One more thing that might help ease your mind - most schools have financial aid counselors who specialize in helping families navigate the PLUS loan process. Once you get your acceptance, don't hesitate to schedule a phone appointment with them to walk through your specific situation. They can explain exactly how the frozen credit situation affects things (spoiler: it won't be a problem as long as you unfreeze before applying) and give you a personalized timeline for your school's process. I know the waiting is brutal, but you're honestly doing everything right by researching this now. Most families don't even know what PLUS loans are until they're staring at their financial aid package in shock! You're going to be so much more prepared than the average family when decision time comes.

Hey Hazel! I just went through this exact situation with my older sibling last year, so I totally get the anxiety! One thing that really helped us was setting up a shared Google Doc with all the important dates and requirements for each school we were waiting on. We included things like acceptance notification dates, financial aid deadlines, PLUS loan application deadlines, and even reminders about when to unfreeze credit. It sounds like you're already doing a great job staying organized and asking the right questions early. The frozen credit thing is definitely not going to hurt your FAFSA results at all - those are completely separate processes like everyone mentioned. One small tip that saved us some stress: when your parents do unfreeze their credit for the PLUS application, consider doing it on a Friday so they have the weekend to monitor for any suspicious activity before the business week starts. It's probably overkill, but it made my parents feel more secure about the whole thing. Best of luck on May 10th! The waiting is seriously the worst part, but you're going to do great! 🎓

In response to your question about how your daughter should phrase her request when calling: She should say something like: "Hello, my name is [name] and I'm an incoming student for Fall 2025. I recently received my SAI score from my FAFSA, and it's -1500. I've already received an initial financial aid package, but I'm calling to see if my negative SAI qualifies me for any additional institutional aid or if my package can be recalculated based on this new information." Be sure she has her student ID number ready, along with her FAFSA confirmation number. If she gets nervous on calls, she might want to write down these key points before calling. Also, timing is crucial right now. April-May is when many financial aid offices finalize packages for incoming students, so the sooner she reaches out, the better chance she has of accessing any available funds.

Just wanted to add another perspective here - my son had a -1600 SAI and we learned that some state universities have "emergency aid" or "last-dollar" scholarship programs specifically for students with negative SAIs. These aren't always advertised prominently on their websites, so you have to ask directly. At our state school, they had something called a "Bridge Grant" that covered the gap between financial aid and actual costs for students with extreme need. It was only $1,800, but every bit helps! The key is asking specifically about programs for students with negative SAI scores - don't just ask about "additional aid" in general. Good luck!

I'm so sorry you're dealing with this stress, especially with your deadline coming up so soon! As someone who went through a similar SAI shock this year, I completely understand the panic. One thing that helped me was creating a simple comparison document showing my previous year's FAFSA data side-by-side with this year's to bring to my financial aid office. It made it really clear that nothing had changed on our end, which seemed to help them understand the situation faster. Also, don't wait until the last minute to reach out - financial aid offices are swamped right now with similar cases, so the earlier you can get in their queue for a professional judgment review, the better. Some schools are even proactively reviewing cases where they see these dramatic SAI increases. Hang in there - from what I'm reading in this thread, schools seem to be understanding about these formula issues and many are willing to work with students. You've got this!

As a newcomer to this community, I have to say this thread has been incredibly eye-opening and honestly a bit terrifying! I'm a high school senior who just submitted my FAFSA for the first time, and reading about these massive SAI increases has me really worried about what to expect. My family's financial situation is pretty similar to what many of you have described - middle class, single parent household, and I'll be the only one in college. Based on the online EFC calculators I used last year, I was expecting to qualify for significant need-based aid, but now I'm wondering if those calculators are completely outdated with the new formula changes. For those of you who successfully appealed through professional judgment, how long did the process typically take? I'm trying to figure out if I should be proactive and reach out to financial aid offices at my prospective schools now, or wait to see what my actual SAI comes back as first. Also, Isabella, thank you so much for sharing your expertise from the financial aid office perspective - it's really reassuring to hear that schools are aware of these issues and have processes in place to help students. This whole situation seems like such a mess, but at least there are people like you and supportive communities like this to help navigate it!

As someone who just went through this process with my twins last year, I can't stress enough how important it is to check BOTH the student portal AND have your daughter check her student email regularly. We missed a deadline because one of my sons didn't see an email about additional verification documents that was sent only to his student account, not to me as the parent. Also, pro tip: if Riverdale has a financial aid checklist or "to-do" section in their portal, bookmark that page and check it weekly until everything is resolved. Some schools update requirements in real-time as they review applications, so what looks complete today might have new items tomorrow. Good luck with getting everything sorted before her decision deadline!

I'm just starting this whole FAFSA process with my youngest and this thread is both helpful and terrifying! The idea that schools can just keep adding requirements without proper notification is honestly shocking. I had no idea there were two separate processes - the federal FAFSA and then each school's own verification. @Nia Williams I hope you get everything sorted out quickly! It sounds like you've gotten some great advice here about checking the student portal regularly. I'm definitely going to bookmark this thread for when I inevitably run into the same issues in a few months. Question for everyone: Is there any way to predict which schools are more likely to select you for verification, or is it basically random? Trying to mentally prepare myself for what's coming!

UPDATE: You all were right about contacting the school directly! I finally spoke with my daughter's financial aid office this morning, and they were actually super helpful. They're sending us their Special Circumstances form where we can document our income change from last year. The counselor I spoke with said this happens all the time and they can likely adjust her aid package once we submit the documentation. I'm still annoyed that FAFSA's phone system is so terrible, but at least we have a path forward now. Thanks to everyone who helped point me in the right direction!

So glad to hear you got through to your daughter's school and they were helpful! This is exactly why I always tell people to bypass FAFSA phone support for these types of issues. The schools have way more power to actually fix things, and their financial aid staff are usually much more accessible. For anyone else reading this thread - Jamal's experience is a perfect example of why going directly to the school's financial aid office should be your first move, not your last resort. The special circumstances/professional judgment process exists specifically for situations like income changes, job loss, medical expenses, etc. that the standard FAFSA formula can't capture. Thanks for updating us with the good news! Hope everything works out with your daughter's aid package.