Got my FAFSA SAI score - confused about next steps before school contacts me

Congratulations on completing your FAFSA and receiving your SAI! The good news is that you don't need to do anything with that number right now. The schools you listed on your FAFSA will automatically receive your information, including your SAI. Each school will use this information, along with their own cost of attendance and available funding, to create a financial aid package for you. Your next steps should be: 1. Check your student portals for each school regularly 2. Keep an eye on your email (including spam/junk folders) 3. Expect financial aid award letters to arrive roughly 2-4 weeks after acceptance letters Regarding your SAI of 4,289 - whether that's "high" depends on your circumstances and the schools you're applying to. Remember that the SAI is not the amount you'll pay; it's just one factor schools use to determine your aid package.

wait for the schools. they'll send you financial aid packges. my daughter got hers about 3 weeks after the admissions letter came. some schools were faster then others

Your SAI is just one factor schools use to determine your aid. Each college will have different available funding and formulas they use to create your financial aid package. Some might offer more grants, others more loans. While you're waiting, I recommend logging into each school's student portal to make sure they don't need additional documentation. Sometimes they require a CSS Profile (different from FAFSA) or other verification documents. Missing these deadlines can reduce your aid! Also, start researching outside scholarships now. The school aid packages won't arrive all at the same time - some might come quickly while others take weeks or even months. I've seen them arrive anywhere from February to April for regular decision applicants.

dont freak out over the SAI number! mine was like 6000 something and i still got decent aid at 2 schools. also got rejected from 1 and waitlisted at the other 2 lol. just wait for the schools to email you - thats what i did and its working out fine

I went through this whole process last year and let me tell you - the waiting is THE WORST. But don't stress too much about your SAI. Every school handles it differently! One thing that helped me was calling each financial aid office about two weeks after I got my acceptance letter. Most were super helpful and could tell me exactly where my aid package was in their process and when to expect it. Some schools were ridiculously hard to reach though - I spent HOURS on hold with one university. I eventually found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to financial aid offices without the endless hold times. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ that shows how it works. Totally saved me when I was trying to reach one particularly difficult school about a verification issue. Just knowing the timeline helped with my anxiety so much!

THE SYSTEM IS SO ANNOYING!! They expect us to just WAIT with no communication! Last year I checked my FAFSA status every single day for TWO MONTHS before my first aid package showed up. And don't get me started on how different each school's aid was - for the EXACT SAME SAI! One private school wanted me to pay $28K/year while another only asked for $16K! MAKE IT MAKE SENSE!!! And half the financial aid offices don't even answer their phones. It's like they WANT us to miss deadlines. 😡 You literally just have to wait and pray that your aid packages come in time for the May 1 decision. The whole system is designed to stress us out.

i get this is stressful but the sai is just a number, my brother and i had almost the same sai but got totally different aid packages from the same school two years apart. financial aid is weird lol

To address your follow-up question about the CSS Profile - about 200 mostly private colleges and universities require it in addition to the FAFSA. You can check if your schools require it by visiting each school's financial aid website or the College Board's CSS Profile page. The CSS Profile is more detailed than the FAFSA and considers assets that FAFSA doesn't (like home equity). It also has a fee, though fee waivers are available for eligible students. If any of your schools require it and you haven't completed it yet, I'd recommend doing so immediately as it could affect your aid package.

To answer your question about how schools use the SAI: Yes, different schools will interpret your SAI differently and offer varying financial aid packages. This happens because: 1. Each school has a different total Cost of Attendance (tuition, fees, housing, etc.) 2. Schools have different financial aid budgets and priorities 3. Some schools meet 100% of demonstrated need, while others meet only a portion 4. The mix of grants vs. loans vs. work-study will vary by institution When comparing offers, look beyond just the total amount to see the breakdown between "free money" (grants/scholarships) and money you'll need to repay (loans). A larger package with mostly loans might not be as good as a smaller package with mostly grants. Also, if your family's financial situation has changed since filing the FAFSA, you can request a professional judgment review from each financial aid office.

Yes, you can absolutely submit the CSS Profile quickly now! While there's no official "rush" option, the College Board typically processes CSS Profiles within 3-5 days of submission. The schools will then receive your information. Make sure to: 1. Contact each school's financial aid office immediately to let them know you're submitting the CSS Profile late 2. Ask if they need any additional documentation 3. Inquire if this delay will impact your aid consideration Many schools have some flexibility with their internal deadlines, especially if you're proactive about communication. Have your tax documents and financial information ready before starting the CSS Profile to make the process faster.

Regarding your question about negotiating aid offers - yes, this is often called "appealing" your financial aid award, and many students do this successfully every year! Some tips for this process: 1. Use the term "appeal" rather than "negotiate" when speaking with financial aid offices 2. Be polite and explain why you need additional assistance 3. Provide specific examples of better offers from similar institutions 4. Document any financial changes not reflected on your FAFSA 5. Follow each school's specific appeal process (some have forms, others want letters) This works best when you can show a significant difference between offers from peer institutions. For example, if two similar private colleges offer very different aid packages, the one with the lower offer might adjust to be more competitive. Just remember that not all schools have flexible aid budgets, particularly state universities with more rigid formulas.