FAFSA dependent status changing when daughter switches majors - will we lose aid?

Changing majors doesn't affect dependency status on FAFSA. Your daughter remains your dependent until she turns 24, gets married, has dependents of her own, or meets other specific criteria - none of which are related to her major or how long she's in school. What might change is whether she exceeds the maximum timeframe for Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) at her specific school, which could impact continued aid eligibility. Each school sets their own SAP policy, but generally, students can receive aid for 150% of the published program length (so 6 years for a 4-year degree).

my brother changed majors 3 times and still got financial aid lol dont worry about it

THEY DON'T TELL YOU THIS but your daughter changing majors CAN absolutely affect her financial aid!! My son switched from engineering to communications and lost his ENTIRE merit scholarship that was program-specific. The FAFSA itself might not change but school-based aid often has major requirements!!! And good luck getting anyone on the phone to explain ANYTHING. We spent WEEKS trying to reach someone at financial aid only to get disconnected over and over.

I was having similar issues trying to contact financial aid about my son's FAFSA verification. After getting disconnected multiple times, I found this service called Claimyr that got me through to a live person at FSA in about 10 minutes. They essentially hold your place in the phone queue so you don't have to stay on hold forever. I was skeptical but it worked really well - here's their site if you want to check it out: claimyr.com They also have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ Definitely worth it to actually talk to someone about your specific situation rather than trying to piece together information from their vague website.

I think you're confusing a few different things here. FAFSA dependency status has nothing to do with majors or time in school - it's about your daughter's age, marital status, whether she has kids, veteran status, etc. She could be in school for 10 years and still be your dependent for FAFSA purposes if she's under 24. What you SHOULD be concerned about: 1. Program-specific scholarships (like nursing ones) 2. Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements 3. Lifetime eligibility limits for federal aid (Pell Grants have a 12-semester limit) Have her talk to her school's financial aid office BEFORE making any major changes. Get everything in writing about how her specific aid package will be affected.

my daughter changed majors twice and each time we had to fill out sooooo many forms for financial aid office!!! make sure you dont miss any deadlines because they are STRICT about that stuff. we almost lost a semester of aid because we were 2 days late with some stupid form they buried on page 4 of their website. the whole system is designed to confuse parents i swear

To summarize what everyone's saying: 1. FAFSA dependency status won't change due to major changes or extended time in school 2. Federal aid (Pell Grants, Direct Loans) eligibility continues as long as she maintains Satisfactory Academic Progress 3. School and program-specific scholarships may have major requirements and could be affected 4. She should meet with her financial aid office and get written confirmation of how her specific aid package will be impacted 5. There may be additional paperwork required for the major change As long as she's proactive about speaking with financial aid and understanding any scholarship requirements, this shouldn't be a financial disaster. Many students change majors without major aid disruptions.

I went through this exact situation with my son last year! He switched from pre-med to computer science and I was panicking about losing aid. The good news is that federal FAFSA aid (Pell Grant, Direct Loans) stayed exactly the same because dependency status doesn't change based on major or timeline. However, he did lose a $2,500 STEM scholarship that was specifically for pre-med students. My advice: have your daughter email her financial aid advisor directly - I found email got better responses than phone calls. Ask for a written breakdown of which aid components might be affected by the major change. Most schools have a "change of major" checklist that includes financial aid implications. Also, business admin might actually open up NEW scholarship opportunities that weren't available for nursing students, so it could work out in her favor!

I'm in a similar boat with my daughter who's considering switching from education to marketing! Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful. One thing I'd add is to check if her current school has a "major exploration" or academic advising center - ours does and they actually have a financial aid liaison who specializes in helping students understand the aid implications of major changes before they make the switch. They were able to run scenarios showing exactly which scholarships she'd keep vs. lose, and even helped identify new ones she could apply for in her new major. It might be worth asking if your daughter's school has something similar - could save a lot of stress and uncertainty!