FAFSA shows we need our entire savings for 1 year - how to afford college without depleting retirement?

Omg yes the system is SO BROKE. My family got hit with the same thing - apparently making 90k means we're secretly millionaires according to fafsa 🙄 My brother just went with community college for 2 yrs then transferred. Saved like 30k

The new FAFSA calculation with the Student Aid Index (SAI) has been brutal for middle-income families. A few strategies to consider: 1. Look at schools that offer generous merit scholarships regardless of need 2. Consider the 2+2 route (community college then transfer) 3. Appeal the financial aid offer directly with each school - many have discretionary funds 4. Look at smaller private colleges that might offer better institutional aid 5. Have your daughter research departmental scholarships in her specific major The SAI isn't always accurate in representing your actual ability to pay, especially with your medical expenses. Did you use the special circumstances form to document those ongoing costs?

did u try appealing the fafsa results? my daughter got way more $ after we sent them a letter explaining our situation. also check out fastweb for scholarships there still time

I'm facing the EXACT same situation with my son. Our SAI came back at $29,000 per year when our actual available cash is maybe $8,000 without going into retirement savings. It's INSANE. One thing that's actually helping us - we're using Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to actual FSA agents to discuss an appeal. Normal phone lines had us on hold for 3+ hours before disconnecting, but we got through in 20 minutes with their service. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The agent explained we could file a special circumstances appeal based on medical expenses and inconsistent income. Now we're working with each school's financial aid office separately too. Some have been surprisingly helpful!

Your retirement savings shouldn't be included in the SAI calculation unless you reported them incorrectly. The 2024-2025 FAFSA specifically excludes retirement accounts (401k, IRA, etc.) from asset calculations. Double-check what you entered - you might have accidentally reported retirement assets as regular investments or cash savings. If your SAI is still high after confirming this, look at schools with strong merit aid programs. Many state universities have automatic merit scholarships for students with GPAs above 3.5. With your daughter's 3.8 GPA, she should qualify for several. Also, don't rule out private colleges entirely. Some have huge endowments and can offer better financial packages than state schools, especially for strong students.

THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS A SCAM!!!! They WANT us to take out the loans - it's a trillion dollar industry!!! My cousin's kid ended up with $175,000 in debt for an ENGLISH degree!!! Your instincts are right - do NOT drain your retirement. Your daughter can take loans but you can't take loans for retirement!!! This country is broken when it comes to higher education. In most European countries college is FREE or like $1500 a year. America is designed to keep the middle class struggling.

To answer your question about the special circumstances form - it's actually managed by each individual school, not through FAFSA directly. Contact the financial aid office at each school where your daughter was accepted and ask about their "Professional Judgment Request" or "Special Circumstances Appeal" process. For your situation, you'll want to document: 1. Medical expenses not covered by insurance (provide EOBs) 2. The fluctuating nature of your spouse's sales income (provide past tax returns showing the variation) Most schools have a May or June deadline for these appeals, so you still have time. And yes, departmental scholarships usually require separate applications - have your daughter email the department head or undergraduate coordinator for information.

Thank you all for the incredibly helpful responses! I'm going to: 1. Check if I reported our assets correctly (might have miscategorized something) 2. Contact each school about their Professional Judgment process for our medical expenses 3. Look into departmental scholarships at her preferred engineering program 4. Use Claimyr to actually reach someone at FSA (those hold times were making me crazy) It's still incredibly frustrating that the system puts such a squeeze on middle-income families. My daughter did mention possibly doing her first year at community college and then transferring, though she's worried about missing the "freshman experience." Might be worth the massive savings though. I'll update once we make some progress. Thanks again for all the support and advice!

One more important point - make sure your daughter is applying to a varied set of schools. The most expensive school may actually end up being more affordable if they offer better aid. Also, look into whether her top engineering school participates in "preferential packaging." Some schools will offer much better packages (more grants, fewer loans) to students they really want. With her 3.8 GPA, if she's applying to engineering (especially if she's female), many schools will compete for her. And don't forget to calculate the total 4-year cost with expected annual increases. A school that offers renewable merit scholarships (guaranteed for 4 years as long as she maintains a certain GPA) might be better than one with a slightly lower first-year cost but no guaranteed renewals.

AND ANOTHER THING!!! Has anyone noticed that the new FAFSA changed all the rules about multiple students??? My neighbor has TWINS starting college and under the old system they got a break for having 2 kids in college at once. New system ELIMINATED THAT ENTIRELY!!!! More proof the whole thing is rigged against families!!!! Sorry for yelling I'm just so angry about what they're doing to the middle class in this country.

my sons at college now we just ended up doing parent plus for the gap after his stafford loans. not ideal but what can you do. we figure we'll help him pay them for a few years after graduation. had same issue with fafsa saying we could afford waaaaay more than we actually could.

Update on our appeal process - we just heard back from two schools. Both adjusted our EFC after reviewing our medical documentation, and one offered an additional $7,500 in institutional grants! It's still not enough to cover everything, but it makes a huge difference. The most helpful thing was actually speaking directly with a financial aid counselor rather than just submitting forms. Using Claimyr to get through on the phone made a huge difference in getting actual answers instead of automated responses.