When we first got our son's financial aid package, I was so confused because they included $15,000 in Parent PLUS loans as part of the "aid" package! That's not aid - that's DEBT! We decided to only let him accept the direct student loans ($5,500) and grants. We're cash-flowing the rest by selling our second car, taking on extra consulting work, and having him live at home to commute. It's not ideal but I refuse to take on debt at 52 years old that I'll be paying off in retirement. Has anyone successfully appealed their SAI calculation? We had some unusual medical expenses last year that weren't reflected in our tax return.

Wow, congratulations on that aid package! $87k in savings is absolutely life-changing. I totally understand the mixed feelings though - being grateful but also frustrated that we have to feel grateful for "only" paying six figures for education. We're in the thick of this process too with our twin daughters who are high school seniors. After running the FAFSA estimator, I'm already having panic attacks about potentially paying for two kids at once. Even with aid, we're looking at potentially $60k+ per year combined if they both go to our state university. Quick question - did your daughter's merit scholarships come directly from the university or were they external scholarships she applied for separately? We're trying to figure out our scholarship strategy and wondering if we should focus more on school-specific awards or cast a wider net with outside scholarships. The fact that your daughter's grandparents paid $2,500/year in the 70s really puts this in perspective. Even adjusting for inflation, that would be maybe $15k today - still WAY less than current costs. Something is seriously broken when education costs have outpaced inflation by this much.

You're definitely not failing her - navigating college financing is overwhelming for almost every family! One thing that helped us was creating a spreadsheet to map out all four years. We included potential salary increases, the younger sibling starting college (which will lower your SAI significantly), and different loan scenarios. Also, don't forget about tax benefits! The American Opportunity Tax Credit can give you up to $2,500 back per year for qualified education expenses, which effectively reduces your out-of-pocket costs. Since you're waiting on scholarships until June, use this time to research everything mentioned here - the Professional Judgment Request, nursing-specific aid programs, and maybe even reach out to Northeastern's financial aid office to discuss payment plans. Many schools will work with families, especially when the student is in a high-demand field like nursing. You've got options, and it sounds like your daughter chose a program with great career prospects. Take it one step at a time!

I just wanted to add that you should also look into whether Northeastern offers any monthly payment plans! Many schools let you spread that $20k over 10-12 months instead of paying it all at once each semester. This can make it much more manageable from a cash flow perspective. Also, since you mentioned waiting on scholarships until June - don't forget to keep applying for scholarships even after she starts college. There are tons of scholarships specifically for nursing students in their sophomore, junior, and senior years. Some are even easier to get because fewer people know about them or apply. One more tip: if you do end up taking Parent PLUS loans, you can often get a small interest rate discount (usually 0.25%) by setting up automatic payments. Every little bit helps when you're dealing with these amounts over 4 years! You're being such a supportive parent by researching all these options. Your daughter is lucky to have you in her corner figuring this out together.

Update: Rutgers just notified us they received the FAFSA data too! So it looks like things are definitely moving now. Thanks everyone for the helpful advice! I'm feeling much more confident about the timeline now.

Congratulations on getting the notifications from both Montclair and Rutgers! That's great news that things are moving along. I'm still waiting to hear from any of my daughter's schools - we submitted about 2.5 weeks ago. It's reassuring to see that the system is actually working, even if it feels slow. Did you notice any pattern in which schools got your info first, or does it really seem random like others mentioned?

To answer your question about processing time - corrections typically take 3-5 business days to generate a new SAI, which should work with your 3-week deadline. But definitely contact your school tomorrow as others have suggested. And yes, it's absolutely better to correct it now than face potential consequences later. If you're found to have incorrect information during verification or an audit, you could lose aid eligibility, have to repay funds, or even face penalties in severe cases. Being proactive about corrections shows good faith and responsibility.

That's awesome news! It sounds like your financial aid office is really helpful. For future reference, many schools have these special correction forms because they know FAFSA mistakes happen all the time - especially with mid-year income changes like promotions or job switches. The fact that they're giving you 2 weeks buffer beyond their normal deadline shows they understand these situations. Make sure to keep copies of everything you submit, including the correction form and any supporting documentation about your dad's promotion. Good luck with everything!

UPDATE: We figured it out! For anyone facing this issue in the future - the problem was incredibly simple but impossible to guess. My wife's middle name was entered as "Marie" on her Social Security card, but in the FSA ID system it was recorded as just "M" (initial only). Once we tried that variation, everything went through perfectly. Thank you everyone for your suggestions! Special thanks to the person who recommended checking against her SS card formatting - that's what led us to the solution.

Great job troubleshooting this! Your experience highlights exactly why the new FAFSA system can be so frustrating - these minor formatting differences that worked fine in previous years now cause major roadblocks. The fact that your wife's middle name was stored as just "M" instead of "Marie" in the FSA database is a perfect example of how picky the real-time verification has become. I'd definitely recommend that other families screenshot or write down the exact format that works once they get through, because you'll need that same formatting for renewals and any future children going through the process. Thanks for posting the solution - this will help so many other parents who run into the same issue!