As a newcomer to Parent Plus loans, I'm finding this entire thread incredibly valuable! My daughter is starting her sophomore year and I've been struggling with the same questions about how much to request and where excess funds should go. Based on everyone's advice here, I'm planning to: 1. Calculate her exact tuition gap after scholarships/other aid 2. Add about $2,500-3,000 buffer for books, supplies, and unexpected expenses 3. Factor in that 4.2% origination fee (had no idea about this!) 4. Have excess funds come directly to me rather than her - at 8.05% interest, I want oversight of every borrowed dollar 5. Set up a separate savings account just for managing these education funds (love this idea from @Gabriel Ruiz!) The reassurance that I can apply for additional Parent Plus funds mid-year if needed definitely takes some pressure off getting the amount perfect initially. Better to start conservatively and add more if necessary than overborrow and pay interest on unused funds. Thank you all for sharing your experiences - this community is such a lifesaver for navigating these complex financial decisions! It's comforting to know other parents are going through the same learning process.

As a newcomer to Parent Plus loans, this thread has been absolutely invaluable! I'm in a very similar situation - my son is starting his sophomore year and we didn't need loans for freshman year, but costs have increased significantly. Reading through everyone's experiences, I feel much more confident about my approach now. I'm planning to calculate his exact tuition gap, add about $3,000 for books/supplies/emergencies, factor in that 4.2% origination fee I had never heard of before, and definitely have excess funds come to me rather than him for better oversight at these high interest rates. The tip about keeping detailed records throughout the year to refine future borrowing decisions is something I'll absolutely implement. And knowing that I can apply for additional funds mid-year if absolutely necessary takes some of the pressure off getting the amount perfectly right on the first try. One question for those with experience - do you typically apply for Parent Plus loans as soon as they become available for the academic year, or do you wait closer to the semester start date? I'm wondering if there are any advantages to timing the application earlier vs. later in terms of processing or fund availability. Thank you all for creating such a supportive and informative discussion - this community is amazing for navigating these complex financial decisions!

Welcome to the community! I'm also new here and dealing with the exact same FAFSA nightmare. Submitted mine in late February and have been watching those dates change every couple weeks with no explanation. This thread is honestly a lifesaver - I had no idea the changing dates were actually a good sign! I was starting to panic thinking something was wrong with my application. Going to call my school's financial aid office first thing Monday morning after reading all this advice. It's so frustrating that they don't explain any of this in the actual FAFSA system - a simple "your application is being reviewed, date changes are normal" message would save so much stress!

Hi everyone! I'm new to this community and just wanted to say how incredibly helpful this entire thread has been. I'm dealing with the exact same situation - submitted our FAFSA in mid-February and have been watching those "last updated" dates change every few weeks with no clue what it meant. I was honestly starting to panic that we'd made some kind of error or that our application was stuck in limbo. Reading everyone's experiences here, especially the detailed explanation from Nia about what those date changes actually mean, has been such a relief! It's frustrating that the FAFSA system doesn't provide clearer status updates, but at least now I know the changing dates are actually progress indicators rather than something to worry about. I'm definitely going to follow the advice here and contact my daughter's school financial aid office this week to let them know about our situation. Thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences and creating such a supportive space for navigating this stressful process!

I'm having the exact same issue! Been trying to correct my dependency status for over a week now and getting that same "Unable to Complete This Action" error every single time. It's so stressful because I know this could completely change my aid eligibility. I've tried everything - different browsers, clearing cache, different devices, waiting days between attempts - but nothing works. Reading through all these responses is giving me so much hope though! I had absolutely no idea that I could contact my school's financial aid office directly while dealing with this system error. That's such valuable advice! I'm definitely going to email them first thing tomorrow with screenshots of the error and documentation of what I'm trying to correct. I'm also planning to try the early morning approach tonight around 2-3am, plus using incognito mode and disabling my browser extensions like some people suggested. It's both frustrating and comforting to see so many others dealing with this same buggy system. Thank you all for sharing your experiences and solutions - you're keeping me sane during this nightmare process!

I've been lurking in this community for a while but had to create an account to share my experience with this exact same error! I went through this nightmare about 3 weeks ago when trying to correct my school enrollment status. The "Unable to Complete This Action" error drove me absolutely crazy for almost 10 days. What finally worked for me was a combination of the early morning approach (I tried at 2:45am) AND using a completely different device - I switched from my laptop to my phone using cellular data instead of wifi. I know it sounds weird, but sometimes the FAFSA system seems to get "stuck" on certain devices/network combinations. Also wanted to add that when I emailed my financial aid office, they responded within 2 business days and were incredibly understanding about the technical issues. They actually told me they've been getting dozens of similar emails about correction errors and have created a streamlined process to handle them. Don't lose hope - this system is definitely broken but there are ways around it!

