wait i thought fafsa opened october 1st?? did they change it???

Thank you all for the helpful information! I'm going to start working on the FSA IDs today for both of us. I'm also going to make a list of all his potential schools and research their deadlines. So stressed about our income change situation, but at least now I know to contact the schools directly about that. Appreciate all the advice!

UPDATE: I just checked with a colleague in our financial aid office. There's a known system-wide glitch affecting students with any form of work-study income from the previous year. The system is incorrectly counting work-study earnings twice - once as income and once as financial aid received. Since you mentioned your daughter had a campus job, this could be the exact issue. The solution is to file a specific correction form called the "Income Adjustment Request" through her school's financial aid office. Bring documentation showing her work-study income specifically labeled as such. The school can submit this directly to bypass the system lock.

keep us updated on what happens! i'm sure other people will run into the same issue

also check fastweb.com for scholarships! my son got a $2500 one from some random company that literally only had like 30 applicants. most people just dont bother applying to the smaller ones

Don't forget to complete the CSS Profile if Norfolk State requires it. Many private scholarships and institutional aid programs require this additional form. It's more detailed than the FAFSA and can sometimes help identify additional need that the FAFSA's SAI calculation misses. Also, has your daughter received her admission letter only, or a complete financial aid package? Sometimes the initial acceptance doesn't include all potential scholarships - those might come in a separate communication.

my sister ignored that email last year and everything was fine for her freshman year. the fafsa system just sends those out to everyone i think. as long as u did the 24-25 one ur daughter should be good

Just to clarify a common misunderstanding - the 2023-2024 FAFSA covers Summer 2023, Fall 2023, and Spring 2024. The 2024-2025 FAFSA covers Summer 2024, Fall 2024, and Spring 2025. Since your daughter is starting in Fall 2024, she only needs the 2024-2025 form unless she takes summer courses before fall semester. If you're still concerned, you can always call your daughter's college financial aid office directly. They can confirm exactly which forms they need for incoming freshmen.

I just wanted to circle back to your original question about loans not affecting YOUR credit. To be perfectly clear:\n\n• Federal Direct Loans (both subsidized and unsubsidized) are in your SON'S name only and won't affect your credit\n• They don't require a credit check\n• They offer income-based repayment options after graduation\n• They qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness if he works in qualifying jobs\n• They can be consolidated and have fixed interest rates\n\nThese are BY FAR the best option, but unfortunately, they're limited to that $5,500 freshman year amount.\n\nFor everything beyond that, either you take Parent PLUS (in your name, affects your credit) or your son takes private loans (likely needs you as cosigner, which affects your credit).\n\nThere's no perfect solution that meets all your criteria, but I would absolutely max out the Federal Direct Loans first, then consider a combo of payment plans, work-study, and possibly Parent PLUS for the smallest amount possible.

Thank you for breaking this down so clearly! I definitely understand better now. It sounds like we should focus on maximizing all other options (scholarships, payment plans, work-study) to minimize what we need to borrow beyond the Federal Direct Loans. I appreciate everyone's help - this process is so much more complicated than I expected!