FAFSA dilemma: Filing for one definite college student and one uncertain - will it hurt my junior's aid?

You should definitely include both children on your FAFSA. The Student Aid Index (SAI) calculation actually works in your favor when you have multiple children in college. Your family's expected contribution gets divided among the number of students, so having two students listed would likely INCREASE your older child's aid eligibility, not reduce it. If your younger decides not to attend, you can always update the FAFSA later. Just make sure you list all potential college students - that's the best strategy for maximizing aid.

ABSOLUTELY FILE FOR BOTH OF THEM!!!! I made the mistake of only filing for my oldest and it cost us THOUSANDS. The financial aid office told me later that our EFC (now called SAI) would have been split between both kids if I had just checked the stupid box for my younger son. Even if your youngest isn't 100% sure, include them - there's literally NO DOWNSIDE to listing them both. The system is designed to help families with multiple college students.

my daughter was unsure about college too last year but our financial advisor said to put her on fafsa anyway. she ended up going to community college and got some grants we wouldnt have gotten otherwise. better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it imo

Does anyone know when the FAFSA opens this year? i thought it was supposed to be October 1st but I heard they changed it? Also aren't they getting rid of the sibling discount thing soon? I'm so confused with all the FAFSA changes lately...

I went through this exact situation last year! Filed for both kids, then my younger one decided to take a gap year at the last minute. We had to contact the financial aid office for my older son's school and update our information. There was some paperwork involved but it didn't ultimately affect his aid negatively. The financial aid officer actually told me it was smart to have filed for both initially.

I spent 3 days trying to call Federal Student Aid about this exact question last month and kept getting disconnected or stuck on hold. Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to a live agent in under 20 minutes. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ that shows how it works. The agent confirmed what others are saying - include both students even if one is uncertain. You can always update later if needed, but you want the multiple student benefit calculation from the start. Saved me so much frustration compared to trying to call on my own.

Financial aid professional here. The Student Aid Index (SAI) calculation includes a division factor for multiple students in college. This means your expected family contribution is divided among the number of students enrolled. Including both students will generally result in MORE aid for your current junior, not less. If your younger child ultimately doesn't attend college, you would need to update your FAFSA, but this wouldn't retroactively harm your older child's previous aid disbursements. It might affect future term disbursements, but that's why keeping your information current is important. Strategically, there's no downside to including a potential student who's considering college. The only mistake would be leaving them off if they do decide to attend. Include both children, then update if necessary.

my cousins kid got more money when they had 2 in college then when it was just 1. something about the family contribution being split between them. but idk if thats still how it works with all the fafsa changes lately

Thank you all SO MUCH for the helpful advice! I'm definitely going to include both children on the FAFSA now. I had no idea that having multiple students could actually HELP with financial aid rather than hurt it. I feel much better about the whole situation. I'll make sure to update everything if my youngest decides not to attend college after all, but at least now I know I'm not risking my oldest's aid by including both. This community is amazing!