FAFSA SAI received for UCSD transfer - What's next for financial aid package?

Congrats on your son's transfer acceptance! Once UCSD has his FAFSA and SAI, they'll prepare a complete financial aid package. The timeline varies, but most transfer students receive their packages within 3-4 weeks after acceptance. The package will detail everything - grants, scholarships, work-study eligibility, and both subsidized/unsubsidized loan amounts. You don't need to do anything else except check the portal regularly and make sure there are no flags for additional verification documents.

my daughter went to ucsd last yr they sent everything by email when it was ready. took about 3 weeks i think. just make sure u accepted the admission officially on the portal thing

The UC system is TERRIBLE with financial aid communication!!! My son transferred to UCLA last year and we waited FOREVER for the aid package (almost 6 weeks!!). When we finally got it, they had classified him wrong and we had to fight to get it fixed. Make sure you call them ASAP if you don't see anything in 3 weeks. Their financial aid office never responds to emails!!!

I work in financial aid at a different UC campus. Here's what's happening: After acceptance, there's a data transfer period where your son's FAFSA info gets fully integrated into UCSD's system. For transfers, they typically batch process aid packages in groups based on acceptance date. The package will show subsidized and unsubsidized loan eligibility plus any grants he qualifies for based on his SAI. If his SAI is below 3000, he may qualify for additional UC grants beyond federal aid. You'll receive both an email and portal notification when it's ready. If you haven't received anything within 4 weeks of acceptance, I'd recommend calling the financial aid office directly.

when my son transferred to berkeley we had same question lol. the award letter came randomly one day in the portal with no email. check both! also the loans are weird - you have to actually accept each loan type separately after you get the package. they dont just give them to you automatically

Been trying to reach financial aid offices at several universities for my daughter and it's been IMPOSSIBLE to get through. Busy signals, disconnects, or being on hold for literally hours. I finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that held my place in line and called me back when an agent was available. Saved me hours of frustration! They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ Might be helpful if you need to actually speak with someone at UCSD financial aid office.

One important thing that no one mentioned yet - check if your son has a separate To-Do list in the UCSD portal. Sometimes they require additional documents for transfers even after FAFSA is processed. Missing these can delay your package. Also, transfer students sometimes qualify for transition scholarships that aren't automatically included in the initial package, so once you get the package, have your son visit the financial aid office in person during orientation to ask about additional opportunities.

also dont forget the housing thing!!! if hes living on campus that deadline is probly soon and it affects the financial aid package amount

One more thing - since your son is a transfer with an SAI around 4500, make sure to have him check if he's eligible for the Middle Class Scholarship (MCS) program. It's not part of the federal FAFSA calculation but is a California program for families with incomes up to $201,000. It won't appear in his initial aid package but is processed separately later in summer. He should automatically be considered if his FAFSA info indicates California residency.

As someone who just went through this process with my daughter's UCSD transfer last year, I wanted to add that the financial aid package timeline can vary quite a bit depending on when your son was accepted. Early acceptances (March/April) typically get packages by late May, while later acceptances might not see them until mid-June. One thing that really helped us was setting up text alerts in the UCSD portal - we got notified immediately when her package was posted rather than constantly checking. Also, don't panic if the initial package looks lower than expected - sometimes work-study allocations and departmental scholarships get added in separate waves throughout the summer. The key is just staying patient during this waiting period since you've done everything correctly on your end!