Divorce impact on FAFSA after Pell Grant awarded - can we get more aid?

Yes, you absolutely can (and should) report your change in circumstances! This is called a "special circumstances appeal" or sometimes a "professional judgment request." You need to contact the financial aid office at your daughter's school directly - not through the FAFSA site. The school has the authority to adjust your FAFSA information based on your divorce. You'll need to provide documentation - likely separation papers, proof of separate households, divorce filing documents, etc. The key is that this goes through the SCHOOL, not federal student aid directly. The school can recalculate your daughter's SAI (Student Aid Index) which might qualify her for additional aid.

my daughter got the pell grant to but we also got offered loans. did they offer u any loans? sometimes schools hold back money and give it to ppl who aks for it. my neices school gave her more $$$ when she called and asked.

When I went through my divorce last year during my son's college application process, I learned that timing is EVERYTHING with FAFSA and divorce. If your divorce is finalized AFTER you submitted the FAFSA, you absolutely need to submit a special circumstances form to the school's financial aid office. When I did this, my son's aid package increased by over $7,000! Schools have a pool of institutional aid they can distribute at their discretion. The financial aid administrators have something called "professional judgment" that allows them to adjust your information. Don't assume the school is withholding aid because your daughter committed - that's actually rarely the case. It's more likely they just need the updated information about your divorce.

schools do this all the time they know u committed so they don't give u money. my cousin works in admissions and says this happens ALL THE TIME. they save the scholarship $$ for kids who might go somewhere else

I went through this EXACT situation last year! The divorce drastically changed our financial picture. Here's what we did: 1. Called the school's financial aid office directly 2. Asked for their "Special Circumstances" or "Change in Financial Circumstances" form 3. Submitted the form with documentation (separation agreement, proof of separate households, etc.) 4. Followed up WEEKLY (this is important!!) It took about 3 weeks to get a response, but they increased my daughter's aid package significantly. The school recalculated our SAI based on just my income instead of both parents. One thing nobody told me - if you're the custodial parent (where your daughter lives more than 50% of the time), only YOUR income will count after the divorce. This made a huge difference for us since my ex made substantially more than me.

I work in financial aid, and I want to clear up a few things: 1. A finalized divorce ABSOLUTELY can impact your daughter's aid eligibility. With a divorce, only the custodial parent's information is considered on the FAFSA. 2. Special circumstances appeals are processed by individual schools. Federal Student Aid (the FAFSA people) won't update your SAI directly - the school makes the adjustment. 3. You'll need to contact the financial aid office and request a "Professional Judgment" or "Special Circumstances" form. Each school has different documentation requirements. 4. Don't just submit the divorce decree - also provide updated income information for the custodial parent, as the aid office will need to recalculate your SAI. 5. The $5,500 Pell Grant amount suggests your current SAI is likely between $0-$3,000. With only one parent's income considered, your SAI could potentially decrease further, which might qualify your daughter for additional institutional aid. The school likely isn't withholding aid because she committed - they just need your updated information to recalculate eligibility.

I tried calling Federal Student Aid when we had a similar situation (job loss, not divorce) and it was IMPOSSIBLE to get through to anyone. Spent hours on hold and got disconnected every time. So frustrating!

On a slightly different note - make sure your daughter also applies for outside scholarships! Even with the divorce adjustment, she might still need more funding. There are TONS of scholarships out there that go unclaimed every year because nobody applies. My daughter got almost $3,500 in random small scholarships ($500-$1000 each) just by applying to like 15 different ones.

One more critical thing - if your divorce isn't finalized yet but you're legally separated, you may still qualify for the adjustment. Each school handles this differently. Some will adjust based on a legal separation, while others require a final divorce decree. Also, timing matters for future years. If your divorce is finalized before you submit next year's FAFSA, you'll only need to include the custodial parent's information on the form from the start - no special appeal needed.

I just wanted to add that you should also ask the financial aid office about the timeline for when any additional aid would be disbursed. In my experience with a special circumstances appeal, the school was able to retroactively apply the additional aid to cover charges that had already been billed for the semester. Also, don't be discouraged if the first person you talk to at the financial aid office seems hesitant - sometimes you need to speak with a supervisor or the financial aid director who has more authority to make these adjustments. Be persistent but polite, and make sure you have all your documentation organized before you call. Good luck with everything! Divorce is stressful enough without worrying about college costs on top of it.

I'm going through a similar situation right now and this thread has been incredibly helpful! My parents separated last year but their divorce won't be final until next month. I'm starting college in the fall and we submitted our FAFSA based on both parents' income, but my mom (who I'll be living with) makes significantly less than my dad. From what I'm reading here, it sounds like I should contact my school's financial aid office even though the divorce isn't technically final yet? We do have legal separation papers. I'm really hoping this could help because right now we're looking at taking out a lot of loans, and my mom is already stressed about the financial situation with everything else going on. Has anyone dealt with this when the parents are separated but not officially divorced yet? I don't want to waste the financial aid office's time if it's too early to make any adjustments.

I just want to echo what others have said about being persistent with the financial aid office! When my sister went through her divorce during my nephew's sophomore year of college, it took three different phone calls before she got connected with someone who really understood the process. The first person told her she'd have to wait until the next academic year to make any changes, which was completely wrong. Also, I'd suggest getting everything in writing once you do speak with someone. Ask them to email you a summary of what documentation they need and what the timeline looks like. That way you have a paper trail and can reference it if you need to follow up. One thing that helped my sister was preparing a brief written summary of the situation before calling - divorce timeline, custody arrangements, income changes, etc. It helped her stay organized during what was obviously a stressful conversation. The financial aid officer actually appreciated having all the key details upfront rather than having to ask a bunch of follow-up questions. Sending you positive thoughts - this is definitely fixable, and it sounds like you're asking all the right questions!

I'm a current college student whose parents went through a divorce during my freshman year, and I can confirm that the special circumstances process absolutely works! A few additional tips from my experience: 1. Ask specifically about "dependency override" if your situation is complex - sometimes this can be more beneficial than just adjusting income 2. If your school has a deadline for these appeals (some do), make sure you're aware of it 3. Keep copies of EVERYTHING you submit - I had to resubmit documents twice because things got lost in their system 4. Consider asking about payment plan options while you wait for the appeal to process The income change from including both parents to just one can be dramatic. In our case, it meant the difference between taking out $15k in loans versus $8k. The financial aid director told me they see these situations frequently and are usually very understanding about family changes beyond your control. Also, don't feel guilty about advocating for yourself - you're dealing with a legitimate change in circumstances that affects your ability to pay for college. The appeals process exists for exactly these situations!

I'm new to this community but dealing with a very similar situation! My parents are getting divorced and I'm starting to realize this could actually help with my financial aid situation. Reading through everyone's experiences here has been incredibly eye-opening - I had no idea that divorce could potentially increase aid eligibility. A few questions for those who have been through this process: 1. When you contacted the financial aid office, did you call or email first? I'm wondering which approach gets a faster response. 2. For those whose aid increased significantly - was this mostly federal aid (like Pell Grant increases) or institutional aid from the school? 3. Did any of you have to provide tax returns from the non-custodial parent even after the divorce adjustment was approved? I'm feeling really overwhelmed trying to navigate college costs on top of everything else happening with my family situation, but this thread is giving me hope that there might be a path forward that doesn't involve massive student loans. Thank you all for sharing your experiences so openly - it really helps to know others have been through this successfully!