If you don't pass the credit check for a PLUS loan, you have two options: 1. Get an endorser (similar to a co-signer) 2. Appeal by documenting extenuating circumstances for credit issues If those don't work, there's actually a benefit: your daughter would become eligible for additional unsubsidized direct loans (up to $4,000-$5,000 more per year) since you were denied the PLUS loan. And yes, regarding the loan fee - if you need $10,000 for costs, you'd request about $10,440 to cover the fee that's deducted.

yeah the parent plus loan intrest rate is way higher then the regular student loans. my daughters direct loans are like 5% something and my plus loans are over 8%. wish i knew that before :

btw has anyone gotten their SAI score yet? mine seems super high compared to the old EFC from last year...

UPDATE: I finally got this resolved! I used Claimyr to reach an FSA agent (thanks for that suggestion), and they confirmed my corrected FAFSA was fully processed. They gave me a case number and told me which transaction number the school should be looking for (#03 in my case). I called my school's financial aid office, gave them this info, and they were able to manually pull my corrected FAFSA within a few hours. They said lots of students are having this issue. For anyone else dealing with this - don't wait for the systems to fix themselves, be proactive and contact both FSA and your school directly!

I swear the Department of Education is run by CLOWNS. How do you launch a completely redesigned FAFSA system in JANUARY without basic correction functionality until MARCH?! Students are losing scholarships and housing placements because of these delays! My daughter might have to live off-campus now because on-campus housing priority required financial aid verification by March 1st. Completely UNACCEPTABLE!

UPDATE: I just talked to my daughter's financial aid office and they've been amazing! They're fully aware of the correction delay and are extending their deadline to May 1st. They also said they can process her application with the incorrect SSN for now and update it once we make the correction. Just sharing in case anyone else is in a similar situation - definitely contact your school directly!

Based on your responses to everyone's suggestions, this does sound like a system error that will require FSA intervention to fix. When you do connect with them, make sure to have the following ready: 1. Your FSA ID login information 2. Your son's FSA ID (but not his password) 3. The exact date/time he sent the invitations 4. Confirmation that your husband successfully completed his portion The agent will likely need to manually link your account to your son's FAFSA application. They might also need to send a special invitation link directly to you. Good luck!

UPDATE: Problem solved! I used the Claimyr service that @profile5 recommended to get through to FSA without the long wait. The agent found that there was a system glitch where my FSA ID wasn't properly linking to the invitation even though my email was correct. They had to manually link my account to my son's application. Now I can see and complete my portion! Thanks everyone for your help and suggestions.

One final tip - when you fill out the FAFSA, make sure you list ALL schools your daughter is applying to. You can add up to 20 schools on the application, and all of them will receive her financial aid information. This lets you compare aid packages from different schools before making a final decision.\n\nAlso, don't be afraid to contact financial aid offices directly after you receive offers. If your circumstances change or if another school offers better aid, some institutions will match or improve their offers. They won't tell you this openly, but it's worth asking!

That's super helpful advice! I had no idea you could negotiate with financial aid offices. And the tip about listing all schools will save me from having to figure that out the hard way. Thanks so much!