FAFSA nightmare finally processing after 3-month battle - what to expect next?

OMG same boat!! been waiting since december 😭 my app was stuck on "needs correction" for like 6 weeks and then when i fixed everything it just said "processing" with no timeline. so frustrating!!!!

Congrats on making progress! In my experience, once the FAFSA reaches the "processing" stage, you're looking at 3-5 business days before your SAI calculation is complete. However, your school won't immediately create a financial aid package after that - they typically need 1-2 weeks to process your information and generate an offer. I recommend contacting your school's financial aid office directly about your housing deposit situation. Many schools will grant extensions when financial aid is pending, especially if you can show them your FAFSA is being processed. Don't wait until the last minute though - reach out to them today.

After the processing stage, make sure you double-check your email (including spam folder) daily. The notification that your SAI is calculated doesn't always come through properly. You should log into studentaid.gov every morning to manually check your status. I'd also suggest calling your specific school's financial aid office directly rather than the federal helpline - they can often tell you if they've received your FAFSA information even before you get the official notification.

my brother went through this exact thing last year!! took him forever to get processed then his school still had him as "missing fafsa" for like 2 more weeks after it was done. you should prob call your school every few days to make sure they actually got it

The whole FAFSA system is a disaster this year. I've been dealing with this mess for my daughter since October when they launched the "simplified" version. What a joke! Three months is actually faster than many people I know. Once it's processing, you're probably looking at another week until your SAI score is calculated, then it depends on your school how quickly they put together your package. Some schools take forever, some are pretty quick. If you need to make a housing decision, call your school's financial aid office ASAP and explain the situation - they might be able to give you a preliminary estimate based on your SAI once it comes through.

I had the exact same problem last month - stuck for weeks then suddenly "processing." Took about 5 days to get my SAI after that. But heads up, you might get selected for verification after processing (I did) which adds another delay. If that happens don't panic just get the documents together quick.

After working in financial aid for years, I can tell you this new FAFSA system has been challenging for everyone. The good news is that once your application shows as "processing," most of the technical hurdles have been cleared. Here's what you can expect: 1. Processing typically takes 3-7 days to generate your SAI (Student Aid Index, previously EFC) 2. Schools generally receive your data 1-3 days after processing completes 3. Each school has their own timeline for creating aid packages, ranging from 1-3 weeks Regarding your housing deposit: Contact your school's financial aid office ASAP. Most institutions have protocols for students awaiting aid decisions - they may offer deposit extensions or even conditional housing agreements pending your financial aid package. Keep detailed records of all communications with both Federal Student Aid and your school's financial aid office during this time.

lol welcome to the fafsa circus! 🎪 took me 2 months just to get my parents tax info to transfer right. the whole thing is broken af

After spending hours on hold with Federal Student Aid trying to resolve similar issues, I finally found a service called Claimyr that helped me get through to an actual person. You can check them out at claimyr.com - they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ Basically, it holds your place in line so you don't have to stay on hold forever. I was able to get through to a representative who helped me track my application status and identify exactly what was holding things up. Saved me days of frustration at a critical time in the process when I needed to make decisions about my enrollment.

While you're waiting for your SAI to be calculated, this is a good time to check with your school about any supplemental forms they might require. Many schools, especially private institutions, require the CSS Profile or their own institutional forms in addition to the FAFSA. Missing these deadlines can limit your institutional aid regardless of your FAFSA status.

Wow, 3 months is absolutely brutal! I'm so sorry you had to go through all that stress. I'm actually in a similar situation right now - my FAFSA has been stuck on "needs correction" for about 6 weeks and I keep getting different error messages every time I try to fix it. The whole system feels completely broken this year. Reading through everyone's responses here is actually really helpful though! I didn't know about checking spam folders or that schools might grant housing deposit extensions. I'm definitely going to call my school's financial aid office tomorrow to see if they can work with me on deadlines while this gets sorted out. Fingers crossed your SAI comes through quickly! Keep us updated on how it goes - it gives the rest of us hope that there's actually light at the end of this tunnel 🤞