No Pell Grant with our FAFSA SAI - Need scholarship advice for Norfolk State

congrats on norfolk state!! my son had the same issue last yr with no pell. look into their institutional scholarships ASAP, they have some good ones if her GPA is decent. also check with the academic department for her major, lots of times they have seperate money that isn't listed on the main site

You're in a really common situation unfortunately. That SAI of 6,780 puts you just above the Pell Grant cutoff which was lowered to 6,206 for the 2025-2026 aid year. I work in financial aid at a state university (not Norfolk), and here's what I recommend: 1. Appeal your SAI if you have special circumstances not reflected on FAFSA (medical expenses, job loss, etc) 2. Look into Norfolk's institutional grants - many schools have funds specifically for students in the "gap" between Pell eligibility and actual need 3. Virginia has state grants like the Virginia Guaranteed Assistance Program (VGAP) that your daughter might qualify for 4. Have your daughter check with her high school counselor about local scholarships - these often have less competition than national ones Also, when evaluating the financial aid package, remember to look at the net cost, not just the scholarship amounts. Some schools with higher sticker prices actually end up being more affordable after aid.

If you're having trouble reaching Norfolk State's financial aid office (and you probably will, most aid offices are overwhelmed this time of year), I've had great success with Claimyr. It's a service that gets you through to a real person without waiting on hold for hours. You can check out how it works at claimyr.com or watch their demo: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ I used it when I needed to reach financial aid about my son's verification issue and got through in minutes instead of days. Especially useful for time-sensitive scholarship deadlines.

THE FINANCIAL AID SYSTEM IS RIGGED AGAINST THE MIDDLE CLASS!!!! My daughter didn't qualify for Pell either even though we're STRUGGLING to make ends meet. All because I worked overtime last year to cover basic expenses which pushed our income just over the limit. Now they expect us to magically come up with $15k+ a year for college??? This is why kids are drowning in student loan debt!

I work in admissions at a different university, and here's something many families don't realize: after you receive your initial financial aid package, you can request a comparative review if other similar schools offered better packages. Many universities have a formal or informal matching policy to remain competitive. Also, look into work-study options at Norfolk State. Even if not awarded initially through FAFSA, sometimes schools have institutional work-study funds. These positions often allow for study time while working and connect students with valuable faculty mentors.

my neice goes to norfolk state and she got the provost scholarship after not getting pell. she had to apply separate and needed like 3 letters of recommendation. it covered almost half her tuition!! might be too late for this yr tho, i think deadline was in december

Have you looked into private loans? That's what we ended up doing when my son didn't get enough aid. I know everyone says avoid them, but sometimes you don't have a choice. SoFi gave us a decent rate.

also check fastweb.com for scholarships! my son got a $2500 one from some random company that literally only had like 30 applicants. most people just dont bother applying to the smaller ones

Don't forget to complete the CSS Profile if Norfolk State requires it. Many private scholarships and institutional aid programs require this additional form. It's more detailed than the FAFSA and can sometimes help identify additional need that the FAFSA's SAI calculation misses. Also, has your daughter received her admission letter only, or a complete financial aid package? Sometimes the initial acceptance doesn't include all potential scholarships - those might come in a separate communication.