Thank you all for these helpful suggestions! I made a list of everything mentioned and my daughter and I will start researching this weekend. She's interested in nursing, so we'll look for healthcare-specific scholarships too. I'm going to check both the CSS Profile and our state education website today. It's such a relief to have a clearer path forward!

nobody mentioned this but some colleges have special scholarships just for international students or first generation immigrants!! my cousin got one that covered half her tuition just for being from vietnam with good grades. def check if the colleges have anything like that

To clarify about California aid portability: Most Cal Grants are NOT portable to out-of-state institutions. However, there are some specific programs and scholarships from California that can be used at out-of-state schools. These are typically merit-based rather than need-based programs. The main benefit of independent status will be in the federal aid calculations (Pell Grant, subsidized loans) and potentially in institutional aid from LSU itself, which will now only consider the student's income and assets, not the parents'.

LSU does offer some scholarships specifically for transfer students, including their Tiger Transfer Scholarship that can provide up to $1,500 per year for qualified out-of-state transfer students. However, these typically have early deadlines and specific GPA requirements (usually 3.5+ for competitive consideration). Regarding your original summer FAFSA question, I'd recommend taking these steps: 1. Log into studentaid.gov and verify the summer school is on her school list 2. Check if the FAFSA shows "processed" rather than "processing" status 3. Contact the summer school's financial aid office directly (they can see if they've received the updated FAFSA) 4. If there's still an issue after 5 business days, consider contacting FSA directly For LSU financial aid questions, their Office of Enrollment Management is the best contact for comprehensive information about costs and potential aid as an out-of-state student with independent status.

That's fantastic advice! I hadn't thought about encouraging them to download that PDF. Do you have any ballpark estimate for how long the complete application should take when done properly? We want to set realistic expectations for our students and parents.

For a student with fairly straightforward finances (W-2 income, standard tax returns), about 45-60 minutes if they have all documents ready. For students with more complex situations (multiple contributors, business income, etc.), it can easily take 1.5-2 hours. That's actual focused work time, not counting gathering documents or waiting for contributor sections to be completed.

Something else to check - make sure the forms you received are actually federal verification forms and not the CSS Profile verification. Some private schools require both FAFSA and CSS Profile, and they each have their own verification processes. The paperwork looks similar but goes to completely different places.

In response to your question about expecting verification next year: Verification selection is partly random and partly based on certain triggers in your application. Having multiple students in college doesn't automatically trigger verification every year, but it does increase the chances. Some tips to reduce verification chances next year: 1. Use the IRS Data Retrieval Tool when filing FAFSA 2. Double-check all figures before submitting 3. File as early as possible 4. Avoid leaving optional fields blank 5. Be consistent with information across all applications However, even with perfect applications, about 30% get selected randomly each year, so there's always a chance you'll need to go through this again.

I've never heard of this program! Just looked it up and it seems like Texas isn't part of the participating states unfortunately. But I wonder if there are other regional agreements I should be looking into?

You're right, I apologize - Texas isn't in WUE. For Texas residents specifically, check if your daughters qualify for any reciprocity agreements between Texas and either Colorado or Arizona. Some academic departments have their own exchange programs even when states don't have formal agreements. Worth asking both financial aid offices about any Texas-specific opportunities.