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Theres actually a glitch in the systm where some applications get stuck in processing but theres actually an error they never tell you about!!! my brother's application was stuck for 6 WEEKS untill we finally got thru to someone who told us there was a mismatch with his birthdate on the Social Security records vs what we entered. check ALL your info carefully and maybe try resubmitting?
Oh no, that's concerning! I'm pretty sure all our info is correct, but I should probably try to reach someone to verify. Did resubmitting reset your place in the queue?
Just a quick follow-up on this thread. The Department of Education announced yesterday they're adding additional staff to process applications. They acknowledged the delays and said they're working to reduce processing time. If you've been waiting more than 4 weeks, I'd recommend trying to contact them directly as there might be an unnotified issue with your application.
UPDATE: Finally got in! For anyone still having issues, I used Claimyr like someone suggested above and got through to an agent in about 15 mins. They confirmed they're having email system problems and helped me get a temporary access code that bypassed the email verification. My application is submitted now! If you're still stuck, definitely try calling through Claimyr or contact your school's financial aid office. Thanks everyone for the help!
omg it worked!! just got off phone with FSA and they fixed my account!! thanks for the claimyr tip, definitely worth it to not sit on hold for hours
The FAFSA system this year is complete garbage. They rushed out all these "simplification" changes without proper testing and now students are paying the price. I've been trying to help my nephew with his application for WEEKS and we keep hitting different errors. The signature page issue is especially bad because it's literally the last step before submission, so you think you're done and then... ERROR. I complained to my congressman about it and surprisingly his office responded saying they've received hundreds of similar complaints and are pressuring the Department of Education to extend all financial aid deadlines this year. Maybe we should all be contacting our representatives about this disaster.
That's actually a great idea. I hadn't thought about contacting our representative, but you're right - this is a systemic issue that's affecting so many students. I'm going to do that tomorrow. Can't hurt to add another voice to the complaints!
UPDATE: Finally got it to work! After trying basically everything suggested here, what finally worked was: 1. Using Microsoft Edge in InPrivate mode (thanks to the financial aid advisor who suggested this!) 2. Turning off my ad blocker (great tip from the parent who mentioned popup blockers) 3. Doing it at 5:30am when the system wasn't busy We got all the way through and have our confirmation email! Our SAI score was immediately available too. Now I'm going to help my daughter email her schools to explain the delay just to be safe. Thank you all so much for your help - I was seriously ready to throw my computer out the window!
Excellent news! I'm glad you got it resolved. That 5:30am timing definitely helps with the FAFSA system performance. Smart move to still contact the schools - it's always good to document these situations even after they're resolved.
Just to add - don't forget that the Parent PLUS loan is also an option if the financial aid packages don't cover enough. That's what we ended up doing to fill the gap. It's not ideal because the interest rates aren't great, but it's there if you need it.
Thank you everyone for your helpful responses! I feel so much better now understanding that this is just the federal portion and not the complete aid package. We'll wait for the schools to send their financial aid offers before making any decisions. One more question - if one school offers significantly less aid than another, is it possible to ask them to match the better offer? I've heard some people have success with this approach but wasn't sure if it's common practice.
Yes, this is called a financial aid appeal or professional judgment review. If you receive a significantly better offer from a comparable institution, you can absolutely contact your preferred school's financial aid office and ask if they can reconsider their offer based on the competing offer. Be prepared to provide documentation of the better offer. Many schools have formal appeal processes, and success rates vary by institution. It's always worth trying, especially if your preferred school is similar in standing to the one that gave the better offer.
Javier Morales
My daughter is going thru the exact same thing right now!!! She submitted last week and her roommate already got the confirmation but she's still waiting. Makes no sense how they process these things. The financial aid world is so confusing for us parents. When I went to college we didn't have all this complicated SAI stuff. Just simpler times I guess.
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TechNinja
•ok but SAI is literally just the new name for EFC (expected family contribution)... its the same thing they've had for decades lol
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Lena Müller
Just checking back - did you ever get your confirmation number? If not, you should definitely call FSA directly at this point.
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Raj Gupta
•Yes! Finally got it this morning - took exactly 7 business days. My SAI is higher than I expected though, so now I'm worried about how much aid I'll actually get. Might need to start a new thread about that... But thanks everyone for the help with this issue!
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