my high school counselor and community organizations that helped fill that gap. Also, don't forget to check if your state has additional grant programs - many states have their own need-based aid that stacks on top of federal aid for students with negative SAIs like ours!

My daughter's application showed the exact same error but with MY SSN missing instead (I'm the mom). So weird that it's happening to so many people. We had to redo the entire thing 😩

This thread has been so helpful! I'm a newcomer here but dealing with the same exact issue. My spouse's SSN disappeared and the "no SSN" box got checked automatically. I've been panicking about having to start over completely, but seeing all these solutions gives me hope. Going to try calling FSA directly first, and if that doesn't work I'll look into the Claimyr service that several people mentioned. It's honestly ridiculous that we have to deal with these glitches when financial aid deadlines are so critical. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences and solutions!