FAFSA SAI vs. College SAI - CSU Fullerton showing double the amount?
I'm completely baffled right now. Just logged into my daughter's CSU Fullerton student portal to review her financial aid package and noticed something really concerning. The SAI (Student Aid Index) that CSUF is using is over $50,000, but the official SAI we received in our FAFSA email (confirmation #24591) was only around $25K. That's literally DOUBLE what FAFSA calculated! How can there be such a massive discrepancy? This completely changes what aid she qualifies for. Has anyone else experienced this kind of SAI mismatch between FAFSA and their school? I'm planning to call the financial aid office tomorrow, but I'm already stressing about this. If they don't fix it, we're looking at way less aid than expected, and honestly, we can't afford that.
23 comments
Join the conversation
Ethan Moore
Yes, this happened to my son last year! The school was using an older calculation that pulled from a different tax year than what FAFSA was using. When you call, ask them specifically which tax year information they're referencing for their SAI calculation. Also, ask if they pulled your FAFSA information correctly - sometimes there are data transfer errors between systems. Be prepared with your FAFSA confirmation email showing the correct SAI when you call.
0 coins
Aisha Ali
•Thank you! That's really helpful. I'll definitely ask about the tax year. We had some unusual income in 2023 that shouldn't be counted for 2025-2026 aid. I'll have all the paperwork ready when I call.
0 coins
Yuki Nakamura
same thing here!! csu northridge did this 2 us and i was freaking out. took like 2 weeks to get it fixed but they eventually did
0 coins
Aisha Ali
•That's somewhat reassuring. Did you have to provide additional documentation or just explain the situation?
0 coins
StarSurfer
This is unfortunately common with the new FAFSA rollout. Schools are sometimes using their own internal formula that doesn't perfectly align with the federal SAI calculation. When you call CSU Fullerton tomorrow, specifically ask to speak with a financial aid counselor (not just a front desk person) and request a "professional judgment review" of your SAI calculation. Also, make sure you're comparing the same aid years. The FAFSA email should specifically state which academic year (2025-2026) the SAI applies to. Some schools accidentally pull prior year data or calculate differently if you're a transfer student versus a first-year student.
0 coins
Aisha Ali
•I hadn't considered the professional judgment review option. That's really good to know. And yes, I double-checked that both numbers are for 2025-2026. So frustrating that schools can just decide to calculate differently from the federal formula!
0 coins
Carmen Reyes
when i saw this i checked my daughters aid package too (shes at SDSU) and our SAI matches what FAFSA said thank goodness!! maybe its just a fullerton thing?
0 coins
Andre Moreau
•It's not just Fullerton. Many CSU campuses are having issues with the new FAFSA system. I work in admissions at a different campus, and our financial aid office is dealing with dozens of these cases daily. The system integration between Federal Student Aid and the CSU network has been problematic since the FAFSA simplification.
0 coins
Zoe Christodoulou
I had to deal with this EXACT issue with my son's FAFSA last month! The school was showing an SAI of $62k when our FAFSA email clearly showed $29k. I called the Federal Student Aid helpline every day for a week and kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours. Finally, I tried Claimyr (claimyr.com) which got me through to an actual FAFSA agent in under 20 minutes. They confirmed our correct SAI and sent something official to the school. Check out their video demo if you're interested: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The school fixed it within 3 days after getting the official notice. Saved us almost $15k in aid we would have lost!
0 coins
Aisha Ali
•I've never heard of that service before. Did they just connect you directly to a FAFSA agent? I'll check out the video. At this point I'll try anything because I really need this resolved before the deposit deadline.
0 coins
Zoe Christodoulou
•Yes, they connected me to an actual Federal Student Aid agent who could see our full FAFSA record. Having that official confirmation from FSA made all the difference when dealing with the school's financial aid office. The school couldn't argue with the federal numbers once I had that documentation.
0 coins
Jamal Thompson
The FAFSA is a complete disaster this year!!! My daughter's SAI came back $12K HIGHER than last year even though our income went DOWN. None of the calculations make any sense anymore. The financial aid office told me they're "just following federal guidelines" but nobody can actually explain how they calculated the number. The whole system is designed to confuse families and give out less aid!!
0 coins
Andre Moreau
•While the new system has definitely had implementation problems, the calculation itself is actually more transparent now than before. The old EFC formula had more hidden elements. The new SAI calculation is explained in the Federal Student Aid Knowledge Center if you want to double-check their math: studentaid.gov/help-center/answers/article/what-is-sai
0 coins
Ethan Moore
One more thing to check - see if CSU Fullerton is including any institutional aid calculations with the federal SAI. Some schools combine the federal number with their own supplemental calculations for institutional scholarships. Ask specifically for a breakdown of your "federal SAI" versus their "institutional aid index" if applicable.
0 coins
Aisha Ali
•I didn't know they could do that! I'll definitely ask for that breakdown. I just assumed the SAI was a standardized federal number that all schools had to use.
0 coins
Yuki Nakamura
good luck!! financial aid offices r the WORST to deal with i swear they make it complicated on purpose!!
0 coins
StarSurfer
•While it can certainly feel that way, most financial aid officers are actually trying their best to navigate an incredibly complex system with limited resources. The FAFSA simplification was supposed to make things easier, but the implementation had a lot of technical issues. With patience and persistence, these SAI discrepancies can usually be resolved.
0 coins
Aisha Ali
UPDATE: Just got off the phone with CSU Fullerton's financial aid office. After 45 minutes on hold, they told me they're aware of the problem and it's affecting "numerous students." They said it's due to a data transfer error between the Federal Student Aid system and their campus portal. They're working on fixing it but couldn't give me a timeline. They advised me to email them a screenshot of my FAFSA SAI confirmation and they'll "prioritize" my daughter's case. Not feeling very confident right now...
0 coins
Zoe Christodoulou
•That sounds frustratingly vague. Did they at least confirm which SAI they'll be using in the meantime? I'd follow up that phone call with an email summarizing what they told you so you have a paper trail. And definitely send that screenshot they requested ASAP.
0 coins
Aisha Ali
•They said they would use the correct FAFSA SAI once the system is updated, but couldn't tell me when that would be. I've already sent the email with screenshots and asked for confirmation when it's fixed. The waiting game continues...
0 coins
StarSurfer
If you don't hear back within a week, I recommend escalating to the Director of Financial Aid. You can usually find their contact information on the school's directory. Also, be sure to document all communications (dates, names of who you spoke with, what was promised). If multiple follow-ups don't resolve it, contacting your state's higher education agency can sometimes help put pressure on the institution to address the issue promptly.
0 coins
Aisha Ali
•Thank you for this advice. I'll wait until next Friday and then start escalating if nothing changes. Really appreciate everyone's help with this!
0 coins
Jamal Brown
I'm dealing with something similar at my daughter's school! While you're waiting for CSU Fullerton to fix their system issue, you might want to also reach out to your federal congressperson's office. They often have staff who specialize in helping constituents navigate federal aid issues, and they can sometimes get faster responses from Department of Education offices than individual families can. My friend had success with this approach when her son's school was taking too long to resolve a FAFSA verification issue. It's worth a shot while you're waiting on the school's timeline!
0 coins