Does early commitment hurt FAFSA financial aid offers from dream college?
My son is dead set on attending his first-choice school (it's the only place he applied) and wants to commit right away. Problem is, we haven't received ANY financial aid packages yet - FAFSA was just submitted last week. I'm worried that if he commits early, the school won't offer as much financial aid since they'll know he's attending regardless. Would early commitment before seeing the financial aid package actually hurt our chances at getting better aid? Or am I overthinking this? We definitely need substantial aid to make this work financially. Has anyone had experience with committing early and how it affected their aid package?
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Joy Olmedo
Do. Not. Commit. Early!!! I made this mistake with my daughter last year and we got a TERRIBLE financial aid package. The school knew they had her 100% and gave us the bare minimum. Just wait till u have ALL ur offers then make decision
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Kingston Bellamy
•Oh no, that's exactly what I was worried about! Did you try to negotiate with them after getting the package?
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Joy Olmedo
•We tried but they basically said tough luck, shoudve applied to more schools. Had to take out extra Parent Plus loans to cover the gap. Learn from my mistake!
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Isaiah Cross
Financial aid specialist here. Committing to a college early (before receiving your financial aid package) can absolutely impact your negotiating power, but it doesn't necessarily mean you'll receive less institutional aid automatically. Here are some key points to understand: 1. FAFSA-determined federal aid (Pell Grants, direct loans, etc.) won't be affected by your commitment timing - these are formula-based 2. Institutional aid and merit scholarships are where early commitment could potentially hurt you 3. Schools typically use competing offers as leverage points for additional aid appeals My recommendation: Wait until you receive your SAI score and complete financial aid package before committing. This preserves your ability to compare offers and potentially negotiate. Many schools have May 1st decision deadlines, giving you plenty of time to receive and review packages.
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Kingston Bellamy
•Thank you for such a detailed explanation! I didn't realize the federal aid portions wouldn't be affected. Good to know we have until May to make the decision without losing opportunities.
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Kiara Greene
my dauggter got more $ from her 2nd choice school and we took that info back to her 1st choice. they matched it! always good to have options
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Kingston Bellamy
•That's great to hear! Unfortunately, my son only applied to this one school, so we don't have other offers to leverage. Lesson learned for our younger daughter who'll be applying next year!
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Evelyn Kelly
While I agree with waiting to commit until you see financial aid packages, if this truly is the ONLY school your son applied to, you're in a different situation. You don't have negotiating leverage regardless of when you commit. At this point, focus on making sure your FAFSA is processed correctly. Double-check that your SAI (Student Aid Index) calculation looks accurate when you receive it. If you have special financial circumstances not captured on the FAFSA, prepare documentation for a professional judgment appeal directly with the financial aid office. For those reading who haven't applied yet - ALWAYS apply to multiple schools including some financial safety options!
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Kingston Bellamy
•You make a good point. Since he only applied to one school, I guess our timing doesn't matter as much. We'll focus on making sure our FAFSA is correct. I'm just worried we'll get a low offer and have no alternatives.
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Evelyn Kelly
•That's completely understandable. Make sure to research the school's aid appeal process NOW before you get your package. Be prepared with documentation of any special circumstances, medical expenses, job loss, or other factors that might warrant additional consideration. Having this ready will save valuable time if you need to appeal.
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Paloma Clark
I wasted THREE WEEKS trying to contact the financial aid office after getting a terrible initial offer. Kept calling, emails disappeared into the void, and website errors when submitting the appeal form. Finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to FSA - they connected me within 18 minutes when I'd been trying for days! They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ. Getting through to a human made all the difference in understanding why our SAI was calculated so high and how to properly document our appeal. Don't wait until the last minute to deal with aid issues!
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Heather Tyson
•Do you work for them or something? Seems sus
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Paloma Clark
•No, just a parent who was losing my mind trying to fix our financial aid package. Call waiting times were 3+ hours when I tried on my own. Just sharing what worked after weeks of frustration.
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Raul Neal
Everyone talking bout negotiating and appeals but the reality is most schools give what they give. My son's school didn't budge one penny when we tried to get more aid. The whole system is rigged honestly. FAFSA says we can afford X but there's no way we actually can. Just prepare for disappointment and extra loans, that's my advice after two kids in college.
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Kingston Bellamy
•That's disheartening but I appreciate the realistic perspective. We're definitely preparing for the possibility of taking out more loans than we'd like.
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Isaiah Cross
•While some schools are more rigid than others, approximately 60% of colleges do consider appeals. Success rates vary significantly by institution type - private colleges typically have more flexibility than public universities. The key is understanding each school's specific appeal process and providing substantial documentation.
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Heather Tyson
lol everyone said dont commit early but u literally said he only applied to one school?? what choice do u even have at this point? the question is kinda pointless now
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Kingston Bellamy
•You're right that our options are limited now. I guess I was wondering if the timing of commitment (even to the only school he applied to) could still affect the aid amount they initially offer.
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Kiara Greene
what school is it? some schools are known for better financial aid than others
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Kingston Bellamy
•It's a mid-size private university in the Northeast. I'd rather not name it specifically, but it's not one of the elite schools that meets 100% of demonstrated need.
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Evelyn Kelly
One more important point - even though your son only applied to one school, you still have the option of refusing to enroll if the financial aid package makes attendance impossible. Sometimes the financial aid office needs to understand that you literally cannot attend without additional support. Be prepared to demonstrate this with specific numbers if needed. Also, check if the school has a CSS Profile requirement in addition to FAFSA. Many private universities use both, and missing the CSS Profile could limit your institutional aid substantially.
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Kingston Bellamy
•Thank you for mentioning the CSS Profile! Yes, they do require it and we submitted it last month. And you're right - we do have the option to decline if the numbers just don't work. I hadn't thought about it that way.
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