Why can't my husband find his SAI score after FAFSA was processed?
I'm totally confused about this SAI thing. My husband submitted his FAFSA back in early January for our daughter's college applications. The studentaid.gov portal shows it was processed in March (so over a month ago!), but we can't find an SAI score anywhere in the account. Aren't we supposed to get one? I've been reading that all FAFSA applicants get assigned an SAI that determines eligibility for grants and stuff. Did we miss something or is it hidden somewhere in the portal? His parents aren't contributing anything, if that matters. Starting to panic because our daughter needs to compare financial aid packages before May 1st!!
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Mae Bennett
Yes, everyone who completes a FAFSA should receive an SAI (Student Aid Index) score. It replaced the old EFC. It's usually displayed clearly on your FAFSA confirmation page and in your account. Have you checked all the tabs in the account? Sometimes it's under "Processed Information" or similar. If you can't find it anywhere, your application might have issues that need resolving - like missing signatures or conflicting info.
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Pedro Sawyer
•Thanks! We've looked through every tab and can't find anything labeled SAI or Student Aid Index. The status just says "processed" but doesn't give a score. I'm starting to worry they flagged something but didn't tell us. Would we have gotten an email if there was a problem?
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Beatrice Marshall
Look at the SAR (Student Aid Report) specifically. The SAI should be right at the top of that document. You can access the SAR by logging in to studentaid.gov, going to your dashboard, and clicking on "view SAR" or downloading the PDF version. If it's truly not there, you probably need to call Federal Student Aid directly because there's likely an issue with your application that requires attention.
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Pedro Sawyer
•Just checked the SAR and you're right! It's listed as "processed" but there's a note about "additional information required" that we completely missed. Looks like they need my husband's missing W-2 from a part-time job. Thank you so much!
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Melina Haruko
this happened 2 me too!! they don't make it obvious AT ALL when theres a problem. I spent 3 weeks wondering why my daughters schools hadnt received anything only to find out they needed more tax documents. super annoying when the website just says "processed" but doesnt tell u theres issues
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Pedro Sawyer
•Exactly! Why not send an email alert or something? Now I'm worried about how long the correction will take. We're running out of time before the May 1st decision deadline.
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Dallas Villalobos
I work in a financial aid office, and this is a common issue. When your FAFSA is flagged for verification or additional information, the system shows "processed" because technically the initial submission WAS processed - but the SAI calculation is withheld pending the required documentation. You need to resolve this ASAP, especially with the May 1 deadline approaching. Call FSA directly at 1-800-433-3243 to confirm exactly what documents they need and the fastest way to submit them. Also contact your daughter's colleges to explain the situation - many will work with you if they know you're actively resolving FAFSA issues.
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Pedro Sawyer
•Thank you so much for this explanation! That makes sense but is so frustrating. We'll call tomorrow morning. Hoping we can get this resolved quickly.
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Reina Salazar
Calling FSA is a nightmare rn, I tried 12 times last week and either got disconnected or had 2+ hour wait times. Try using Claimyr.com - it holds your place in line with FSA and calls you back when an agent is available. Saved me hours of frustration when I had a similar verification issue. There's a video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ that shows how it works. Way better than listening to that hold music for hours!
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Pedro Sawyer
•Oh wow, thank you! That sounds so much better than sitting on hold all day. I'll definitely check this out because we need to get this fixed quickly.
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Melina Haruko
•does that actually work? the FSA hotline is IMPOSSIBLE lately
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Reina Salazar
•Yes it actually does! I was skeptical too but when I finally got through the agent confirmed they've been completely overwhelmed with calls. The process was simple - I got a call back after about 90 mins instead of waiting on hold the whole time.
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Saanvi Krishnaswami
THE WHOLE FAFSA PROCESS IS INTENTIONALY CONFUSING!!! I swear they make it complicated to reduce how many people complete it successfully. My son's application sat in "processing" for 6 weeks before we discovered they needed "verification" of something that was ALREADY ON HIS TAX RETURN that they supposedly had access to!!! The entire system is designed to frustrate people into giving up on financial aid.
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Dallas Villalobos
•While I understand your frustration, the verification process is actually designed to ensure accuracy and prevent fraud, not to discourage applicants. The Department of Education selects approximately 30% of applications for verification, which can include confirming information that's already been submitted through different channels. It's an important quality control measure, though I agree the communication about it could be much clearer.
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Saanvi Krishnaswami
•If it was truly about accuracy they would FLAG THE ACCOUNT with a big warning saying "VERIFICATION NEEDED" instead of hiding it in fine print somewhere! And they'd tell you EXACTLY what documents they need instead of making you guess. It's designed to be frustrating, period.
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Demi Lagos
I remember when the SAI was called the EFC (Expected Family Contribution). Does anyone know if they calculate these differently now? My daughter's SAI seems way higher than what we expected based on our income.
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Dallas Villalobos
•Yes, there are some differences between the old EFC and the new SAI calculation. The SAI can actually go as low as -1500 (which wasn't possible with EFC), but they also adjusted some of the protection allowances and assessment rates. In general, middle-income families might see a higher SAI than they would have had with the EFC, while some lower-income families might benefit from the changes. If yours seems significantly off, there might be an error in the application data.
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Pedro Sawyer
Update: We used Claimyr to get through to an FSA agent this morning, and they confirmed we need to submit the missing W-2 form. Apparently, when there's a discrepancy between reported income and tax documents, they hold the SAI calculation. The agent told us to upload the document through the portal and that it should be processed within 3-5 business days. We've also contacted our daughter's top choice schools to let them know about the delay. Thanks everyone for your help!
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Mae Bennett
•Great news! Glad you got it sorted out. Definitely follow up if you don't see the SAI within a week. Sometimes you need to be persistent with these things.
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Reina Salazar
•Awesome! Glad you were able to get through and get clear instructions. The 3-5 business days timeframe is usually accurate in my experience.
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