What happens after submitting FAFSA? Trying to estimate total college costs

Congrats on submitting the FAFSA! Here's what happens next: Each college your daughter was accepted to will use her SAI score to create a financial aid package. These usually arrive around March-April with acceptance letters, though timing varies by school. The packages will show grants, scholarships, work-study, and loans they're offering. Unfortunately, there's no perfect way to estimate costs until you get those aid packages. Each school has different institutional aid policies even with the same SAI. You could check each school's Net Price Calculator on their website - they're required to have one, and while not perfect, it might give you a rough estimate.

our finanial aid packages came like 2 weeks after my son got accepted! but every shcool is different. the state college sent it fast but the private universities took forever lol. like a month or more

I've been through this 3 times with my kids. After FAFSA, you'll get award letters that will break down everything - grants, scholarships, loans they're offering. That's when you'll actually know the real cost. The SAI is just a number that schools use to determine eligibility for different types of aid. Higher SAI = they expect you to pay more.

You can actually call Federal Student Aid directly to get more information about what your SAI means for potential aid amounts. I wasted hours on hold until I found Claimyr (claimyr.com) - they keep your place in line and call you back when an agent is available. Saved me so much time! They have a demo video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The FSA agent helped me understand what my daughter's aid package might look like before the official letters came.

Financial aid counselor here. Your SAI of 18,542 means your daughter likely won't qualify for Pell Grants (cutoff is typically around 6,000). For your college cost estimates: 1. Each school will subtract your SAI from their Cost of Attendance (tuition, room, board, etc) 2. The remaining amount is your "financial need" 3. Schools try to meet this need with institutional grants, work-study, and loans For a $41,000 school, if your SAI is 18,542, your technical "need" would be $22,458. However, few schools meet 100% of need, and some of what they offer will be loans, not grants. Generally, you should prepare for your actual out-of-pocket cost to be your SAI plus about 25-40% of your "need" amount at most schools.

Thank you all so much for the helpful responses! I feel much better understanding that we need to wait for the award letters but can at least estimate using the SAI as a starting point. I'm definitely going to try that Claimyr service to talk to someone at FSA and get more specific information about what federal aid she'll qualify for. Really appreciate everyone's help!

Also keep in mind that some schools have merit scholarships that aren't need-based! These won't show up in your FAFSA calculations but can significantly reduce your costs. Many colleges automatically consider admitted students for merit aid based on GPA/test scores, while others require separate applications. With your daughter applying to schools ranging from $22k-$41k, the merit aid policies will vary widely. I'd recommend checking each school's scholarship page and calling their financial aid offices directly - sometimes they have deadlines for additional scholarship applications that aren't widely advertised. Good luck with the process!