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my cousin works in finanical aid and she said most schools actyally have all the data they need to make a basic aid package but they wait for everything to be official so they dont have to deal with adjustments later. its all about reducing their workflow not helping students
This is partially true. Many schools can create estimates based on SAI, but final packages require the complete ISIR (Institutional Student Information Record) from the Department of Education. However, in situations like this with significant delays, schools should be willing to provide preliminary estimates. It's not always about reducing workflow - there are compliance considerations too.
UPDATE: Thanks to everyone's advice, we've made progress! All three scholarship organizations agreed to extend their deadlines to May 15th after I sent them news articles about the FAFSA delays and a letter from my daughter's high school counselor. Both universities have also agreed to provide preliminary aid packages by the end of this week. I also tried Claimyr as suggested and got through to the Federal Student Aid office in about 25 minutes. The agent confirmed there was an issue with our FAFSA data transmission to schools and has fixed it. The schools should receive everything within 3-5 business days. This community has been incredibly helpful - thank you all for helping us navigate this stressful situation!
So glad to hear this worked out! Would you mind sharing which articles about the FAFSA delays you sent to the scholarship organizations? My niece is in a similar situation and that documentation could help her too.
Sure! I sent them the Education Department's own press release about the delays from February, plus articles from the Washington Post and Chronicle of Higher Education. I also included screenshots of the Federal Student Aid social media posts acknowledging the widespread issues. The more official-looking documentation, the better!
Sometimes browser issues can cause the "in progress" status to get stuck. Try clearing your cache and cookies, then log back in. Also, try using a different browser altogether - I've had better luck with Chrome than Safari for FAFSA stuff. The new 2025-2026 FAFSA is particularly buggy with its "in progress" vs "submitted" statuses. If you've actually completed everything, sometimes it takes 24-48 hours for the status to update to "submitted" on its own.
YES!! Thank you all SO MUCH for your help! It turned out I had missed the school selection for my second daughter AND needed to e-sign again for both applications. Once I did that, I found the final "Submit FAFSA Now" button on the confirmation page. Both applications now show "submitted" status! Such a relief!!!
Also worth noting that the SAI calculation treats these situations differently than the old EFC formula did. I've noticed that students with parents without SSNs often have higher SAI scores under the new system unless the income documentation is extremely thorough and properly categorized. Make sure your student understands how their SAI is calculated and what it means for their aid eligibility.
I actually co-wrote a guide for Virginia advisors on this exact topic after seeing so many issues with the new system. I'd be happy to email it to you - it includes sample forms, calculation examples, and a timeline of what to expect. Just DM me your professional email address.
The whole setup is BACKWARDS. Schools expect you to commit before you know if you can actually afford to attend. Then they act shocked when students back out or have to take massive loans. I honestly think schools delay aid packages on purpose to force families to commit, knowing some won't back out even if the aid is terrible. Just another symptom of how broken the entire higher education financing system is.
To directly answer your original questions: 1. FAFSA processing (to get your SAI) typically takes 3-7 days, but can take up to 2-3 weeks during peak periods (which we're in right now for 2026-2027 applications). 2. After FAFSA processing, schools need time to create aid packages, which can take anywhere from 1-8 weeks depending on the school. 3. Whether to enroll before seeing aid packages depends on several factors: - How certain you are that you can make it work financially - Whether the enrollment deposit is refundable - If it's your daughter's absolute first choice regardless of aid - If the school allows enrollment deadline extensions I recommend contacting each school's financial aid office directly - they deal with this situation regularly and often have procedures to help families in your position.
Mei Liu
One last suggestion - check if there's a discrepancy between the parent information on the FAFSA and your FSA ID. For example, if your name is "Robert" on your FSA ID but entered as "Bob" on the FAFSA, or if there's even a small spelling difference in your address, the system might not recognize you as the same person who needs to sign. These types of small mismatches are causing a lot of the signature issues this year.
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Jamal Carter
•Update: THIS WAS IT!! Thank you so much! My first name on my FSA ID included my middle initial, but on the FAFSA it didn't. Fixed that discrepancy and the signature button instantly activated. Application is now 100% complete and submitted! Can't believe such a tiny detail caused so much stress.
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Liam O'Sullivan
So glad you got it fixed! Now save screenshots of EVERYTHING including the confirmation number. Trust me on this - with all the glitches this year, having proof of submission with timestamps has saved multiple families I know when their applications mysteriously "disappeared" from the system weeks later.
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