FAFSA timing vs college merit scholarships - will my delay affect my kid's chances?

You're actually fine! Merit scholarships are generally determined independently from need-based financial aid. Most colleges evaluate students for merit scholarships based on their academic achievements, test scores, extracurriculars, and application materials - not your FAFSA submission. Merit decisions are typically made during the admissions process, while need-based aid comes later after your FAFSA/CSS Profile are processed. That said, some schools do have priority deadlines for certain scholarship programs, so it's worth checking each college's financial aid website to confirm. But generally, your FAFSA timing won't affect merit scholarship consideration.

In my experience u should do the FAFSA ASAP cuz some schools give aid on first come first serve!! My kid lost out on some $ last yr because we waited til February.. just sayin

Financial aid professional here. Let me clarify a few things: 1. Merit scholarships are typically determined during the admissions review process and are based on academic criteria, not financial need. These will usually be announced with acceptance letters. 2. Need-based aid requires your FAFSA and/or CSS Profile to be processed first. This package comes separately, sometimes weeks after acceptance. 3. While merit aid decisions don't usually require FAFSA completion, there are important exceptions: - Some schools have separate scholarship applications with deadlines - Some institutional scholarships DO require FAFSA completion - Some merit awards may be increased for students with demonstrated need 4. Regarding timing: The federal FAFSA deadline is June 30, 2025, but colleges have their own priority deadlines, often between January-March. Meeting these priority deadlines is CRITICAL for maximum consideration for institutional funds. 5. About your bank account: FAFSA 2025-26 uses your 2023 tax information, not current bank statements. Your December/January bank balance won't directly impact your SAI calculation.

ohmygosh im in the EXACT same boat!!!! first time mom too and literally everyone keeps telling me different things about when to submit. some of my friends said it doesnt matter for merit but others swear some schools run out of money if you wait??? so confused!!!

I made this mistake with my oldest son. Waited until March to submit FAFSA because I thought merit scholarships were totally separate. Found out later that one school required BOTH admission application AND FAFSA by Feb 1 to be considered for their presidential scholarship!!! He had a 4.0 and 1510 SAT but missed out on $18,000/year because I didn't read the fine print. Every school has different policies - check each financial aid website carefully.

Just sharing my experience with my daughter who's now a sophomore. Most of her merit offers came with the acceptance letters without us having completed FAFSA yet. But then when we did the FAFSA in January, two schools actually increased her merit scholarships! Apparently they had special funds for high-achieving students who also showed financial need. So while FAFSA wasn't required for the initial merit awards, it did boost them at some schools.

Im so DONE with this whole financial aid system!!! Been trying to get someone on the phone at FSA for WEEKS about a FAFSA verification issue that's holding up everything. can't reach a human being no matter when i call. meanwhile schools keep sending us incomplete application notices and threatening to cancel my kid's application if we don't resolve it. HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO FIX IT IF NO ONE WILL TALK TO ME??

To address your January bank account concern - remember that FAFSA for 2025-2026 uses 2023 tax information, not current bank statements. So the timing of submission (December vs January) won't affect what assets are reported. However, CSS Profile does ask about current assets in some cases, so that's something to consider if your schools require CSS Profile.

totally off topic but anyone else think its crazy how complicated they made the new FAFSA?? took me like 3 hours and the website kept crashing lol

Since several people have mentioned timing concerns, here's a general recommendation: 1. Submit your FAFSA as soon as possible, ideally before January 15th to meet most schools' priority deadlines 2. Check each college's financial aid website for specific scholarship deadlines 3. Complete the CSS Profile (if required) by each school's priority deadline 4. If any school has a separate scholarship application, submit that by its deadline Meeting these deadlines will ensure maximum consideration for all types of aid. While your FAFSA delay likely hasn't affected merit scholarship consideration yet, further delays could impact institutional need-based funding at some schools.

Always submit the FAFSA, even if you don't think you'll qualify for need-based aid. Many families are surprised to discover they qualify for some form of aid. Plus, unsubsidized federal student loans (which aren't need-based) require FAFSA completion, and these loans have better terms than private alternatives. Finally, some schools won't consider students for certain merit scholarships without a FAFSA on file, as others have mentioned.

As someone who went through this process last year, I want to echo what others have said about checking each school's specific requirements. My daughter applied to 8 schools and I created a spreadsheet tracking each one's financial aid deadlines, merit scholarship requirements, and whether they needed FAFSA for certain awards. Three schools had merit scholarships that DID require FAFSA completion by specific dates, even though they were technically "merit-based." Also, don't stress too much about the bank account timing - as others mentioned, FAFSA uses prior-prior year tax info. But do get moving on those applications! The peace of mind alone is worth it. And honestly, after going through this whole process, I learned that being organized and meeting deadlines early is one of the few things we parents can actually control in this crazy college admissions game. Good luck to your daughter! The fact that you're asking these questions shows you're being a great advocate for her.

