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One more important point: some colleges offer pre-college programs with financial aid! If your student really wants the experience, check out programs like USC Summer Programs or Boston University's high school programs - they offer significant aid to qualifying students. Also look for state-funded programs at public universities which are often 1/3 the cost of the elite private programs while offering similar benefits.
COLLEGES ARE SUCH SCAMS!!!! First they charge these insane summer fees, then crazy application fees, then they give us these confusing financial aid packages that are mostly LOANS not GRANTS!!!! And don't get me started on textbook prices. The whole system is designed to extract as much money from families as possible.
While I understand your frustration, it's important to distinguish between different types of colleges. Many public universities and community colleges offer excellent value and genuine financial aid. The FAFSA is designed to help determine need-based aid eligibility. Those expensive summer programs are optional and not representative of the entire higher education system.
same thing happened with css profile too btw. couldn't add schools for like a week in january. whole systems broken this year
The CSS Profile and FAFSA issues are actually unrelated, though the timing coincidence is unfortunate. The CSS Profile had scheduled maintenance in January that ran longer than expected, while the FAFSA issues stem from the major redesign they implemented this year. But you're right that it's been an extremely challenging financial aid season for students!
it worked!!!! cleared my cache and now i can add schools! adding all 10 right now before something else breaks lol
Just to clarify about deadlines - the FAFSA processing delay doesn't count against your submission deadline. As long as you submit the completed FAFSA by your school's priority deadline, you're fine. The system records your initial parent submission date as the starting timestamp. One other thing to check: make sure your students are using the correct website. For 2025-2026 FAFSA, they need to use studentaid.gov and click on "Complete the FAFSA Form" - not the old fafsa.ed.gov site that some school portals might still link to. Once everything is working, the student portions should take about 20-30 minutes each to complete if they have their tax info ready (if they filed) or their W-2s if they worked but didn't file taxes.
That's such a relief about the deadline! And thanks for the tip about the website - I'm going to send them both the exact link to make sure they're going to the right place. My son worked part-time but didn't file taxes, so he'll need his W-2. My daughter didn't work so hers should be quicker. Fingers crossed we can get this finished this weekend!
Based on the thread, it sounds like you're on the right track now! To summarize the solution: 1. Wait the full 48-72 hours for processing after parent contribution submission 2. Ensure both students have verified their FSA IDs (email and phone) 3. Have students use different devices than what you used for the parent portion 4. Clear browser cache/cookies before attempting login 5. Use studentaid.gov directly One additional tip: For the 2025-2026 FAFSA, the system calculates the Student Aid Index (SAI) which replaced the old EFC. This calculation happens after ALL portions are complete, so don't worry if you don't see an SAI number until everything is submitted. The SAI calculation can take an additional 3-5 business days after final submission. Good luck with finishing both applications!
Thank you for the summary! We're going to follow all these steps this weekend. I didn't know about the SAI replacing the EFC - this is our first time with the new FAFSA system. I'll make sure to tell the kids it might take a few more days to see their aid eligibility after submission. This forum has been so helpful!
I waited through processing last month and it took exactly 4 days. Most schools understand these FAFSA system issues - they deal with them constantly! Just document everything: take screenshots of the processing status and note the dates. Email your financial aid office now to let them know you're waiting on processing so you can make a final correction. They'll usually make a note in your file.
Quick update on your income correction question - a $1,800 difference in student income might not change your SAI significantly, but it's still best to correct it. The student income protection allowance for the 2025-2026 FAFSA is $9,410, and only 50% of income above that is counted. So the impact on your SAI would be approximately $450 (($18,600-$16,800)/2). If processing doesn't complete in time, this is exactly the type of situation where the financial aid office can help with a professional judgment adjustment.
Chris King
see!!! told you it might be an identifier mismatch! exact same thing that happened to me!!! glad it worked out!!!
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Jeremiah Brown
You were exactly right! Thank you again for sharing your experience - it really helped me know what to ask about!
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