FAFSA implications when applying to multiple colleges mid-year due to lost scholarship

You can absolutely add more schools to his FAFSA without any negative consequences! Schools can't see where else he's applied - they only see that he's submitted FAFSA to their institution. Adding schools won't affect his current aid package either. To add schools: log into studentaid.gov, go to the FAFSA application, select "Make FAFSA Corrections," and add the school codes in the School Selection section. You can have up to 10 schools on the FAFSA at once. Just be aware that if your son transfers mid-year, some scholarships and grants might be prorated or not transferable, so it's good to contact the financial aid offices at potential new schools to understand what might be available for mid-year transfers.

adding schools doesn't affect anything but ur son should probably check with his current school about their probation policy. a lot of schools give a semester of academic probation before actually taking away scholarships. has he talked to his academic advisor? they might have options like grade forgiveness or taking an incomplete instead of failing.

I work in financial aid, and I want to clarify a few things: 1. Schools cannot see other schools on your FAFSA list - this is confidential 2. Adding schools won't impact current aid at all 3. However, if your son transfers mid-year, be aware of these potential issues: - Some schools have limited funds for spring transfers - Credits may not all transfer, affecting progress requirements for aid - SAI (Student Aid Index) calculations stay the same, but institutional aid formulas vary by school - Some scholarships require completing a full academic year at the institution I recommend contacting potential new schools specifically about their mid-year transfer financial aid policies. Sometimes they have separate processes or supplemental forms for transfers.

Has he talked to the professors in the classes where he's struggling? My son was in exactly this spot - about to lose a big scholarship his freshman year. He went to office hours and asked for extra credit opportunities and ended up pulling his GPA up enough to keep the scholarship. Might be worth trying before making transfer plans.

I had to call Federal Student Aid when my daughter was in a similar situation last year - we needed to figure out how mid-year transfers would affect her federal loans and grants. It took FOREVER to reach someone! I kept getting disconnected after waiting for 2+ hours. Finally found this service called Claimyr that connected me to an FSA agent in about 20 minutes. They basically wait on hold for you and call when an agent picks up. Totally worth it. Their site is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The FSA agent explained everything about mid-year transfers and how it affects aid limits. Super helpful to get that direct information.

btw make sure your son submits a transcript request to his current school ASAP!! My roommate got totally screwed because she waited until after finals and then the registrar's office was backed up for WEEKS processing transcript requests and she almost lost her spot at her new school because they didn't get her official transcript in time!!!!

One more thing - check if the new schools will even accept applications this late for spring semester. A lot of schools have already closed their spring transfer application periods. My daughter had to wait until fall because we started looking too late.

THE SYSTEM IS BROKEN!!! My son lost his scholarship under similar circumstances and we couldn't get straight answers from anyone. Each school has different policies, different aid formulas, different transfer credit evaluation processes, EVERYTHING IS DIFFERENT and they make it impossible to compare! And don't get me started on how they expect 18 year olds to maintain perfect GPAs when they're adjusting to living away from home for the first time!!! The entire financial aid system is designed to TRAP families!

something no one mentioned is that sometimes cheaper schools actually end up more expensive? my brother transferred from a private school with a big scholarship to a state school thinking it would be cheaper but he got way less aid at the public school so his out of pocket was higher. make sure u run the actual numbers.

I'm new to this community but going through something similar with my daughter. One thing I learned from our financial aid counselor is to make sure you understand the "Return to Title IV" policy if your son does transfer mid-semester. If he withdraws after completing less than 60% of the semester, he might have to pay back some of the federal aid he's already received. This could create an unexpected financial burden on top of everything else. The school's financial aid office should be able to calculate this for you based on when he would withdraw. Also, some schools have "academic fresh start" programs where students can essentially reset their GPA after a certain period - might be worth asking about if he does transfer to a new school. Wishing you and your son the best during this stressful time!