Make sure you're looking at the full Cost of Attendance (COA) when evaluating the package. This should include tuition, fees, room, board, books, transportation, and personal expenses. Then subtract all free money (grants, scholarships) to get your net cost. Then decide how much of that you're comfortable covering through savings, income, and loans. Remember that Parent PLUS loans are available but often have higher interest rates than student Direct loans.

@OP - $45K gap is unfortunately pretty common these days especially at private colleges. Have you looked at your in-state public university options? Usually MUCH more affordable. Not worth going into massive debt for undergrad unless it's an Ivy or similar that will actually pay off career-wise. My middle son transferred after freshman year for this exact reason and it saved us about $100K overall.

Here's what we know about the FAFSA batching schedule based on Department of Education communications: - First batch: Late March (mostly completed) - Second batch: Early-mid April (in progress) - Third batch: Late April-early May - Fourth batch: Mid-May through June Schools have no control over which students appear in which batch. However, the Department of Education has instructed colleges to be flexible with decision deadlines this year given the circumstances. If your daughter is set on a particular school but can't make an informed decision without the financial aid package, she should: 1. Request an official deadline extension in writing 2. Ask for a preliminary aid estimate based on direct submission of financial documents 3. Consider paying a small enrollment deposit to hold her spot (many are refundable if requested by June 1) while waiting for final numbers

I went thru this with my son last week!!! His first choice school said they wouldn't get his FAFSA until May but needed decision by May 1! What finally worked was having him email the admissions director (not just the general office) explaining the situation and they gave him until June 15 to decide. Try going straight to the top!

WHY are parents like this?!?! My dad was the same way. FAFSA deadline was LITERALLY the next day and he still hadn't done his part. I had to threaten to make him pay the difference in whatever aid I lost before he finally logged in. Parents have NO IDEA how expensive college actually is or how much these deadlines matter for OUR FUTURE.

UPDATE: I finally got through to my dad! I showed him exactly what he needed to do, made an estimate of how much aid I might lose (about $6000 based on last year's institutional grants), and set up a calendar invite with all his login info included. He completed it last night! Thank you all for your advice - especially about not sending another invitation since that could have reset everything. The application now shows "processing" status. So relieved!

BTW make sure you check EVERYTHING else on the old form too while you're at it. If there's one mistake there could be others! Take it from someone who had to redo their entire verification process because of dumb little errors 😫

For anyone else reading this thread with similar issues - here's a quick checklist for handling demographic corrections on prior year FAFSAs: 1. Submit the correction through studentaid.gov ASAP 2. Notify your school's financial aid office in writing 3. Provide supporting documentation if requested 4. Check if verification is needed (usually only if your SAI changes) 5. Review current year application for accuracy before submitting Most biographical corrections don't impact your aid eligibility, but they're important for proper record-keeping in the federal system.

Has anyone actually received their aid package yet? We submitted in January, got our SAI score three weeks ago, but still no actual aid package from any of the schools. My son's decision deadline is May 1st and we're completely in the dark!

i feel u my scholarship got messed up cuz of fafsa too. ended up having to go to state school instead of private school i wanted. this whole system is trash