Missing Pell Grant in financial aid package - should I question if FAFSA was processed?

Your SAI of 7100 should definitely qualify for a small Pell Grant for 2025-2026. The current Pell eligibility cutoff is around 7400 SAI. Even small amounts (like $200-300) should be included in the financial aid package. I'd recommend contacting the school's financial aid office - this could indicate they either didn't receive your FAFSA or there's an error in how they processed it. Schools don't have discretion to just ignore Pell Grants, no matter how small.

we had something like this happen with my son last yr!! the school somehow didnt have our fafsa on file even tho we got the confirmation email that it was submitted. weird thing was they still gave us loans!?! def call them asap

If they gave you other federal aid like subsidized loans, they definitely received your FAFSA. It sounds more like a calculation error on their part. I'd just call and ask specifically about the Pell Grant. Sometimes financial aid award letters have mistakes - happens all the time.

I've been dealing with FAFSA issues for months now and I'm SO DONE with their terrible customer service. Spent literally 6 hours on hold trying to figure out why my daughter's SAI was calculated wrong. When I finally reached someone, they told me I needed to submit additional documentation that was never requested on the portal. FRUSTRATING!

Financial aid counselor here - there is no minimum Pell Grant amount that schools can choose to ignore. If your FAFSA calculation shows Pell eligibility, the school must award it, even if it's only $100. The fact that you're seeing other federal aid (particularly subsidized loans) means they likely did receive your FAFSA, but there might be a processing error specific to the Pell calculation. I recommend calling the financial aid office directly and asking about it. Have your SAI number ready. It could be a simple oversight or there might be a specific issue with your FAFSA that's affecting Pell eligibility but not loan eligibility (like a verification flag on income that hasn't been resolved).

I had this exact problem last year! Turned out the financial aid office had received our FAFSA but their system had some kind of glitch that didn't calculate the Pell Grant properly. Try calling them, but be prepared for a long wait time. It took me 3 days of calling to get through to someone who could help.

If you're struggling to reach the financial aid office or the Federal Student Aid helpline, I recently discovered a service called Claimyr that can help. It basically holds your place in the phone queue and calls you when an agent is available. Saved me hours of hold time when dealing with a similar FAFSA issue. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ

isnt it possible that if the Pell is really small they just gave her more institutional aid to make it simpler? like maybe they just rounded up their own grant to cover what Pell would have been?

sometimes the financial aid package letter doesn't list every tiny detail but the actual account might show it. have you checked her student account online to see if the pell shows up there?

One other thing to check - did you use the 2025-2026 FAFSA or did you accidentally submit the 2024-2025 form? This happens more than you'd think, especially during the transition period between application years. Schools can only award aid based on the FAFSA for the correct award year.

After you get this sorted out, make sure to compare offers from different schools! My daughter's SAI was around 6800 and the Pell Grant amounts varied by school - some gave the exact federal amount while others somehow provided a bit more. Don't assume all financial aid offers are created equal!

I went through something similar with my son's aid package last year! With an SAI of 7100, you should definitely be getting a Pell Grant - even if it's small. The fact that they included federal loans but not Pell is a red flag that something got mixed up in their processing. When you call the financial aid office, I'd suggest asking them to confirm they have your complete FAFSA on file and to walk through how they calculated your daughter's aid eligibility. Sometimes there are verification requirements that can hold up certain types of aid while allowing others to be processed. Don't worry about sounding stupid - this is exactly the kind of question financial aid offices expect and are there to help with!

I'm a financial aid administrator and can confirm that with an SAI of 7100, your daughter should absolutely receive a Pell Grant for 2025-2026. The current maximum SAI for Pell eligibility is around 7400, so you're well within the range. The presence of federal loans in her package actually indicates they DID receive your FAFSA, but there might be a verification hold or processing error specifically affecting the Pell calculation. This can happen when certain data elements need additional review. When you call tomorrow, ask them to pull up your FAFSA and confirm all required verification documents have been received. Also ask them to explain why Pell wasn't included when your SAI qualifies. Don't worry about sounding uninformed - this is exactly what we're here for, and missing Pell Grants are more common than you'd think! To answer your earlier concern - adding the Pell Grant typically shouldn't reduce other aid you've already been offered, especially merit scholarships. Federal aid and institutional aid usually operate independently in packaging decisions.

I'm new to this whole financial aid process, but reading through everyone's responses has been really eye-opening! My daughter is a high school senior and we're just starting to receive aid packages from different schools. Our SAI is similar to yours, and now I'm wondering if I should double-check all her offers to make sure the Pell Grants are included correctly. It sounds like these kinds of processing errors happen more often than I would have expected. Thanks for posting this question - it's helping other families like mine learn what to look out for!

I had a very similar situation last year with my twin daughters! Both had SAIs around 7000 and one school included their small Pell Grants (~$250 each) while another completely left them out. When I called the second school, it turned out they had flagged our FAFSA for income verification but never notified us. Once we submitted the requested tax documents, they updated both aid packages within a week and the Pell Grants appeared. The key thing I learned is that verification issues can create these partial processing situations where some federal aid gets packaged but not others. Definitely call them - in my experience, the financial aid staff were actually grateful when families caught these oversights because it helps them maintain compliance with federal regulations. And don't worry about it affecting other aid - both my daughters kept all their original merit scholarships and institutional grants when the Pell was added.

As someone who works in higher education enrollment, I can add that this type of issue is unfortunately becoming more common with the new FAFSA system this year. There have been numerous processing glitches that affect different types of aid differently. The good news is that once these issues are identified, they're usually resolved pretty quickly by the financial aid office. One thing I'd recommend - when you call, ask them to email you a summary of what was discussed and any next steps. This creates a paper trail and ensures everyone is on the same page about what needs to be corrected. Also, if you don't get a satisfactory resolution from the first person you speak with, don't hesitate to ask to speak with a supervisor. With an SAI of 7100, you're absolutely entitled to that Pell Grant, and they need to make it right. The silver lining is that since this appears to be a processing error rather than an eligibility issue, the fix should be straightforward once they identify what went wrong in their system.

As a newcomer to this community, I'm finding this discussion incredibly valuable! My family is just beginning the college financial aid process, and I had no idea that these kinds of processing errors could happen. Reading through everyone's experiences has really opened my eyes to how important it is to carefully review aid packages and not just assume everything is correct. The advice from the financial aid professionals here about verification holds and partial FAFSA processing is especially enlightening. I'm definitely going to bookmark this thread as a reference when we start receiving aid offers. It's reassuring to know there are knowledgeable people in this community who are willing to share their expertise and help families navigate these complex situations. Thank you to the original poster for asking this question - it's helping so many of us learn what to watch out for!