I had 2 wait for my paper FAFSA 2 process last yr and it was AWFUL!!!! ended up having 2 choose a school with NO idea what aid i would get. TOTAL NIGHTMARE!!!!! I wish id known 2 bug the financial aid offices more like everyone here is saying. tell ur cousin 2 call EVERY DAY until they help her!!!!!

One clarification on my earlier advice: when requesting the professional judgment review, your cousin should specifically mention "special circumstances due to parent citizenship status and FAFSA processing delays" - this terminology will signal to the financial aid office exactly what kind of review she needs. Also, having her bring the following to each financial aid office will help tremendously: 1. Photocopy of the completed paper FAFSA 2. Proof of mailing (receipt if available) 3. Parents' tax returns with SSNs redacted 4. Her own tax information if she worked 5. A written timeline of her attempts to submit electronically and subsequent paper submission This documentation package will give aid administrators what they need to create a provisional aid package while waiting for official processing.

One more thing to try - have your mom create the FSA ID using her phone number for verification instead of email. The text message verification tends to be more reliable. Also, since the deadline is coming up, remember you can submit an incomplete FAFSA to meet the deadline, then go back and update it once your mom's account is working. That way you don't miss any priority deadlines while sorting this out.

Just wanted to follow up - did you get this resolved? I ended up having to call FSA for a similar issue and they were able to manually verify my mom's email. Took about 10 minutes once I actually got an agent.

my brother got extra financial aid by submitting a special circumstances form to his college. not thru fafsa but directly to the school. maybe try that?

One more important thing to understand: FAFSA (federal aid) and institutional aid are different. Even with a high SAI, your daughter might still qualify for: 1. Unsubsidized federal loans (don't require demonstrated need) 2. Merit scholarships from individual schools 3. State grants (which sometimes have different formulas) 4. Institutional need-based aid at private colleges For the private colleges, definitely complete both the FAFSA and CSS Profile. The CSS Profile schools often have more institutional aid available and may have a more holistic review process. They might ask for the non-custodial parent's information regardless, so be prepared. Don't give up hope! Many families in similar situations find options through a combination of different aid sources.

my daughter just went through this whole process last year. biggest advice: START EARLY!! so many of her friends waited till december and missed out on tons of aid. also the css profile is way more detailed than fafsa so leave extra time for that if your kid applies to private schools

To answer your question about the CSS Profile timing - you can complete it anytime after October 1st as well, just like the FAFSA. The College Board administers it (collegeboard.org), and unlike the FAFSA that uses one formula for everyone, each school can customize how they use CSS Profile information. One big difference: CSS Profile considers home equity and retirement assets that FAFSA doesn't. It also asks about expenses like medical costs and elementary/secondary school tuition for other children, which can actually help demonstrate need. There's a fee of about $25 for the first school and $16 for each additional school. And yes, definitely prioritize schools that have earlier financial aid deadlines. Some have December priority deadlines, while others go into February-March.

One thing I always tell the first-gen families I work with: start a dedicated email folder to save ALL communications from the financial aid office. Also, take notes during every phone call with the date, time, and name of who you spoke with. The financial aid process often involves multiple follow-ups, and good documentation will save you headaches later. Also, does your daughter's high school have a college counselor? They often have experience helping families in similar situations and might have school-specific insights about the college she's considering.

Yeah and DONT FORGET to list the correct school codes on your FAFSA!!! This was our biggest mistake. You can list up to 10 schools, so make sure all the places your daughter applied are included. If you need to add more than 10, you can go back later and swap some out. Also, double-check if they need the CSS Profile!! Not all schools require it but if they do and you miss it, you might lose out on institutional aid. The CSS Profile costs money to submit though unlike FAFSA which is free.