As a newcomer to this community and military family dealing with the exact same situation, I want to express my sincere gratitude for this incredibly thorough and informative discussion! My spouse is a disabled veteran and we're currently navigating the FAFSA process for our child who qualifies for military education benefits. This thread has been absolutely invaluable - I was completely planning to report our military benefits as income on the FAFSA before reading everyone's clear explanations about why this is incorrect. The consensus that neither GI Bill nor Chapter 35 benefits should be reported as income has potentially saved us from a major mistake in our SAI calculation. Beyond just the FAFSA guidance, I'm amazed by all the additional resources and strategies shared here - from Yellow Ribbon programs and state veteran dependent benefits to the importance of contacting veteran services offices directly rather than just financial aid departments. The specific mentions of resources like the Student Veterans of America state breakdowns, Military Child Education Coalition scholarships, and the Purple Heart Scholarship program have given me a comprehensive action plan to research. The timeline advice about starting research during junior year and getting VA documentation ready early is also incredibly helpful for planning ahead. What strikes me most is how this thread perfectly illustrates the unique challenges military families face and the incredible value of our community supporting each other through these complex processes that most civilian families never encounter. Thank you to everyone who has shared their expertise and experiences - this is exactly the kind of practical, real-world guidance military families need when navigating education benefits!

As a newcomer to this community and military family in a very similar situation, I want to thank everyone for this incredibly comprehensive and helpful discussion! My husband is also a disabled veteran (Army) and our son will be starting college next year. I was completely confused about how to handle his GI Bill transfer eligibility on the FAFSA and was definitely planning to report it as income before finding this thread. The clear consensus from everyone that neither GI Bill nor Chapter 35 benefits should be reported as income on FAFSA has potentially saved us from a major error in our SAI calculation. Beyond that, I'm amazed by all the additional strategies and resources shared here - from Yellow Ribbon programs and state veteran dependent benefits to the critical advice about contacting veteran services offices directly rather than general financial aid staff. I'm particularly grateful for the specific resources mentioned like the Student Veterans of America state breakdowns, Military Child Education Coalition scholarships, and the Purple Heart Scholarship program. The timeline guidance about starting research during junior year and getting VA documentation ready early is also invaluable since we're still in planning mode. What really strikes me is how this demonstrates the unique challenges military families face that civilian families rarely encounter, and how crucial this kind of peer support is for navigating these complex benefit systems. I'm bookmarking this entire thread as my reference guide and look forward to contributing back to help future military families once we've successfully completed our own journey. Thank you all for creating such a supportive and knowledgeable community!

As someone who just went through the FAFSA process for the first time this year, I can totally relate to your confusion! The whole system feels unnecessarily complicated, especially when you're trying to figure out basic things like when you'll actually receive your money. One thing I learned that might help with your budgeting: even though your award letter shows the total annual amount, it's really helpful to think of it in terms of what you'll actually have available each semester for living expenses. After your school takes out tuition, fees, room and board, you'll get a refund of whatever's left over - but that refund amount might be different each semester depending on your enrollment level and any changes to your living situation. I'd definitely recommend calling your school's financial aid office to ask for a semester-by-semester breakdown. When I called mine, they were able to tell me exactly how much I could expect as a refund each term, which made budgeting for things like textbooks and personal expenses so much easier. Also, don't feel bad about asking "basic" questions - I've learned that even students whose parents went to college often don't understand how financial aid disbursement actually works. We're all figuring this out together! Good luck with everything, and I hope your first semester goes smoothly.

As another newcomer to the financial aid world, this thread has been absolutely incredible! I'm also a first-gen student and had so many of the same questions about disbursement timing. One thing I wanted to add that I learned from my orientation: make sure to check if your school has a "financial aid checklist" or portal where you can track the status of all your aid components. My school has this system where I can see if my FAFSA is processed, if my loans have been certified, if there are any missing documents, etc. It's been really helpful for staying on top of everything and catching any issues early. Also, I just want to echo what others have said about not being afraid to advocate for yourself. I was initially intimidated about calling the financial aid office because I felt like I should already know this stuff, but the counselors I've talked to have been so patient and helpful. They really do expect these kinds of questions from students like us. Freya, thank you for asking this question and starting such an informative discussion! This has honestly been like a crash course in financial aid that I never would have gotten anywhere else. The first-gen community really is amazing at supporting each other through all these confusing systems.