FAFSA: Can universities offer additional aid when siblings attend same school?

Yes! This is absolutely something you should do! Universities often have specific scholarship programs for families with multiple kids attending at the same time. These are typically called "sibling discounts" or "family grants" and aren't part of federal aid, so they won't show up on your FAFSA results. I've worked in higher education for years, and here's what I recommend: 1. Contact the financial aid office AND the admissions department (sometimes they have separate scholarship pools) 2. Specifically mention that you have twins attending simultaneously 3. Ask if they have institutional scholarships for families with multiple enrolled students 4. Be prepared to provide documentation proving both students are from the same household Many schools offer 10-25% tuition reduction for the second student. Worth asking!

we did this last yr!! got extra $4k per kid when financial aid office realized we had 3 in college same time. but u have to ASK they wont just give it to u

The system is completely RIGGED against families with multiple children! We have 4 kids, 3 in college right now, and our FAFSA EFC was still ridiculously high. The formula basically assumes you can just multiply your contribution infinitely! When I called Student Aid about this, they basically said "too bad." The whole system needs to be torn down and rebuilt from scratch. The new SAI calculation is even WORSE for larger families like ours. 😡

You absolutely need to contact the university directly. FAFSA/SAI calculations are just federal guidelines - individual schools have significant discretion for their institutional aid packages. Here's what worked for my family: 1. Schedule an in-person meeting with a financial aid counselor (much more effective than email) 2. Bring documentation of your total household size and expenses 3. Create a simple spreadsheet showing what percentage of income would go to tuition for both children 4. Specifically ask about sibling discounts, legacy scholarships, and special circumstance adjustments 5. If initially denied, request a formal financial aid appeal process Many universities have specific policies for multiple children from the same family. In our case, we received a 15% reduction for our second child after the appeal.

I struggled for WEEKS trying to get someone at my kids' university to talk to me about our financial aid appeal. Kept getting sent to voicemail or disconnected. Finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to reach an actual person at the financial aid office - they got me through in under 20 minutes! Totally worth it to avoid the runaround. They've got a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ Once I actually spoke to a person, they were able to look at our special circumstances and found two scholarships my twins qualified for that weren't part of the standard FAFSA process.

Just wondering... did u have the kids apply to different schools too? Sometimes u can use competing offers to get more money. My son got way more scholarship $ when I showed his first choice what his second choice offered him lol

To answer your question about timing - I would recommend contacting the financial aid office AFTER your children have been accepted but BEFORE they formally commit/deposit. This gives you some negotiating room before you're fully committed. And definitely start with a phone call to get the process going, then follow up with a formal email or letter documenting your specific situation with the 6 kids and multiple students attending simultaneously. Universities deal with these special circumstances all the time, but they need families to actively advocate for themselves.

my cousin got a special scholarship cuz her brother was already there. they called it a legacy family grant or something. wasn't advertised anywhere on their website had to ask for it

UPDATE: Thank you all SO MUCH for the advice! I called the university's financial aid office this morning and was able to speak with an advisor. She confirmed they do have a sibling discount program that reduces tuition by 20% for the second student when siblings attend simultaneously! This wasn't mentioned anywhere in their initial materials. We need to submit a special form along with our acceptance letters. This will save us about $12,000 per year!! I'm so glad I asked - this makes a huge difference for our family.

Wow, this is such encouraging news! As someone new to navigating college financial aid, I'm amazed at how many "hidden" opportunities exist that aren't clearly advertised. Your success story gives me hope for my own situation - I have twins who will be starting college next year and I had no idea sibling discounts were even a thing. Thank you for sharing the update and for everyone's helpful advice in this thread. I'm definitely going to be more proactive about calling financial aid offices directly rather than just relying on what's posted online. Sometimes you really do have to ask the right questions to get the help you need!

This is such an inspiring thread! I'm also dealing with multiple kids heading to college soon and had no idea about sibling discounts or institutional scholarships beyond what shows up on the FAFSA. Oliver's success story is exactly what I needed to hear - saving $12K per year is absolutely life-changing for families like ours. I'm definitely going to be more proactive about reaching out to financial aid offices directly instead of just accepting the initial aid packages. It's unfortunate that these programs aren't more transparent, but I'm grateful for communities like this where we can share these valuable insights with each other. Thanks everyone for the practical advice and encouragement!

This entire conversation has been incredibly helpful! As someone completely new to the college financial aid process, I had no idea that universities had their own institutional scholarships and sibling discount programs that operate separately from federal aid. Oliver's success in securing a 20% tuition reduction just by making a phone call is amazing - $12,000 per year is a game-changer! I'm planning to have two kids in college within the next few years, so I'm bookmarking all this advice about contacting financial aid offices directly, asking specifically about sibling discounts, and not just accepting the initial FAFSA results. It's frustrating that these programs aren't more widely advertised, but I'm so grateful for communities like this where families can share these valuable insights. Thank you everyone for the practical tips and encouragement - it makes the whole process feel much less intimidating!