Just wanted to jump in as another parent who went through this last year! I was in the exact same panic mode around this time. Here's what I learned: most merit scholarships truly are separate from FAFSA timing, BUT (and this is important) some schools have "need-aware" merit programs where they give bigger merit awards to students who also demonstrate financial need. So completing your FAFSA could actually help rather than hurt. One thing that really helped me was calling each school's financial aid office directly. I made a list of questions and just worked through it systematically. Most were super helpful and could tell me exactly what their process was. Some said "merit awards come with acceptance letters regardless of FAFSA," others said "we consider all aid together after FAFSA is complete." Also, don't beat yourself up about the timing - you're not alone in feeling overwhelmed by this process! The learning curve is steep but you're asking the right questions now. Your daughter is lucky to have a parent who cares this much about getting it right.

I'm new to this community but going through the exact same stress right now! My son is a senior and I keep second-guessing every decision about timing. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - especially learning that FAFSA uses 2023 tax info, not current bank balances. I had no idea! One thing I wanted to add that might help others: I just discovered that some state aid programs also have early deadlines that are separate from federal FAFSA deadlines. For example, our state's need-based grant program has a March 1st deadline, which is earlier than some of the colleges my son applied to. Might be worth checking your state's education department website too. Thank you to everyone sharing their experiences - it's so reassuring to know we're not alone in feeling overwhelmed by this process!

Coming in as a newcomer to this community and wow, this thread has been incredibly educational! I'm also a first-time college parent (daughter is a senior) and have been paralyzed by all the conflicting advice about FAFSA timing and merit scholarships. Reading through everyone's experiences has really clarified things for me. I had no idea that some merit scholarships could actually be INCREASED after FAFSA completion, or that some schools have "need-aware" merit programs. That's fascinating and definitely changes my strategy! I'm also relieved to learn about the 2023 tax info vs. current bank statements distinction. Like the original poster, I was worried about holiday spending affecting our application, but now I understand that's not how it works for FAFSA. One question I haven't seen addressed yet: for those schools that require both FAFSA AND a separate scholarship application, is there typically a way to check online whether all components have been received? I'm worried about something getting lost in the shuffle and not knowing until it's too late. Thank you to everyone sharing such detailed experiences - this community is amazing! Definitely planning to create that tracking spreadsheet this weekend and start making those phone calls to financial aid offices.

As a newcomer to this community, I just want to say how incredibly helpful this entire thread has been! I'm also a first-time college parent with a senior daughter, and I've been stressing about the exact same FAFSA timing issues. Reading through everyone's experiences has taught me so much - especially that FAFSA uses 2023 tax information rather than current bank balances (what a relief!), and that some merit scholarships can actually be enhanced by demonstrating financial need. I had no idea about "need-aware" merit programs! The advice about creating a tracking spreadsheet and calling each school's financial aid office directly is brilliant. I've been trying to navigate this based on general information and forum posts when I could just get specific answers from the actual schools. One thing I'm curious about: for parents who've been through this process, how far in advance do schools typically notify families about merit scholarship decisions? Are we talking weeks before the May 1st decision deadline, or do some schools wait until much closer to that date? I'm trying to manage my anxiety about waiting for those decisions while also making sure we don't miss any important deadlines in the meantime. Thank you to everyone who's shared their experiences - this community has been more helpful than any official financial aid seminar I've attended!

As a newcomer to this community, I have to say this thread has been absolutely invaluable! I'm also a first-time college parent with a daughter who's a senior, and I've been having the exact same panic about FAFSA timing and merit scholarships. What's been most reassuring is learning that merit scholarships are typically determined during the admissions process based on academic criteria, not FAFSA completion. But I'm definitely taking to heart all the warnings about checking each school's specific requirements - it sounds like there are definitely exceptions where FAFSA completion is required even for merit awards. The distinction between FAFSA using 2023 tax information versus current bank balances was a huge relief to learn! I've been agonizing over the same holiday spending concerns as the original poster. I'm planning to spend this weekend creating that tracking spreadsheet everyone mentioned and calling each of my daughter's schools directly. The idea of getting specific answers from each financial aid office instead of trying to piece together general information is such a game-changer. One quick question for those who've been through this: when you called the financial aid offices, did you find it better to call first thing in the morning, or were there certain times of day when they were more available to answer detailed questions? I want to make sure I'm strategic about when I make those calls! Thank you to everyone for sharing such detailed and helpful experiences. This community is amazing!