FAFSA glitch? Same info, siblings got drastically different SAI scores and aid packages

OMG the exact same thing happened with my kids last year!! One got pell grant and everything, other one got basically nothing. Turns out one of them somehow got marked as independent even tho they're both dependents. Check if the birthdates are different or if one is showing as independent vs dependent. The financial aid office fixed it for us but it took FOREVER.

This is actually pretty common with the new FAFSA system. When you have multiple students from the same household, there can be synchronization issues with how the SAI is calculated. The most likely explanation is that the FAFSA with the negative SAI was automatically corrected by the system after some internal verification, while the other one is stuck in processing limbo with incorrect calculations. You should: 1) Print out both SAI calculations for comparison 2) Contact the financial aid office at the school and explain the situation 3) Ask them to review both packages side by side 4) Request that they apply the correct (lower) SAI to both students The good news is that schools have discretion to adjust packages when there are obvious system errors like this.

lol welcome to fafsa hell. i swear they make this complicated on purpose. try calling student aid directly, they probably messed it up not you.

Financial aid counselor here. This is a known issue with the 2025-2026 FAFSA when multiple students from the same household submit within a short timeframe. The system sometimes fails to properly link contributors across applications. What's happening is that one application correctly calculated your SAI based on all contributors' information, while the other application is either missing data or using incorrect values. The "correction" you mentioned was likely an automated system adjustment after internal verification. You have two options: 1. Contact the school's financial aid office directly. They can perform a professional judgment review to ensure both siblings receive equitable packages based on the correct SAI. 2. Call Federal Student Aid to request a manual review of both applications. They can relink the contributor information properly. I would recommend option #1 first, as schools have significant discretion to adjust packages when system errors are evident. Document everything and provide the school with printouts showing the identical household information on both applications.

just wondering - did u enter their names in the same order on both applications? I heard sometimes the system gets confused if u put contributor 1 and contributor 2, but then switch the order on the second application. not sure if thats ur problem but maybe?

I struggled for WEEKS trying to reach FSA about a similar issue with my kids' applications. The wait times were insane and I kept getting disconnected. Finally, I found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to an agent in about 15 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The agent was able to see that one of my kids' applications had a processing error that was causing the SAI calculation to be way off. They fixed it on the spot and the corrected SAI showed up a few days later. Saved me so much frustration! Might be worth trying if you can't get through on your own.

This is exactly why I hate the FAFSA! You file everything perfectly and still end up with completely different results for kids in the exact same household. This happened to us last year and it turned out one of our FAFSAs had an error code that nobody bothered to tell us about. The whole system is broken and they just expect parents to figure it out themselves. Did you check if both applications have the same number of family members in college? Sometimes that field gets messed up.

Any updates? Did u fix the problem? Im curious cuz we might have same issue next year with my kids

Glad to hear you're making progress! One other thing to check - make sure both applications have the same Asset Protection Allowance. With the new FAFSA formula, this is calculated based on the age of the oldest contributor, and sometimes the system pulls different ages for the same person across applications. A small difference there can dramatically change the SAI calculation.

I'm dealing with something similar right now! My daughter's FAFSA was submitted in February and has been stuck in "processing" for weeks with no SAI calculated, while her friend who applied later already got her aid package. I keep checking studentaid.gov but there's no update or explanation for the delay. It's so frustrating when you submit everything correctly and the system just... doesn't work. Has anyone found a way to get processing unstuck without waiting months? Really hoping your twins' situation gets resolved quickly - it's scary how much these system glitches can impact our kids' college plans.