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also don't forget to check ur email spam folder daily!! my daughters aid notification went to spam and we almost missed a deadline to accept it!!
To answer your question about estimating aid from the SAI - it's complicated. Each school uses the SAI differently based on their funding formulas. Some schools meet 100% of demonstrated need, others only a portion. You can use each school's Net Price Calculator (required on every college website) to get a rough estimate. Just know that these calculators vary in accuracy. If you're trying to plan your budget, I'd recommend assuming the worst case (minimal aid) until you get official offers. Many families are shocked by how different the actual offers can be from school to school, even with the same SAI.
That makes sense. We'll definitely use those Net Price Calculators! I'm hoping for some decent aid packages since we're pretty middle-class and my daughter has strong grades. Fingers crossed that at least a few of these schools come through with something affordable.
Just want to give you some hope - my daughter submitted in January too and randomly got her SAI yesterday with no emails or anything beforehand. The system just updated. Maybe check your account again?
UPDATE: I called FSA this morning using that Claimyr service I mentioned, and the agent was super helpful. Turns out my application was complete but stuck in a processing queue. She manually pushed it through and said my SAI should appear within 3-5 business days! So relieved I didn't wait any longer to call.
Figures that you have to PAY someone just to get the government to do their job! This whole FAFSA system is a JOKE.
does anyone know if adding more schools will change my SAI?? i'm worried that making ANY corrections might mess up my current number which is pretty low
Adding schools won't affect your SAI calculation. Your Student Aid Index is based solely on your financial information and family circumstances, not which schools you select. You can add up to 20 schools total, and it won't impact your aid eligibility at all.
my daugter got a letter from her school saying they received her fafsa today but it was corrected back in march. its all messed up this year lol
March to now? That's almost two months! I really hope ours doesn't take that long. Did they extend her decision deadline because of the delay?
Quick update for everyone in this thread - FSA just released a statement yesterday acknowledging ongoing transmission delays to institutions. They're implementing a system update this weekend that should clear the backlog. If your school still hasn't received your FAFSA by next Wednesday, they recommend submitting a case through the FSA Feedback Center online rather than calling, as the call centers are overwhelmed.
Thank you for sharing this update! That's really helpful information. I'll wait until next Wednesday before submitting a case. Appreciate everyone's help and suggestions!
thx for sharing! just checked and my school FINALLY got our fafsa today!! maybe they started clearing the backlog already??
Logan Chiang
One additional option no one's mentioned - if all else fails with the financial aid office, your daughter could consider taking a gap semester and starting in January instead of August. By then your divorce would be finalized and you could file the FAFSA with just your information as the custodial parent. Not ideal, but better than missing out entirely or taking on excessive loans.
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Emma Olsen
•That's something we may have to consider, but I'm really worried about her athletic scholarship if she defers. I'll ask the coach if that's even possible. Thanks for suggesting this backup plan, though - it's good to think through all options.
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Lucas Lindsey
Have you looked into CSS Profile schools? Some private colleges use the CSS Profile in addition to FAFSA, and it has a non-custodial parent waiver process that's more flexible than FAFSA's rules. If any of the schools she's considering use CSS Profile, you might have better luck getting an exception there.
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Emma Olsen
•Her school does use the CSS Profile! I didn't realize they had different rules. I'll definitely look into the non-custodial parent waiver process. Thank you so much for this suggestion!
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