This thread has been absolutely invaluable! As someone just starting to navigate the college financial aid maze, I'm blown away by Oliver's success story - saving $12K annually just by making that phone call is incredible! It really highlights how much these "hidden" institutional programs can impact families. I'm taking detailed notes on everyone's advice here, especially about being proactive with financial aid offices and asking specifically about sibling discounts. The fact that these programs exist but aren't clearly advertised is frustrating, but communities like this make such a difference in sharing real-world strategies. I have my own kids approaching college age soon, and now I know to dig deeper beyond just the initial FAFSA results. Thank you all for being so generous with your experiences and practical tips - it's making what felt like an overwhelming process much more manageable!

This whole discussion has been such an eye-opener! As a complete newcomer to the FAFSA and college financial aid world, I had no clue that universities have these separate institutional aid programs that aren't connected to federal aid at all. Oliver's success in getting that 20% sibling discount - saving $12K per year! - just by picking up the phone is absolutely incredible and gives me so much hope. I'm bookmarking this entire thread because the advice here is pure gold. The consistent message about being proactive and calling financial aid offices directly rather than just accepting whatever shows up in your initial package is something I definitely need to remember. It's honestly pretty frustrating that these programs aren't more transparent, but I'm so grateful for communities like this where families share real strategies that actually work. I've got my own kids who'll be heading to college in a couple years, and now I know to ask specifically about sibling discounts, institutional scholarships, and special circumstance appeals. Thank you everyone for being so generous with your experiences - this has transformed my understanding of what's possible in the financial aid process!

This entire thread has been absolutely incredible to read! As someone who's completely new to navigating college financial aid, I had no idea that universities had these separate institutional scholarships and sibling discount programs that work independently from federal aid. Oliver's success story - securing a 20% tuition reduction and saving $12K per year just by making a phone call - is truly inspiring and gives me so much hope for my own family's situation. I'm definitely taking notes on all the practical advice shared here: calling financial aid offices directly instead of just relying on online information, asking specifically about sibling discounts and family grants, and being persistent in advocating for special circumstances. It's honestly frustrating that these programs aren't more transparently advertised, but I'm so grateful for supportive communities like this where families share real strategies that actually work. I have my own kids approaching college age soon, and this discussion has completely transformed my understanding of what's possible beyond just accepting the initial FAFSA results. Thank you everyone for being so generous with your experiences and practical tips - you're making what seemed like an overwhelming process much more manageable for newcomers like me!

This thread has been absolutely amazing to discover as someone brand new to the college financial aid process! I'm honestly shocked that Oliver managed to save $12K per year just by making a phone call - it really shows how many opportunities are out there that families might miss if they don't know to ask. As a newcomer, I had no idea that universities have these separate institutional aid programs beyond federal aid, or that sibling discounts even existed. I'm definitely going to bookmark all the practical advice shared here about calling financial aid offices directly, asking specifically about family grants and sibling programs, and not just accepting the initial FAFSA package. It's frustrating that these programs aren't more openly advertised, but I'm so grateful for communities like this where real families share strategies that actually work. I have kids who will be starting college in the next few years, and this discussion has completely changed my approach to financial aid planning. Instead of just hoping for the best with federal aid, I now know there's a whole world of institutional scholarships and special programs to explore. Thank you everyone for sharing your experiences so generously - you're making this overwhelming process much more manageable for newcomers like me!

This has been such an educational thread to read as someone completely new to the college financial aid world! I'm amazed by Oliver's success story - saving $12K annually just by making that phone call really demonstrates how much is possible when you know the right questions to ask. As a newcomer, I had no idea that universities offered these separate institutional scholarships and sibling discount programs that operate independently from federal aid. I'm definitely taking notes on all the practical strategies shared here: calling financial aid offices directly rather than just relying on what's posted online, asking specifically about family grants and sibling discounts, and being persistent in advocating for special circumstances. It's disappointing that these programs aren't more transparently advertised, but I'm so grateful for supportive communities like this where families share real-world strategies that actually work. My own kids will be approaching college age soon, and this discussion has completely transformed my understanding of the financial aid landscape. Instead of just accepting whatever the initial FAFSA results show, I now know there's a whole world of institutional aid to explore. Thank you everyone for sharing your experiences so generously - you're making what seemed like an impossible financial challenge much more manageable for families like mine!

This thread has been absolutely incredible to read as someone brand new to the FAFSA and college financial aid process! Oliver's success story about securing that 20% sibling discount and saving $12K annually is truly inspiring - it really shows how much families can achieve when they know to advocate for themselves beyond the initial federal aid package. As a complete newcomer, I had no clue that universities have these separate institutional scholarship programs and sibling discounts that aren't advertised prominently. The consistent advice here about calling financial aid offices directly rather than just accepting what's posted online is such valuable insight that I never would have thought of on my own. I'm definitely bookmarking this entire discussion because the practical strategies shared here - asking specifically about family grants, sibling discounts, and special circumstance appeals - are pure gold for families like mine who are just starting to navigate this complex system. It's frustrating that these programs are so hidden, but I'm grateful for communities like this where real families share what actually works. My kids are still a few years away from college, but this conversation has completely changed my approach to financial aid planning. Instead of just hoping federal aid will cover everything, I now know there's a whole world of institutional opportunities to explore. Thank you everyone for being so generous with your experiences - you're making this overwhelming process much more manageable for newcomers like me!