I'm deeply sorry for your loss, Paige. It's clear you're being an amazing advocate for your brother during such a difficult time. Reading through all the excellent advice shared here, I wanted to add one more practical tip that might help streamline the process. When you prepare that documentation packet (death certificate, divorce decree, etc.), consider creating a simple one-page summary sheet that includes: - Timeline of key events (mom's custodial status during 2023, date of death, FAFSA filing date) - Brief explanation of financial changes since her passing - List of all supporting documents included This summary can help financial aid officers quickly understand your situation and may reduce back-and-forth requests for clarification. Many offices appreciate having the full picture laid out clearly, especially for complex cases like yours. You've received fantastic guidance from this community, and it sounds like you have all the right steps mapped out. Your brother is lucky to have you looking out for him during this challenging process.

I'm so sorry for your loss, Paige. This thread has been incredibly informative and shows what a supportive community this is. As someone new to navigating FAFSA complexities, I'm grateful to see such detailed guidance being shared. Reading through all the advice here, it's clear that you've developed a comprehensive plan and received expert insights from people with real experience in financial aid. The suggestion about creating a documentation summary sheet particularly stood out to me as something that could help any family dealing with unusual circumstances. Your dedication to helping your brother through this process during such a difficult time is truly admirable. Best wishes to both of you as you work through the FAFSA submission and professional judgment review process.

As a newcomer to this community, I want to thank everyone for sharing their experiences with this FAFSA child support reporting issue! I'm currently helping my sister navigate her first application and we were completely confused about this exact question. Reading through all the responses here has been incredibly enlightening - it's now clear that FAFSA requires reporting the TOTAL child support for ALL children, while programs like NYS TAP have different rules. The fact that these programs have conflicting instructions is so frustrating for families trying to do everything correctly. I'm particularly grateful for the information about Professional Judgment appeals. My sister's work situation changed significantly in late 2022 (company downsizing), and we had no idea this option existed to address income changes that happened after tax filing. This could make a real difference for her family's aid eligibility. What really stands out to me is how common these confusions are among divorced parents. It seems like the financial aid system adds extra complexity for families who are already dealing with challenging circumstances. Communities like this are invaluable for getting practical advice from people who've actually been through the process. Thank you all for creating such a supportive space where newcomers can learn from your hard-won experience!

As a newcomer to both this community and the FAFSA process, this thread has been absolutely incredible! I'm currently filling out my first FAFSA and was completely stumped by the child support reporting question. Like so many others here, I receive support for multiple children (three in my case) but only my oldest is heading to college. I was leaning toward reporting just a third of the total amount, thinking it should be proportional to my college-bound student. But after reading all these responses, it's crystal clear that FAFSA wants the FULL amount for ALL children in the household. The direct quotes from the FAFSA instructions really helped clarify this - thank you to everyone who took the time to look that up! I'm also taking notes about the Professional Judgment appeal process since my employment situation changed dramatically in 2023 (switched from full-time to part-time due to caregiving responsibilities for an elderly parent). I had no idea this option existed and it sounds like it could really help families whose circumstances have shifted since tax filing. What strikes me most about this discussion is how common these exact confusions are, especially among single parents trying to navigate the system alone. The fact that FAFSA and state aid programs like TAP have completely different rules just adds unnecessary complexity to an already stressful process. Thank you all for creating such a welcoming space where newcomers can benefit from your collective wisdom and experience!

Hi everyone! I'm brand new to this community and just submitted my FAFSA yesterday. This entire thread has been such a lifesaver - I was completely unaware that communications only go to the student email! I literally thought my parents would be getting all the updates since they're the ones with the financial information. Already forwarded my email to my mom after reading all your advice. It's both reassuring and anxiety-inducing to see processing times ranging from 4 days to 5+ weeks, but at least now I know what's normal. I'm already bookmarking studentaid.gov to check daily instead of just waiting around. Thanks for being such a welcoming and informative community - as a first-generation college student, navigating all this feels overwhelming but you've all made it so much clearer!

Hi everyone! I'm completely new to this community and the FAFSA process. I just submitted my application two days ago and stumbled across this thread while searching for information about processing times. This has been incredibly helpful - I had no idea that only students receive email notifications! I was expecting my parents to get updates since they provided all the tax information. I'm definitely going to set up email forwarding to my mom's account right away based on everyone's advice here. It's both reassuring and nerve-wracking to see such a wide range of processing times, but knowing what to expect really helps manage the anxiety. I've already started checking studentaid.gov daily instead of just waiting for emails. Thanks for creating such a supportive space - as someone navigating this for the first time, having access to real experiences and practical tips makes this whole process feel much less intimidating!

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm a parent going through the exact same situation with my daughter's financial aid for her sophomore year. We've been waiting over 6 weeks since her SAI was calculated and I was starting to panic that something was wrong. Reading about everyone's experiences - especially the transcript matching issues and the importance of asking specific questions - has given me a clear action plan. I'm having my daughter call tomorrow morning with that list of questions from @Isaac Wright, particularly about whether documents have been "received AND processed" since that seems to be where a lot of delays happen. It's both frustrating and reassuring to see how common these delays are this year. The FAFSA changes really seem to have created a lot of bottlenecks in the system. But knowing that persistence and the right questions can help move things along gives me hope we can get this resolved soon. Thanks to everyone for sharing your strategies and experiences. This community support makes such a difference when you're feeling lost in the financial aid maze!

I just wanted to add my perspective as someone who went through this exact same situation last year with my twin daughters. The waiting period between getting your SAI and receiving final aid packages is absolutely nerve-wracking, especially when you're trying to make major financial decisions for the family. What I learned from our experience is that schools often batch process applications, and they don't always communicate their internal timelines well to families. One of my daughters got her package 3 weeks before her twin sister, even though they had identical applications and attended the same school! Turns out the second daughter's file had been flagged for a routine income verification that took an extra few weeks to clear. The key thing that helped us was being proactive about communication. Instead of waiting for updates, we called every few days with specific questions about what was needed and what the next steps were. The squeaky wheel really does get the grease in these situations. For anyone still waiting, don't lose hope - most schools do prioritize getting packages finalized before tuition deadlines, even if it feels like they're cutting it close. But definitely don't wait passively. Keep calling, keep asking specific questions, and don't accept vague "still processing" responses without pushing for more details about what specifically is causing the delay.

This is such valuable information for anyone navigating the FAFSA process! I'm a newcomer here and this thread really highlights how important it is to double-check all the personal information before submitting. It's reassuring to see that FSA can actually fix these issues relatively quickly once you get through to them. @StarSeeker, thanks for sharing your successful resolution - it gives me hope that these bureaucratic hurdles are manageable with persistence. For other newcomers like me, it seems like the main lesson is: if something looks wrong, don't assume the system knows best just because it accepted the information. Trust your instincts and get it corrected early!

This whole thread has been such an education for me as someone just starting the FAFSA journey! I had no clue that date of birth discrepancies could cause such headaches down the line. @StarSeeker, I'm so glad you got this resolved quickly - your experience really shows the importance of being proactive rather than hoping problems will just go away. The fact that the system initially accepted the incorrect DOB but could still cause issues during verification is exactly the kind of gotcha that newcomers like me would never think to watch out for. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences here - this is the kind of real-world advice that's so much more valuable than the generic help articles on the official sites!