I'm dealing with this same anxiety! My daughter's SAI came through around the same time as your son's. What's been helpful for me is creating a spreadsheet to track everything - her current SAI, all the aid offers from different schools, and any communications we receive. I'm also screenshotting everything in case we need documentation later. One thing that gave me some peace of mind: I called a few of the colleges she applied to directly, and their financial aid offices were already aware of this issue and said they're prepared to work with families if corrections need to be made. They seemed much more responsive than trying to get through to FSA directly! Also keeping in mind that even if her SAI does get corrected upward, it sounds like most schools are going to honor their original offers for this year given the circumstances. Hang in there - we're all navigating this mess together!

I'm in the exact same situation! My daughter's SAI came through on 3/21 and I've been losing sleep over this news. What's really frustrating is that we can't even tell if we're affected until they decide to notify us. I've been checking studentaid.gov obsessively but there's no self-service way to verify if your SAI is part of the error batch. One thing I did was reach out directly to the financial aid offices at her top choice schools to let them know we're concerned about potential SAI corrections. Most were really understanding and said they're tracking this issue closely. A couple even said they'd give us a heads up if they receive any correction notices from FSA before we do. I'm trying to stay optimistic that the majority of SAIs are probably correct, but man, the timing with decision deadlines is just awful. Hoping we all hear something definitive soon!

UPDATE: You guys were totally right! I went through the correction process and found TWO major mistakes I made. I had included my retirement account as an asset AND counted my contributions as untaxed income, plus I had accidentally included the value of my car (which isn't supposed to be reported). After fixing those and a couple other small things, my SAI dropped from $42,800 to $18,200! That's still higher than I expected but WAY more reasonable. Thanks everyone for your help!

Amazing update! So glad you got it sorted out. Those are exactly the kinds of mistakes that trip up so many people - the retirement account double-counting is probably the most common error I see. Your new SAI of $18,200 should definitely open up more aid opportunities, especially for federal grants and subsidized loans. Make sure to keep checking your student aid report over the next few days to confirm everything processed correctly. You should be in much better shape for your financial aid package now!

My daughter went through something similar!!! The financial aid office at her school actually helped create a payment plan for the balance she owed from the previous mistake. Most schools have some kind of option for that. Good luck!

I'm in a very similar boat! I'm 22, work full-time, and pay all my own expenses but still have to file as dependent because I don't meet any of the independence criteria. It's frustrating but I learned the hard way that it's better to follow the rules exactly than risk owing money back. One thing that helped me was scheduling an appointment with my school's financial aid office BEFORE submitting my FAFSA. They walked me through the dependency questions and helped me understand what documents I'd need from my parents. Even though my parents were hesitant about sharing their info, having the financial aid counselor explain why it was necessary made the conversation easier. Also, don't let that old balance at LaGuardia stress you out too much - most schools are willing to work with students on payment plans, especially when the debt was caused by confusion during COVID. Call them and explain what happened. You might be surprised how understanding they can be!

One important thing to remember is that your SAI (Student Aid Index) will be calculated separately for each student, but using the same household financial information. Having two in college simultaneously is actually beneficial because your expected family contribution gets split between them. Make sure both FAFSA applications indicate multiple family members in college - this alone can significantly increase your aid eligibility even without appeals. When you do file those professional judgment appeals, make sure to emphasize that you have two children in college at once. Financial aid officers have considerable discretion, and demonstrating this double financial burden can help your case.

I just went thru this whole mess with my kids. Let me save u some time. FIRST, fill out the FAFSA exactly as required with 2023 info. DON'T try to outsmart the system or they'll flag your app for verification which is a whole other nightmare. THEN immediately email the financial aid departments explaining your situation. Most have specific forms for income adjustments. When my bonus made my income look artificially high, I had to provide: 1) 2022 taxes showing "normal" income 2) 2023 taxes with the bonus 3) Letter from employer confirming one-time nature of bonus 4) Recent pay stubs I got about 60% of schools to adjust our aid. Private schools were MUCH more willing to help than public ones. The state schools basically said "tough luck" while smaller private colleges actually revised everything. Good luck!!

That's such a relief to hear! I'm in a similar situation - submitted my FAFSA in early March and still waiting for my disclosure statement. The waiting is so stressful when you see all these college deadlines approaching. It's good to know that most schools are being understanding about the delays this year. I think I'll follow your lead and call my school's financial aid office tomorrow just to give them a heads up about the delay and see if they have any updates on their end. Thanks for sharing your update - it definitely helps ease some of the anxiety!

I'm in the exact same situation! Submitted my FAFSA about 2.5 weeks ago and still showing "processing" with no disclosure statement yet. This is my first time too and I was getting really worried seeing all these deadlines coming up. Reading through everyone's experiences here is actually really reassuring - sounds like the delays are pretty normal this year with the new system. I'm definitely going to call my school's financial aid office this week to let them know about the delay and make sure I'm not missing anything on my end. Thanks to everyone who shared their timelines and tips, especially about checking email preferences and the possibility of hidden verification issues!