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@profile5 - It's not too late to appeal for 2024-25. While some institutional aid might already be allocated, federal aid like Pell Grants can still be adjusted, and schools often hold back some of their own funds for situations like yours. Contact your daughter's financial aid office immediately. One more tip: when documenting income reduction, provide a simple table showing: - Pre-reduction annual income - Post-reduction annual income - Total projected income for the full relevant year This makes it easier for financial aid officers to understand and process your request. Many families just submit documents without clearly showing the bottom-line impact.
This whole system is ridiculous! My daughter just started college and we had to hire a financial aid consultant for $350 just to figure it all out. Even with professional help it took MONTHS to get everything sorted. Good luck with next year's application!!
I used Earnest not ISL but remember if you do go with a private loan DO NOT do variable rates even if they look better at first!!! My friend did that and her payments went up like crazy in year 3. Fixed rate only!!
This is excellent advice. With today's interest rate environment, variable rates are particularly risky. The Federal Reserve has indicated potential rate increases, which would directly impact variable rate loans. Always calculate the maximum potential payment under worst-case scenarios before choosing variable rates.
One important thing to check with any lender is their forbearance and hardship options. Federal loans have excellent protections (income-based repayment, forgiveness options, etc.) that private loans typically don't match. Before choosing ISL or any private lender, carefully review what happens if you face financial difficulty after graduation. Some private lenders offer very limited forbearance periods or few options for financial hardship.
That's a really good point I hadn't considered. I'll definitely look into their hardship policies before making a decision. Any specific terms or red flags I should look for in the loan agreement?
Look for these specific terms in their policy documents: 1. Length of forbearance periods (12 months total is decent) 2. Whether interest capitalizes during forbearance 3. Available repayment plans if you have lower income 4. Discharge options in case of permanent disability 5. Any prepayment penalties Also call their customer service with specific scenarios to see how they respond - that can tell you a lot about their flexibility.
UPDATE: My husband accepted the invite and completed his section yesterday. It was actually pretty quick since most info was already filled in. Her application status briefly changed to
hey random question but did ur husband have to make a separate FSA ID? my stepdad is having trouble with that part
Abigail Spencer
Make sure to ask the financial aid office for the specific signature form they need. Sometimes it's a special institutional verification form rather than going back into the FAFSA itself. Also, take screenshots of both the processed status and the email for your records, just in case there's any dispute later.
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Anita George
•That's excellent advice about screenshots. I'm going to document everything just to be safe. This whole process is so stressful!
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Miles Hammonds
when this happened to my daughter we ignored it thinking it was a mistake since everything showed processed and she ended up having her classes dropped right before the semester started!!! they weren't kidding about needing that signature even though everything else looked fine. don't make our mistake!!!
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Anita George
•Oh no! That's exactly what I'm afraid of. Thanks for the warning - I'm definitely taking care of this ASAP.
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